Every time a reader opens a comparison page on this site, we count it. Bots are filtered out. In September (the 1st to the 24th) readers opened 17,018 different speaker and subwoofer pairings, and another 3,432 amplifier pairings.
The one at the top was the DALI Oberon 5 vs DALI SONIK 5. That is an old speaker against the new one that replaced it.
DALI Oberon 5 on the left and the new DALI SONIK 5 on the right
When I looked at the rest of the list, that was the real story. Most of you are not choosing between brands. You have already picked the brand, and you are deciding which model, or whether the new one is worth the extra money.
Quick facts
- 17 of the top 20 speaker comparisons were two models from the same brand.
- 6 of the 20 were an old model against its direct replacement.
- DALI is in 7 of the top 20, more than any other brand.
- On amplifiers, Marantz is in 7 of the top 12 pairings.
- On subwoofers, SVS is in 4 of the top 5.
The top 10 speaker comparisons
Click any of these to open the full comparison.
- DALI Oberon 5 vs SONIK 5 (old vs new)
- KEF LSX vs LSX II (old vs new)
- KEF LS50 Wireless II vs LSX II
- KEF LS60 Wireless vs LS LUXE
- DALI Opticon 6 MK2 vs SONIK 7
- Q Acoustics 3030i vs 3030c (old vs new)
- Kanto ORA vs ORA4
- DALI SONIK 1 vs KUPID
- DALI Oberon 3 vs SONIK 3 (old vs new)
- DALI SONIK 1 vs SONIK 3
Eight of the ten are one brand against itself. And the first one was clearly ahead: it was opened about 40% more often than number two.
Here is the full top 20, sorted into three kinds of question.
The 20 speaker comparisons our readers opened most in September 2026
Oberon or SONIK?
DALI replaced the Oberon range with the SONIK range in February 2026. Every Oberon model has a SONIK in its place, and every one costs more. These are list prices for a pair, in US dollars:
- Oberon 1 750, SONIK 1 900 (20% more)
- Oberon 3 950, SONIK 3 1,200 (26% more)
- Oberon 5 1,499, SONIK 5 1,800 (20% more)
- Oberon 7 2,000, SONIK 7 2,800 (40% more)
- Oberon 9 4,000, SONIK 9 4,500 (13% more)
That gap is why people compare them. In January, Gear Patrol found the Oberons cut by about a third as stock cleared, with the Oberon 5 at 999. That makes the new SONIK 5 cost 80% more than a discounted Oberon 5. If you can still find an Oberon at that price, that is a real choice to make.
| FEATURE and SPECS COMPARISON | |  |  |
| Model | DALI Oberon 5 | DALI SONIK 5 |
| Speaker Type | Passive Floor-standing | Passive Floor-standing |
| Enclosure Type | Ported | Ported |
| Driver Setup | 2-way | 2-way |
| Tweeter | 1.125" Soft-Dome Tweeter | 1.125" Soft-Dome Tweeter |
| Woofer | 2 x 5.25" Wood Fiber Woofer | 2 x 5.25" Wood fiber Woofer |
| Frequency Range / Low | 39Hz | 39Hz |
| Frequency Range / High | 26kHz | 26kHz |
| Impedance Nominal | 6Ω | 6Ω |
| Sensitivity | 88dB | 88dB |
| Max Power (RMS) | 150w | 150w |
| Port Position | rear | rear |
| Available Colors | Black Ash, Light Oak, Dark Walnut, White | Black Ash, Natural Oak,White,Walnut |
| Finish | MDF/Wood-grain vinyl | MDF/Wood-grain laminate |
| Grille | Yes | Yes |
| Height | 832.0mm | 824.0mm |
| Width | 202.0mm | 250.0mm |
| Depth | 277.0mm | 269.0mm |
| Weight | 10.80kg | 10.82kg |
| MSRP(pair) | 1499USD | 1800USD |
| Check Current Price | Amazon | Amazon |
One more thing stood out. Readers also compared the DALI KUPID against both the Oberon 1 and the SONIK 1. The KUPID is a separate, cheaper model at 600 dollars, not an Oberon replacement. My guess is that Oberon 1 owners are asking which of the two new DALIs is the real successor. The answer is the SONIK 1, but the KUPID is the one that costs less than the Oberon 1 did.
The same story at Q Acoustics and KEF
Three more of the top 20 are Q Acoustics’ old 3000i models against the 3000c models that replaced them in 2024: the 3030, the 3020 and the 3010. Q Acoustics kept the new prices only slightly above the old ones, so here the question is closer.
| FEATURE and SPECS COMPARISON | |  |  |
| Model | Q Acoustics 3030i | Q Acoustics 3030c |
| Speaker Type | Passive Bookshelf | Passive Bookshelf |
| Enclosure Type | Ported | Ported |
| Driver Setup | 2-way | 2-way |
| Tweeter | 1" decoupled Tweeter | 1" decoupled Tweeter |
| Woofer | 1 x 6.5" Coated paper Woofer | 1 x 5.5" Coated paper Woofer |
| Frequency Range / Low | 46Hz | 48Hz |
| Frequency Range / High | 30kHz | 30kHz |
| Impedance Nominal | 6Ω | 6Ω |
| Impedance Minimum | 4Ω | 3.9Ω |
| Sensitivity | 88dB | 87dB |
| Max Power (RMS) | 75w | 90w |
| Crossover Frequency | 2400Hz | 2500Hz |
| Port Position | rear | rear |
| Available Colors | Walnut, Black, White | Walnut, Black, White, Oak |
| Video Shield | No | No |
| Grille | Yes | Yes |
| Height | 325.0mm | 325.0mm |
| Width | 200.0mm | 205.0mm |
| Depth | 329.0mm | 329.0mm |
| Weight | 6.20kg | 7.50kg |
| MSRP(pair) | 499USD | 699USD |
| Check Current Price | Amazon | Amazon |
KEF has two in the top four. The KEF LSX II against the original LSX is the classic old-vs-new. The LSX II against the bigger LS50 Wireless II is the other kind of question: same family, which size.
Amplifiers: mostly Marantz
Marantz Model 40n on a shelf with a turntable
The amplifier list looks the same. Eight of the top 12 amp comparisons are two models from one brand, and Marantz is in seven of them. The top five:
- Marantz Model 40n vs Model 60n
- Marantz PM6007 vs Denon PMA-600NE
- Marantz Model 30 vs Model 50
- Marantz Model 60n vs MODEL M1
- Audiolab 6000A vs Arcam A5
The Model 40n against the newer Model 60n is the same kind of question as the DALIs: is the newer model the better buy, or the one that has been around longer?
| FEATURE and SPECS COMPARISON | |  |  |
| Model | Marantz Model 40n | Marantz Model 60n |
| Type | Integrated Amplifier | Integrated Amplifier |
| Amplifier Class | Class A/B | Class A/B |
| Power into 8 ohms | 70 watts | 60 watts |
| Power into 4 ohms | 100 watts | 80 watts |
| Minimum Impedance | 4 ohms | 4 ohms |
| THD | 0.02% | 0.02% |
| Signal to Noise Ratio | 106 | 113 |
| Frequency Bandwidth | 20 Hz-20 kHz | 20 Hz-20 kHz |
| Damping Factor | - | 100 |
| Built-in DAC | | |
| DAC | ESS ES9016 DAC | - |
| Max Bit Depth | 24 | 24-bit |
| Max Sample Rate | 192 | 192 kHz |
| Analog Inputs | 3 | 3 |
| Phono Input | | |
| Phono Type | MM | MM |
| Optical Digital Inputs | 1 | 1 |
| Coaxial Digital Inputs | 1 | 1 |
| USB Input | Yes | Yes |
| HDMI Input | Yes | Yes |
| HDMI ARC | ARC | ARC |
| Preamp Outputs | Sub | Stereo RCA, Sub |
| Subwoofer Output | - | 1 |
| Headphone Output | 1/4 | 1/4 |
| Bluetooth | Yes | Yes |
| Wi-Fi | 802.11ac | Yes |
| AirPlay 2 | | |
| Chromecast built-in | | |
| Roon | Tested | Tested |
| BluOS | | |
| HEOS | | |
| Tone Controls | | |
| Handheld Remote | | |
| Height | 131.0mm | 130.2mm |
| Width | 442.0mm | 442.9mm |
| Depth | 481.0mm | 431.8mm |
| Weight | 10.82kg | 12.73kg |
| MSRP | 2499 USD | 1600 USD |
| Check Current Price | Amazon, B&H Photo | Amazon, B&H Photo |
Subwoofers: mostly SVS
On subwoofers, SVS is in four of the top five pairings. The most opened was the SVS SB-2000 Pro vs SB-1000 Pro, two sealed 12 inch subs from the same range. Next came the SB-1000 vs SB-1000 Pro and KEF KC62 vs KC92.
| FEATURE and SPECS COMPARISON | |  |  |
| Model | SVS SB-2000 Pro | SVS SB-1000 Pro |
| Driver | 12" Aluminum | 12" Fiber-composite |
| Enclosure | Sealed | Sealed |
| Firing Direction | Front | Front |
| Amplifier Power (RMS) | 550 watts | 325 watts |
| Amplifier Power (Peak) | 1500 watts | 820 watts |
| Amplifier Class | Class D Sledge STA-550D | Class D Sledge STA-325D |
| Frequency Response | 19-240 Hz | 20-270 Hz |
| Low Pass Crossover | 30-200 Hz | 30-200 Hz |
| Phase | Yes | Yes |
| Room Correction | Yes | Yes |
| Line Level Inputs | Stereo RCA/LFE | Stereo RCA/LFE |
| Speaker Level Inputs | No | Binding posts |
| Speaker Level Outputs | No | No |
| Wireless | Optional | Optional |
| App Control | iOS,Android | iOS,Android |
| Height | 370.0mm | 343.0mm |
| Width | 361.0mm | 331.0mm |
| Depth | 434.0mm | 402.0mm |
| Weight | 17.55kg | 11.82kg |
| MSRP | 900 USD | 600 USD |
| Check Current Price | Amazon | Amazon |
What this list does not tell
- A view is not a purchase. Someone opening Oberon 5 vs SONIK 5 may already own the Oberon and just be curious.
- The numbers behind each rank are small. Places close together, say 9th and 12th, are close to a tie. The clear lead is only at the top.
- This is one month. We only started counting this cleanly in late August, so I cannot yet say what is rising or falling. That starts next month.
- I left one pairing out. The Klipsch R-30C vs R-50C centre speakers would have been 8th, but more than half its views came in a single day. That looks like one person or one link, not a trend.
What I fixed because of it
Our review pages can say “this model was replaced by that one” and link the two. But of the six old-vs-new pairs in the top 20, only the KEF LSX was linked that way. So the pages people were clearly looking for did not point to each other.
I have now linked all five Oberon models to their SONIK replacements and five Q Acoustics 3000i models to their 3000c versions. I also found that our Oberon prices were the 2018 launch prices, between 6% and 60% below the last list prices. Those are fixed too.
So which is it for you: did you go for the new model, or pick up the old one while it was cheap?
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