Dynaudio Confidence C1: Mk I vs. Mk II w/ McIntosh
 

Hey gang,

Boy, the creation of the Dynaudio forum couldn't have come at a better time. I have been reading reviews of the C1 and I am very intrigued. Of course, the reviews are regarding the original iteration, mostly professional reviews when it made the circuit back in 2007 or so.

It looks like this is one heck of a performer.

Might be a nice change of pace for my system.


Looking for some advice from those in the know. Will these play nicely with McIntosh? I can feed them with 2102 tube watts or 402 solid state.

Ok in small room, 12 x 11 x 9 ft?

And finally, Mk I used or Mk II? Anybody heard both? The reviews simply gushed about the originals, so probably can't go wrong there but maybe the new ones are worth the extra dough.

I haven't heard these speakers myself so there in lies an obvious problem but based on all I have read and having owned a set of dynaudio car audio speakers I have an idea of what to expect.

I know of a authorized dealer demonstration pair Mk I for a good price that is REALLY tempting me sight unseen/unheard. If I don't like em in my own system, I could send em back after a trial run. If I love em, will the thought of the Mk II haunt me??

If the Mk II are significantly better I suppose I would be better off going that route in the long run although waiting through the 300 hrs break in I have read about doesn't sound fun.

Thanks in advance.


Jason

The originals were fantastics and the MkIIs are better, a new coating on the Esotar2 tweeter, and improvements in the crossover. From what I've heard the improvements are notable, but not revolutionary. Also have heard that they run in a skosh faster (Dyns need a good 300 hours to run in and that is no bull...). Dynaudio does not make changes unless they are meaningful, but that being said, the MkII series is an evolutionary improvement, not a revolutionary one. They play nicely with a wide range of gear, including tube and SS. A lot of folks for a long time felt that they really needed the oomph from big SS amps, and liked pairing them with Simaudio, but they mate beautifully with tubes. HKVal and Dynero both use the larger floorstanders with McIntosh gear and are very happy with them. I pair my Contour S3.4 with C-J tube gear and am extremely happy with the results. Either amp you mention should provide more than enough power for them.

Either way, the original or the new versions, you cannnot go wrong. The Stereophile review by Wes Phillips in 2007 was very good, IMO.

The C1s have been very favorably compared in performance to the $25,000 Magico Minis, and some that have heard both say that the C1s are better. This is not surprising as Dyns are well-known to compete with speakers costing 3-4X their price tier.

+1
C1s and Special 25s are two of the best monitor speakers I have heard in the last 15 years.

If the price for the Mk I is really a good one, I'd say go for it. The Mk II should be better based on what people say, but if you get the older model for, say, half the price considering the Mk IIs cost more than Mk Is to begin with, then to me it would be a no-brainer. And if the price really is good, and you get to test Mk IIs later on, you can probably sell the Mk Is later with little if any value degradation.

I owned the original C1s for years and loved them. I sold my Special 25s to make the switch. The C1 is a great speaker, probably the best Dyn makes for the money. I only sold to move up to the Sapphire after the MKII models were announced. I had the floorstander itch.

My room is about 23' x 15' x 8 1/2', and I used a Simaudio I-7, then Bel Canto ref1000s, and then a Simaudio W-7 to drive them.

But I originally heard them with McIntosh SS gear at a dealer demo, and they sounded great, so if you like the Dyn sound, you should be fine with your Mac gear. The C1s aren't very efficient, so I think they'll probably sound better with your 402 vs. your 2102.

I've only heard the MKIIs briefly at a show, so I'm afraid I can't comment meaningfully on any differences.

Thanks for the input guys! Very helpful. Still trying to decide if I pull the trigger

Having owned the c2 for over 4 years, I can attest to the excellence of the confidence line of speakers. However, having likewise lived with both the Sonus Faber Guarneri Homage and the Magico Mini, I respectfully submit that the c1 cannot match either of the 2 more expensive monitors. The Guarneri and the Mini are more open, clearer and simply offer more performance all around, as they should at their higher selling price. But at under 10k, I agree that the c1 is tough to beat though it faces stiff competition against the latest version of the B&W 805 which now sports a diamond tweeter and the Focal Electra with it's Berrylium tweeter.

Well, the C1 was $7,000 (the MKII is $8,000) and the Mini II with stands was $30,000, so I personally wouldn't compare one to the other when shopping monitor speakers. One might as well compare a Honda CR-V to a Porsche Cayenne Turbo S -- both great cars, but in two completely different worlds.

And the Homage was introduced in 1994, so I'm not sure that would be a valid comparison either, although I think it was a very good speaker at the time.

As far as Magico generally, I'm curious about the Q1, although I haven't heard it yet. And it will have to be a lot better than the new S5 since they're almost the same price. But I've found the Q3 and Q5 to be very uninvolving, at least to my ears, so I'm afraid the latest speakers will be similar.

I've heard the Focal monitor and wasn't impressed. I do think they have a very good speaker in the 1038be, and the 1028be is close in performance, and might be a better value than the Dyn C1 MKII at about the same price. It depends on what the OP wants for his room -- monitor or floorstander.

I mention the focals only because they are in this price range but I'm not particularly fond of it's house sound. Another strong competitor to the C1, IMO, would be the Harbeth SLh5 and the compact 7, both of which are cheaper but not as sexy from a physical standpoint.

I was in the same position as j3brow a few weeks back. I had a pair of Audience 72se in a similarly sized room and had been wanting to upgrade to the C1. I came across a used pair (plus the matching stands) in like-new condition for less than half the price of the new C1 and grabbed them just after Christmas. Couldn't be happier. While I really enjoyed the 72se (had them for about 4 years), the C1s best them. They are wonderful sounding speakers. So, if you can get a good price on the original C1s, new or used, don't hesitate to get them.