About The Wharfedale Diamond 225 Speakers
Introducing the Diamond 225s, the top model in Wharfedale's Diamond 200 Series of bookshelf speakers. These high-performance speakers offer robust full-range sound with punchy bass and warm, smooth highs — especially when paired with a high-current amplifier. Each Diamond 225 speaker packs a powerful sonic punch. A 165mm woven Kevlar® woofer complements a 25mm soft dome tweeter, creating rich, full sound. They're ideal for straight stereo or the front or rear surround channels of a Wharfedale home theatre system.
Wharfedale's Diamond 225 bookshelf speakers are great speakers to have where budget or space are at a premium but good sound quality is demanded. Take it from us, these speakers blow the socks off the competition at this price! Simply put, Wharfedale Diamond is one of Wharfedale's and the world's most successful speaker series ever. The latest series of loudspeakers from Wharfedale that aspires to this tradition is the Diamond 200 with 225 being the 'gun' model in the medium bookshelf/stand mount category. It is of course a 2-way, 2-driver configuration with the bass driver employing a very stiff and woven kevlar cone with more powerful magnets - a trickle down feature from top-of-the range Wharfedale Jade series.
The Diamond 225 are an upgrade on the very popular Diamond 100 series and in particular the Diamond 121 model. They are not a totally new design, but rather a refinement. This newly developed version of what was already a highly capable loudspeaker sees a number of aesthetic and performance upgrades. It always amazes us how simple improvements can really make a difference. This newly developed version of what was already a highly capable loudspeaker sees a number of aesthetic and performance upgrades.
Cabinet: One of these is in the cabinet where improved construction techniques alone have helped reduce low levels of distortion even further. These upgrades include the integration of a stronger and more anti-resonant cabinet material, utilising particleboard sandwiched between MDF (as opposed to chipboard + MDF found with the older 121's cabinet). This means that the vinyl wrap of the speaker unit can be applied to the speaker more easily, resulting in an improved finish.
Drivers: The bass driver is formed from woven Kevlar and has ribs for added rigidity and the speaker uses a revised magnet system for even tighter control of the sound. Vocals sound more realistic than you'd believe for a speaker of this price and the bass is upbeat and never lagging behind the rest of the mix. At the other end of the scale the treble unit is surrounded by a deeply dished waveguide. This helps to improve the imaging and 'width' of sound, making it easier to pick out individual instruments.
The sonic integrity and capability of the speaker has also been improved, thanks to an upgraded crossover network and bass motor system, while the new slot-loaded port provides an even stronger level of sonic detail. The overall sound quality is still fantastically well-balanced and natural with a sense of realism that is difficult to beat at this price point.
In The News
Every day I listened to the Wharfedale Diamond 225s, part of me wanted to write, "Hey, these new speakers are nice, musical, even-tempered, and easy to live with. But they're nothing special. They're not designed in a wizard's shack behind a British row house and manufactured in some quaint Station Road factory with a pub down the way." I almost wished I could say, "The 225s were created by some secret war-room consortium of Dr. Strangelove imperialists," or to declare something like, "They play music just pleasantly enough—in a general, average sort of way—to fool the scruffy underclasses."
But none of it was true.
Forget the Diamond's modest price. This humble wooden box is actually a connoisseur-level audio component. It could satisfy any sane music collector for decades.
At the beginning of my listening, I was impressed by the easy-flowing naturalness of the Diamond 225's sound. Then, while playing Pepe Romero's album of Rodrigo compositions for solo guitar, it was as if the speakers had walked over and kissed me. And then, when I played the Bartók piano concertos, I leaned back, smiled, and let out my breath. I've been smiling like that, and dreaming, ever since. Highly recommended.
Stereophile Magazine
About Wharfedale
Wharfedale Wireless Works was founded by Gilbert Briggs in 1932, soon after he built his very first loudspeaker in the cellar of his home in Ilkley, Yorkshire. This sleepy little market town was located in the valley of the river "Wharfe" – an area known to this day as 'Wharfedale'. This unlikely location would see the birth of a brand that has become recognized all over the world, synonymous with quality in high-fidelity reproduction.
In 1981 the first Wharfedale Diamond speaker was born. The rather unassuming small box took the industry by storm. Small cabinets and the stiff, yet light polypropylene driver meant a very fast, tight sound and compact, accurate two-way drivers produced a fantastic stereo image. It quickly became a best seller and the Diamond range has continued to this day as a staple in the Wharfedale catalogue.
Now, with more than 75 years of setting the standards in perfecting loudspeaker performance, Wharfedale, in order to remain at the forefront of audio, has dedicated 1.5 million square feet to design & manufacturing in which every single product and process takes place in-house. With this ability to control every single part of the process, Wharfedale's speakers achieve a harmony in performance and design rarely seen elsewhere.
Main Features & Specifications
- Design: 2-way bookshelf/stand-mount speaker
- Enclosure type: Bass reflex
- Bass Driver: 165mm Woven Kevlar Cone
- HF Driver: 25mm Soft Dome
- Sensitivity(2.83V @ 1m): 87dB
- Recommended amplifier power: 25-120 Watts (Clean, undistorted power)
- Nominal Impedance: 8 Ohms
- Minimum impedance: 4.2 Ohms
- Frequency Response: 45Hz - 20kHz (+/-3dB)
- Bass Extension: -6dB @ 40Hz
- Dimensions (WxHxD): 196 x 355 x 262mm
- Net Weight: 6.5kg each
- Available Finishes: Black; Rosewood; Walnut; White
- Manufacturer's Warranty: 5 Years
Note: Features & Specifications Subject To Change Without Notice. E&OE