Wharfedale Diamond 12.2

Features

Woven Polyester Tweeter: The Wharfedale Diamond 12.2 bookshelf loudspeaker features a 1" soft-dome tweeter that is made from a woven polyester material with a high-loss coating to deliver open and smoothly extended high frequencies. The magnet system and the front plate have been optimized for wide dispersion and uncompressed behavior. The front plate is flat and exposes the dome as much as possible; only a very short duct on the front plate balances the acoustic load and improves the SPL (sound pressure level) measurement.

Klarity Cone Woofer: The Diamond 12.2 bookshelf loudspeaker features a 6.5" Klarity cone woofer. Wharfedale's Klarity cone material, formulated from a blend of Polypropylene and mica adds stiffness to reduce flexing, enabling a lightweight cone with high rigidity, low coloration and lightning-fast response.

• Low-Damping Surround: The Klarity cone is outfitted with a low-damping surround, thereby achieving both low colouration and expressive dynamics. By simulating many different cone shapes and adding ribs to provide further stiffening, a flat response curve was achieved without resorting to a high-damping surround, thereby striking the ideal balance.
• Precision-Made Magnet System: A precision-made magnet system with an aluminium compensation ring to minimise the effect of variations in inductance as the voice coil travels. This contributes to an absence of distortion and intermodulation generated by the motor system.
• High-Power Voice Coil: The voice coil is wound on a high-power epoxy/glass fiber bobbin and delivers greater power handling than an aluminum bobbin, while also being much stiffer than a Kapton type voice coil.

Advanced Crossover Network: The crossover network uses an acoustic LKR 24dB topology. This includes air-core inductors of the type more commonly found in high-end speakers, selected because they produce the lowest distortion of all inductor types. As the resistance of the coil is higher than a standard laminated steel or ferrite core inductor, the magnetic structure of the mid/bass driver has been modified to compensate, resulting in fast, clean bass with no distortion from the inductor.

Non-Resonant Bass Reflex Enclosure: The Diamond 12.2 speaker uses a bass reflex enclosure with a rear-firing port. The ported enclosure is precisely sized so that the internal volume works in harmony with the drive unit system to deliver the desired sonic result.

• Multi-Layer Sandwich Construction: A multi-layered sandwich design subdues the identifiable characteristics of the cabinet's acoustics and sound. Even the resonant properties of the glue between the layers was measured to determine the optimum combination.
• Intelligent Spot Bracing: Inside the cabinet, Intelligent Spot Bracing connects opposite walls with a specif form of wood brace to achieve optimal reduction of cabinet resonance. These braces are precisely modeled by computer simulation to improve the cabinet's non-resonance properties.

Magnetic Grille: The Wharfedale Diamond 12 Series bookshelf loudspeaker comes with an acoustically transparent cloth grille that magnetically attaches to the front of the speaker cabinet.

Dual Binding Posts: The Wharfedale Diamond 12 Series loudspeaker has two sets of binding posts connected by jumper-plates. The binding posts will accept bare wire (up to 10AWG), pin connectors, spade connectors, & banana plugs (single only). Using these dual binding posts, you can bi-amp or bi-wire the speakers. Bi-wiring or bi-amping the speaker provides improved bass & treble performance.

• Bi-Wiring: Bi-wiring can provide noticeable improvements in the overall transparency of your loudspeakers. Run separate speaker wires to the low & high frequency drivers from a single amplifier (the upper set of binding posts are for the high frequency drivers; the lower set of binding posts are for the low frequency drivers).
• Bi-Amping: Bi-amping allows you to use separate amplifiers for the high & low frequency sections of your loudspeaker for greater dynamic range & lower distortion. We recommend that your separate amplifiers have identical gain to preserve the speaker's voicing balance.

Note: If you decide to bi-wire or bi-amp, you must remove the jumpers between the terminal posts (failure to do this could result in damage to your amplifier and loudspeakers).

Mounting Options: The Diamond 12 Series bookshelf loudspeaker can simply be mounted on stands (sold separately - see Accessories Tab), shelves, or other piece of AV furniture with a rigid flat surface. Self-adhesive rubber feet are supplied to protect scratching the bottom of the speaker and the top of your furniture, as well as to isolate the speaker from the mounting surface to prevent unwanted vibration. The rubber feet add approximately 0.125" to the overall height of the speaker.

• The loudspeakers should be positioned 6.5' to 13' apart and create an equilateral triangle with the main listening position. The speakers should also be "toed" or angled (15° to 40°) into the main listening position. The tweeter should be positioned at ear level in regards to the main listening position when seated.
• Position the speakers at least 2" from the rear walls and 2.25' from the side walls. Bass extension will increase with the speakers positioned closer to the wall, but this may also cause the bass to sound too boomy or indistinct.
• If the loudspeakers are placed away from the walls, the inward angle may be increased by up to 40%, although this may restrict the width of the optimum listening position.

Note: The Wharfedale bookshelf loudspeaker does not include any type of bracket, keyhole slot, or threaded insert to wall mount the speaker.

Applications: The Wharfedale Diamond 12 Series bookshelf loudspeaker is an excellent choice for 2ch stereo music and multichannel home theater applications.

• 2Ch Stereo Placement: The Diamond 12 Series can be utilized in a 2ch stereo music application. Try to position the loudspeakers equidistant (6.5' to 13') from one another and the main listening position to form an equaliteral triangle. The speakers should ideally be positioned so that the tweeters are roughly at ear level to a seated listener. The speakers should be "toed" or angled (15° to 40°) into the main listening position.
• Home Theater Placement: The Diamond 12 Series can be used as front and/or surround speakers in a home theater application. When used as front speakers, they should be placed equal distant on either side of the television screen (6.5' to 13' apart) and positioned at ear level. The front speakers should be angled (15° to 40°) slightly so they are aimed towards the main listening position. When used as surround speakers, they should be placed in a higher position, behind the main listening position. If the rear or side walls are a long way from the main listening position, consider stand mounting the loudspeakers.

Diamond 12 Series: Developed in collaboration with Karl-Heinz Fink (one of the most successful loudspeaker designers in the industry), the Wharfedale Diamond 12 Series offers a high-fidelity sound with a contemporary styled cabinet at an affordable price. The Diamond 12 Series consists of two floorstanding loudpeakers (12.3 / 12.4), three bookshelf loudspeakers (12.0 / 12.1 / 12.2), and one center-channel speaker (12.C) - all sold separately.