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B&W 805 Diamond or Dynaudio C1 ??

I'm trying to decide which is the better speaker for me. I noticed the 805 diamond can be a bit too revealing on the highs due to its diamond tweeter, but I don't necessarily find that offensive. The Dynaudio C1 seems to be a well balanced speaker, very good bass no doubt. Some even mention that the C1 sounds so neutral that at times can be fatiguing, which I haven't heard any claims about that with the 805 diamond. But as overall package, which do you prefer in terms of:

1. Which have the bigger soundstage?
2. Which speakers sounds have mids that sound more organic and life-like?
3. Which is more transparent and disappears more?

I've listened to other B&W 700 and 800 series and do like the overall presentation of how their speakers sound, but I'm totally clueless about Dynaudio, so in a way I'm kinda leaning towards the 805, but I wanna see if others prefer the C1 better.
shinnosuki
extravaganza
373 posts
 
dynaudio speakers are more revealing than B&W with diamonds ,especialy i high freqeuncies.
philjolet's avatar
philjolet
2,306 posts
 
regarding the TAS review, they slightly preferred the B&W in the midrange and high end (a bit more spatial information and detail) but preferred the Dyna in the bass (which they noted is amazing). Also they noted the Dyna may have been easier to set up because they have slightly less dispersion.

fwiw
goatwuss
877 posts
 
"Can anyone speak to the room size limitations of the C1? My room is 14x18 with an average ceiling height of 11'"

If anything, that's a bit on the small side for the C1s. They like a lot of room to breathe
james63
534 posts
 
I can't comment on your quest because I have not heard these speakers but comments like I quoted below worry me. Sorry to the poster to attack your post.

"As a Dyn C1 owner all I can say is they are the most natural life like speakers I ever heard. I have never been fatigued by them."

MANY instruments are fatiguing! If anyone has ever been in a room with a drum set they know what I am talking about. Natural will fatigue you... sorry but it is the truth. Drums are dynamic and brash, so the speakers should be too (and sweet for other instruments). Maybe soft jazz has pretty drums and gentle brush hits but not rock or other types of music. Speakers that make everything non-fatiguing are colored tonally.


I just heard the 802 Diamond this week (back to back with Sophia 3, same system) and the new 802 is outstanding. It has the best tweeter I have ever heard. Both dynamic and delicate at the same time. Very detailed, I could here every brush hit of the cymbals with delicate decay but they also were bright when the music was. On Eric Clapton's unplugged album they tweeters were soft with a huge sound stage. They never seem to compress at any volume either.

With at being said I would not buy the 805 Diamond. I have never heard them but I need bass and the 805s never had enough for my tastes. As always use your own ears.
branislav
405 posts
 
There is a Volent Paragon VL-2 for sale right now. I recommend putting that one on your list.
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