The newcomer to the Danish speaker maker’s wide catalogue comes forth and is creating quite the buzz – not from the speakers themselves mind you…
As far as speaker manufacturers go, DALI has been ticking the “awesome” speaker box for me since the day I started working for Richer Sounds. They’re relatively unknown to some but renowned to audiophiles as a very good manufacturer providing a great sound and value for money, as well as some very attractive-looking speakers. Now it’s time for them to up their game once again with their latest offering in the Opticon range.
This could be seen as a replacement for the successful Ikon series but I prefer to think of this as a whole new line of speakers that have been designed from the ground up, to look and sound as incredible as can be. For those of you out there who enjoy a precise sound then you may want to read on.
The Opticon range has a variety of size offerings from the trusty bookshelf speaker to the epic floorstander. They also have a variety of speakers to integrate into your surround sound system so there is nothing that the Opticon range can’t handle.
Let’s start with the bookshelf speakers. These take the form of the Opticon 1 and 2, the latter coming with a larger driver for the bass but both have got a wonderful look to them. All of the cabinets in this series are hand assembled and are available in black, white and walnut finishes. The walnut looks particularly beautiful and personally I think is the pick of the bunch. They ooze quality and the weight gives an instant recognition of that fact.
The Opticon 6 is truly alluring floorstanding speaker.
The drivers themselves are again impressively constructed. The bass driver is a low gloss wood/fibre blend which they have borrowed from their higher ranges (the Epicon and Rubicons) and provide an exceptionally tight bass sound which delivers plenty of grunt. They also have a 28mm ultra light soft dome tweeter and couple this with DALI’s own SMC (soft magnetic compound) materials it is going to give you each and every note in perfect pitch. The SMC was actually designed for their top range of Epicon speakers and to have that available in this set is an incredibly generous offering.
The floortanding range of these speakers is where the really interesting stuff begins to happen. The Opticon 5 and 6 speakers introduce a hybrid tweeter design again taken out of their Epicon range. The level of detail for your treble is enhanced right up to the highest frequencies that we can actually hear (unless you’re a dog of course) so expect nothing but the most crisp sound you’ve ever heard. This could be the most ideal listening partner for anyone who loves picking out every little bit of detail in their favourite orchestral pieces.
When you reach the Opticon 8 at the top of the list however the balance has been addressed even further. Standing at over 1 metre tall they have an impressive stature against all but the largest speakers we range here at Richer Sounds and in some instances this can lead to the sound becoming a little less…. directional. Not with these puppies. The woofers and tweeters have been mixed around and the crossover for the wiring extensively looked at. The result is that one of the woofers actually sits above the tweeter and an added mid-range woofer to give even more enhanced mid range for vocal clarity.
We are lucky enough here at my store to have a pair of the Opticon 6’s and after running this through our Roksan Caspian system the overall effect is nothing short of jaw dropping. Imagine 100W of pure unadulterated power flowing through these speakers, singing their hearts out to ‘Flight of the Valkyries’. Wagner would be proud. There is nothing short of incredible depth and the sensation of soaring high notes, cutting their way through the mix with ease.
It handles rock music exceptionally well too, after belting out some AC/DC all our staff were in awe as to how meaty the guitar riff in ‘Back in Black’ can really sound. I guess it’s only better if you physically go to the concert and hear it belting out of their PA system…
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Author – Andrew, Weybridge store
