The funny thing about desktop monitors is that they’re rarely set up so that the speaker drivers actually aim up at you. You’re forced to use some sort of wedge-shaped base under them or to prop them up to get your ears on axis with the speakers. That’s why I had one of those “Why didn’t anyone think of that before?” moments the first time I saw Dynaudio DBM50 monitors. These new monitors solve the problem with angled faces that project the sound from the drivers directly to your ears. They’re designed to sit on your desktop, next to your computer monitor, for ideal nearfield placement and performance.
The DBM50 features a 7.5″ woofer and a 1″ tweeter, each driven by 50 watts of built-in power. Controls include selection for +4/-10 operation as well as low, mid, and high response shaping switches. The monitors can be set to on/off mode all the time or “go to sleep” mode when not in use; they power back on instantly as soon as they detect an audio signal. Both XLR and RCA inputs are provided.
Sonically, the DBM50s are smooth and extended, with revealing midrange. They play plenty loud, with excellent headroom. And because they are designed for very close use, the effects of the acoustics in your room are minimized.
The DBM50 is an excellent monitor that is ideal for today’s desktop production environment — if you’ve been using computer speakers or other desktop monitors, you owe it to yourself to check out Dynaudio’s DBM50s. They will take your monitoring experience to an entirely new level!
