Replacements for Dynaudio Floorstanders


Hi there.

My current system is made up of the following: Dynaudio Contour 1.8 Mk IIs, Krell 300il, Benchmark USB DAC, and a laptop with lossless music.

I'm looking to introduce a little warmth in my system, seeing as the Dyn/Krell/DAC combo has miles of resolution, but doesn't offer much in the way of engagement. I'm considering selling my Dynaudios for a warmer pair of speakers that I hope to find on Audiogon. $4k is my limit. My thinking is a used pair of B&W Nautilus 802s or 803s. What other suggestions would folks have, in terms of speakers that have similar resolution to Dynaudio's stuff, but offers more warmth and darkness? One outside consideration of mine is a pair of Mirage OMD-28s. Any help would be much appreciated.

Thanks.
velociti
I'd keep the dyns and replace the Krell with an ARC tube preamp and Wyred4Sound Class D amp or even better if budget permits Bel Canto ref1000m monoblocks.

That gives you a similar configuration to my system which has just the right degree of warmth IMHO but with bigger, more full range and hence better Dynaudio's than my monitors, which are no slouches.

Also use a pair of MIT networked or similar ICs or maybe balanced ICs between pre and amp if supported perhaps.

Nothing wrong with Krell, but warmth is not something I associate with that line based on my experience.

Nothing wrong with Dynaudio in that regard, in fact, unless you are looking to go overboard with the warmth, I cannot think of a better option there!

HAven't heard the Mirages but have heard only good things about them. I'm not confident though that they would move you towards your stated goal or not though. Maybe others know better....
I concur with Mapman on replacing the Krell.

I auditioned Naim Integrateds with my Dynaudio 220 Floorstanders and found that quite warm, almost too much so. Simaudio was somewhere in the middle.
Yeah. Looking to keep the Krell integrated and the DAC. I don't like the tube sound...period. Listened to a bunch of them and just don't find it appealing. Warmer speakers is what I'm looking for. I'd even be willing to sacrifice a little bit of the Dyns resolution for a full range box, hence the 802s or Mirages.

Since I've heard the Nautilus line, I'm basically looking for other suggestions, or if anyone can give me a clue on whether OMD-28s would be a downgrade in terms of resolution and soundstage. Thanks for the suggestions!
"I don't like the tube sound...period. Listened to a bunch of them and just don't find it appealing. "

Wondering which ones?

I am with you. Tube sound does not appeal to me. However, the sp16 ARC I use does not sound "tubey". More like what you say you seek with the Dynaudios. I think pretty neutral.

There are probably similar sounding SS pre-amps out there as well if tubes are a total no no.

My Dynaudios also have a nice warmth with excellent detail even off the vintage 20 wat/ch Yamaha receiver in my second system (used with a sub to offload the low end).

The Yamaha is not a warm sounding unit by nature. I attribute the proper warmth aspect mostly to the Dyns.

When I use my Triangle monitors there in place of the Dyns the sound is similar except with no real noticeable warmth. Very neutral, detailed, and pleasing still. just not warm sounding.
You haven't given any information about your room setup. Warmth can be strongly influenced by speaker/listener distance to walls, speaker toe-in and the amount of "soft" furnishings in the room. Also, don't know about your cables or electric filtering.

If playing with the above does not make it better, then my advice before changing any equipment is to experiment with your playback software. Not sure what computer platform you're using, but get playback software that has a reasonable quality equalizer plug-in and experiment with different settings of tonal sculpting. This will allow you to really ascertain exactly what areas need to be tamed or enhanced.

BTW, of the components you've listed it's the Benchmark that has consistently been labeled as not having warmth.