Wharfedale Diamond 12.1 Review (Speaker)

[Yorkshire Mouth]

I use my 12.1s in nearfield (1.1m) and absolutely love them.

The one minor word of warning I’d have is that you are very limited wriggle room on the vertical axis.

I don’t need to move my head up or down more than a couple of inches before the tonality (especially the treble) changes.

Fortunately, due to my seating, that’s not a problem for me.

 

[WDeranged]

Had a very similar change, when I first got my 12.1s But in my case, the 12.1 seemed almost ideal, and made the old model seem way too forward and annoying.

After many months, I tried my old speakers (Polk Rti6) and almost unlistenable compared to the smaller 12.1s!

The Polks have elevated highs for sure AND a boost around 1-2.5 or so Khz.

I was quite surprised when I reconnected my Dali Spektors. They sounded smaller and a bit congested while the 12.1s are spacious and revealing. But I immediately noticed that vocals and guitars were much more coherent and tangible on the Spektors. I don't really want to be without that sound.

If Schiit ever release a Loki with a balance control I'll be first in line. I suspect an EQ bump would have made all the difference on the 12.1s.

 

[ninetylol]

For anyone interested in the 12.2.. Heres a in room measurement of the 12.2 vs Lintons (they are almost at the same spot maybe 40cm difference each side because of stands. Its crazy how low these 12.2 go

 

[ninetylol]

Diamond 12.2 vs Linton left:

Diamond 12.2 vs Linton right:

tldr my opinion:
Lintons are objectivly better as you can see from measurements, but they are like 5 times the size of the 12.2. Bass extension is almost the same on the 12.2 which is crazy. There are some strange resonances on the 12.2 but this is probably my terrible room accoustics. So yeah I think these 12.2 (for 300€ a pair!) are really really good. They sound very musical as do the Lintons. They do sound a bit more neutral than the Lintons though, which is a good thing, like if the Lintons and Kali IN-8v2 had a child.

 

[cobby]

yes, 12.2 and 12.1 are awesome speakers.

 

[Petevid]

To my untrained eye those traces seem very similar, is there an audible difference between the speakers?

 

[digicam10]

Have had a pair of 12.2s for a year and a half now and highly recommend to anyone looking for a versatile speaker. Watch movies, listen to all genres of music and game on them, zero faults and great sound.

 

[Schlippwhip68]

That is literally the exact opposite of what Amir's measurements of the 12.1 show. So either the 12.2 crossover is very different, or one of the two reviewers got a sample that was somehow off from the norm. Or the other reviewer prefers speakers with a large BBC dip, which the 12.1 already has a bit of, especially if they primarily mean female voices.

That has no impact on your assessment of your 9.1s. They are significantly different speakers.

A bit late to the thread but the 12.1 crossover at 2.00hrz while the 12.2 crossover a little later at 2.6hrz. The Evo 4.1 crossover over at 2.9hrz so I would have thought the 12.1 would have the more edgier female vocal there but my understanding is speculative and not supported by any qualified eduction other than a hobbiest interest so I can be easily corrected.
I actually own the 12.2 and find them very easy speakers to live with on a daily basis. I pair mine with an SMSL A0-300 which is also a very easy piece of kit to listen to.
I also recently tested a pair of Mission LX2 Mk2 but they did not pull me in like the 12.2. My 15 year old Cambridge Audio SL30 are quite similar to the 12.2 and deliver an easy to listen to sound too. I certainly would describe any of those speakers as bright or sharp but I think the 12.2 can reveal a fair bit of truth in regards to the recording.

 

[Timmy]

Quite amazing ...

I’m listening to a »chain« of mainly pretty old components right now:

• LP »Level 42« (Polydor 2383612)

• TT Sony PS-X60

• Receiver/Amp Sony STR-5800

The above three items were bought by me between the late 1970s or the early 1980s.


The only new(er) components included are:

• Phono PreAmp Pro-Ject Phono Box E

• Pickup Audio-Technica AT-VM95E

• Loudspeaker set Wharfedale Diamond 12.2


And I could swear: In all those years since, I’ve never heard that Level 42 vinyl record in such good sound quality than just now


[Edit: Forgot the AT pickup, now added]

 

[JohnDoh]

Anybody here who owned or heard both the Wharfedale Diamond 220 and 12.1 ?
I have the 220s since 2016 (and I loved it always and still do) but I wonder if the 12.1 would be considered an upgrade or more like a sidegrade.
I do not listen to music. My only use is movies/tvshows.

 

[ninetylol]

Anybody here who owned or heard both the Wharfedale Diamond 220 and 12.1 ?
I have the 220s since 2016 (and I loved it always and still do) but I wonder if the 12.1 would be considered an upgrade or more like a sidegrade.
I do not listen to music. My only use is movies/tvshows.

I wouldnt "Upgrade" for TV shows/movies

 

[JohnDoh]

I wouldnt "Upgrade" for TV shows/movies

Why not? I'm genuinely interested. Have you heard both?

 

[ninetylol]

Why not? I'm genuinely interested. Have you heard both?

Nope but from a Youtube binaural recording the 220 sounds a bit clearer, which i would prefer for dialogue. Also 1. It's not much of a upgrade, I would at least take 12.2 for a Real upgrade and 2. Diminishing Returns are even worse if you dont actually listen to music..

But if you really need to throw away some money for your satisfaction, sure go for it

 

[JohnDoh]

Nope but from a Youtube binaural recording the 220 sounds a bit clearer, which i would prefer for dialogue. Also 1. It's not much of a upgrade, I would at least take 12.2 for a Real upgrade and 2. Diminishing Returns are even worse if you dont actually listen to music..

But if you really need to throw away some money for your satisfaction, sure go for it

No mate the very reason I registered here in the first place was to make sure that I won't just throw away money so thanks for any insight I really appreciate it.
The thing is that 12.2 has for some reason bad reviews compared to 12.1 and also I don't really need more bass as I already got that covered with an SVS SB-2000 in a 10 × 11.5 ft room.
Still I'm somewhat curious if there is something out there that may would be an upgrade in the HT experience.

 

[tw 2022]

No mate the very reason I registered here in the first place was to make sure that I won't just throw away money so thanks for any insight I really appreciate it.
The thing is that 12.2 has for some reason bad reviews compared to 12.1 and also I don't really need more bass as I already got that covered with an SVS SB-2000 in a 10 × 11.5 ft room.
Still I'm somewhat curious if there is something out there that may would be an upgrade in the HT experience.

It's probably not an upgrade, it's a matter of preference.... Anything in the $300- $1000 range is generally presentation differences and finish options as "upgrades"....

 

[JohnDoh]

It's probably not an upgrade, it's a matter of preference.... Anything in the $300- $1000 range is generally presentation differences and finish options as "upgrades"....

What about bright vs warm? My first decent speaker was the Wharfedale Diamond 220. I don't really know any other and I wonder if I would like the bright ones better. Would one notice a difference for example on a Klipsch RP-500M ii vs a Wharfedale Diamond 12.1 if I almost only use them for movies and tvshows? Maybe like 5% music. Female vocal trance mainly.

 

[tw 2022]

What about bright vs warm? My first decent speaker was the Wharfedale Diamond 220. I don't really know any other and I wonder if I would like the bright ones better. Would one notice a difference for example on a Klipsch RP-500M ii vs a Wharfedale Diamond 12.1 if I almost only use them for movies and tvshows? Maybe like 5% music. Female vocal trance mainly.

that's where the measurements and your ears merge.....the 12.1 should be a bit brighter( than the 220's) according to the measurements i've seen, it's your ears that count ... at 5% music i wouldn't sweat it too much.....soundstage and clarity are more important for movies, i don't game , but i assume soundstage is important there as well...bottom line: if your mostly happy now don't worry about it unless you actually want to go down the rabbit hole, that can be fun but expensive...edit: i assume the klipsch may sound a bit brighter than the wharfdale's based on my experience with other models , but idk for sure

 

[Schlippwhip68]

A bit late to the thread but the 12.1 crossover at 2.00hrz while the 12.2 crossover a little later at 2.6hrz. The Evo 4.1 crossover over at 2.9hrz so I would have thought the 12.1 would have the more edgier female vocal there but my understanding is speculative and not supported by any qualified eduction other than a hobbiest interest so I can be easily corrected.
I actually own the 12.2 and find them very easy speakers to live with on a daily basis. I pair mine with an SMSL A0-300 which is also a very easy piece of kit to listen to.
I also recently tested a pair of Mission LX2 Mk2 but they did not pull me in like the 12.2. My 15 year old Cambridge Audio SL30 are quite similar to the 12.2 and deliver an easy to listen to sound too. I certainly would describe any of those speakers as bright or sharp but I think the 12.2 can reveal a fair bit of truth in regards to the recording.

Sorry, just seen an error in this post in regards to brightness with the 12.2, predicting text got me again, I meant to say I don’t find the 12.2 to be bright or overly sharp.

 

[ninetylol]

From my research it seems the 12.2 really does have a boost or maybe resonance between 300 and 500hz. You can see that in my measurements too and one guy linked a review where theres a big one. Would be great to see other peoples measurements or even better a review from Amir

Here are some MMM measurements from 12.2 vs Lintons

Heres another non-MMM measurement of both L and R channel from my 12.2

Heres a measurement from review site alpha-audio

And you can see it in this review too

Also distortion same thing

 

[ninetylol]

Linton vs 12.1 RTA measurements (the ones with the dip at 2khz is 12.1) Pretty close besides bass extension

Left

Right

Btw: these 12.1 need a lot of power!