The Wharfedale 9.0 are small stereo speaker to replace mini/micro system speakers or satellite speaker to use with subwoofer in home cinema systems. Small cuboid enclosure using 100mm bass/mid driver and 25mm silk dome tweeter. Superb imaging is possible and when used with any of the Diamond 9 series subwoofers, the results are spectacular. Ideal when used in a small room home cinema where space is an issue or to replace the speakers supplied with good quality micro systems. Designed to be wall or ceiling mounted.

The impedance plot indicates that the small woofer's reflex loading is tuned to 50Hz. However, as can be seen in fig.3, the expected notch in its response actually occurs a little lower in frequency, at 45Hz, with the twin ports covering a wide bandpass from 30Hz to 120Hz. (The outputs of the woofer and ports in this graph are scaled in the ratio of the square roots of their radiating areas.) The ports' higher-frequency rollout is free from the spikes that would indicate the presence of resonances, while the woofer crosses over to the tweeter at approximately 2kHz, with some overlap apparent. Both drivers mainly have relatively flat outputs within their respective passbands, with peaks balanced by dips. The Diamond 9.1 was an outstanding jazz speaker. Listening to the Jerome Harris Quintet's recording of Duke Ellington's "The Mooche," from Editor's Choice (CD, Stereophile STPH016-2), I noticed for the first time the way Steve Nelson's vibes play off Marty Ehrlich's alto sax as Harris's upper-register bass fingerings provide counterpoint. My notes: "Vibes are the acid test for a good tweeter, and this is a great tweeter."

Before buying the Wharfedale Diamond 9.1

The Paradigm Atom had a warm, rich midrange with less detail and less extended highs. Its warm midbass was not as deep, clean, or as extended as the Wharfedale's. I also noticed that the otherwise balanced Paradigm tended to get a bit tense in the upper midrange during high-level passages, unlike the Wharfedale.

It's hard to believe that the original Wharfedale Diamond is now past its thirtieth birthday. All those decades ago, it was the Diamond speaker that proved, for the first time, that excellent quality sound could be achieved from a small, budget speaker. Since then there have been dozens of imitators, but the Diamonds remain amongst the best available. The Wharfedale Diamond range has enjoyed a formidable reputation within the field of two-channel stereo reproduction. Fig.2 Wharfedale Diamond 9.1, cumulative spectral-decay plot calculated from the output of an accelerometer fastened to the center of the cabinet's side panel (MLS driving voltage to speaker, 7.55V; measurement bandwidth, 2kHz). Fig.1 Wharfedale Diamond 9.1, electrical impedance (solid) and phase (dashed). (2 ohms/vertical div.) The Epos ELS-3 had a dead neutral presentation from the midbass to the upper midrange, with high frequencies that were more extended than the Wharfedale's but not as delicate. The ELS-3's midrange, though quite detailed, was not as rich or as holographic as the Diamond 9.1's.

Wharfedale Diamond 9.1 loudspeaker Measurements

Looking at the drivers, we have the 130mm Kevlar bass/midrange unit and 25mm textile tweeter, which is another reason why the 9.1 is able to produce an enthralling balanced sound. The Wharfedale Diamond 9.0 speakers are totally fine for the purpose of playing songs, gaming, watching movies and videos. The sound is smoothly clean, but the speakers aren’t the best if you are looking for tons of bass. Looking at the tweeter, we see a soft dome one giving the clarity and smoothness of sound you’d expect from more expensive speakers. The Woofer cone uses a carbon fibre type weave to offer taut and responsive bass.

The sound quality, construction and design of the 9.1 speakers are for sure worth it compared to its actual price.Small speakers often show a tendency to 'shout', by over-projecting the upper midband and presence zone. Just like nearly all the speakers out there, the Wharfedale diamond 9.1 speakers can be used in 2 different ways. You can use those speakers as a part of a bigger surrounded stereo system and combine it with a subwoofer, loudspeakers and a central speaker. The second option you have is to use the speakers as a basic equipment to accompany your office desk or living room alone. Wharfedale Diamond 9.1 Specs Each component is designed as part of a whole, without a single 'off-the-shelf' part. Every part interacts simply and effectively with the rest, to produce a sound that is detailed, refined and supremely natural. One trade-off of not having a dedicated self-powered sub is that the system needs a little more power from the amplifier, say around 100 W/channel (ignore the maker's fi gures here), but this is a ballpark fi gure for even relatively inexpensive multichannel amplifi ers these days. Otherwise you'll fi nd the system easy to confi gure. I noted that the speakers have somewhat broader dispersion that usual, and this means a much larger sweet spot where several listeners will hear good sound, not just in a single listening sweet spot.

This is certainly true of the enclosure, which has curved sides to add stiffness to the structure and disperse horizontal standing waves and reflections. Twin ports, claimed to reduce distortion by 40 per cent, are fitted into the front panel. The Wharfedale diamond 9.1 speakers can be bi-wired, which means you can connect more audio speakers to your hi-fi system. This will assure a separation of the single paths to the high and low frequencies resulting in cleaner and more precise sound. You aren't getting any responses because you are asking an impossible question. When it gets down to two speakers, then only you wallet and your ears can tell you which is right. We’re glad to report the Diamond 220s are much better in all respects. While still not the classiest speakers we’ve seen around this price (Q Acoustics and Monitor Audio set the standard), they’re good enough to avoid criticism. Today’s review is going to be a little bit different from what you are used to because today we’re gonna take a look at one of the older and low budget models of Wharfedale speakers – the Wharfedale Diamond 9.0.While such character might have initial showroom appeal, it can become wearing after a time and is not what hi-fi ought really to be about. To save some of you the time spent with listing through the speakers specifications, Wharfedale Diamond 9.0 frequency response is 60 – 24000 Hz. “Should I Buy Wharfedale Diamond 9.0?” – Verdict A refined, delicate, and detailed presentation of high-frequency articulation, with no trace of either hardness or softness and with a perfect replication of transients. In the time domain, the Wharfedale's step response (fig.7) indicates that both drive-units are connected in positive acoustic polarity. A slight ripple can be seen in the tail of the woofer's step, which, as the speaker's waterfall plot shows (fig.8), is associated with two resonant modes: one at 2930Hz, and one that correlates with the peak between 1 and 2kHz on which I commented earlier. Otherwise, this plot is extremely clean in the treble, again supporting BJR's comments about the Diamond 9.1's excellent tweeter.