Dynaudio’s Evoke standmounts, side by side. Here is the larger Evoke 20 alongside the compact Evoke 10, showing what your money buys.

The Evoke 20 is the larger of Dynaudio’s two Evoke standmounts, and it is the one reviewers reach for when they want to make the case that a good standmount can embarrass a floorstander. It uses the same Cerotar tweeter with Hexis as the Evoke 10, drawn from the Special Forty and Confidence ranges, but pairs it with a substantial 18cm mid-bass driver taken from the Special Forty anniversary model, complete with that speaker’s mesh-spider suspension. The result reaches down to 40Hz and fills a room in a way the smaller Evoke 10 cannot, while keeping the family’s honesty and refinement.

Brief product overview

A two-way rear-ported standmount with a 28mm Cerotar precision-coated soft-dome tweeter fitted with Hexis, and an 18cm long-throw MSP mid-bass driver derived from the Special Forty. The Hexis is a dimpled inner dome behind the diaphragm that smooths the frequency response and suppresses resonance, and the motor systems use strontium carbonate Ferrite+ ceramic magnets. The crossover is a second-order design handing over at 3,200Hz, built with select high-grade components. Sensitivity is 86dB with a 6-ohm nominal impedance and IEC power handling of 180 watts, with frequency response from 40Hz to 23kHz within 3dB. The cabinet measures 215 x 380 x 307mm and weighs 9.9kg each, with one-piece moulded trim rings hiding all mounting screws, in black or white high gloss, walnut or blonde wood. There are no bi-wire terminals.

How it sounds

The Evoke 20 is revealing and honest but warm with it, so it tells you exactly what is in a recording without making poor ones sound harsh, which is a difficult balance to strike. The 18cm driver gives it genuine scale and bass weight, and reviewers have consistently rated it among the most entertaining and even-handed speakers at its price, floorstanders included. Imaging is a strength, with a deep, stable soundstage that opens up the more you listen. As with the Evoke 10, the point to plan around is drive: at 86dB into 6 ohms it needs a powerful, capable amplifier to realise its potential, and reviewers are unanimous that it rewards current. It is not a speaker to pair with something modest.

What we’d partner it with

The Arcam A25+ is well suited to that requirement. Its 5th-generation Class G topology delivers 100 watts into 8 ohms and 165 into 4, giving the delicacy of Class A at low levels with the headroom for large dynamic swings, which is exactly what a revealing but demanding speaker asks for. A dual-DAC architecture with a dedicated ESS chip for the S/PDIF inputs handles digital, with coaxial and optical inputs to 192kHz, USB-C to 384kHz, and HDMI eARC for television sound. Bluetooth 5.4 with Snapdragon Sound and aptX Lossless covers wireless playback, and Auracast lets multiple headphones share a stream.

For network streaming the Bluesound Node (2024) is a natural match. The BluOS platform offers high-resolution streaming services like Tidal, Qobuz, and Spotify, alongside Apple AirPlay 2 and Roon Readiness, and Dirac Live room correction software avaliable as an optional extra. Since Arcam’s interntal DAC supports a higher resolution, run the Node in transport mode and connect it via a Coaxial or USB cable.

For vinyl, the A25+ has a carefully tuned moving-magnet phono stage at the standard 47 kohms and 100pF, so a turntable connects directly. The Pro-Ject Debut Reference 10 is a serious partner: the flagship of the Debut line, with a 10-inch hybrid carbon and aluminium tonearm, a substantial acrylic platter and electronic speed switching, supplied with the Pick it PRO Balanced moving-magnet cartridge. Its balanced mini-XLR output would need a balanced phono stage to exploit, which the A25+ does not have, so it runs single-ended here, which works perfectly well.

For stands, the Dynaudio Stand 20 is designed for this speaker and sets it at the right height. On cabling, use a well-made speaker cable of appropriate gauge for the run; AudioQuest and Chord are the cable brands we stock.

Who shouldn’t buy it

If your room is small or you sit close, the Evoke 10 is the more sensible choice and costs less. If you want a floorstander, the Evoke 30 removes the need for stands and reaches lower. And if your amplifier is modest, this is the wrong speaker for it; the Evoke 20 wants real power, and reviewers stress that it needs a capable amplifier to sound its best.

The Evoke 20’s port fires from the rear, so leave space behind the cabinets where you can. Set them on the Dynaudio Stand 20 with the tweeters near ear level and experiment with toe-in. Connect a television to the A25+’s HDMI eARC input for automatic switching. For vinyl, connect the Debut Reference 10 to the phono input using its RCA output and connect the earth lead; the supplied Pick it PRO Balanced is a moving-magnet cartridge, so no external stage is needed. The pre-out allows a subwoofer or power amplifier later. Note the Evoke 20 has a single pair of terminals, so bi-wiring is not an option.