ProAc D2OR

The ProAc D20R have actually been on the market since 2014 and somehow managed to avoid being on our radar.

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Better late than never, and we finally have a pair of these floorstanders in our test room. We are glad we have, as they prove charmers of the highest order. Sales figures back this up, with these D20Rs at the core of the company's output worldwide and its best-seller in the UK market.

ProAc's products, as good as they have been in our experience, are rarely on the cutting edge of technology. But, in a sector as mature as the speaker market, that isn't necessarily a bad thing. The company has always been about blending great quality, well-proven ingredients and sensible engineering to produce something that often sounds exceptional.

It is easy to understand their appeal. At just short of 98cm tall they are unlikely to dominate modestly proportioned rooms, and they are styled in a functional and unobtrusive way. Build quality is excellent, with the slim cabinet exhibiting crisp edges and great attention to details such as veneer-matching and high-quality speaker terminals.

There is a good choice of finishes with six standard options (black ash, mahogany, oak, cherry, walnut or white silk) and a number of more exotic alternatives available for a modest (around 12 per cent) premium.

The technical highlight here is the use of ProAc's well-proven ribbon tweeter. This 10 x 60mm design has long been used to good effect in ProAc's premium Response range. It has a damped chamber behind the diaphragm to help with dynamics and clarity, and unusually uses an Alnico magnet-based motor system rather than the more fashionable Neodymium alternative on performance grounds. The company makes a slightly cheaper version of this speaker with a capable soft-dome tweeter, but in our experience, its ribbon models tend to produce clearer and more insightful results. They do, though, note, prove more exacting in terms of angling towards the listening position.