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EQUIPMENT REVIEW - Dynaudio Focus 260
bandwidth. In typical Dynaudio fashion, the
tweeter uses large neodymium magnets and
pure aluminum voice-coil wire, the latter for a
lighter moving assembly, and thereby, more
accurate response.
The two new mid/bass units feature a 6.7"
(17cm) cone made from MSP (magnesium
silicate polymer) which Dynaudio says combines
low mass, high rigidity, and very good internal
damping characteristics. (Dynaudio uses MSP
in most of its cones, I believe.) The driver has a
2.9" (75mm) aluminum voice coil, which is wound
around a former made from polyimide (DuPont
Black Kapton) for extra stiffness and low mass
while maintaining operating consistency even at
high temperatures. (The new former is one of the
Confidence line trickle-down parts.) The spider
has also been updated for more linear, pistonic
movement of the cone and former, and the firstorder
crossover has been optimized for greater
phase linearity and a more uniform impedance.
The new cabinets have a sharper-angled frontbaffle
bevel, and the cabinets are thicker and stiffer,
with MDF damping panels instead of bitumen.
(Bitumen is apparently less environmentally
friendly.) Retained cabinet elements include nonparallel
side panels (narrower toward the back)
and a metal plinth, although more of the plinth
is now hidden for a subtler look. The only visual
differentiators to the new Focus line are the new
logo (now just silver on black), a slightly concave
tweeter fascia, narrower cone bezels, and shiny
mounting screws. Pretty subtle...much like the
Danes themselves.
Manousselis said the design goal of the 260
was to deliver the performance strengths of a
stand-mounted monitor but also improve bass
extension and dynamic range. The Focus 260
does, indeed, have the sort of sonic purity we
often associate with a mini-monitor, and it also
extends a good deal of that purity lower in the
bass—keeping the bass clear, agile, and defined
as it descends to frequencies that small standmounts
simply can’t plumb. Sometimes the
floor-standing sibling of a smaller stand-mount
design will sacrifice some bass clarity for more
extended bass and greater dynamic swings.
The Focus 260 seemingly just extends its overall
resolution to a greater portion of the bass than
any stand-mount speaker I know of, including my
own Dynaudio Confidence C1 II.
In fact, the 260 just plain outperformed the C1 II
in both bass extension and bass clarity, although
the C1 II still has remarkable bass extension for
a mini-monitor. Macro-dynamic range was also
bettered by the 260. The 260 is the first speaker
I have used that can outperform the C1 II in the
bass. By “outperform,” I mean extend lower than
the C1 and still provide taut, tuneful, focused,
pitch-defined bass, and do so at a lower price.
Several other speakers I have heard can go lower
and exhibit greater dynamic impact, but they
either have worse bass definition and clarity or
cost a lot more. In my small, solidly-built, and
slightly bass-augmenting room, the 260 could
recreate most of the low notes of a full orchestra,
including fairly low organ notes, but could not
approximate the bass power or anything close
to the dynamic force of an orchestra—very few
loudspeakers can, even very large ones. The
lower end -3dB point is listed as 32Hz (possibly
extending lower in my room), which is a credible
specification and impressive for the 260’s modest
dimensions (something Dynaudio is known for).
Still, the 260 will likely not be a rock ’n’ roller’s
cup of tea or satisfy devotees of full-range bass
and wide-open dynamics. As rewarding as I
found the 260’s bass and dynamic performance,
it has its limitations.
Putting aside further comparisons to the C1 for
the moment, the Focus 260 has a nearly deadon-neutral
overall tonal balance: neither bright
nor dark. “Nearly” because I think some listeners
might regard the 260 as tipping the scale just a
smidgeon to the lighter side of neutral. I would
quickly add to that assessment: “in a very
appealing way.” Part of the 260’s draw is its
musical verve and momentum, and I believe a
good many of those qualities come from its tonal
balance as well as its sonic coherence throughout
its range. Compared to live acoustic music,
the 260 sounds perfectly neutral in my system.
But so many audiophiles are used to a slightly
polite-sounding downward trough in the 2kHz to
4kHz “harshness” range that they have become
accustomed to hearing such a presentation
as normal or neutral. So, I give the Focus 260
high marks for apparent tonal neutrality but
understand these sorts of perceptions can vary
depending on one’s reference. At any rate, I am
fairly confident that the Focus 260 will not be
difficult to integrate into most systems, both
tonally and functionally (by virtue of its relatively
easy load on the driving amplifier).
Why am I confident I tested the 260 in a friend’s
system, one which tends toward brightness on
some recordings. The 260 performed admirably
with no harshness, painful forwardness, or
anything that would suggest an undue level of
upward tilt. This alternate system also provided
some good feedback about the speaker’s
driveability, because the amplifier was a Berning
ZH270, a 70-watt, output-transformerless design
that would typically have trouble driving the
4-ohm load and 87dB sensitivity of the Focus
260. Except for a bit of amplifier clipping on the
most demanding passages, like the crescendo
near the end of “A Call To Arms” from the Glory
soundtrack [Virgin], the Berning OTL/260 combo
filled my friend’s large listening space with a well-
69 Guide to High-Performance Loudspeakers www.theabsolutesound.com
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