Dynaudio Confidence 20A Active Reference Stand-mount Bookshelf Monitor Speaker

Listen with Confidence: add a source, hit the power, and get the performance your music deserves. Active hi-fi just had its biggest upgrade in over a decade.

Confidence 20A is the most elegant way to build the simplest audiophile system.

It takes the standard Confidence 20’s head-turning looks, legendary drivers and award-winning sound, and hides studio-grade amplifiers right inside its stands. Under the hood, it uses the same audio-processing tools you’ll find in our flagship Core professional reference speakers: think full DSP, analogue and digital connectivity, and pro-level room-compensation controls. Everything you need to hear.

If you’re all about the audiophile chase, we have some news for you: you won.

Endgame

Confidence 20A is designed to require only two things of the listener: a source, and some faith. Why faith? Because it does away with one of the most cherished indulgent proclivities of the audiophile world: auditioning amplifiers. They’re already included. They’ve been spec-tuned, customized… and hidden away in the stands. For some that might well be a deal-breaker. And that’s OK; we offer plenty of other options for wanton proclivity-indulgence.

For those who want a simpler but no less fulfilling life, there’s Confidence 20A.

We’re no strangers to high-end active hi-fi systems, of course (inventing the category does tend to leave a lasting memory or two). And that means we have years of experience: plenty of do-more-of-thats, never-do-that-agains, sugar-and-caffeine-fueled breakthroughs – and hard-earned research and development – to dip into.

So, when it was suggested that we try to make an active version of our flagship speaker, cake was duly ordered and the coffee machine set to maximum SPL (stimulation per litre).

Our aim was to create the largest possible soundstage in a compact speaker; a system that can replace a large passive set-up. One that doesn’t just ask politely that you come to have a listen – it makes itself irresistible.

Specs appeal

An active speaker has an amplifier for each individual driver. Confidence 20A uses some of the best in the business. We’ve teamed up again with our friends at Pascal over in Copenhagen, who have provided reference-quality amplification for our Core professional studio speakers. Here, the Esotar 3 tweeters get a more-than-ample 150W, while the NeoTec mid/bass drivers get a whopping 400W each.

(And here’s a fun fact: we limit the amp so it matches the driver’s maximum excursion – meaning there’s plenty of headroom, and you’ll never get it to distort. Even at neighbor-baiting volumes.)