D320

Midrange Driver

The D320 speakers incorporate an advanced midrange/bass drive unit, using the latest generation of Wharfedale’s woven Kevlar cones, bonded to a lightweight high tech foamed polyether surround. The driver delivers clarity and dynamic musical expression, for a detailed performance from a low-cost speaker.  The cone is driven by a super long throw voice coil motor system, for increased bass extension, with low frequency accuracy. The magnetic flux is controlled by a specially shaped pole plate that reduces inductance, ensuring distortion of bass frequencies remains at a minimum, while oversized ceramic magnets create high sensitivity and smooth response across the cone.

WFR Tweeter

The Wide Frequency Response tweeter was original developed in the Diamond 11 Series, and has been fine tuned for the D300 Series. The 25mm textile dome tweeter is built in its own cabinet, with fibre filling for damping. The tweeter is driven by an oversized ceramic magnet with a copper capped pole piece for flux control, and performs with a smooth and pure tone, producing defined high frequency detail.

Crossover and Cabinet

Wharfedale’s Advanced Software and Listening Iteration system has been used to carefully develop the new crossover to add emphasis on lifelike reproduction of voices and instruments. The crossover components use low loss polypropylene capacitors and laminated core inductors for the optimum signal transfer. The cabinets for the D320 speakers feature 28mm front baffles, profiled to reduce diffraction edge reflections from high frequencies. Inside the cabinet, critical bracing is employed on the panels to eradicate unwanted noise and the walls are lined with a specially developed fibre to absorb resonant sounds. The sound output by the speaker therefore remains free from external noise and colourations, to produce pure and delicate audio.

P-EQ Bass Reflex Port

The D320 speakers included the newly developed P-EQ Pressure Equalisation bass reflex port for deep and controlled bass. The bass frequencies are emitted through a downward firing port in the speaker base, sounding Omni-directionally into the room. This reduces the pressure differential between the high pressure port and the low pressure room, minimising turbulence and chuffing, whilst improving bass response and efficiency. The P-EQ bass port on the D320 creates the fundamental notes of bass instruments, to match the realism of the midrange and tweeter. With the down-firing port, the D320 speakers can also be placed closer to the wall than conventional speakers without affecting the bass response, making the speakers less obtrusive in a room, and more easily placed on shelves.

The D320 speakers offer a remarkable performance from a budget, compact speaker, with an impressive midrange and fluid high end detail, with an accurate and controlled bass from the P-EQ port. The D320s are available in Black, White, Walnut and Rosewood finishes.

• Wharfedale D320 Bookshelf Speakers with 130mm Kevlar woven midrange driver and 25mm textile tweeter
• Midrange driver features oversized ceramic magnets and pole plate to minimise distortion
• Wide Frequency Response tweeter uses ceramic magnets to control flux
• 28mm front baffles with profiling reduces edge diffraction and reflections
• Pressure Equalisation bass reflex port features down-firing port for increased bass response

General Description    2-way bookshelf speaker
Enclosure Type    bass reflex
Transducer Complement    2-way
Bass Driver    5"(130mm)
Black woven Kevlar cone
Full Range Driver    1"(25mm) soft dome
Sensitivity (2.83v @ 1m)    87dB
Peak Power Handling    25-100W
Peak SPL    105dB
Nominal Impedance    4Ω (compatible 8Ω )
Minimum Impedance    3.8Ω
Frequency Response (+/-3dB)    56Hz ~ 20kHz
Bass Extension (-6dB)    50Hz
Crossover Frequency    2.4kHz
Dimensions ( H x W x D )    (310+10) x 180 x (250+28)mm
Net Weight    6.0kg/pcs

Review photo uploaded 4/8/2023-(4/2)

Wharfedale D320 review

Budget speakers with a solid build and detailed sound Tested at £199

By What Hi-Fi? October 12, 2018

OUR VERDICT

The D320s are fine performers, but they're up against some particularly talented rivals

FOR

• Bold performance
• Good level of detail
• Solid build

AGAINST

• Not the most exciting listen
• Tough competition

Wharfedale D320 

POWERED BY

The original Wharfedale Diamond was introduced back in the early 1980s. Ever since then, the budget Diamond range has been the bedrock of the company’s product output. The current generation, the 11th, was launched last year and marked a subtle move upmarket, leaving a gap at entry-level price points. This is where the new Wharfedale D300 range comes in.

At launch, the D300 range consists of two standmounters, of which the D320 speakers on test here are the larger and more expensive, a pair of D330 floorstanders (£499) and the D300C centre speaker (£179). It’s a focused range and none the worse for that. Though there isn’t a dedicated subwoofer, the company makes a number of suitable products that will work in any potential surround sound package.

Build and design

Though Wharfedale is adamant that the new D300 series is not a new Diamond range, there’s no doubt about a close relationship between the two. This is most evident in the D320’s drive units. The 25mm dome tweeter is pretty much unchanged from the Diamond 11.1 we reviewed last year, with its vented design and shaped faceplate, while the 13cm mid/bass still uses a woven Kevlar cone with its unusual foam surround.

The mid/bass is a long throw unit and has a one-piece pole plate fitted with a copper cap to reduce inductance and control magnetic flux. The magnet is ceramic in a bid to get a smooth response combined with high sensitivity, and the chassis is ribbed for rigidity and designed to be as open as possible to minimise reflections. See, there's still plenty of technology in a pair of affordable speakers.

Another carry over is the unusual downward-facing port. In the Diamond range, this fires into a gap between the cabinet base and a built-in plinth, but in the case of the D320 speakers, budget constraints have meant that the speakers sit on small feet and the port fires straight onto the supporting surface. Just make sure the support the speakers are placed on is wide enough to accommodate the D320’s 25cm depth and 18cm width.

WHARFEDALE D320 TECH SPECS

Standmounter Yes

Single wire

Sensitivity 87dB/W/m

Impedance 8 ohm

Max power 100W

Dimensions (hwd) 31 x 18 x 25cm

Wharfedale has been careful to ensure that these bookshelf speakers aren’t unduly taxing for an amplifier to drive. That’s a good thing considering the D320s are as likely to be partnered with a micro system as they are a budget separates set-up. Sensitivity is rated at a fairly typical 87dB/W/m while impedance is listed as 8 ohm compatible.

Overall build is good for the money. These standmounters feel solid thanks to a braced cabinet and an unusually thick front baffle of 28mm. The engineers have taken care to round off the cabinet edges to reduce diffraction effects

At 31cm tall, these are relatively small speakers, so it comes as no surprise that they sound most balanced close to a wall. We would suggest starting about 20cm out into the room and moving them around to optimise the balance between bass weight and stereo imaging.

Sound

On first listening there’s much to admire here. The Wharfedale D320 speakers sound bold in a way that most similarly sized rivals would struggle to match. The integration between the drivers is nicely handled, resulting in a well-projected and clear midrange that delivers a good amount of detail and clarity.

We listen to Kate Bush’s Aerial and the Wharfedales take the complex production in stride. No speaker at this level will unravel every instrumental strand, but the D320s still dig up a fair amount of detail and organise it in a musically rewarding way.

While delivering a good amount of punch, they don’t quite have the dynamic subtlety of class leaders such as the Dali Spektor 2s, or the same rhythmic precision. The result is that we’re not drawn into the music quite so much, but there’s no denying the speaker’s refinement or the superb tonal balance Wharfedale has engineered. These speakers are as forgiving as they come with poor recordings, but still have the balance and openness to please with better recordings and systems.

We listen to a range of music from Miles Davis’s Kind Of Blue to Eminem’s Recovery and the Wharfedales take it all in their stride. They don’t favour one genre over another, and have enough in the way of attack, tonal balance and smoothness to keep us listening. Their stereo imaging is decently expansive and stable enough to pinpoint the position of instruments, while bass, always limited in small speakers such as this, is pleasingly weighty.

Verdict

We like the Wharfedale D320 speakers. They’re easy to get along with and will work well in a wide range of systems. They’re up against some tough competition from the likes of the Q Acoustics 3010i and the Dali Spektor 2 speakers, but even against such formidable opposition, they’re still well worth considering.

SCORES

• Sound 4
• Compatibility 5
• Build 5

Reviewed By Hi-Fi Choice

Wharfedale D320

Hi-Fi Choice  |  May 22, 2019

Technical advances have enabled new entry-level lines of compact speakers from several manufacturers that offer hi-fi credentials at an attractive price. We saw this with Monitor Audio’s Monitor 50 standmount speaker (HFC 440) and now Wharfedale has done a similar thing with the introduction of its D300 Series.

The D320 is the larger of two standmount speakers from the new four-strong range. As you might expect, it borrows a number of parts from the company’s popular Diamond 11 Series, but is intriguingly different in other aspects. The mid/bass driver is a 130mm woven Kevlar design partnered with a long-throw driver system that’s also found on the current Diamond lineup, and has a lightweight foam surround to ensure that no energy is wasted.

The tweeter is a 25mm soft-dome unit that’s closely related to the version found in the Diamond 11. It is constructed inside its own chamber and designed to offer a wide frequency response and very even dispersion. A computer-designed crossover mates the two drivers together and a single set of speaker cable terminals are provided around the back.

The most interesting departure from usual Wharfedale design practise is the position of the bass port. This is on the underside of the cabinet so that it remains unaffected by proximity to walls. The disadvantage, such as it is, is that the D320 needs a stand top plate large enough to ensure that its feet sit correctly. The footprint isn’t so large as to rule out many stands, though, and the Soundstyle Z60 that I habitually use works perfectly.

The D300 Series does without the tapered cabinets of the latest Diamond Series, but Wharfedale says the rounded edges help with standing waves and refraction. The front panel looks a little incongruous on the black cabinet review sample, but makes more sense on the walnut finish (pictured). For £200 it is superbly made, although the supplied circular grills are a little fiddly to fit.  

Sound quality
Connected to a Naim Uniti Star one-box system (HFC 433), the design elegance extends to the way the D320 makes music and has an impressive lack of boxiness. Nils Frahm’s Wintermusik is delivered with a soundstage that extends well beyond the cabinets. This combines with a depth and three dimensionality to the piano that many similarly priced speakers struggle to match.

Tonality is also good. This isn’t a speaker that will find every last detail in a piece of music, but it delivers voices and instruments in a way that balances richness and refinement with enough treble detail to keep it sounding exciting.

Despite the promising downward-firing bass port, the bass response sounds good rather than great. The integration between the midrange and lower frequencies is seamless and there is no sign of bloat or overhang even with challenging material. In terms of outright bass extension, though, the D320 doesn’t improve on rear or front-firing ported cabinet designs found at a similar price.

Where it does come into its own is with a remarkably accurate and neutral sound that handles all kinds of music styles without fear or favour. Furthermore, there is a sense of fun and energy to it when you play something with a little spark. A spirited rendition of Marina & The Diamonds Are You Satisfied? shows this off to great effect. The music is expertly handled, but there’s a little extra sparkle in the presentation that engages on an emotional as well as cerebral level. Overall, this is a great little speaker that will perform well as part of any starter system. 

DETAILS
Product: Wharfedale D320
Price: £200
Type: Standmount loudspeaker