Monitor Audio Gold 200 5g (newest current generation) vs Dynaudio Contour 20
Unfortunately working with a 12x12 room is 3 steps back before you start and most likely even with some room treatments will have you scratching your head. With this square sized room the way to go is with some measurement plots either by yourself or an another, then go from there. Not as fun as buying new gear but a more sensible approach considering your room.
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Yes agreed the new MA Gold 5g model is very smooth (too smooth sometimes) and the highs is sooo smooth and I feel it could use a bit more resolution. My Gold 200 5g are being driven by a Cary Audio SA 200.2 ES solid state power amp and a Classe CP 800 preamp (soon to be replaced possibly by a tube pre or a hybrid tube design pre such as the PS Audio BHK pre) and a Cary Audio CD 306 SACD player/DAC served as a digital front end source component. For speaker cables and XLR analog audio interconnects I’m using Cardas Clear Reflection cables. For AC power cables I use 2 Shunyata Research Delta V2 power cords and a Transparent Reference Powerlink MM1 power cord (older model and soon to be replaced by a Shunyata Delta V2). I have the Shunyata PS8 AC power line distributor with the Venom Defender plugged on the PS8, and a Shunyata Delta V2 C19 power cord connects the PS8 to the wall outlet. I highly recommend the Cardas Clear Reflection speaker cables and analog interconnects. And for AC power cables and AC power products I recommend Shunyata Research (at least the Delta series or higher). |
@secretguy , a $2500 stand mount will be of higher quality than a $2500 floorstanding speaker. Stand mounts image better. Stand mounts are more rigid all other things equal. Stand mounts are easier to place within a room. I like subs with either. My fritz Carrera BE’s played flat at 23db and -3db at 20hz. They use a 7” scan speak revelator. I do understand the appeal to floorstanding speakers though. They’ll play louder, be more impactful, etc and if money in no object, well…
Also, its important to size a speaker to the room its going into, its main use, what the listener is looking for.
Oh, and resale on floor standing speakers is waay harder / more expensive / more of a hassle.
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I’m not a huge fan of MA but I do like the new latest generation of the Gold 5g and the new latest generation of Platinum ii series. But I never liked their previous generations and found them too forward and bright to my tastes. Okay I will give Fritz a call then. Do they make standmount speakers? Cuz I can only do standmount for my listening room. |
A better alternative for you than Dynaudio is Fritz. Custom made, excellent 2 ways. Far closer to Monitor Audio than Dynaudio, and free home auditions. If you feel you have too much bass, you can correct this in a number of ways, especially if you stream via Roon. It’s super easy. I wrote about this indirectly here: https://speakermakersjourney.blogspot.com/2020/04/how-to-not-buy-subwoofer.html |
@arch2 The new latest generation of MA Gold 200 5g (5th gen) like the ones I have now are warm laid back and smooth sounding speakers, unlike the previous generation of MA Gold series 4g (4th gen) that are forward and rather bright sounding. These two different generations from MA Gold series sound very different, they are complete opposite. They use different tweeters, different midrange and bass drivers, different crossover network, different cabinets and cabinet bracings and materials, etc. My Cary SS power amp sounding kinda tube like with a hint of warmth but remains quite transparent. And my Classe preamp is neutral sounding. |
@mofojo I listen to jazz, female jazz vocalists, contemporary jazz, acoustic music, classical/symphony, classical rock (progressive rock), some older pop music and few contemporary ones, some blues sometimes. I have listed my electronic equipments above. I’m using Cary Audio SA 200.2 ES solid state class AB power amp with Classe CP 800 preamp and Cary Audio CD 306 SACD player (latest 306 version). My Cary SA 200.2 ES amp is rated 200 wpc @ 8 ohms & 350 wpc @ 4 ohms. I’m aware that the Dynaudio Contour is a 4 ohm speaker and speaker sensitivity is rated 87 db. My current MA Gold 200 5g is also a 4 ohm load with 87 db sensitivity. So the specs of these two sets of speakers are very similar. So I think my Cary power amp will have no problem at all driving these Dynaudio Contour 20 to their fullest potential. This Cary SA 200.2 ES is a solid class AB amp weighing in 65 lbs. I found my current setup with the MA Gold 200 5g (latest generation) to be very laid back and leans towards warm with very smooth highs but is dynamic and punchy at the same time. I’m also using warm sounding speaker cables and interconnects and power cables. |
@erik_squires I found the seller who’s selling a used pair of Dynaudio Contour 20 on eBay so demoing the speakers is impossible. I live in Seattle and while we do have a Dynaudio dealer here but they don’t have the Contour 20 for demo, all they have are those Confidence big floorstanders available for demo. I don’t listen to music super loud as my listening room is very small, that’s the reason I want to go with standmount speakers. I do love my MA Gold 200 5g. I found these latest generation Gold 200 5g very laid back warm and very smooth. They are the complete opposite compared to the previous generation of Gold series 4g, which I found to be very forward and bright. |
I think you’re going to find those have pretty different sonic signatures. Monitor Audio with a little more high frequency energy and air (not at all bright) while the dyns being softer, smoother and warmer. Agree with above, if you can possibly hear them first that would be best. I’ve never had a lot of experience with Dynaudios in the past but I recently purchased a pair of C1’s just to give them a shot. While they are a fantastic speakers (I’ve never had such a dynamic stand mount speaker with so much bass weight and punch) I just can’t get past the warmth. Too much of a good thing for me. I need a brighter speaker. Aside from that the C1s are amazing. Not sure about the Cary equipment but if it leans more toward the warm side I would be careful with the dyns unless that’s what your after. They love power too. From what I’ve read many think there is quite a similarity between the Confidence C1 and the Contour 20 and I came darn closing to getting the Contour 20s before deciding on the C1s. While I have lived with dyns the only experience I have with Monitor Audio was at Axpona. Great speakers though. Best of luck. |
What kind of music do you listen to and what kind of power do you have? Contour 20s need a high current amp. They are pretty laid back in my setup for sure or should I say they are not dynamic with the Lyngdorf I had. Sounded pretty good with a lot of stuff but rock forget it. Didn’t love them at all. I did love the C1s however and some say they are comparable. I stilll wonder if I had a beast amp at the time if it would have opened them up. |
