Diamond 121

All the 100 series products – two standmounters, four floorstanders and a pair of centre speakers – share a common DNA, and this starter model, the Diamond 121, is a good representation of the range.

The drive units are all new. The 13cm woven Kevlar mid/bass features a new cone profile with ridged patterns to help control behaviour, and a blended dust cap to improve smoothness at the crossover.

The tweeter is surrounded by a deeply dished waveguide, which helps efficiency, particularly through the crossover region.

Wharfedale 121: Features
While it’s tempting to think Wharfedale has taken the cheap option by returning to a conventionally rectangular cabinet (from the curved enclosures of the previous generation), the truth is a little more complicated.

Yes, rectangular boxes are cheaper to make, but the cost savings have allowed the engineers to be more ambitious with drive units and cabinet construction.

The cabinet uses composite wooden panels to help damp resonances and prevent sound transmission through the enclosure walls, so you hear more of the drive units and less of the box.

The 121 also features what Wharfedale calls a ‘slot-loaded distributed port’. It’s an attempt to get deeper, more extended bass from a compact design, and to make the speakers less fussy about placement. It’s elaborate engineering for a product at this price.

Wharfedale 121: Positioning
Instead of going down the usual route of a rear or front-firing reflex port, they've decided to fire the port downwards into a small gap between the base of the cabinet and the plinth below.

Not only does this technique help with port efficiency and the reduction of chuffing noise, it also makes the speaker less fussy about positioning in your listening room.

Judging by the low frequency output of the 121s, this arrangement seems to work really well. It's just a shame that the plinth felt a little insubstantial on our review model.