Wharfedale Diamond 225 Can Sound Better Than You Think! 

This modification really works. I played around with different thickness spacers from 3mm to 15mm. I think the 10mm is the sweet spot. It has better clarity and dynamic.

Dezember last year I was looking for new speakers and listened to every Speaker sample of your videos. without recognizing your review stars i choosed them. after that i read all the comments and your raiting. i bougth them 6 times in white for surround and I'm very happy with the sound and quality. thanks for your comparsion videos!

Tharbamar, I’m so glad I did the bass mod, for a different reason. When I went to unscrew the bolts at the bottom, I found they were all loose. Now I understand why the midrange sounded so dirty, especially at higher volumes. I guess it’s because the board at the bottom was loose and rattling, creating its own sound. Since I’ve tightened the bolts, it’s so much cleaner sounding.

I just bought some Wharfedale Diamond 11.2's a couple of weeks ago, and after watching this video I tried modification using some Scotch-pad furniture sliders. There are about the same diameter and a little less than the width of the speaker's spacers. I drilled holes through them and added them to the spacers. I really do like the sound improvement this experiment made and I thank you for this video.

What an excellent, inexpensive mod for the masses. Great content.

Thank you for this tip! I've bought 8 nuts of 10mm high from the local hardware store for my Diamond 220's. Since I could not find any plastic rings. The results: in my view the bass is deeper and louder. And it seems that there is a better and wider spread in the high, mid and low frequencies.

I absolutely love these speakers. These matched with proper external DAC and amplifier are way better than active speakers many times the price.

I did replace the spacers ,got them at Lowes. They only had white so I took a black marker and colored them. They did make a big difference. Thank you!

in my opinion these speakers sound VERY good as stock ones, but thanks for showing your creative side, and keep doing the good work man! love your channel!

i got these 225s and nice to see them get some love and diy to improve them. i liked them so much i was inspired to get into more expensive hifi :) i also was aware of the bass issue so i have sealed box speakers now. you could possible get better results with the wharfedale if you remove the bottom plate and use hollow or open stands, like my isoacoustic stands.

Have added the spacers and wow! It does make a difference. The bass has way more punch!

Thatnks for this info. I did this mod to my 220's and although the bass port in the base of the speaker is smaller than the 225's and doesn't even have a proper port (it's just a hole in the wood!) it definately made a worthwhile improvement. I'm going to add a proper plastic port as well.

These are my 1st real speakers because of your channel. After parting with them 2 speaker upgrades ago, I still think they are the best in that price point. Build quality was better than my kef q350 which are at a higher price point and almost the same as my new dali speakers which are almost 3x the cost.

At first I was sceptical about the sound improvement with the spacers. Then I realized there was that large port on the bottom. I'm surprised that the wharfdale engineers didn't consider the height of the gap!

I installed half inch (12.4 mm) spacers for $3 which produced significantly more bass and a bigger soundstage! I used Copland's Fanfare for the Common Man on a Telarc cd for a test cd and I was blown away by the improvement! Very gratifying. Thanks for your ingenuity!

Wow!!! Great modification job 👍

Nice job! I need to clean the base plate on mine as well so I might as well tweak the sound.

This mod adds clarity throughout the frequency range. It changes the sound character slightly, but I love what I am getting in return. Anybody who is curious should give it a try.

Thanks for the tip! I put some 20 mm plastic washers (leftovers from a TV wall hanger) and the bass is now better, while the mids and highs are the same. Sometime there is still something strange like an "ummmm" that is not really low subbass, but I can live with that. Maybe I should play with speaker room positioning. The beauty is that tracks (pop '80, '90) that do not have bass are are not presenting added bass.

Thank you so much for this video! I just purchased these speakers for $229. As far as the spacers, I remembered that I kept the strip of spacers that come with TV wall mounts. I actually had 8 of the exact size you used but they are a shiny black, which will work well with the black piano finish!

I have just done this little mod and there is a noticeably 'cleaner' low end. I chose to use chunky 29mm wide spacers however, as when raised up like this I found that the 16mm ones looked a little puny. Purely an aesthetic choice, but I think they look much better than the skinny ones.

Another tip on D 225: I have been testning some gears back and fourth. Mostly using bare wire for the speakers. Tightening the bindning posts hard every time as one should. One day I actually turned one bindning post when tightening the nob. Opened the bindning post and checked the nuts on the inside. Not tight at all (any more). Most nuts could be turned several revulotions! Used a 8 mm long socket. Now they are back to former glory. Time to buy bananplugs.

*WATCHING A lot of your vids* thanks for the tip.. The 225's look much better also.

Just doing mine now bit early in uk to play them yet can't wait to hear them my spacers are a bit bigger than the ones you used

A lot of folks mod these speakers (225/220). There's nothing wrong with changing the jumper although it's very subtle how it would change the sound. The jumper you get with the speakers is gold plated tin probably. Copper is better, but surface area covered by the supplied jumpers kind of negates any benefit you'd get using copper/silver, etc. It's real dicey changing the distance of the plinth from the bottom of the speaker. They've been tested to give the best balance the way they are, but if you only change it very little it may suit your tastes better, or worse, and it really depends on taste and environment you play the speakers in, and whether you use a sub, or even the music you play mostly. If you make the gap a millimeter greater, or up to 5 I'd say, the bass actually drops a little with a change in the speaker's timbre/resonance. It does seem to increase resolution a bit. The change won't suit everyone. I have the 220's, and I raised them a little less than 2mm. I'm not even sure if the tuning isn't corrupted, but I listened to one speaker done, and the other not. The modded speaker seemed clearer, and the resonance was still mostly intact. It's been that way a couple weeks doing both, and I may revert. Room sound mods and the equipment/music you use is way more important. (Remember that the speakers as they come use the plinth (bottom screwed in plate) as an extension of the port. If you really want to change the gap you should be changing the port length and/or the hole diameter as well to get the proper tuning. That would take some experimentation or calculations to get right).

I did this modification to the spacers, and the difference to me was obvious. I think it cleaned up some muddiness / sloppiness in the lower end. I also replaced the bridge plates, and my speaker wire (which was Amazon Basics, copper coated aluminum wire; 16ga) with Monoprice pure copper; 14ga. Between the new spacers, and the bridge plate / wire upgrade, I got a nice overall improvement to the sound for a handful of dollars. Thank you, Tharbamar! P.S. I found the spacers on eBay, they seem to be a common bicycle part, and not hard to get.

great review, I was thinking to do the same to my WD225 to improve their bass

Never tried to replace the spacers, worth a shot. In the sound demo, the “boomyness” seemed to lower. Not a bad idea for a small cost.

The position (height) of the loudspeaker has also changed , this can affect the lower frequency response due to the room. By adjusting the speaker position, the distance from the floor, walls and ceiling will alter the room modes ( those frequencies that are re-enforced by reflections that are in phase with the original frequency ).

Can I do both mods on the Diamond 220s? And do you have any mods you can recommend for Denton 80th to increase soundstage? Never modded a speaker before. This is my first time. Always a pleasure to watch your videos.

I re-watched the video again using my headphone to hear the difference , after the modification the bass became deeper and more refined I have the same issue with my WD225 and was thinking to do the same modification , your video make me sure that this is the best modification . By the way I bought recently and old WD 9.2 speakers , their sound signature is very close to 225 except "in my opinion" the high frequency response is better than 225 , if you have the chance to test them ... don't hesitate :)

It seems slightly better to me too, I found on ebay some 'Aluminum Spacer Bushing 3/4" OD x 5/16" ID' and 3/8 length, 10 pcs. I could not find any black spacers and aluminum looks good, also it is a little wider.

Hey buddy thanks for this video, which av re river. And music amplifier do you use with these??? Sound is simply awesome

I did the spacers today. Tried with one speaker first and the improvement was so evident to my ear! A lot more open sound and Fuller. Really really good!

Thank you , I baed week ago one pair of warfedale diamond 14.4 .!

Great, simple project. What stands are those? Thanks.

You need to try the Evo models, especially 4.4. Surprising sound at this price.

Thanks for sharing. These are MONITOR speakers. They are supposed to sound neutral. You have changed the characteristics and made them play louder by strengthening the bass. But they are not neutral now - my impression this improvement was done at the cost of clarity and separation of the instruments on the soundstage, so it could be either improvement or worsening, depending on the music you listen to. But this is a cheap modification and you can always return to the original state, so it's worth trying.

Nice sounding

Hi! Nice mod gonna do this for my 225's. My 220c had the reflex pipe plugged with foam from factory so i removed it and im gonna try this mod for it also. Have you tried the 225's biamped? ive had them biamped from new with my Pioneer vsx-933, so not sure if theres a diffrence.

Does anyone know about the Diamond 3's of the mid 80's?? They were the best satellites of the day...had a pair.

I listened to diamond 225 combined with denon pma520ae, pma720ae, marantz pm6004 and harman kardon hk980. And the sound is good. Two days ago I bought a yamaha as 701 and got even better sound.

@Tharmabar Which software or app are you using for wave comparison

Is there a graph showing before minus after waveform? The net effect of the mods?

Can I please ask your opinion between Diamond 225 vs Diamond 11.2

Could only find M8 15 or 20 mm. Is 20mm going to be too much

11.3 tomorrow coming my way 🥳

​@Tharbamar In stock there is too much bass to me - it is a bit slow and overwhelming. Will this mod (taller spacers) reduce bass and make it more responsive, or should I try something else? Please advice.

What if you would have gone higher and add some soundproofing self adhesive foam? I think it would further reduce some unwanted resonance.

Have you tried with 15 mm nylon spacers? I ordered both 10 and 15 mm

I wonder if this mod could be done to the Reva line speakers?

Where do you buy the spacers online ?

Where did you get the spacers from?

I can confirm this mod works with 220 as well At first i was enthusiastic, the base gets a bit more kick and depth. This is good for the speakers on their own and would keep it this way if i only had the 2 speakers. But i use the speakers with a subwoofer. It is too much for this combination. So i reverted back. The woofer fills in the lack of bass !

not the same speaker, but with the same 'mechanism'. i'm experimenting with the 11.3, that i find lacking punch in the middle-low by default, and i found that removing the plate and putting the spikes in its place (they fit in the same holes) gives back the punch in the lows. basically all it matters is the distance of the mouth of the reflex port from the floor. in your case you increased it, in mine i decreased it, with opposite results

I have a lathe. I can make glass reinforced nylon ( acetal ) as spacers then.

Hello Tharbamar! is this upgrade good for the 220's? Thank you. I think I'm gonna buy some Diamonds!

Just tried this on my 220,s and noticable difference straight away, more tighter extended bass, with more attack. Brilliant Thanks

Best speakers for compressed or Spotify, even 80s Vinyl Sounds more fun then with my other higher prived speakers. Do you have a Link for the spacers??

Hello, anyone has some thoughts on the Wharfedale D320? Are they supposed to be cheaper than these here?

Works great. Any hard plastic will work as spacers. No need to buy originals.

Hi! Cool video. Looking at buying a pair of wharfedale. Either 10.1 or 225. Quick question: what's the foam on the wall used for exactly please? Why a piece at the center also? Thank you

I avoid using jumpers, I just trim a bit of the speaker cable off in the middle of the cable wrap it around bottom post then trim the end and wrap around top post, then tighten on the knobs, so just the two posts connected to my speaker cable and no jumpers required...

Hi Can you tell me what AWG that copper wire is? It looks pretty thick...maybe an 8 awg?

Do you have a link for the spacers? I would love to try this on my diamond 220's!

If i am using an SVS sub with the 225s, would adding the larger spacers still result in any improvements?

Hi Tharbarmer! If I do this mod for my 225, do I also need to do the same to my 220c centre channel speaker which is a part of my home theatre system? If so, do I have to do it in the same way? Will the centre channel sound better?

In my experience a speaker’s sound never improves by any peripheral mods. The sound either muddles up, or worse, loses some part of the music (which can give a false sense of clarity).

Can I get a link to the speakers stand?

Tempted to do it on my 220s... but I would need to see some objective measurements that show it improves the frequency response first. Anyone done any testing? It also would mean removing all the rubber feet to get to the screw holes, which is a pain.

Hi! Is there much difference in sound in Diamond 220 and 225? Both models have lower price right now, thanks!

Have owned and enjoyed 225s for 6 mos but wonder if I can improve on sound I'm getting. Can anyone give suggestions on ideal placement, angling, distance from wall and such? Also I'm powering these with a fairly basic AVR the Denon AVR-S750H, would they benefit greatly from better amp? Thanks

I've got a pair of 220's on the way, do you figure that this small mod would work just as well for them?

What do you think of the latest wharfedale diamond 12.2 compare to 225 because I can't make any decisions which one buy? Pls advise. Thanks.

Hello Tharbamar, which speakers do you recommend Wharfedale Diamond 220 vs JBL Stage a120? I see you love your 225, but also said only good things about the JBL. Thanks

Just heard them it is well worth doing they sound better good idea

Hey. Thank you for the video. Which budget amplifier is better to take to Wharfedale Diamond 225? I choose between Yamaha A-S201 and Denon 520AE. Thank you

οι αποστάτες κάνουν στα ηχεία Wharfedale Diamond 240;

Would this serve purpose to wharfedale 11.3 ?

I think the Mogami links is the big factor. Clearer sound.

hopefully you can get your hands on the new EVO large bookshelf with the AMT tweeter.. those look interesting and affordable.

Hi Sir! May i know what the name of the Amply used test? Dennon ? Thanks sir

How about the bass response

Hi Tharbamar, could you pls review some Q acoustics speskers in your channel please? Concept 20, 3030i etc thank you, have been checking your reviews and enjoy them, cheers

So instead of just "guessing" at spacer height, why not just remove the bottom plate and do some experimenting/listening/frequency graphs as to how the sound changes when the height is raised? Or has that been done already and this is the best result?

Sounds like you lost the attack and dynamics on the drums as a trade off of better airflow to the port. I am borrowing my son's 225's and the biggest difference in sound I have found is the grille for the tweeter changes the sound. Danny Richie of GR Research did a frequency graph of these and found with measurements the grille changes the measured response. Personally I prefer the sound with the tweeter grilles on, with them off they sounded too sibilant and horn like. The grilles seemed to make the sound more natural to my ears.

What do you call that spacer? Any brand or any recommended materials? And how bout the wire? What brand and specs thanks.

You should try diamond 11.2

Anyone know if I can safetly put in foam bunges in the bassport, even if its down firing? Slightly too much bass, due to bad position. Thanks in advance!

I will try this on my 220s

Or if your budget allows, you can get 11.2s. They have insane bass. I don't know if it makes sense but the bass sounds full bodied and deep

With the modifications, how would you compare it to the PSB Alpha P5?

Hello. Can you do the same to the Wharfedale 4.4? They have similiar design, would you do it to your 4.3?

ME ENCANTA COMO SUENAN.....DINAMISMO Y REALISMO.....

😍Wharfedale😍

Hello, I have the 11.2 wharfedale speaker has any test this speaker for this spacer or is it just for 220 . It look to me that the space is larger ?????

Those 225s must pair well with your warm powerful sounding Denon IVR 2000 , Have you tried them with any other integrated amps or 2 channel recievers or recievers ? Dame good job on the modification ,lettting the woofer to breath better espically at louder volumes ! Liking the your channel alot !

Is this a three-way speaker like the Elac ubrv The driver on the top looks like a coaxial…

The upgrade of those longer spacers did sound noticably better, very much so in the lower bass.

Can you Please share what music you listen to? It looks like you have a pretty interesting music taste. Us the "young ones" do not know good music to listen to in our system. We try new music and it doesn't not sound good. Thank you,