I've done the same, however I've found other mods which are free on the 220 model as well. One that makes a good difference, is take off speaker grilles, especially the tweeter easily checked. This is well known on lots of forums. Another is to make sure the screws that hold the drivers in place are tightened, don't go mad just tweak them, four screws were loose on mine, subtle change. Next when you took off the bottom plate to change spacers, you can smooth the corner of the port with sand paper, Subtle change to be honest. One almost free, isolate the speakers use three pea sized blobs of blutac under speakers to your piece of furniture subtle but see below One mod that did cost little but had good results was to isolate the speakers from the unit you have them on, I used 20mm sorbothane hemispheres from eBay just used three per speaker (two at front and one in middle at back). The spacer I tried on my 230 speakers which you have/had although it did make a change for me it was slightly detrimental in the bass. The other mods worked with 230 especially tightening the screws as nearly all were loose and one bottom driver was actually moving in the cabinet.
Here is a simple fix to get better sound from these (and other bookshelf units) that are placed on top of furniture (as you have it here)... Get two rools of 2" thick duct-tape (color is irrelevant, but you can get white, black or silver tape rools to match the looks of your setup as per your taste) and place them (1 roll sideways so that they do not move/roll away of course) under each loudspeakers to decouple the loudspeakers from the furniture. This will generally make for more open sound with less "boominess" and provide the feeling of tighter bass and probably better lower mids (nice for vocals). Of course, should you wish to bring this to a next level, you could also use solid coasters (or whatever is solid and flat, even a not too thick hard cover book!) provided these coasters (or whatver you choose to use/experiment with) do not protrude on the sides and the front of the loudspeakers (so that you do not induce/generate bad parasitic diffractionn distortion that can ruin your imaging soundstage!) that you shall place on top of the duct-tape to serve as a solid platter on which you will add/use 3 or 4 wood-dowel markers* to make for cheap but effective speaker spikes (you can add a penny between these pointy upward facing "on the cheap spikes" and the loudspeaker's bottoms if needed to protect the loudspeaker's if the finish is "soft" and/or cheap). I prefer 3 spikes per unit (more pressure per sq. in. = usually better stability) but 4 "spikes" is ok also... specially if the speakers are not stable (as some tall ones sometime have bad center of gravity and can be tipped by pets!) This extra decoupling will generally induce tighter sounding bass & also improve overall soundstage imaging by reducing micro-vibrations (induced by bass pressure/thumping) that affects the mid & high frequencies ( thus affecting harmonic information and localization cues). All these are easy to test and pretty cheap to do. Anyways... That all I have for you today. Cheers! M :) * Wood dowel markers are generally available for cheap at harware store and make for good decouping spikes for speakers & Preamps & amps & CD players & turntables also :)
I could hear a pretty clear difference. The bass was definitely deeper and they had a smoother top end. I would definitely bring the speakers up to ear level and take the speaker covers off👍
I read some post about a guy who modded the crossover (better parts only), internal wiring, and put new binding posts on along with padding the walls inside the box with a thin layer of some damping material. He said the speaker was in a different higher category after. He didn't change the spacer or port tube-he had a tube in there already, and so do I. I also got rubber feet with mine, but I think those could be beefier. Of course, it would take know how or trouble to make electrical changes like that.
I have these speakers, I have already swapped out the crappy plates for jumper cables. Where did you get the spacers from as I’d be interested it giving them a try. Great stuff as always 👍 Ron
Update….Ive bought and swapped out these spacers, and I find the bass to be a tad punchier. Not a massive leap in the bass but just enough for me, in my listening room. I’ve also tightened the four screws holding the speakers in place and check them occasionally, I got this tip from another UA-camr. Ron
I heard more bass after the mods but wasn't convinced it sounded better. The sound changed from spacers on the bottom. Still not convinced biamp wiring did anything.
The least subtle thing was the bass enhancement....but not 100% convinced I liked it better. It (to me through my headphones) made the bass a little "looser". Not sure I preffered it. But sound is always personal right?
Im debating on if its worth just making the jumpers myself. 50 cm of twin cable will cover 2 sets of speakers. 16 spades and some heat shrink. Jobs a goodan!
If the bottom acts like part of the port, then widening it will make it act like a shorter port; it'll work at higher frequencies. Should take the router to that port end though and give it a radius to get less port noise/turbulence. If you make the port area larger you also need to make the port longer in order to have it acting in the same freq. Dont think the bottom plate acts like a port though. Always fun with some projects. Take the router to the port end now... I cant sleep knowing these poor speakers are out there with sharp port corners! Maybe ad an aero port end to the inside as well! Now we're talking! :)
I heard a review of these and they say the first thing you should do is take the tweeter cover off they say the difference is night and day, i did see the difference in the wave guide they used and it was massive i cant really tell but you should try tell me what you think mate?
The next time someone asks you what exactly was so great about a world where you had to persuade an editor before you could put anything in front of the general public, show them the first fourteen seconds of this video.
The focus is really bad bud...it only clears up once you get the base off the speakers...be careful removing those spacers as you don't want to scratch /mark the white vinyl...l would have put the screws semi back in to pull of the spacers or use a large set of pliers padded with a cloth to stop any scratches, safer than prying of with a screwdriver bud, changing the height of the spacers will change the frequency response especialy in the bass/lower mids....you change the ports later, i noticed it is smaller in height than the original cardboard rolls/ports (terrible build quality) ...have you measured their frequency response after these changes ?... Wharfedale spend many £M's in R&D, i have heard of people changing the 225's spacers...where did you buy the ports & spacers from bud ? Even with a £10,000 AV system the compression YT adds spoils the sound , i can hear the difference but did you calculate the ports internal volume ?....i hate those cardboard roll ports Wharfedale use....foam rings do help to cut down on port chuffing bud....i used to design transducers/speakers....i fancy changing those cardboard roll ports...i use 4 x Wharfedale 220's as Dolby Atmos speakers mounted on heavy duty wall brackets....better than those Atmos 90hz & above speakers, the Atmos channel is sent a full range frequency signal....i really like these little speakers ,for the price their really good, £120 a pair new from Richer Sounds so i got 4 gloss black ones, no white ones left, for my Pioneer Dolby Atmos 11.2 channel AV system... impressed at the quality for the price....Rotel amps are good quality, that one looks new, good deal....good vid bud 👍
Those biwire metal clips are junk! Always change them to UL Listed Jumper Cables. worlds best cables are good and inexpensive(you know where) Chane them always!!
@@UTILITARIANTVUK can you do it just for a sound test? I think you will be pleasantly surprised. Especially after these mods that you have already done.
Lol, these little shits have bi-wiring terminals? Oh thats just too funnny. Even funnier that you've spent half of this video discussing that, as for those its inconsequential. Changing the spacing - oh that could change port loading by a good margin - but that needs to be measured and verified.
![More Cheap Speaker Mods [BIG IMPROVEMENT!]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/EQbI-TCMV9Q/mqdefault.jpg)
![More Cheap Speaker Mods [BIG IMPROVEMENT!]](/img/tr.png)
The percussion instruments had more clarity on the AFTER mods...seems like a worthwhile experiment and worth trying!
I've done the same, however I've found other mods which are free on the 220 model as well. One that makes a good difference, is take off speaker grilles, especially the tweeter easily checked. This is well known on lots of forums. Another is to make sure the screws that hold the drivers in place are tightened, don't go mad just tweak them, four screws were loose on mine, subtle change. Next when you took off the bottom plate to change spacers, you can smooth the corner of the port with sand paper, Subtle change to be honest. One almost free, isolate the speakers use three pea sized blobs of blutac under speakers to your piece of furniture subtle but see below One mod that did cost little but had good results was to isolate the speakers from the unit you have them on, I used 20mm sorbothane hemispheres from eBay just used three per speaker (two at front and one in middle at back).
The spacer I tried on my 230 speakers which you have/had although it did make a change for me it was slightly detrimental in the bass. The other mods worked with 230 especially tightening the screws as nearly all were loose and one bottom driver was actually moving in the cabinet.
Here is a simple fix to get better sound from these (and other bookshelf units) that are placed on top of furniture (as you have it here)...
Get two rools of 2" thick duct-tape (color is irrelevant, but you can get white, black or silver tape rools to match the looks of your setup as per your taste) and place them (1 roll sideways so that they do not move/roll away of course) under each loudspeakers to decouple the loudspeakers from the furniture.
This will generally make for more open sound with less "boominess" and provide the feeling of tighter bass and probably better lower mids (nice for vocals).
Of course, should you wish to bring this to a next level, you could also use solid coasters (or whatever is solid and flat, even a not too thick hard cover book!) provided these coasters (or whatver you choose to use/experiment with) do not protrude on the sides and the front of the loudspeakers (so that you do not induce/generate bad parasitic diffractionn distortion that can ruin your imaging soundstage!) that you shall place on top of the duct-tape to serve as a solid platter on which you will add/use 3 or 4 wood-dowel markers* to make for cheap but effective speaker spikes (you can add a penny between these pointy upward facing "on the cheap spikes" and the loudspeaker's bottoms if needed to protect the loudspeaker's if the finish is "soft" and/or cheap).
I prefer 3 spikes per unit (more pressure per sq. in. = usually better stability) but 4 "spikes" is ok also... specially if the speakers are not stable (as some tall ones sometime have bad center of gravity and can be tipped by pets!)
This extra decoupling will generally induce tighter sounding bass & also improve overall soundstage imaging by reducing micro-vibrations (induced by bass pressure/thumping) that affects the mid & high frequencies ( thus affecting harmonic information and localization cues).
All these are easy to test and pretty cheap to do.
Anyways... That all I have for you today.
Cheers!
M :)
* Wood dowel markers are generally available for cheap at harware store and make for good decouping spikes for speakers & Preamps & amps & CD players & turntables also :)
I like how you trying to find the best sound through little things.
I could hear a pretty clear difference. The bass was definitely deeper and they had a smoother top end. I would definitely bring the speakers up to ear level and take the speaker covers off👍
I read some post about a guy who modded the crossover (better parts only), internal wiring, and put new binding posts on along with padding the walls inside the box with a thin layer of some damping material. He said the speaker was in a different higher category after. He didn't change the spacer or port tube-he had a tube in there already, and so do I. I also got rubber feet with mine, but I think those could be beefier. Of course, it would take know how or trouble to make electrical changes like that.
Amazing hand speed! Looked like a 10 punch combination at the beginning. 👊
Oh good video on the speakers too!
I think the sound more open after the mods.
That my A10 Amp......love the Rotel stuff.
I have these speakers, I have already swapped out the crappy plates for jumper cables. Where did you get the spacers from as I’d be interested it giving them a try.
Great stuff as always 👍
Ron
I already had some from a tv vesa mount but you can get them on Amazon amzn.to/3G6dLrC
Update….Ive bought and swapped out these spacers, and I find the bass to be a tad punchier. Not a massive leap in the bass but just enough for me, in my listening room.
I’ve also tightened the four screws holding the speakers in place and check them occasionally, I got this tip from another UA-camr.
Ron
Ahhhh you said you might do this, was intrigued to see what your thoughts were with it. deffinately worth a dabble for a few quid.
Yes, you gave me the idea! 👍
Did not think you would actually do it though lol, thank you for the channel, honestly it's great.
@@kevinsheppard6085 Thanks!
I heard more bass after the mods but wasn't convinced it sounded better. The sound changed from spacers on the bottom. Still not convinced biamp wiring did anything.
Leave the plates on and use cable as well. Best of both worlds.
The least subtle thing was the bass enhancement....but not 100% convinced I liked it better. It (to me through my headphones) made the bass a little "looser". Not sure I preffered it. But sound is always personal right?
Im debating on if its worth just making the jumpers myself. 50 cm of twin cable will cover 2 sets of speakers. 16 spades and some heat shrink. Jobs a goodan!
also i wonder if the hole was bigger would that help?
If the bottom acts like part of the port, then widening it will make it act like a shorter port; it'll work at higher frequencies. Should take the router to that port end though and give it a radius to get less port noise/turbulence.
If you make the port area larger you also need to make the port longer in order to have it acting in the same freq. Dont think the bottom plate acts like a port though.
Always fun with some projects. Take the router to the port end now... I cant sleep knowing these poor speakers are out there with sharp port corners! Maybe ad an aero port end to the inside as well! Now we're talking! :)
Adding an aero port is a good idea!
worth the mod yes!
It works better if you remove the speaker cup and hook both sets of wires to just two of the binding posts on the inside.
Wow what in intro
I heard a review of these and they say the first thing you should do is take the tweeter cover off they say the difference is night and day, i did see the difference in the wave guide they used and it was massive
i cant really tell but you should try tell me what you think mate?
I'm currently making a video on exactly that. 👍
Delusion vs engineering punch up...
No contest in the Hi-Fi world.
Delusion always wins.
Great improvement
I’ve read several reviews/comments that said these speakers sound much better with the covers off.
They do. 👍
What's the story with the cardigan
All will be revealed in the next video?
My Wharfedale Diamond 225 is a pair of decent speakers, not in the cheap category. Agree with you, the bass can be better
The next time someone asks you what exactly was so great about a world where you had to persuade an editor before you could put anything in front of the general public, show them the first fourteen seconds of this video.
🤣
@@UTILITARIANTVUK
Where did u buy the mod spacer ?
I already had some from a tv vesa mount but you can get them on Amazon amzn.to/3G6dLrC
@@UTILITARIANTVUKdid it work for Diamond 230 too ?
@@handokosetiawan2803 I didn't try it on the 230's
The cardigan is interfering with the camera lens.
The cardigan does not maketh the man!
The focus is really bad bud...it only clears up once you get the base off the speakers...be careful removing those spacers as you don't want to scratch /mark the white vinyl...l would have put the screws semi back in to pull of the spacers or use a large set of pliers padded with a cloth to stop any scratches, safer than prying of with a screwdriver bud, changing the height of the spacers will change the frequency response especialy in the bass/lower mids....you change the ports later, i noticed it is smaller in height than the original cardboard rolls/ports (terrible build quality)
...have you measured their frequency response after these changes ?... Wharfedale spend many £M's in R&D, i have heard of people changing the 225's spacers...where did you buy the ports & spacers from bud ? Even with a £10,000 AV system the compression YT adds spoils the sound , i can hear the difference but did you calculate the ports internal volume ?....i hate those cardboard roll ports Wharfedale use....foam rings do help to cut down on port chuffing bud....i used to design transducers/speakers....i fancy changing those cardboard roll ports...i use 4 x Wharfedale 220's as Dolby Atmos speakers mounted on heavy duty wall brackets....better than those Atmos 90hz & above speakers, the Atmos channel is sent a full range frequency signal....i really like these little speakers ,for the price their really good, £120 a pair new from Richer Sounds so i got 4 gloss black ones, no white ones left, for my Pioneer Dolby Atmos 11.2 channel AV system... impressed at the quality for the price....Rotel amps are good quality, that one looks new, good deal....good vid bud 👍
.........yes better......5-8 percent........always change jumper / binding plates......!!
Those biwire metal clips are junk! Always change them to UL Listed Jumper Cables. worlds best cables are good and inexpensive(you know where) Chane them always!!
Please take the grills off, it should be a substantial upgrade
When the kids are older perhaps. Too many little fingers interested in the tweeter to take them off at present.
@@UTILITARIANTVUK can you do it just for a sound test? I think you will be pleasantly surprised. Especially after these mods that you have already done.
@@Wookie32812 Yes I've tried it and it does sound better.
The more you make the space larger the more you lose mid clarity.
Before better than after…
Lol, these little shits have bi-wiring terminals? Oh thats just too funnny.
Even funnier that you've spent half of this video discussing that, as for those its inconsequential.
Changing the spacing - oh that could change port loading by a good margin - but that needs to be measured and verified.
That's not all that needs to be measured and verified? 😉
@@UTILITARIANTVUK Oh I don't know, doing anything blind is kinda pointless, and ears are notoriously bad instruments.
No difference what so ever!
I listen through a pair of fullsize B&W towers, it might be your mic but, no.
Wharfdale diamond 225 worst speakers I've ever owned except for bose 901 😂😂 and the highs are none existence in the 225