Speaker Asylum: REVIEW: Dynaudio Contour 1.3 SE by David Aiken General speaker questions for audio and home theater.

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Model:	Contour 1.3 SE
Category:
Suggested Retail Price:	$3500 US
Description:	2 way stand mounted monitor
Manufacturer URL:	Dynaudio
Model Picture:	View

Review by David Aiken on December 22, 2001 at 14:40:36 IP Address: 203.54.129.169

Add Your Review for the Contour 1.3 SE

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I can remember once wading in a creek in which the water, which had been filtered through layers of sand up stream, was so clear that in shaded areas without reflections it was totally transparent. You tried looking for the water and your eyes focussed on the creek bed and the rocks and branches littered there. You struggled to see the water and only managed when you noticed small ripples where a rock or branch broke the surface.

The 1.3 SEs are a lot like that creek. Sam Tellig did a very brief review of them in his column in December 99 and said “it’s about as free from colorations as any box speaker I’ve heard”. I’d agree with that but I don’t think freedom from colouration quite sums up their transparency from my experience. The sound they produce is also extremely clear with great resolution while not sounding edgy or bright. Since they image extremely well and throw a sound stage that’s both wide and deep with believably solid images within it. For example the 20 bit remaster of Miles Davis’ “Bitches Brew” throws a very wide and actually reasonably natural sound stage in which I can now locate each musician individually and listen to just what they’re doing. Similarly, the thick stews of sound on the Ronstadt/Harris “Western Wall” and Harris’ “Red Dirt Girl” have opened up and I now get a sense of everything in its place with these discs. This clarity and transparency makes it very easy to appreciate what’s going on in complex music.

Overall dynamics and transient handling are very good provided your amp can deliver the wherewithal. I think I get a little compression at volume levels way above my normal listening level but that’s probably due to my amp. It’s an integrated delivering around 90 w/ch and while it does have the ability to deliver high current fast due to a beefed up power supply, it doesn’t sound as effortless as it’s bigger brother which delivers a couple of hundred watts per channel did in the demo room. The efficiency of the 1.3 SEs is 86 dBa/1 watt/1 metre which is just about average. I don’t have a sense of the 1.3 SEs suffering from compression normally as one poster recently indicated they thought Dynaudios do. You don’t need a really big amp for small to medium size rooms but it better be able to give when it’s needed. On the other hand, if you’ve got the watts these speakers can use them and they may start to remind you of a pair of puppies (dogs, not Wilsons) sitting there wagging their tales, looking ingratiating, and telling you “turn it up a little bit more, you’ll like it, you really will”. Believe them when this happens - you really will like it and so will they. Microdynamics are also very good and contribute to the overall sense of clarity and transparency provided by these speakers.

The speaker is superbly balanced throughout the whole of it’s frequency range and the transition through the crossover region sounds quite seamless to me. Dynaudio quote a range from 37 Hz to 27 KHz, plus or minus 3 dB. That’s impressive for a relatively small stand mount, especially in the bottom end, and I have no reason to doubt the figures. In my room I get usable bass output on the 31.5 Hz warble tone from Stereophile’s test record and I can just hear the 25 Hz tone when the disc is played at normal listening levels so that’s one limit. I don’t listen to much organ music or stuff with sustained synthesiser tones so I’ve got all the bass I think I want and it’s clean and well defined. It’s definitely in the floor stander area for bass response and I auditioned some floor standers that didn’t do as well in extension.

That very extended top end to above 27 KHz is probably the reason for the feeling that the balance is slightly on the cool side. My previous speakers, KEF Reference 104 aBs, were balanced more warmly and started rolling off within the audible range. I occasionally felt that roll off damaged the music but there’s been no hint of that with the 1.3 SEs. There is one thing, though. If the rest of your gear has a tendency to exaggerate sibilance you’ll notice it but they are handled smoothly and without spit and aggression. You may need to play with your interconnects and speaker cables a little here.

Overall some people might regard the sound as a little on the lean side though the music doesn’t lack weight or authority. The bass doesn’t kick me in the chest but I do get a visceral response in the stomach and intestines as if they’re being gently vibrated. It has good weight and well recorded piano bass can sound surprisingly realistic. A symphony orchestra at full blast sounds a little light in the bottom end though you get all the notes. The 1.3 SEs deliver the music throughout their frequency range with solid assurance when it’s needed and with subtle delicacy when that’s what’s required. It’s not wimpy and it’s not overblown. I think it’s pretty damn close to “just right”. There’s no bloom anywhere. As a result subtleties in the musical performance aren’t masked and it’s so much easier to focus on the performance because the speaker isn’t drawing attention to itself.

Finally, I think the 1.3 SEs are sensitive to set up. Dynaudio recommend placement 1 to 1.5 metres from the wall behind them but that’s not possible in my room which is 11 ft from front to rear wall. DIY bass traps in the corners behind them and judicious use of DIY room lenses has resulted in a sound without boom but I’m still experimenting and finding that small changes can make noticeable differences. They require solid stands and I’m using Dynaudio’s Master Stands which I think are quite good but I’m finding the speakers are quite sensitive to what you place between them and the stand. I didn’t feel quite happy with the very small cones supplied with the stands and so far I’ve tried Tiptoes with and without Soft Shoes, a sheet of Dynamat, and I’m now using Blu-Tak which seems the best so far. The sound is smooth throughout the audible range and has a little bit more solidity than provided by the cones or Dynamat. One thing is clear - you definitely can hear the effects of changes in set up.

I'm told they need a fairly long burn in but I avoided most of that by buying the demo pair. Even so, they did seem to settle in a bit more after around 100-200 hours here at home.

Price note: In Australia these speakers are $5200 which translates to around $2600 US these days. That means they're considerably cheaper than in the US and are incredibly good value against US and UK speakers when comparing overseas prices.

In summary, this is an extremely good speaker. It’s revealing without being edgy and it’s incredibly neutral and transparent. It lets you hear the music on your recordings in a way in which many speakers don’t and you will probably find yourself discovering things you’ve never head.

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Product Weakness:	Perhaps too neutral for some, size limits extreme bass response.
Product Strengths:	Neutrality, clarity, resolution, portrayal of music. Bass extension extremely good for a stand mount.

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Associated Equipment for this Review:
Amplifier:	ME 240 integrated with high capacitance option (80 w/ch)
Preamplifier (or None if Integrated):	None
Sources (CDP/Turntable):	Creek CD 43 Mk 2
Speakers:	Dynaudio Contour1.3 SE, replaces KEF Reference 104 aB
Cables/Interconnects:	Braided silver interconnects, XLO speaker cables
Music Used (Genre/Selections):	jazz, classical, rock, folk, country, world
Room Size (LxWxH):	22 ft x 11 ft x 10 ft
Room Comments/Treatments:	Room is divided into two by part wall halfway down long wall so listening area is effectively 11 ft by 11 ft with largely open side wall on right hand side. I use DIY bass traps and room lenses based on Jon Risch's instructionspen
Time Period/Length of Audition:	6 weeks
Other (Power Conditioner etc.):	DIY rack and isolation platforms, Dynaudio Master Stands, Belkin Surgemaster II
Type of Audition/Review:	Product Owner

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