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Wharfedale Speakers at Best Buy (1 Viewer)

Corey_ Williams

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I was on BestBuy.com and I found out that Best Buy is going to carry Warfedale speakers. I have not heard these speakers, but I have read great reviews ataudioreview and have read good reviews in What Hi Fi?(Sound & Vision)magazine.
Has anyone heard them? If so, how do they sound?
How do they compare with JBl, Paradigm, Energy, B&W, PSB, etc.
 

Geoff L

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It's a brand (New Line) that probley will only be sold threw BB. Very contemporary looking speaks.

Wharf and Monster Wire are together on the speaks. Wharf builds the speak and Monster is providing the internal wiring.
The new line is called Zaldeck and their a Horn loaded Mid and Tweet type speaker. High eff and pretty good power handeling. The biggest tower is quite large. They look to be styled for the younger crowd, just from the look...
This is to say nothing of the performance, could be a great speak, or a not so great speak. No info means just that, no info!!

How long before they go in-store, I don't know. As far as I know know, no one has heard them as of yet. At least it has not been posted here. Information on line, is limited at best about the speaker line.
Supposed to become available in store 2003.
Last I new, (on line only, the bi-pole surround was available for purchase).

Someone that works their may have more information, as a number BB employed people post here at HTF.

Regards
Geoff
 

Corey_ Williams

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Geoff,

Thanks for the info. I saw the speakers that you were referring on the BB.com. BB.com states that they would also carry the Diamond 8 series. The Diamond 8 series speakers are the models that have receives so praise. I wonder is it hype, or are they really good sounding speakers.
 

george.Legeza

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Are these the speakers you guys are talking about?
If so, I'm also curious if anybody knows anything about them. According to the Best Buy website they seem to be in stock. Anyway, those would fit in here nicely for my seperate stereo music system (which I've been going back and forth between Axioms and Paradigms for) if they're actually any good.
 

Geoff L

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No it's not hype on the Diamond line. These are available on the web at a few on line vendors and every so often at Ebay.

They use Kevlar drivers and have won a number of Britt HI FI mag awards. Are they the end all of speaks, NO.
They do repersnet an excellent value to dollar ratio, Yes, when bought for the right $$. They have a typical Britt sound, and some like me, prefer this. Others may find them a little laid back on the high end.

A few members here at HTF own them and really like them. A search here, might provide you with more detailed reading about the Diamond line. They come in balck and and real wood veneer Light Walnut I belive. The largest in the line (8.4) is not a large tower. Only around 36 to 38" tall, I belive.
I've heard that they make an 8.5 but have never seen it.

The speaker line and single models out of the line have been Pro reviewed, and a search at Google may bring forth some of them for you to read besides the less than flattering AR site.

Cheers
Geoff
 

James Bergeron

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All I'm going to say is this.... They look freaking awesome.

But (ok I'll say more) They kind of look like "boombox" speakers or something you would find in a shelf system. So I would agree that they are intended for younger folks. They seem to be priced that way as well.

Wharfedale makes some nice speakers. The Diamond series is a great speaker, but it's the low end of the line. They are british and are similar to B&W. They are well known there. I would take a listen. They may be great, they may not be.
 

Geoff L

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Thanks Jack

I see they finally put up some info on them. Will be interesting to see what people that dive in and purchase have to say.

They certainly have an attention getting look! The biggest tower is pretty damn big.
And that center just looks plain mean!

Their prices, "though Wharf is know for a high dollar value", dose scare me a little.

Regards
Geoff
 

Jack Gilvey

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I'm thinking they might be comparable to the similarly-priced JBL Studio stuff BB also carries? Just a guess. I like the horn-loading. I have a BB gift card I gotta burn. :)
 

Angelo.M

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I wouldn't make any assumptions about this line's quality compared to the Diamond line. The Diamond line is quite nice, quite British, and hasn't yet been made available at large, big-box outlets. This new line... Hmm... Has sort of an industrial look to my eye...

I'm less curious about this new Wharfedale line at BB than about how Circuit City will respond. Will they bring Paradigm or some other similarly 'bargain-audiophile' type line (sorry, not meant to be a slam against Paradigm, which are great speakers) on-board. Let's see.
 

Geoff L

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Well Jack, you certainy know build quailty and bottom end (bass) sound quaility!
So burn that card listen a bit and then tear that sucker apart for us....:emoji_thumbsup:
What you gona blow it on??
Inquiring minds want to know!
 

Jack Gilvey

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Well, I was thinking it would make a dent on an HDTV but I can't pull the trigger. Then I saw these and thought they might be a cool little upgrade from my JBL NSP-1 (two years old this month) for movies. My next(!)project is a pair of dipole mains for a music system...but I will never have the time to DIY a HT setup.
And they really do look cool... :)
 
Joined
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I've got the wharf. diamond's in my home theater setup and I think they sound great. But I do think you need a little more power to drive them because of the lower sensitivity. There a good start if you want to do all the speakers at once for a reasonable price and get decent sound.
My Home Theater
 

Chad A

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Oct 21, 2002
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I've been looking at the Diamond line myself and they seem like a nice bargain for what you get.
They have many lines also besides the Diamonds like the Atlantic line of which you can get a Atlanta 500 tower with 3-8's and a single tweeter for around $180 cash.
You can find them here if anyone is interested:
Link Removed
I've also been looking at Athena and Mission who seem to be priced similar and also get nice reviews.
 

Rory Buszka

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I am glad to see that Best Buy is finally going to carry good speakers for a change. As far as their current line of speakers is concerned, Wharfedale IS the big-time. Maybe Monster Cable said "You need to carry these speakers" or something.

Perhaps Circuit City will bring Dahlquist speakers into their product lineup. They look quite good. Klipsch would also be cool. Klipsch are designed and engineered right here in Indianapolis, Indiana.
 

Peter_James

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I don't like horn tweeters. They sound like finger nails on a chalk board after the first few minutes.

just my opinion of course.

P.J.
 

Philip Hamm

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I have a set of Wharfedale Modus 1.6 towers in my living room stereo only music system that I got last year from uBid at a ridiculously low price. It cost more to ship them than to buy them. For what I paid I feel that I stole them, they were such an amazing bargain. Do they sound as good as the B&W DM602s in my main theater? No. Do they sound as good as the Mirage speakers in my office? No. But they sure sound great for dinner music. :) The silk dome tweeters have a very clear, mellow high end.
Anyway, back on topic - I think Wharfedale and Best Buy are a great marriage.
 

Corey_ Williams

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Jun 27, 2002
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After reading some small print, I found that these are 6 ohms speakers. What does this mean, in terms of receiver compatibility with most 8 ohms receivers?
 

Geoff L

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Most any entry level receiver will have no problems driving the 6-ohm load.

All but the very cheapest of cheap junk receiver will drive them, of course true watts per channel will have a bearing on the volumes you will be able to achive cleanly.

These speaks (Zaldak-line) are more eff than most Wharf lines being horn loads and will be much easier to drive to louder spl volumes.

Edit:
Phill is the 1.6 midrange still driving you bonkers, or did it get any better with time or placement?
 

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