One of the top five audio shows in the world, Warsaw’s annual Audio Video Show (AVS), was held from October 25 to October 27 this year, its 26th. Founded and still run by Adam Mokrzycki, it has enjoyed steady growth over the years and has established itself as a world-class event. I started attending the show in 2016. From my perspective, it is the second-most important audio show in Europe, after the annual High End show, in Munich (soon to be held in Vienna). It has surpassed the American audio shows and, along with several Asian shows, holds considerable importance. Needless to say, it is a key event for us.
Show team
I was the sole representative of the SoundStage! Network when I first began attending AVS and wrote the entire SoundStage! Global coverage of the event myself. In 2019, Jason Thorpe and Gordon Brockhouse accompanied me to Warsaw, and the three of us shared writing duties. Jason and I covered the Warsaw show in 2022, and last year, Matt Bonaccio joined us. Jason and Matt worked very productively as a team, and I was able to reduce my own contribution to the show coverage. It was the three of us again at High End 2024 and at AVS 2024, which allowed me to reduce my role further, to a single article, and leave the bulk of the coverage to them. AVS may be covered entirely by Jason and Matt next year if they are able to join me again.
Jason Thorpe and Matt Bonaccio
Of course, I wasn’t idle during our time in Warsaw. I worked closely with Gordon, who coordinated editing from North America and ensured articles were ready for publication on time. I also took most of the photographs accompanying our coverage and spent much time listening too. With but one article to my name in this year’s coverage, though, I was limited in how much of what I heard and saw at the show I could share. And so, in this article, I wanted to highlight my strongest impression from the event, the mind-blowing sound of the Confidence 20A loudspeaker, at Dynaudio’s exhibit.
Strong comeback
For some reason, Dynaudio, a leading Danish loudspeaker brand, has presented an atypically low profile in recent years at hi-fi shows. To judge by the company’s exhibit at this year’s High End show, however—its room was full of audio gear—Dynaudio seems intent now on restoring its strong presence at audio shows.
Dynaudio at High End 2024
I can’t remember seeing Dynaudio exhibit at AVS in the past, but this year, two of its models made a memorable splash in a massive room at the Golden Tulip exhibit location (AVS is held in three venues: the Golden Tulip Hotel, the Radisson Blu Sobieski Hotel, and the PGE Narodowy Stadium). That space was doubtless too large for the two showcased models—the Contour Legacy, a passive design, and the Confidence 20A, an active design and the focus of this article. It would probably have been too large for most loudspeakers shown at the event. But that didn’t prevent the Dynaudio speakers from making a lasting impression.
From good to great
When I first entered the room, the Contour Legacy loudspeakers were being demoed. The Legacy is a 2.5-way design with three drivers, all made by Dynaudio. A relatively modest suite of electronics was driving the Legacy pair. Those compact passive floorstanders filled up that cavernous space with the kind of sound you’d expect from speakers three times their size, with many more drivers. They sounded very natural, overall, and had a clear midrange and respectable bass power and depth—really good sound, just shy of great.
Dynaudio Contour Legacy loudspeakers being demonstrated
Next, the team moved the Confidence 20As into position. The 20A, an active version of Dynaudio’s passive Confidence 20, employs a 400W amplifier for the midrange-woofer and a 100W amplifier for the tweeter, both amps supplied by Denmark’s Pascal Audio. The amplifiers and digital circuitry are integrated into its bespoke stand.
That humble pair of active speakers delivered a performance that flabbergasted every member of the audience in that packed room, sounding even bigger than the Legacy speakers did before. It was astonishing to hear such immense sound from a two-way design featuring only a 1.1″ tweeter and a 7″ midrange-woofer. The 20As produced unbelievably deep bass and an uncannily lifelike midrange that projected vocals with remarkable fullness and realism. They did sound great. Listening to the diverse selection of music the Dynaudio team played through them, I began thinking that I could listen to these all day as my endgame speakers. I was floored. No other demo at AVS 2024 impressed me nearly as much, and I attended a good many, all very good.
Dynaudio Confidence 20As playing
Immediately after the demo, I excitedly sent Jason and Matt a message: “You guys have to come over to the gold and tulip, and here the dine audio room, it’s amazing!” Alas, voice-to-text can really be wonky in a noisy environment. Not surprisingly, Jason and Matt didn’t show up. They must have thought I was drunk; that I had spent all that time overindulging myself in that amazing dine audio room. A more traditional mode of communication, later that evening, worked much better.
The next day, I returned to Dynaudio’s demo room at the Golden Tulip, accompanied by Jason and Matt. Again, The Legacy pair were demoed first. My companions, I observed, were nodding along to the music, clearly enjoying the experience, just as I had. When the 20As were brought out, I turned to Matt and said, “Wait until you hear these.”
He responded, “Yeah, they sound amazing, like they have three subwoofers attached.”
Surprised, I asked, “How do you know?”
He looked at me and said, “I wrote about both speakers in Munich, don’t you remember?”
Feigning recollection, I replied, “Of course.” (Of course I didn’t.) Ironically, it was I who took the photos for Matt’s article!
Confidence 20A
Both Jason and Matt were as impressed as I had been, and now was again, even though this was Matt’s second encounter with the 20A. I later revisited Matt’s article from Munich and realized we were aligned in our admiration for these speakers; I just arrived at the conclusion five months later.
As to pricing and availability, this is where it gets interesting. The Contour Legacy, introduced in Munich as a limited-edition item of 1000 pairs, is priced at $14,000 a pair in the US (€12,000 in Europe, including VAT). Otto Jørgensen, Dynaudio’s product manager, informed me in Warsaw that the entire production run had been sold already to dealers. When the dealers’ stock is gone, the Legacy won’t be available for purchase, so if you’re considering a pair, act fast.
The Confidence 20A electronics-filled stand
The Confidence 20A won’t be available until the first quarter of 2025. The projected price is $24,000 a pair in the US (€20,000/pair in Europe, including VAT). This price includes the bespoke stands, which are integral to the design. Prospective buyers should be mindful that the built-in electronic circuitry does not include streaming capability or full-blown room correction, though there are dials on the stand to adjust for room placement and overall tonal balance. I think it was wise of Dynaudio to choose a stripped-down design for the 20A. Overloading such a serious product with additional electronics would only deter many audiophiles, who tend to be skeptical about active speakers and may view it as a lifestyle product designed for convenience, not pure performance.
Actively hoping
My hopes for this article are twofold. First, I hope it allays buyers’ concerns about active speakers—they really can be fantastic. This isn’t a new realization for me. I’ve been championing active designs for 25 years. With complete control over the electronics and drivers, designers can achieve incredible performance in active speakers that is difficult or impossible to attain in passive designs of comparable size. (The 20A’s impressive bass performance attests to that clearly.)
Second, I hope this article motivates audiophiles to consider auditioning a pair of Confidence 20A speakers when they become available. Theirs may not have been the very best sound at AVS 2024, but their performance was decidedly the most impressive, considering their size. I have one more hope: to have a pair in for audition early in 2025!
. . . Doug Schneider
das@soundstage.com
