Wharfedale vs. Polk
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grillebilly
Empty Head
I've never heard the 70's but had 60's. It's tough to beat the 7's and 10's Polk Monitors in the vintage speaker arena. Especially w/ Peerless. At least for the money.
drknstrmyknight
Addicted Member
The Polks will handle a little more power and IMO are a little more forwards and detailed, the Wharfdales - glorious mids! I have both - what are your musical tastes?
bowtie427ss
Lunatic Member
2 really different flavors of speaker, i like them both.
What you intend to drive them with might be the biggest determining factor.
What you intend to drive them with might be the biggest determining factor.
portnoy
AK Member
I've owned both. I replaced my Monitor 10s with peerless tweets with a pair of W70Es. The Monitor 10s were speaker placement pickier than the W70Es.
I listen to acoustic jazz primarily, but I do like classic rock as well. For me the Wharfedales are better over a broader spectrum of music, and the mids and highs are better as well.
Don't get me wrong though, I really enjoyed the Monitor 10s (they replaced my Polk SDA 1C studios).
I think you'd enjoy either or both of them.
I listen to acoustic jazz primarily, but I do like classic rock as well. For me the Wharfedales are better over a broader spectrum of music, and the mids and highs are better as well.
Don't get me wrong though, I really enjoyed the Monitor 10s (they replaced my Polk SDA 1C studios).
I think you'd enjoy either or both of them.
Gang-Twanger
Resident Wharfedaliophool
I have W60E's, not the W70E's (and W60D's, W60's, W90's, the Denton reissues, and a couple others), and one thing about basically ALL Wharfies from the '60's and '70 s, they LOVE tube gear (and the most-tubelike of solid-state models such as the Sansui *000X series and other models from that era). If you tried those W70E's (same as the Rosedale model) with a Fisher 500C or something similar, I think you would be very-happy with the results. Major-league synergy there. I'll never sell my W90's after hearing them with my Fisher 800C (and after recapping them with oil caps). Like all the W*0 models, sealed or ported, they have an engaging, heavily-musical quality that is rare among speaker brands, and they're also very-forgiving with average and less than average recordings. They sound great with jazz and classical, but I love them for the way they sound with classic-rock/pop and classic-funk/soul music (My W90's are off the frigging chain on that stuff... All that old '60's and '70's funk/soul/R&B, it's like they were made for that music).
Another thing about the old Wharfies, they don't need much volume to shine, even the 6-driver W90's. Just a small twist of the volume knob, and they open up, smooth out, and CLEAR up. And once they're in that sweet spot, the sound becomes effortless, with good PRAT. Very-laid-back, but full of life. And with that 15" woofer, I imagine the W70E's are pretty-effortless. With the right amplification and placement (including the tweeter being at ear-level and cabinet being far enough from the wall, the latter being the case with only the W*0E series), any of their large-sized W*0-type models will put out some truly-excellent sound. I like my W60E's. I just use my W90's so much that I really haven't looked back. Those W70E/Rosedales should go toe to toe with AR's best similarly-sized models (I've heard from a couple people who say their W60E's sound better than the AR3a. The W60E is an excellent speaker, so it's larger sibling must be even better. The only one I'm not sure about is the W80, their TOTL in '71. A strange model with a sound-deflecting ring that I think you could aim wherever. But it must surely share the sound-signature of the others in that series.
And Wharfies in general are non-fatiguing, all-day-listening speakers (although you should already know this by now). Also, most/all vintage Wharfedales tend to reward precise placement. The most-important thing is to get them equal distance from the centerpoint of your listening spot, and I mean EQUAL. With my W90's, the magic lies within that last quarter-inch of tolerance. That's why I was surprised to hear about Polks being rather-touchy in terms of placement.
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archie2
Addicted Member
Classical, jazz, new age.
archie2
Addicted Member
I can drive them with either a Yamaha CR-2020, an Altec Lansing 345A 60WPC tube or a 10 WPC Pilot 240 tube.
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archie2
Addicted Member
I do have both speakers but old age is creeping up and it's time to start thinking (much against my will) of consolidation. To my ears the Polks, although very fine speakers, have an edgyness about them whether fed by tubes or SS that is not there with the Wharfedales. The Polks also lack the same depth, are more fatiguing, and sound a bit thinner across the spectrum than the Wharfedales. However due to my oddly shaped room and furniture layout I am extremely limited in placement and therein lies the rub. Both pairs are in less than optimum positions, to put it mildly. Thanks for the input. I've always benefited from AK member's input re: the same gear as I have. I may try to rework the placement if it's possible and have another listen.
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Gang-Twanger
Resident Wharfedaliophool
I think you might get amazing sound with the 60wpc Altec. I think the W70E/Rosedales is rated for 50wpc, so the difference is minimal. Might be something special there. When I dropped off my Fisher for it's refurbishing, the guy had just finished a pair of Altec tube amps that should be back in use at the cinema at Trinity College at this point. They were the big green ones. Monoblocks, I guess. I can't remember the model, but definitely TOTL.
The Pilot might still sound OK, but I think the 60wpc Altec tuber is MUCH-closer to optimum for a pair of W70E's.
And getting the placement right with those will bring them to life. Wherever they are, just make sure the distance is the same for both cabs and do your best to have a good line of sight with each of the drivers, and put the tweeters at eye/ear-level. That's it, really. And you want them apart from each other, but not so much that it starts to sound like two separate speakers instead of a stereo pair.
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Have the Polk's been recapped? I recapped a pair of 10B's and all I can say is wow! But go with what sounds best to you.
archie2
Addicted Member
No, Polks have the original caps. They are the only decent speakers that I have had that I never recapped. The Wharfedales are recapped with Solens.
It is worth a go to recap the Polk's. I used Jantzen caps on my 10B's. It would give them equal footing in a comparison IMHO:yes:
archie2
Addicted Member
Realistically I think the Altec 345A is capable of a steady 45 WPC. 60 WPC maybe on peaks. Although some have clocked it at 100 WPC (dubious). Anyway it's more than enough to drive the W70E's. There is very little difference between mine and Rosedales.
I had them hooked up to an Onkyo 6.1 surround using them as mains with a Canton AV700 center and twin Wharfedale WH-2 sides and both the soundstage and sound were very, very nice.
RedbowTies88
Well-Known Member
I have Monitor 7's 1985 production with the clear tweeter, they are extremely hard to beat.
I've heard a few pairs of warfedale's (never the 70 admittedly) and they're also very nice, but it is a very different kind of sound. I think the Polks will better suite a wide variety of music, but where the Warfedale's shine they really shine.
I've heard a few pairs of warfedale's (never the 70 admittedly) and they're also very nice, but it is a very different kind of sound. I think the Polks will better suite a wide variety of music, but where the Warfedale's shine they really shine.
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