Wharfedale Diamond 10.1 as rear speakers with DALI Ikon 6 fronts

[admin_exported]

Hi All,

I am planning to complete my 5.1 setup and I want advice for selecting rear speakers. I currently have DALI Ikon 6 speakers paired with a Marantz SR6003. I am on a tight budget and hence don't want to spend money on the Ikon 2's or the Ikon On Wall units.

My personal opinion is that in a 5.1 setup the front L/R, center and subwoofer are more important than the rear speakers. So I am not sure if it is important to have expensive and "great" sounding speakers as surround speakers and whether I should spend more money on those. Please correct me if my understanding is not correct.

So finally my questions:

* Since I have DALI Ikons in front, is it necessary to use DALI's in the rear as well? (and why?)

* Can I use cheaper DALI's like the Concept 1 speakers in rear? The speakers themselves haven't got good ratings but if I have to pair DALI's with DALI's then this seems to be a cheaper option. Would like to hear opinion from experts on this forum.

* Can I use Wharfedale Diamond 10.1s as rears in my setup? I have listened to them and I think they are very good speakers for the money, but how they will "gel" with rest of the setup I am not sure.

* Are there any other alternatives?

* Generally what factors are taken into consideration when "matching" speakers?

Thank you very much in advance.

-Max

 

[TheHomeCinemaCentre]

The 10.1s will be fine at the back if you are on a budget. It is less important to have speakers of the same make or range at the rear of the set up compared to the front. You will hear the benefits of a better speaker, you could always start with the cheaper speakers now and trade them in later for speakers further up the scale.

Alternatively you could try Dali Lektor 1's at the back and if you can squeeze your budget that bit further Ikon 1's are an option as well - they are £399 at the moment.