Wharfedale Evo 4.2

IMHO it does make a Difference in Depth of sound. You need to listen carefully to know this. Not everyone will notice the difference. I have changed more speakers than AVRs / AMPs over the years and seen the difference.

My speakers at home are all 8 ohms. I am more into music than movies. The output is much balanced and clear as expected.

Here is one of the many articles you can find over google


Hope this helps.just a thought: when you give some attention /care to even listen the real potential that were you should think on the alternatives. Without the efforts things can b more enjoyable
 
@Ebenezer It would be better, if you can share following so FM can provide you better options.
  • Your music preference
  • Your room and speaker placement
I have Evo 4.2, paired with Naim Nait 5si, they paired well.
 
@Ebenezer It would be better, if you can share following so FM can provide you better options.
  • Your music preference
  • Your room and speaker placement
I have Evo 4.2, paired with Naim Nait 5si, they paired well.
Thank you for your response. My Music preference is jazz, blues, acoustic, pop & mild rock. My room is 12 X14 room. I have placed my speaker on soundfoundation stand (30 inch height) with 7 feet distance.

Glad to know that Evo 4.2 pairs well with Naim Nait 5si.
 
I have Evo 4.2 paired with Naim XS2 and it sounds great (for my taste). Earlier I was using KEF Q300 and Evo 4.2 is a good upgrade. Do PM me, we can check for the possibility of trying with your Amplifier if you are near by.
Thanks to Devakumar for his offer to visit his home and demo his Evo 4.2. Today I visited his home which is incidentally very close to my home 😀. Mr. Deva was kind enough and allowed me to try different combination with my equipments and his gears.

I took my Yamaha as500 amp and Allo boss player to see how it pairs with evo 4.2. Following is my observation

1. I connected Allo boss 1.2 player to AS500 amp and connected it to Evo 4.2. I listened to my well known FLAC files

Evo 4.2 is a warm speaker. I really liked it's balanced and well integrated sound across the frequencies. It sounded great with tight bass and well balanced and clean mids. I liked the refined bass which is not overwhelming in Evo 4.2.

2. I connected my pen drive to his laptop and connected it to his Schiit Bifrost DAC through usb. Amp and speaker remains same (AS500 and Evo 4.2)

That's is when the magic happened. I could hear my known songs were sounding well refined, balanced, organic, natural. It gave me more of listening to live performance😃.

3. I switched over to his gears completely (my pen drive to his Laptop - Schiit Bifrost - Naim xs2 - Evo 4.2)and heard my song collections.

Now it sounded much more fuller, muscular, well rounded sound without compromising on the details. The HF was slightly less prominent in Naim compared to As500. But all the frequencies were really balanced and sounding great. This is quite obvious as Naim should be more than 4x the cost of As500. But does this difference worth this cost difference? That is highly subjective.

Overall I feel Evo 4.2 is a well made speaker which sounds well balanced. Though it has ribbon tweeter, high frequencies were smooth without compromising on the details. The mids were phenominal, quite natural and well integrated with it's treble and tight bass. Many reviews says Evo 4.2 has poor off axis performance. Well, I couldn't feel that in a small room. It may be prominent in a bigger room.

I liked Evo 4.2 with my yamaha as500. This pairs really well. High frequencies were bit more prominent than Naim. It is not harsh though. Fore sure, I need to upgrade my source / DAC.
 
The Wharfedale 10.2 speakers are extremely good speakers for the price and so is your Yamaha amp. There should not be any loss of resolution in the mids at all. Before jumping the gun with a different speaker/amp, I suggest that you look at the source and first try with a different source.
@ Keith, You are absolutely right. I could hear a huge difference when I changed my source) DAC.

Between WF 10.2 to Evo 4.2, though the sound signature is more or less same, Evo 4.2 sounded more balanced. All the sound frequencies were well balanced. I was surprised by TIght bass which is not boomy like WF 10.2
 
@ Keith, You are absolutely right. I could hear a huge difference when I changed my source) DAC.

Between WF 10.2 to Evo 4.2, though the sound signature is more or less same, Evo 4.2 sounded more balanced. All the sound frequencies were well balanced. I was surprised by TIght bass which is not boomy like WF 10.2
Try the Micca RB42. For music I switched completely from my wharfedale 220 to micca. I use wharfedales only for movies
 
Now I need suggestion for a good DAC. I felt Schiit Bifrost is bit too laid back for my taste. I need slightly more top end. Would SMSL SU9n be a good choice?
 
Thanks to Devakumar for his offer to visit his home and demo his Evo 4.2.
I'm glad you were able to seize the opportunity to visit a fellow FM's home!

However, you'll be able to adequately evaluate the speakers only if you can listen to them in your own listening space. Speakers will sound different in different rooms. If you can, buy your fellow FM a beer and woo him with a creepy smile; he might let you borrow his speakers to test them out.

Many reviews says Evo 4.2 has poor off axis performance. Well, I couldn't feel that in a small room. It may be prominent in a bigger room.
What was the size of the listening room?
 
Now I need suggestion for a good DAC. I felt Schiit Bifrost is bit too laid back for my taste. I need slightly more top end. Would SMSL SU9n be a good choice?

I am using the SU9, my gear includes Audiolab 6000a and QA3050i. Feeding the DAC with a USB from RPi.

I love it, it is slightly warmer but punchy, dynamic with very good details and highs. The highs are not fatiguing but lovely for me to enjoy it.
I compared it to my Audiolab DAC, it was smoother and laid back, SMSL was more musical.

With your preference SMSL might suit you.
 
I'm glad you were able to seize the opportunity to visit a fellow FM's home!

However, you'll be able to adequately evaluate the speakers only if you can listen to them in your own listening space. Speakers will sound different in different rooms. If you can, buy your fellow FM a beer and woo him with a creepy smile; he might let you borrow his speakers to test them out.


What was the size of the listening room?
Listening room size is more or less same😀
 
I am using the SU9, my gear includes Audiolab 6000a and QA3050i. Feeding the DAC with a USB from RPi.

I love it, it is slightly warmer but punchy, dynamic with very good details and highs. The highs are not fatiguing but lovely for me to enjoy it.
I compared it to my Audiolab DAC, it was smoother and laid back, SMSL was more musical.

With your preference SMSL might suit you.
Thanks for your feedback. It is helpful
 
I got the wharfedale Evo 4.2 delivered today. I just set it up and was listening to it for an hour. It sounds bit harsh, could be due to break in time. Mr. Anil from Hifimart said it will take 50 hrs to break in. Overall I hear a good difference in details and balanced tone signature of evo 4.2 compared to Diamond 10.2. Evo 4.2 looks gigantic and stunning😀

After some time I am planning to upgrade to separate streamer and DAC from Allo Boss player.

Thanks for all your thoughts in making this decision. Thanks to Mr. Devakumar our FM for letting me demo his speakers /setup without that I wouldn't have pulled the trigger.
 

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I got the wharfedale Evo 4.2 delivered today. I just set it up and was listening to it for an hour. It sounds bit harsh, could be due to break in time.
For all naysayers of burn in, they should hear a pair of factory fresh Evo 4.2s.

They sound terrible out of the box with next to no integration between drivers, a harsh top end and a rough midrange.

Mr. Anil from Hifimart said it will take 50 hrs to break in.
Give it around 4 hours and the sound should tidy up quite a bit.

Another observation - though speaker placement, toe in etc. is a very personal choice, the Evo 4.2s do sound best when the tweeter is exactly at ear height - especially if you are listening from a distance closer than 10 feet.

Considering the regular height of most furniture, the ideal stand height is between 21" and 24" for the 4.2's. When placed on my 27" stands, the finer details in the treble which the Evo's do really well goes largelymissing. However, this could be also because i listen from a distance of 8-10 feet.
 
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For all naysayers of burn in, they should hear a pair of factory fresh Evo 4.2s.

They sound terrible out of the box with next to no integration between drivers, a harsh top end and a rough midrange.


Give it around 4 hours and the sound should tidy up quite a bit.

Another observation - though speaker placement, toe in etc. is a very personal choice, the Evo 4.2s do sound best when the tweeter is exactly at ear height - especially if you are listening from a distance closer than 10 feet.

Considering the regular height of most furniture, the ideal stand height is between 21" and 24" for the 4.2's. When placed on my 27" stands, the finer details in the treble which the Evo's do really well goes largelymissing. However, this could be also because i listen from a distance of 8-10 feet.
Thanks for your feedback. Yes after playing it for few hours I feel that it is getting more balanced👍

I have currently kept them on 27 inch stand. I am not hearing big difference. I am listening from 10-12 feet distance. If I miss the HF I need to change it to lesser height
 
With Evo 4.2, i would like to upgrade my Allo Boss Player / Dac as well. I was thinking of AUNE AUDIO - X5S (8TH ANNIVERSARY VERSION) as transport (though it has an internal DAC). I don't stream music, mostly i play from the audios that i have ripped from CDs in FLAC format / MP3 (320 kbps). Do anyone have experience on this Aune Audio X5S player?

I am planning to add a decent quality DAC after sometime. Let me know your thoughts. Thanks
 
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