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Dynaudio Heritage Special

TankTop

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I replaced my S40’s with Contour 20’s about a year ago. The Contour 20 doesn’t do anything wrong unlike the S40. My room is less than ideal and until I fix that I have no more upgradeitis. I don’t know of a better compliments to give a speaker
 
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How do you like the BJC Canare Star Quad cables? Why did you select those over regular 2-strand cables?

Just curious if you found differences between that and other cables. Benchmark recommends that exact Canare star quad cable which is what I ordered with my AHB2.

Any other Heritage Special owners using the AHB2 amplifier?
I want to get a pair of Heritage Specials, but I have SP 40 for now. Running them with x 2 AHB2 (mono blocs) and the Benchmark supplied cables.
 
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I'm going to post something that may sound like addle-brained reefer madness:

These speakers need about 3-5 minutes to warm up if they've been cold for a while.

In theory, I suppose all speakers have a time period to get to intended operating temperature, but it's more noticeable with the Heritage Specials than any other speaker I've owned.

Maybe it's because of the big fat 75 mm voice coil on the woofer?

I thought I was crazy, but it's actually mentioned in the user manual, although I don't think it's specific to the Heritage Special.

"a couple of minutes before every listening session will be helpful to “warm up” the loudspeakers."
My Triangle Comètes 40th need a few minutes before sounding their best...or is it the equipment warming up?
 

Extreme_Boky

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I just came back at this very moment from the Heritage audition. I listened to Naim integrated amp & streamer. Compared to what I have at home, what I heard today was terrible. The sound was in my face (I got a headache), with rubbery bass, compressed dynamics, very poor top-to-bottom extension (air), with no hint of natural presentation that I know these speakers are capable of producing. There you go, not the first time a dealer destroys a chance of a sale... nor the last I'm sure.

What I (still) managed to hear is the amount of detail the new tweeter was able to retrieve, and the mid-region that was capable of presenting the sound with very little distortion.
 
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PuX

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I just came back at this very moment from the Heritage audition. I listened to Naim integrated amp & streamer. Compared to what I have at home, what I heard today was terrible.
what do you have at home?
 
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A general question, and please don't hate me for this: I have noticed quite a few Dynaudio Heritage Speakers offered for sale second hand; on Canuck Audio up here in the Great White North. Any speculation as to why?
 

Extreme_Boky

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I'd understand a price range of let's say US$4k. But at US$6-7k - it's a ripoff.... in all honesty. That's a wooden box, two drivers and aluminium-in-oil capacitors (which I actually do not like in this application at all... they should've used the polypropylene film caps). I see that many places offer them brand new, for a 1k discount, especially in States. The fact that there were only 2500 made worldwide (!!) AND the fact they are already on the second-hand market AND that they are still available & being sold brand new at a discount.... speaks for itself.

The price of a brand new Contours 1.3 was AU$4k; the brand new Heritage Special speakers in Australia are AU$12k... which is 3 times more expensive. I paid my Contour 1.3 brand new AU$3.2K (the dealer was tossing between the sale/no sale for a couple of months, but I persevered... :)).

I got disappointed with Dynaudio for the first time in more than 3 decades a few years back when I heard the Special 40s for the first time. That was utterly boring and disappointing. The dealer told me: "Do not believe a single word of what you read in Special 40s reviews". I attributed this disappointment to a change of hands in Dydnaudio ownership, which is now owned by the Chinese group GoerTek.

However, I still believed that they could pull off something truly special... The Heritage was indeed pretty good sounding - I noticed better high-frequency retrieval and lower distortions of a mid-band, compared to my Contour 1.3... but the bass was terrible (rubbery and boomy - shocking) and there was no space/not even a hint of depth and natural harmonics' presentation. As I said already - I contributed that to Naim's integrated amp and streamer.... heck, the dealer may have BlueToothed / streamed the files from his mobile. It seemed like he did his best not to make a sale that day. Nevertheless, I lost interest in upgrading. I will still consider the Contour 20i, though (which are also currently on special in Australia).
 

PuX

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I'd understand a price range of let's say US$4k. But at US$6-7k - it's a ripoff....
it has all the modern technology Dynaudio has to offer, and it's a limited edition.
and you can probably find a lightly used pair or find a deal.
I got mine a bit cheaper than the official price.

my main point of comparison is Contour S 1.4

unfortunately I could listen to the Heritage Special only a few times before having to move for a while, but from what I heard, they do sound different (same room, same amp, same wires, different stands).
 
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I have Heritage Special number 182. I can't see myself replacing them. They've been great.

One of the speakers (clear coat) finishes is starting to dry up and deteriorate on the top. Does anyone know what I should treat it with to restore lacquer or finish. I want to be careful not to damage further but if there is way I can nurture it back to health that would be great.

Any advice is much appreciated.
 
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I am running an Atoll IN300 on my HS and I am super happy with it. There's not too many amps I could try out before - a Taga Hybrid and the Elac amp combination (don't remember what he model was but they only have one :)) The hybrid was definitely not powerful enough with 80 W and did sound to warm with a blurry bass.
The Elac pre amp/amp (class D) is quite expensive but sounded horrible - I am not very good in describing sound but maybe you can say "bloodless".

The IN300 was a guess because I read a few good reviews about the IN200, also in combination with the HS. The IN200 should be completely sufficient for the HS and would have been my choice if I hadn't come across a good deal on the IN300 :)

BTW, I also really love the minimalistic looks of this Atoll series.

From your username I guess you might be located in Germany. If you are close to Berlin, send me a PM and we can arrange a listening session.

Cheers, Stefan
I am running my heritage specials through an ATOLL IN300 at well. It's a nice amp. Well done.

I had a chance to demo a Benchmark LA4 pre and put it in front if the IN300 - it elevates the outcome even further with a bit clearer, articulate pre amplification, and improved timing. I had to return the LA4 to a colleague and found an HPA4 (same as LA4) used. I now use the the IN300 in power amp mode - works quite well.

Not a cheap upgrade but an option if you ever get the itch.
 

JoetheLion

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I have Heritage Special number 182. I can't see myself replacing them. They've been great.

One of the speakers (clear coat) finishes is starting to dry up and deteriorate on the top. Does anyone know what I should treat it with to restore lacquer or finish. I want to be careful not to damage further but if there is way I can nurture it back to health that would be great.

Any advice is much appreciated.
I would ask Dynaudio directly. Or in the avsforum in the Dynaufio thread, there usually Otto Jørgensen from Dynaudio answers very quickly.
 

Freshman1966

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I am running my heritage specials through an ATOLL IN300 at well. It's a nice amp. Well done.

I had a chance to demo a Benchmark LA4 pre and put it in front if the IN300 - it elevates the outcome even further with a bit clearer, articulate pre amplification, and improved timing. I had to return the LA4 to a colleague and found an HPA4 (same as LA4) used. I now use the the IN300 in power amp mode - works quite well.

Not a cheap upgrade but an option if you ever get the itch.
Thanks for the tip! I was looking for a DAC upgrade this year, but I will check out your suggestion.
Cheers
Stefan
 

Freshman1966

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I have Heritage Special number 182. I can't see myself replacing them. They've been great.

One of the speakers (clear coat) finishes is starting to dry up and deteriorate on the top. Does anyone know what I should treat it with to restore lacquer or finish. I want to be careful not to damage further but if there is way I can nurture it back to health that would be great.

Any advice is much appreciated.
Was there a specific reason for the drying out? I would do anything to avoid that happening I really love the looks of the HS - it would be devastating to see them drying...
 
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Was there a specific reason for the drying out? I would do anything to avoid that happening I really love the looks of the HS - it would be devastating to see them drying...
Excellent question. I personally think it was my house cleaner using vinegar and water on them - not sure though. I will need to kindly make it clear that i will be cleaning those personally. :)
 
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Excellent question. I personally think it was my house cleaner using vinegar and water on them - not sure though. I will need to kindly make it clear that i will be cleaning those personally. :)
That is a crazy thing to happen on such an expensive speaker. Back in the day I used to use Hawes Lemon Oil: that kept my Energy Reference 22 Connoisseur in tip top shape for years.
 

aschen

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I would definitely show dynaudio the pics and ask for advice. I recently sold a 25yo set of contours and the veneer was still immaculate and I have a 13yo pair of confidence and the finish is still perfect.

I suspect the vinegar might be to blame as you said, but I bet dynaudio would have some advice for restoring/improving, they are good at customer support.
 

testp

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I'd understand a price range of let's say US$4k. But at US$6-7k - it's a ripoff.... in all honesty. That's a wooden box, two drivers and aluminium-in-oil capacitors (which I actually do not like in this application at all... they should've used the polypropylene film caps). I see that many places offer them brand new, for a 1k discount, especially in States. The fact that there were only 2500 made worldwide (!!) AND the fact they are already on the second-hand market AND that they are still available & being sold brand new at a discount.... speaks for itself.

The price of a brand new Contours 1.3 was AU$4k; the brand new Heritage Special speakers in Australia are AU$12k... which is 3 times more expensive. I paid my Contour 1.3 brand new AU$3.2K (the dealer was tossing between the sale/no sale for a couple of months, but I persevered... :)).

I got disappointed with Dynaudio for the first time in more than 3 decades a few years back when I heard the Special 40s for the first time. That was utterly boring and disappointing. The dealer told me: "Do not believe a single word of what you read in Special 40s reviews". I attributed this disappointment to a change of hands in Dydnaudio ownership, which is now owned by the Chinese group GoerTek.

However, I still believed that they could pull off something truly special... The Heritage was indeed pretty good sounding - I noticed better high-frequency retrieval and lower distortions of a mid-band, compared to my Contour 1.3... but the bass was terrible (rubbery and boomy - shocking) and there was no space/not even a hint of depth and natural harmonics' presentation. As I said already - I contributed that to Naim's integrated amp and streamer.... heck, the dealer may have BlueToothed / streamed the files from his mobile. It seemed like he did his best not to make a sale that day. Nevertheless, I lost interest in upgrading. I will still consider the Contour 20i, though (which are also currently on special in Australia).
i'd hate to be the downer here, but there has been quite a few ppl having ear pain after listening HS for a while (avs forum), link to measurements from last page seems to confirm this, the treble is hot on these.. Sure there is a different kick and presents people seems to be suprised about, but people who love them either like more hot treble &-|| sound just blends well with their room, or use softer sounding amplifiers like macintosh / Luxmann etc. to compensate.

for Dynaudio lover, i would look for Confidence C1/C2 and such as alternative to your contour 1.3, but if you love you contours, why not keep on loving them, it's all about harmony -> speaker, room & you :)

oh and try dirac, if you haven't already, it's the biggest & cheapest improvement one can make in their system
 

Extreme_Boky

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i'd hate to be the downer here, but there has been quite a few ppl having ear pain after listening HS for a while (avs forum), link to measurements from last page seems to confirm this, the treble is hot on these.. Sure there is a different kick and presents people seems to be suprised about, but people who love them either like more hot treble &-|| sound just blends well with their room, or use softer sounding amplifiers like macintosh / Luxmann etc. to compensate.

for Dynaudio lover, i would look for Confidence C1/C2 and such as alternative to your contour 1.3, but if you love you contours, why not keep on loving them, it's all about harmony -> speaker, room & you :)

oh and try dirac, if you haven't already, it's the biggest & cheapest improvement one can make in their system

Yes, I agree with you 100% - it is all about getting the individual components, speakers and room acoustics blend just right. So important.

I listened to C1s a year ago and was impressed with the sound... with only one caveat... there was a specific, fairly low, bass frequency range that was (what sounded to me) artificially bumped/boosted, and that did not sound right to me at all... But I am 100% confident that if I'm to get a pair, I'd be able to balance the sound to be just right.

Thanks for the suggestions.

And the fatigue from the Heritage Special HF driver could be because (what I expected, and what I mentioned already), due to aluminium-in-oil capacitors that are used in the X-over. Polypropylene film capacitors would be a much better choice (even the most basic Benec / Solen ones). Of course, the whole X-over would have to be much bigger to accommodate the film caps.
 
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Fahrradfahrer

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No, they do not. I have compared hundreds of different models in a sound room with a switchbox for instant comparison and most of them sound the same when operated within their capabilities. There are some that sound a tiny bit different but they are rare.
I believe you.

>But many manufacturers telling their customers, that they are neutral. I trust my ears. I have now in addition the Soulnote A1 Class A/B Amplifier (A2 will come soon) with the Lumin D2. Compared to the AVM Class D the difference is easily hearable for me.

Way back in the day there was much more variation between amps. Sometimes it was a very large variation especially with tube amps as they interacted with various impedance loads.
The frequency responses could be off my several DB+/- (which is horrible by todays standards)and also many amps had high levels of distortion and low power ratings so they often were driven into clipping and when driven into clipping amps vary wildly in how they sound. Some sound good with even 6db or 10db of added SPL past clipping and others a total nightmare.

A very high % of contemporary solid state designs in price ranges exceed the limits of human hearings abilities to distinguish minor variations in most common situations.
Now with a good quality solid state design (including class D) with enough power, amps in wildly varying price classes should sound very, very, very, very similar.

Notable differences would be extremely poor designs whether intended or not and many tube amps which can vary wildly. I have read of blind testing that showed very minor differences in typical quality amps so I would not be able to say there is zero sound differences between all decent products, it is again likely very low. There is again likely some house tuning built into many consumer products that will add a bit of this or that.

The industry makes a lot of money telling you to buy expensive amps. Generally that is BS.

It must be stated that if you want 'technical' perfection that may still cost extra money and measurements are the only source as technical perfection is a measured perfection not a subjective one. 'What goes in must be the only thing that comes out but louder' - this must be measured.

Subjectively it is very easy to alter your experience based on unconscious and even conscious biases and again some products are colored on purpose and one would want to know that based on measuring.
Again, blind testing, at least that of which I have read about, typically reveals very little difference if any between basically good amps and truly well measuring ones without house/designed coloration should sound identical.

In my personal use cases I prefer very powerful amps to less powerful. I listen loudly frequently enough that I never want to run out of juice and prefer 400 watts to 40 even if overkill and spend my money on power vs snake oil claims and pretty boxes (though I do appreciate good looking gear of course). Your needs may vary though in a medium or bigger room and at louder listening levels 40watts is not enough with many contemporary speaker designs which are often 82-87db sensitive.
Thanks for the detailed reply.

I am running an Atoll IN300 on my HS and I am super happy with it. There's not too many amps I could try out before - a Taga Hybrid and the Elac amp combination (don't remember what he model was but they only have one :)) The hybrid was definitely not powerful enough with 80 W and did sound to warm with a blurry bass.
The Elac pre amp/amp (class D) is quite expensive but sounded horrible - I am not very good in describing sound but maybe you can say "bloodless".

The IN300 was a guess because I read a few good reviews about the IN200, also in combination with the HS. The IN200 should be completely sufficient for the HS and would have been my choice if I hadn't come across a good deal on the IN300 :)

BTW, I also really love the minimalistic looks of this Atoll series.

From your username I guess you might be located in Germany. If you are close to Berlin, send me a PM and we can arrange a listening session.

Cheers, Stefan
Thanks for your offer. Will get in touch as soon as i`m back in Berlin. Unfortunately currently on the other side of germany near the switzerland boarder. :)

Do you mean integrated amplifier, or power amplifier? I have never heard anyone ever describe Krell as warm sounding. Classé, yes but Krell, no.
I just read it in some posts/reviews, but never heard it by myself as its difficult to find a shop nearby.
 
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