Denmark is a small, flat country without majestic mountains. But on the hi-fi world map, Denmark stands out. And one of the most well-known Danish hi-fi manufacturers is Dynaudio, which is recognized all over the world.
Dynaudio makes some of the very best living room speakers in the heavy high-end class – among them the Confidence 60, which is some of the best we’ve heard. But they are at least as famous as studio monitors for the professional sound world. More than 10,000 recoding studios around the world use Dynaudio speakers for mixing. Among the most prominent are Abbey Road and the BBC.
Dynaudio was founded in 1977 by former Scan-Speak employees. The company distinguished itself with in-house developed and -produced speaker units, and among the first products was a 28 mm tweeter dome, D-28, which in a extensively developed form lives on in the company’s constructions today.
Then followed cabinets in classy furniture finishes. And in a design that attracted attention because the units were placed “upside down” – with the tweeter at the bottom and the woofer at the top. Not to make a eye catching design, but because it sounded most correct that way!
In 2014, Dynaudio was acquired by Chinese GoerTek. Contrary to what one might have feared, the Chinese did not move production to China to save money. On the contrary, the factory in Skanderborg has been expanded. And large sums of money have since been invested in building a world-class research and development department. In the huge, cube-shaped Saturn measuring room, which measures 15 meters on each joint, comprehensive measurements of all aspects of a speaker can be made in a short time.
Dynaudio was among the first hi-fi manufacturers to developing car speaker systems. The company has been supplying sound to Volkswagen’s best models for 20 years. Volvo and Bugatti have also had sound systems from Dynaudio.
The development of car sound is shrouded in deepest secrecy. When you as a journalist visit the Dynaudio factory, there are always areas of the factory where cars are covered up and where you are not allowed to take pictures.
The computer people have also benefited from Dynaudio’s expertise. Gaming computers from MSI have for years had the sound optimized at Dynaudio.
The decades-long effort to build speakers without compromise and the worldwide success that the people of Skanderborg have achieved is the reason why Dynaudio this year receives the L&B tech Review’s Honorary Award.
We say congratulations – and look forward to seeing what they come up with in the future.
