Dynaudio DM 2/10 review

Dynaudio's website labels the DM 2/10s as a ‘big bookshelf loudspeaker'. We think the word gigantic would be more apt.

Each speaker is 45cm tall with an internal capacity of 28 litres. You could probably fit two pairs of Spendor S3/5Rs inside one cabinet and still have room for more.

They are a truly awesome sight, then, but it's fair to say that the DM 2/10s aren't exactly discreet. Still, we're not a sizeist bunch over at What Hi-Fi? Sound and Vision towers, and these deserve nothing less than a fair crack of the whip.

Easy to drive
We've already given the entry-level speakers from the DM range, the 2/7s, a five-star review. They're slightly smaller and use a 17cm mid-bass driver as opposed to the larger 24cm version found on the DM 2/10.

But, if they are any indication of what lies ahead, we could be in for an interesting time. As you'd expect from such a huge standmounted speaker, the 2/10s aren't found wanting when it comes to bass weight and depth.

The bassline to Lady GaGa's Poker has fantastic clout. The Dynaudios give you a blow by blow account, and turning them up only encourages these beasts to flex their muscles even more.

The 2/10s are extremely easy to drive, and more than capable of handling the volume knob being cranked to eleven. If you're a fan of bass-abundant hip-hop or dance music, then these are bound to go down a storm.

Big bass – at a cost
But, while the Dynaudios have no trouble exhibiting powerful, deep bass, there is a trade off. Speed and agility are sacrificed and during the same Lady GaGa track, the speakers struggle to keep up with the tempo of the music.

As a consequence they don't sound as composed, controlled or disciplined when compared with the very best rivals.

Also, for all their scale and dynamism, there's still a hard edge in the upper echelons of the midrange that can't be avoided.

The vocals and guitar during Maximon Park's acoustic version of Gone Missing don't sound as natural or as refined as we'd like.

We'd love to be able to tell you that the DM 2/10s are superb large speakers with a fantastic larger-than-life sound, but the reality is that these big boys sound too brutish to be considered class-leading.