MS15/18 Subwoofer
Owner’s Manual
Table of contents
▪ 1: Product Safety and Conformity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
▪ 2: Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
▪ 3: Installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
▪ 3.1: Electrical Installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
▪ Speaker Cables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
▪ Signal Wiring . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
▪ 3.2: Positioning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
▪ 4: Setting up and adjusting. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
▪ 4.1: First time power up. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
▪ 4.2: Running in . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
▪ 4.3: Testing and alignment. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
▪ 5: Protection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
▪ 6: Care and Maintenance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
▪ 7: Servicing & Spare parts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
▪ 8: Technical Specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
2 MS15/18 Subwoofer Owner’s Manual
1: Product Safety and
Conformity
The MS15/18 is a professional loudspeaker intended for professional users working in a professional
environment; therefore, a certain level of knowledge of audio equipment operation is assumed.
About this guide
Used expressions and symbols
In this guide, the following signs and symbols are used:
The exclamation point within an equilateral triangle is intended to alert the user to the presence of important
operating and maintenance (servicing) instructions in the literature accompanying the product.
WARNING
Indicates, in combination with a safety sign, a potentially hazardous situation which, if not avoided, could result in
death or serious injury.
Important safety instructions
1. Read these instructions.
2. Keep these instructions.
3. Heed all warnings.
4. Follow all instructions.
5. Do not use this apparatus near water.
6. Clean only with a dry cloth.
7. Do not install near any heat sources such as radiators, heat registers, stoves, or other apparatus (including
amplifiers) that produce heat.
8. Only use attachments/accessories specified by the manufacturer.
9. Use only with the cart, stand, tripod, bracket, or table specified by the manufacturer, or sold with the
apparatus. When a cart is used, use caution when moving the cart/apparatus combination to avoid injury
from tip-over.
10. No naked flame sources, such as lighted candles, should be placed on the apparatus.
WARNING
To reduce the risk of fire or electric shock, this apparatus should not be exposed to rain or moisture and objects
filled with liquids, such as vases, should not be placed on this apparatus.
WARNING
1: Product Safety and Conformity 3
Our speakers are very heavy. Ensure appropriate lifting methods are employed when moving them.
WARNING
Never place a loudspeaker in an unstable location. A loudspeaker may fall, causing serious personal injury or
death. Use only appropriate stands or brackets to mount the loudspeaker.
High sound pressure levels
To prevent possible hearing damage, avoid listening at high volume levels for extended periods of time.
Unpacking
After unpacking, ensure the system is complete and inspect the device and all accessories for any transport
damage. Transport damage may be expected if the packaging is already severely damaged. Do not attempt to
start up a damaged device.
If the contents are incomplete or damaged, please contact your Dynaudio distributor.
Distributor addresses can be found on the Internet at dynaudio.com.
Removing the protection cap
The tweeter is protected by a cap to prevent damage during transport and unpacking. After you have unpacked
the speaker, remove the cap by just pulling it straight out.
Packaging material
The packaging has been designed to be reusable, provided it has not been damaged during transport. Keep the
original packaging and use it for all further transport.
CE declaration of conformity
The CE declaration of conformity can be found online:
https://dynaudio.com/support/ce-conformity-declarations
Correct disposal of this product
This marking on the product, accessories, packaging or literature indicates that the product and its electronic
accessories should not be disposed of with other household waste as stated in the European Directive 2012/19/
EU on Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE). The crossed-out bin symbol is printed on all products
as a reminder.
By ensuring this product is disposed of correctly, you will help prevent potential negative consequences for the
environment and human health. Recycling of materials helps to conserve natural resources.
Household users should contact either the retailer where they purchased this product or their local government
oce for details on where and how to recycle these items in an environmentally safe manner.
Business users should contact their supplier and check the terms and conditions of the purchase contract. This
product and its electronic accessories should not be mixed with other commercial wastes for disposal.
Waste may be taken to a special collection site or can be delivered free of charge to the dealer when purchasing
a new equivalent or without obligation to make a new purchase for equipment smaller than 25 cm.
4 MS15/18 Subwoofer Owner’s Manual
2: Introduction
The MS15 and MS18 are high-quality, high-power passive subwoofers that utilise ported cabinets to deliver
extended low-frequency performance. They would typically complement speakers from our M series to make a
superb surround monitoring system for Dolby Atmos and other immersive formats. They could also be used with
M1 or M2 for bass extension and power enhancement.
Both models have very high power ratings and are intended for use with high-power amplifiers, such as the DA40,
the 2-channel DA40 in Bridged mode, the DA80, and the DCA800 in bridged mode.
2: Introduction 5
3: Installation
6 MS15/18 Subwoofer Owner’s Manual
3.1: Electrical Installation
In view of the “custom” nature of every installation for a speaker of this type, no cabling is supplied. The following
are required for the electrical installation of the MS15/18 system.
Speaker Cables
The connections between the speaker and amplifier should be kept as short as possible. The cable itself should
be high-quality speaker cable, eg 2.5 mm², 4mm² or 6mm² oxygen-free multi-strand copper. The speaker
terminations are on gold screw down terminals.
The outputs of the amplifiers are typically on speakON connectors.
Signal Wiring
The amplifier inputs are balanced XLR connections. Always ensure that only high-quality XLR cables are used for
connection to the amplifiers. Typical system wiring configurations are shown in Figures 2 and 3.
Figure 1: MS15/18 Connector panel. Red indicates +ve.
3: Installation 7
3.2: Positioning
The MS15/18 subwoofer is intended to be part of a surround speaker system, such as Dolby Atmos or a similar
system. The surround format guidelines in use will therefore determine the position in the room of each MS15/18.
The MS15/18 is typically positioned on the floor between the left and right speakers. It can be built into a bae
wall if desired, which will increase low-frequency performance.
The optimum distance from the speaker to the listener is within the range of 1 to 10 meters.
The acoustic centre of the MS15/18 is at the centre of the bass driver.
If the studio is seeking approval and licensing from Dolby, THX or a similar entity, then these parties or qualified
acoustic consultants should be consulted prior to installation, so that their specific requirements can be met.
8 MS15/18 Subwoofer Owner’s Manual
4: Setting up and
adjusting
4: Setting up and adjusting 9
4.1: First time power up
Check that the system has been wired and set up according to the previous instructions, then simply switch on
the amplifier. Check for any hum or buzz, then play some music into the system at a low level. Verify that routing
and phasing are correct, then increase the level to a moderate level.
10 MS15/18 Subwoofer Owner’s Manual
4.2: Running in
Running in is essential before any judgments are passed or the system is subjected to the maximum level. Failure
to observe this can permanently damage the drivers, resulting in degraded performance for the system’s lifetime.
The easiest way to run a system in is to set the level controls roughly by ear as above, then connect a continuous
music source (eg, a CD player in repeat mode) and leave it to run for at least 12 hours at medium volume levels.
This will achieve a minimum of running in. The system will be run in fully after 5 to 6 days of continuous use. Note
that if the system is left unused for a period of time (days), it may take a few minutes to return to normal
performance after being switched on.
4: Setting up and adjusting 11
4.3: Testing and alignment
There is essentially nothing to adjust in this speaker. As part of a surround system, we would expect a front-end
processor to be in place (eg, Avid MTRX), which will cover filtering, room equalisation, gain control, and time
alignment.
Setup and alignment of the surround system should be carried out by a suitably qualified engineer with knowledge
of room acoustics and speaker system commissioning.
12 MS15/18 Subwoofer Owner’s Manual
5: Protection
The cones of the LF drivers will be seen to move during normal playback. However, if this gets to a point where
the surround is straightening out, then driver damage is likely.
If audible distortion is heard, this is a good sign that the speaker and/or amplifier is being overdriven. Turn it down.
5: Protection 13
6: Care and
Maintenance
High-quality components are used in the MS15/18, which should provide a long, trouble-free life. Here are a few
hints to help them on their way.
▪ Never touch the drive units, especially the tweeter, which is very easily damaged. If the speakers are being
moved or work is going on nearby, replace the plastic tweeter protection domes that came with the
system.
▪ Avoid running the system into clipping or distortion. The amplifiers have clipping indicators on their front
panels. When an amplifier clips, it can send potentially damaging DC components to the drive units. They
may not fail immediately, but prolonged exposure to clipping will ultimately lead to failure. Set limiters to
prevent this from occurring.
▪ Avoid unplugging or switching o any equipment that is connected to the monitor system without first
muting the crossovers or switching o the amplifiers. Large spikes are often generated when equipment is
switched o, which will be amplified to a potentially damaging level.
▪ The amplifier power provided with the MS15/18 is specified at a level to oer the best possible
reproduction of dynamics and short-term transients, and as such is capable of damaging the system if run
continuously at high levels.
▪ The very low distortion of these monitors means that it is easy to reach high SPLs without realising it. This
can be potentially damaging to both the monitors and the user’s ears. Take care of your monitoring levels.
14 MS15/18 Subwoofer Owner’s Manual
7: Servicing & Spare
parts
Drive units have been designed with easy replacement in mind. In the unlikely event that a replacement is required
for any of these parts, contact your dealer. They will supply you with the appropriate Dynaudio Acoustics spare
parts.
MS 15/18 spare part numbers Contents
DA 15sub Single 15-inch driver
DA 18sub Single 18-inch driver
Please quote these references when ordering spares.
If you have trouble obtaining parts from your local dealer, don’t hesitate to get in touch with the Dynaudio service
centre:
https://dynaudio.com/faq/kb-tickets/new
Do not send any goods directly. Always contact us first.
WARRANTY
This product is guaranteed against defects in materials and workmanship for 2 years from the date of purchase.
This warranty is void if the unit has been tampered with or modified in any way, or in our opinion, has not been
used in accordance with the instructions above.
7: Servicing & Spare parts 15
8: Technical
Specifications
Size MS15 774 (H) × 500 (W) × 550 (D) mm
- MS18 1000 (H) × 700 (W) × 550 (D) mm
Drivers MS15 single 15-inch driver
- MS18 single 18-inch driver
Impedance 8 ohm
Connectors 4 mm Binding Posts as standard (options available)
Crossover N/A
Amplification Amplifiers of 100 W to 1000 W/ch – 8 ohm would normally be specified.
Frequency response MS15: 30 Hz to 200 Hz (±3 dB, room dependent)
- MS18: 25 Hz – 200 Hz (±3 dB, room dependent)
Typical peak SPL 125 dB @ 1 m, 1 cabinet driven
Weight MS15: 50 kg
- MS18: 75 kg
↻ 2025-11-28
16 MS15/18 Subwoofer Owner’s Manual
