Полочная акустика — Dynaudio Special Forty

The Special Forty is a two-way standmount loudspeaker that Dynaudio of Skanderborg, Denmark, built to mark its 40th anniversary, the company having been founded in 1977. Its public debut came at the 2017 Munich High End exhibition with a price of EUR 2,999 per pair, or USD 2,999 in the American market, and first came in Grey Birch and Red Birch high gloss. In 2020 two further veneers were added - Black Vine, a dark wood with orange streaks, and Ebony Wave, a curved classic grain. Both newer finishes are man-made veneers, chosen so that the two cabinets of a pair match closely.

Key specs that matter

A 28 mm Esotar Forty soft dome, used only in this model, sits above a 17 cm woofer with a Magnesium Silicate Polymer cone. Dynaudio lists a response of 41 Hz to 23 kHz within 3 dB, sensitivity of 86 dB at 2.83 V and 1 m, a rated impedance of 6 ohm and long-term IEC power handling of 200 W. The first-order network hands over at 2,000 Hz. Each box measures 198 x 360 x 307 mm and weighs 8.1 kg, and the bass reflex port opens at the rear.

Engineering and use context

The anniversary project gave the Dynaudio Labs team a reason to revisit tweeter, woofer and crossover design together. The Esotar Forty dome carries a precision coating and is driven by a ferrofluid-damped aluminium voice coil. A pressure conduit behind the dome manages airflow, and an aero-coupled pressure-release system lowers resonance, allowing the tweeter to work down to about 1,000 Hz. The woofer, which can reach up to about 4,000 Hz, uses a one-piece moulded cone, symmetrical excursion with an asymmetrical spider, and a hybrid magnet that combines neodymium and ferrite placed inside the voice coil. Its AirFlow Basket carries aerodynamic ribs that cut reflections inside the cabinet. Because both drivers extend well past the crossover point, the gentle first-order slopes can be used, and Phase Alignment and Impedance Alignment circuits are included in the network.

Pairing

The Special Forty presents a gentler load than many 4 ohm designs of its size, while the modest efficiency favours solid-state amplification with some reserve over a low-powered valve design. With the port venting rearward, placing the speakers a little away from the wall behind them is sensible, and the compact footprint suits rooms of about 20 m2 when the boxes stand on rigid stands.

Alternatives

The Dynaudio Confidence 20 is a bookshelf model from the higher Confidence range, sold alongside the Confidence 30, 50 and 60 floorstanders.