WilliamP
Member
Two entry level standmounts got put head to head this week, and the spec table underneath the review is more interesting for this forum than the listening verdict is.
The Dali Sonik 1 uses a 29mm soft dome tweeter with a 13cm pulp and wood fibre mid/bass, rear ported, 6 ohms, 86dB sensitivity, 4.1kg, four finishes. The Bowers and Wilkins 607 S3 runs a 25mm titanium dome decoupled from the baffle with rear tube loading, and a 13cm Continuum mid/bass, rear ported, 8 ohms, 84dB, 4.7kg, three finishes. The Dali is 900 dollars, the B and W is 1000, although the 607 S3 has been out since 2023 and has been seen down at 900 during sales.
The published split is that the Dali sounds more expressive with better integrated drivers, while the B and W is livelier with more punch but a treble that is less refined. All fine as a two channel verdict. For a front three in a cinema setup I would weigh it completely differently.
That 84dB figure is the thing. Two decibels sounds trivial right up until you have seven channels driven off a mid range receiver and you are already trimming surrounds to match. The 607 S3 needs amplifier behind it to do the punchy thing it is being praised for, and a receiver near reference level on a busy 4K track is not a kind place to find that out. The Dali sitting at 6 ohms is the counterweight, so neither one is free.
Bi-wiring, which the B and W supports and the Dali does not, is close to irrelevant here compared to whether your amp can hold the pair up.
If you have run either as fronts alongside a centre, which blended better?
The Dali Sonik 1 uses a 29mm soft dome tweeter with a 13cm pulp and wood fibre mid/bass, rear ported, 6 ohms, 86dB sensitivity, 4.1kg, four finishes. The Bowers and Wilkins 607 S3 runs a 25mm titanium dome decoupled from the baffle with rear tube loading, and a 13cm Continuum mid/bass, rear ported, 8 ohms, 84dB, 4.7kg, three finishes. The Dali is 900 dollars, the B and W is 1000, although the 607 S3 has been out since 2023 and has been seen down at 900 during sales.
The published split is that the Dali sounds more expressive with better integrated drivers, while the B and W is livelier with more punch but a treble that is less refined. All fine as a two channel verdict. For a front three in a cinema setup I would weigh it completely differently.
That 84dB figure is the thing. Two decibels sounds trivial right up until you have seven channels driven off a mid range receiver and you are already trimming surrounds to match. The 607 S3 needs amplifier behind it to do the punchy thing it is being praised for, and a receiver near reference level on a busy 4K track is not a kind place to find that out. The Dali sitting at 6 ohms is the counterweight, so neither one is free.
Bi-wiring, which the B and W supports and the Dali does not, is close to irrelevant here compared to whether your amp can hold the pair up.
If you have run either as fronts alongside a centre, which blended better?
