Dls M66 DATASHEET

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DLS CD ONE, AMP ONE, M66

Until now, the DLS name sounded familiar mainly to in-car hi-fi fans and yacht owners only, even
though the Swedish manufacturer has been building its home hi-fi speaker product line since 2003.
In 2008, DLS finally unveiled its first electronics, the CD One CD/SACD player and the Amplifier One
integrated amplifier to complete the brand's home audio suite.

The company started in 1979, when
three young Swedes, Dawid, Leif and
Stefan (their initials make up the DLS
name) set out to manufacture radio
receivers without the use of crystals.
This endeavour brought immediate
success to them, as the Swedish
police, fire brigades, ambulances,
taxis and many others became
devoted users of the devices. The
receivers
and sold over 100,000 units,
established the company's business
and reputation in the market. In 1985,
when the popularity of in-car hi-fi
exploded, DLS turned its attention to
in-car speakers and amplifiers. They
were determined to provide top
quality alternatives to the offerings of
the major Japanese market players.

manufactured until 1998

In 2003, with Mats Andersen, the
designer of QLN speakers on their
side, they began manufacturing
home-use speakers. Their product
ranges included high-end
floorstanding and monitor speakers,
in-wall speakers, sub-woofers and
Flatbox speakers, and provided a
suitable solution for all kinds o
audio applications. It wasn't until
2008, that a CD player and an
integrated amplifier were added, so
their fans could enjoy their DLS
sound system in their homes, as well
as their cars. The devices were
designed with a black and near-white
metal case in a clean-cut, cool
Scandinavian style: DLS wanted a
high-tech interior with a user­friendly exterior.

Looking at the very elegant devices
with minimal controls, they clearly
achieved their second goal. As to the
first one, we will see shortly.

CD One

Matched to its partnering amplifier

CD/SACD player is a formidably
sized, tall structure with not too
much weight – at least compared to
other high-end products. The simple
front panel contains only the basic
controls; the middle area is
dominated by the dark Plexiglas
insert that also houses the indicators.

oth in design and in size, the

The mechanics are Philips, a large

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portion of the digital section is from
Mediatek, and the signals are converted
to analogue by a sophisticated Burr­Brown DSD1792 DAC, which handles
not only the SACD (DSD) signals, but
also the up sampling of the 88.2 kHz
CD-DA bits. CD One is quite generous
with its outputs: the analogue selection
includes balanced XLR and two sets o
RCA connectors, while the digital
outputs include Toslink and coaxial
versions. The R4U remote control
supplied with the device is able to
control the functions of both DLS
electronics.

Amplifier One

The DLS specialists spent many
hours of listening time to pick the
parts for the 8 Ohm 2x100W amplifier.
Its design contains relatively few
stages, resulting in very low distortion

In addition to the balanced input
connectors, there are four line RCA
sockets, a tape output, a pre-out, and
good quality screw-clamp banana
sockets for the single speaker
outputs.

even in the highest ranges, and a quick
and stable sound. Thanks to the pre­amp stage being paired with a high­current terminal amplifier, the unit
can deliver up to 180W power on a 4
Ohm load. Two large, infinitely
turning knobs are located on the left
and right side of the front panel, in
perfect symmetry: one of them is a
rotary encoder type, 85dB upper limit
volume knob, the other is to select one
of the five high-level inputs.

M66

The pinnacle of the DLS speaker
line, the M66 is a classic shape,
elegant floor-standing box with high
gloss rosewood or piano lacquer
finish. Its speakers are made with an
innovative and strong magnetic
system, aluminium diaphragms,
specially designed dust caps and low
weight aluminium voice coils. The
cabinet is heavy, stable and rigid,
with double baffles: standing waves
and other kinds of resonance have no
chance against it.