The new LYD speakers are intended as successors to the BM line. Billed as ‘low volume precision monitors’,
There are three models: LYD 5, 7 and 8 (with 5in, 7in and 8in low-frequency drivers respectively) each with clever but unfussy DSP control to tailor performance to your room
Overview
The LYD 7 presents an almost ‘lifestyle’ face to the world with a neat white front baffle on a black MDF-style enclosure.
The baffle’s edges are bevelled to reduce audio coloration from sharp angles – the usual solution to this is to round the
edges off at the front of the speaker, but bevelling appears effective in this case and is no doubt straightforward to implement.
The driver complement in this two-way, rear-ported design consists of a 7in Magnesium Silicate Polymer (MSP) coned woofer - a material that Dynaudio often uses,
and which, according to its website, “combines low mass, high rigidity and ideal internal damping properties” and a 28mm soft dome tweeter.
Two 50W Class D amplifiers, one for each driver, provide amplification; Class D is currently a popular choice in active loudspeakers due to its neutrality of sound, efficiency and low heat output.
Next up is Standby Mode. When set to On, power is controlled from the mains switch below in the usual way; engaging Auto shuts the speaker down unless a signal is sensed at the input.
The next switch is Sound Balance, a feature whose implementation I haven’t come across in a loudspeaker before,
but one I think we might see more of in the future. It’s a tilt or Niveau filter with three positions: B, N and D for Bright, Neutral and Dark. I regularly use this kind of processing when EQing in mastering, and it works by taking a central point at around 1kHz and rotating
the higher and lower frequencies around it so that as you increase brightness you simultaneously reduce anything below the rotation point, and vice versa.
Although according to the frequency plots provided, the LYD 7’s tilt filter only moves spectral content about a dB either way at the extremes, this is sufficient
to help adjust the speaker’s response to suit the room or the listener’s
preference better with a brighter or darker sound where required. After some experimenting I stayed at the Neutral
position, but the power of the feature is undeniable and should win friends for the LYD 7.
The last DSP switch is Position. Its two options, Wall and Free, tailor the
frequency response based on how close to a wall it is, as the closer you go the more the low frequency response will rise.
In Use
I don’t think I’m alone in feeling that more than a few current loudspeakers
are voiced on the bright side, and I regularly find myself adjusting accordingly
Not so with the LYD 7 – sporting a refined high frequency performance with no hint
of the splashiness that troubles some designs, the soft dome tweeter tops off the overall balance very well.
Listening on, it was clear that in spite of the necessarily restricted low frequency handling without a sub of these bookshelf-size speakers, they
still did a pretty good job of telling you what’s ‘down there’ – I didn’t notice any obvious vices such as peaky boominessor one-note bass from the rear-firing
flared port and listening to Jamie Cullum’s These Are The Days, which has a well recorded and deep-sounding double bass, gave a balanced and musical
account on the Dynaudios in spite of not being able to cover all the fundamentals.
Conclusion
Small two-way active monitors are an area where there’s no lack of choice for the audio professional
these days. That said, with the LYD 7 Dynaudio has clearly leant on long experience and also knowledge of how
to build to a price point, and produced something that demands listening to against the competition if you’re currently buying.
it put a smile on my face with its lively and informative presentation, which I’d have no difficulty recording and mixing effectively with.
They should be available at a local distributor near you.
There are three models: LYD 5, 7 and 8 (with 5in, 7in and 8in low-frequency drivers respectively) each with clever but unfussy DSP control to tailor performance to your room
Overview
The LYD 7 presents an almost ‘lifestyle’ face to the world with a neat white front baffle on a black MDF-style enclosure.
The baffle’s edges are bevelled to reduce audio coloration from sharp angles – the usual solution to this is to round the
edges off at the front of the speaker, but bevelling appears effective in this case and is no doubt straightforward to implement.
The driver complement in this two-way, rear-ported design consists of a 7in Magnesium Silicate Polymer (MSP) coned woofer - a material that Dynaudio often uses,
and which, according to its website, “combines low mass, high rigidity and ideal internal damping properties” and a 28mm soft dome tweeter.
Two 50W Class D amplifiers, one for each driver, provide amplification; Class D is currently a popular choice in active loudspeakers due to its neutrality of sound, efficiency and low heat output.
Next up is Standby Mode. When set to On, power is controlled from the mains switch below in the usual way; engaging Auto shuts the speaker down unless a signal is sensed at the input.
The next switch is Sound Balance, a feature whose implementation I haven’t come across in a loudspeaker before,
but one I think we might see more of in the future. It’s a tilt or Niveau filter with three positions: B, N and D for Bright, Neutral and Dark. I regularly use this kind of processing when EQing in mastering, and it works by taking a central point at around 1kHz and rotating
the higher and lower frequencies around it so that as you increase brightness you simultaneously reduce anything below the rotation point, and vice versa.
Although according to the frequency plots provided, the LYD 7’s tilt filter only moves spectral content about a dB either way at the extremes, this is sufficient
to help adjust the speaker’s response to suit the room or the listener’s
preference better with a brighter or darker sound where required. After some experimenting I stayed at the Neutral
position, but the power of the feature is undeniable and should win friends for the LYD 7.
The last DSP switch is Position. Its two options, Wall and Free, tailor the
frequency response based on how close to a wall it is, as the closer you go the more the low frequency response will rise.
In Use
I don’t think I’m alone in feeling that more than a few current loudspeakers
are voiced on the bright side, and I regularly find myself adjusting accordingly
Not so with the LYD 7 – sporting a refined high frequency performance with no hint
of the splashiness that troubles some designs, the soft dome tweeter tops off the overall balance very well.
Listening on, it was clear that in spite of the necessarily restricted low frequency handling without a sub of these bookshelf-size speakers, they
still did a pretty good job of telling you what’s ‘down there’ – I didn’t notice any obvious vices such as peaky boominessor one-note bass from the rear-firing
flared port and listening to Jamie Cullum’s These Are The Days, which has a well recorded and deep-sounding double bass, gave a balanced and musical
account on the Dynaudios in spite of not being able to cover all the fundamentals.
Conclusion
Small two-way active monitors are an area where there’s no lack of choice for the audio professional
these days. That said, with the LYD 7 Dynaudio has clearly leant on long experience and also knowledge of how
to build to a price point, and produced something that demands listening to against the competition if you’re currently buying.
it put a smile on my face with its lively and informative presentation, which I’d have no difficulty recording and mixing effectively with.
They should be available at a local distributor near you.
