And the "Best" Dynaudio monitor is...?

As a C1 owner I would say yes. Contour s1.4's and Special 25's may have a tad more bass but to me both are also more forward sounding with a tad more 'punch' but lack the transparency - imaging and detail that the C1's have. You pay for it also. Everyone has their own tastes. I think 25 years ago (if all were available) either the S1.4's or special 25's would have been my choice for the cost factor. That being said today the C1's to me are an excellent value for the sound they reproduce.

Of the mini monitors the C1 is without a doubt the best. The S1.4 and Special 25 have the classic small speaker big box sound and have a resonance hump in the bass response (underdamped design) - this will probably sound more impressive but it simply isn't as refined and will tend towards "one-note bass" (although since they are all great speakers perhaps one-note bass is a bit unkind - lets say it is deliberately made to sound "big" and therefore excellent value to many users)

C3's perhaps. Price point was too high for a monitor to sell well & C5 was probably the better overall speaker choice for most, but C3's were pretty special.

It's a toss up between the C1 and the S25, depending on your priorities.

Another vote for the C1

I love the C3's if you can find a pair. If you are willing to buy used and can find a pair of C3's for a grand less than the C1's, I think that's what I would do (assuming money matters). The C1's are fantastic, and if money doesn't matter so much, they're easier to find and you wouldn't go wrong. I think the C3's are just a very special speaker, though, and could easily live with them indefinitely.

I had enjoyed S25 for about 2 years with Jadis Orchestra SE and Meridian 588. Sometimes, I still miss its very musical sounding and authoratative lower. The sound scale was quite beyound its size. One of my colleagues had C1 at that time and he matched with Levison 26S and 332. Quite different sounds came out even though from same birth origin. More accurate and more like excellent monitor speakers. I believe it is absurd that which one is superior than the other. IMO, it probably depends on your ears and how to match with other components.

Alex

C1 is pretty are to beat IMO.

I have the Audience 52SE. For the price used, I think they are hard to beat. That said, after conversations with the Dyne guys in Illinois, I'm highly considering the Contour series as an upgrade. I've heard the older floorstanders and was blown away. I have a friend with the C2 and they lack something to me. They are also monstrous. Honestly, I believe it's his setup. At any rate, I definitely want to audition the Contour S1.4 and C1. However, if I'm going to spend that much money, I'll also audition the Usher Be-718 & Totem The One. Maybe even Thiel and ProAc. Just my opinion. I'm open to other views, too.

I am using their CRAFFT for last three years and I feel this best moniter I heard, but this pairs need more power.

I will second rabbani about the crafft monitor,they built it for professional monitoring purpose,and their old hand made esotar tweeter are better than their new one,I guest they change it just because they can only built 1000 pair per year of those hand made one,contrary to their new industrial design which are not quantity limited,and funny to see also that others very famous speaker maker shift to other brand choice as soon as they ceased the old esotar production.

on the cheap, 1.3SE. all the way up the line?---C1.

i have owned both.

Color me crazy, but I feel that the current Focus 140 is a dynamite bookshelf speaker for the money. That said, I agree with the majority here re the C1's. They're first-rate monitors.

special 25's....

When Dynaudio first introduced the Special 25th anniversary speakers I ended up giving them a good long listen right after the top line Merlin speakers that I was inicially interested in.
Returned to the dealer the following day with more of my favorite music and ended up purchasing a pair.
I left the store with over 50% of my speaker budget still in my wallet, sorry to offend any Merlin owners reading this, that was the out come.

The 25s are without a dought a very good speaker as are the C1s which I heard breifly last year.
Both produce a huge sound for their size and both present music very well.

I found vacuum tube amps to be very well suited for Dynaudio speakers.
Atma-Spheres MA-1 monos or the M60s are a fabulous match for these speakers.
You owners of the 25s or C1s have to hear these speakers driven with either one of these amps.