Best Amp for Diamond 9.1 in Small Office?

[manuel]

Hello,
This is my first post on the forum, and I’m looking for some advice.

A friend of mine is planning to sell his Wharfedale Diamond 9.1 speakers (he bought them but barely used them), and I thought, "What a great opportunity to build a mini Hi-Fi setup for my home office and finally replace my Bose 500, which I never really liked."

I’m planning to use these speakers in a 2.80m x 2.30m room, placing them on my desk. Would you recommend driving them with a compact aptX-enabled Bluetooth amplifier like those from Fosi, Aiyima, SMSL, Prozor, etc., or would it be better to go with a 90s Kenwood amp and pair it with a Bluetooth receiver?

Alternatively, I’ve been considering getting a pair of Mordaunt Short M10s instead.

I’m working with a fairly tight budget, so any suggestions or advice would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks in advance!
M

 

[RTHerringbone]

What's the music source going to be? Presumably a streaming service?

 

[manuel]

Yes Spotify from my phone. I am interested to something with aptX hoping to get a better audio quality.

 

[Jasonovich]

Hello,
This is my first post on the forum, and I’m looking for some advice.

A friend of mine is planning to sell his Wharfedale Diamond 9.1 speakers (he bought them but barely used them), and I thought, "What a great opportunity to build a mini Hi-Fi setup for my home office and finally replace my Bose 500, which I never really liked."

I’m planning to use these speakers in a 2.80m x 2.30m room, placing them on my desk. Would you recommend driving them with a compact aptX-enabled Bluetooth amplifier like those from Fosi, Aiyima, SMSL, Prozor, etc., or would it be better to go with a 90s Kenwood amp and pair it with a Bluetooth receiver?

Alternatively, I’ve been considering getting a pair of Mordaunt Short M10s instead.

I’m working with a fairly tight budget, so any suggestions or advice would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks in advance!
M

What sort of budget do you have?
Back in the day when I was young, I owned three way Mordant Short, it was supposed to be an upgrade to my KEF Coda, it was just awful, 2 dimensional sound. Maybe I'm allowing it to colour my judgement but I don't think the brand has evolved.
If you have the budget, Fosi or Ayimafor amplification, one of the WiiM streamers for source and Diamond 9.1s will be perfect start up system.

 

[manuel]

What sort of budget do you have?
Back in the day when I was young, I owned three way Mordant Short, it was supposed to be an upgrade to my KEF Coda, it was just awful, 2 dimensional sound. Maybe I'm allowing it to colour my judgement but I don't think the brand has evolved.
If you have the budget, Fosi or Ayimafor amplification, one of the WiiM streamers for source and Diamond 9.1s will be perfect start up system.

How does the audio quality compare, for instance, to older entry-level amplifiers like those from Kenwood or Marantz? I’m not expecting stellar performance given the budget—just a slight improvement over my Bose setup, which sounds decent but has a terrible soundstage.

 

[Fandango Andy]

I would be tempted to go for a second hand Amp for £50, you should find a decent Marantz, Sony, NAD, Denon, or Kenwood for that price. Couple this with a WiiM Mini, or a refurbed Chromecast Audio.

However, if you want band for your buck, forget the amp and go for powered speakers. The Q Acoustics M20 will sound better than any setup you can coble together for the same price. They were great value when they came out at £399, they are now £319, and often discounted to less. possibly as low as £250. they have the aptX HD Bluetooth that you mentioned.

​

 

[Jasonovich]

How does the audio quality compare, for instance, to older entry-level amplifiers like those from Kenwood or Marantz? I’m not expecting stellar performance given the budget—just a slight improvement over my Bose setup, which sounds decent but has a terrible soundstage.

It's really hard for me to say, other than, listening to them in the same room.
I think the older designs will have more warmth in the mid range but the newer class D designs will have more detail and transparency.