A stylish surround-sound system that’s easy on the ears
Wharfedale’s Evo series sits between the company’s successful budget Diamond range and the superb flagship Elysians, and is packed with technology that uses the same concepts as its bigger sibling.
The Evo series includes floorstanders, bookshelf speakers and centre-channel speakers with two size options available for each type. This package comprises Evo 4.4 floorstanders (£1199), Evo 4.2 bookshelf speakers (£649) and Evo 4.C centre channel (£499), partnered with the SW-12 sub (£496). Priced at £2799, there’s a £44 saving against buying the separates.
Air Motion Transformer tech, found in the company’s pricier products, is used in the Evo range’s tweeters. Instead of a cone or dome-shaped driver, AMTs use a light, pleated diaphragm with electrical circuit traces within a magnetic field that expands and contracts like a concertina as a music signal is applied, pushing sound out towards the listener. The light mass of the thin, folded film means it has the potential to be more responsive and immediate than drivers made from heavier materials, while the large surface area makes it particularly efficient and less prone to distortion.
The 50mm domed midrange driver is coated with a damping compound to control resonances. This dome has an extensive frequency response, from 800Hz to 5kHz, and sits in front of a specially shaped chamber that scatters and absorbs the diaphragm’s backward sound, which Wharfedale says helps to reduce distortion while improving detail.
The range is elegantly designed with bowed cabinet sides and rounded corners and comes in three smart wood grain finishes. These are relatively large speakers – the depth of the Evo 4.2 surrounds and the frankly colossal size of the Evo 4.C will make this system tricky to house for anyone who doesn’t have the luxury of a dedicated home cinema room.
A nominal impedance of 8 ohms across the range with a minimum impedance of 4 ohms means this system won’t throw up any issues for a price-compatible AVR.
Immersive home system
Playing Dune in 5.1 is a great reminder that with quality speakers capable of detailed precision and fluid transparency, you don’t need to go all-in on rears and height channels to have a seriously immersive home system. There’s an authenticity and ease to the soundscape as it is rendered by the Evos, making this unhurried sci-fi saga a touch more captivating than when heard on a lesser system.
There’s plenty of refinement in the high frequencies of the tinkling ‘spice’ dust without it sounding
