Castle Windsor Earl vs Wharfedale EVO5.2 Comparison

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Castle Windsor Earl

Passive Bookshelf | 58-22k Hz

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Wharfedale EVO5.2

Passive Bookshelf | 44-24k Hz

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Castle Windsor Earl

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Wharfedale EVO5.2

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Castle Windsor Earl

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Wharfedale EVO5.2

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Castle Windsor Earl vs Wharfedale EVO5.2 Speaker Comparison

In this review, we will be comparing Windsor Earl and EVO5.2, two Passive Bookshelf speakers from Castle and Wharfedale.

Let's have a brief look at the main features of Castle Windsor Earl and Wharfedale EVO5.2 first before getting into our more detailed comparison.

Key Specs	Castle Windsor Earl	Wharfedale EVO5.2
Brand	Castle	Wharfedale United Kingdom · founded 1932
Design	2-way	3-way
Tweeter	1.1" Soft-Dome	1.375" AMT (Ribbon)
Midrange	—	2"
Woofer	6.5" Woven Polypropylene	6.5" woven Kevlar
Frequency response	58-22k Hz	44-24k Hz
Sensitivity	89 dB	88 dB
Impedance	8 ohms	4 ohms
Power range	25-100 watts	25-120 watts
Weight	—	15.05kg / 33.1lbs
Dimensions (H x W x D)	16-15/16" x 9-7/16" x 10-1/4" 430.0 x 240.0 x 260.0mm	19.6" x 10.2" x 15.4" 497.0 x 260.0 x 391.0mm

What size room are the Castle Windsor Earl and Wharfedale EVO5.2 speakers good for?

The size of the room in which you are planning to use these loudspeakers is an important decision factor. Here we have compared their suitability to various sizes of environments considering their size and max power parameters:

Listening Environment*	Castle Windsor Earl	Wharfedale EVO5.2
Near-field	Average	Poor
Small Room	Good	Average
Mid-size Room	Average	Good
Large Room	Poor	Average
Very Large Room	Bad	Poor

(* Approximate Room sizes: Small < 100sq. ft / 9 m², Mid-size: 100-220 sq. ft / 9-20 m², Large 220-400 sq. ft / 20-36 m², Very Large: > 400 sq. ft / 36 m². Average Floor Height: 9" / 2.7m. Typical room sizes differ from country to country, and the actual listening experience changes depending on floor height, room shape, surface materials, listening position, speaker locations, etc.)

The sections below take each area in turn: drivers, frequency response, physical size and what you get in the box.

Drivers

One of the fundamental differences between these two speakers is that Windsor Earl is a 2-way design whereas the EVO5.2 is a 3-way speaker. 3-way designs utilize a midrange driver in addition to the tweeter and woofer on 2-way designs. Designing a crossover for a 3-way speaker is a complicated process and generally increases the overall cost of the speaker.

Castle Windsor Earl

Wharfedale EVO5.2

TweeterMidrangeWoofer

Front view, drawn to scale - cabinets and drivers share one scale, so sizes are directly comparable. Hover a driver for its size.

Driver	Castle Windsor Earl	Wharfedale EVO5.2
Driver Setup	2-way	3-way
Tweeter	1.1-inch	1.375-inch
Midrange	-	1 x 2-inch
Woofer	1 x 6.5-inch	1 x 6.5-inch

Windsor Earl features a 1.1" Micro-Fibre Soft-Dome Tweeter and 1 x 6.5" Woven Polypropylene Woofer with a Crossover frequency at 2.2 kHz. On the other hand, the EVO5.2 features a 1.375" SilentWeave cotton and felt damping fiber AMT (Ribbon) Tweeter, a 2" Midrange and 1 x 6.5" woven Kevlar Woofer with a Crossover frequency at 800 Hz and 4.3 kHz.

Frequency Response

Windsor Earl has a frequency range of 58-22k Hz whereas EVO5.2 has a frequency range of 44-24k Hz. With a minimum frequency of 44Hz, the EVO5.2 can go significantly deeper on the low side and provide stronger bass compared to the Windsor Earl's min frequency of 58Hz.

The graph below depicts how these two speakers compare with the max, min and average Low Frequency values of other speakers in the Bookshelf class in our database.

Low Frequency

Bookshelf Speakers

Windsor Earl

EVO5.2

Min

Average

Median

Neither pair reaches down to 20Hz, the usual definition of full-range, which is normal for speakers of this size. If you want the bottom octave for movies or bass-heavy music, add a subwoofer to whichever you choose. Visit our Powered Subwoofers section to find out more about the available options.

Impedance and Sensitivity

Windsor Earl is a 8 ohms speaker compared to the EVO5.2 which has a nominal impedance of 4 ohms. Lower impedance speakers, especially the ones that are rated at 4 ohms may put more pressure on the amplifier unit especially when played at high volume levels, so make sure the amp you pair with the EVO5.2 can provide this impedance level.

These two speakers also have different sensitivity levels. Windsor Earl sensitivity is rated at 89 dB and the EVO5.2's is rated at 88 dB. This 1 dB difference makes the Castle Windsor Earl a more sensitive speaker compared to Wharfedale EVO5.2, hence will play louder with the same amount of watts.

Sensitivity

Bookshelf Speakers

Windsor Earl

EVO5.2

Min

Average

Median

Power Range

Power range is the range of input power in watts RMS that a loudspeaker is designed to handle. Staying within that range gives nominal performance; driving the speaker beyond its maximum wattage can damage it.

EVO5.2 can handle a max power of 120 watts RMS, whereas Windsor Earl has a max power handling value of 100 watts RMS, 20 watts less than the EVO5.2.

Note that higher power handling does not make a speaker louder: that depends mainly on sensitivity and impedance. The calculator below shows how loud each of these actually plays on a real amplifier.

Which plays louder on your amplifier?

Starting with a popular amplifier - change it to the one you own, or any you are considering, and watch both numbers move.

Amplifier - change this

Distance

Playing as

Castle Windsor Earl

Wharfedale EVO5.2

Input Type and Bi-Amping / Bi-Wiring

Windsor Earl features Binding post type posts and EVO5.2 has a Binding post type posts. None of these speakers feature bi-amping/bi-wiring.

Wharfedale EVO5.2's Binding post terminals

Cabinet Type and Port Position

Windsor Earl has a rear firing port whereas EVO5.2 has a bottom firing ports. Wharfedale EVO5.2's bottom-firing port gives more flexibility in placement in regards to proximity to walls compared to Castle Windsor Earl with its rear-firing port.

Physical Specs

The size of a speaker can sometimes be an important decision factor due to space constraints or in some cases purely for esthetic reasons. In this section, we are going to compare Castle Windsor Earl's and Wharfedale EVO5.2's external dimensions. Castle Windsor Earl has external dimensions of 430.0 x 240.0 x 260.0mm (16-15/16 x 9-7/16 x 10-1/4inch) whereas Wharfedale EVO5.2 has external dimensions of 497.0 x 260.0 x 391.0mm (19.6" × 10.2" × 15.4").

Wharfedale EVO5.2 is clearly the larger of the two speakers. Its body is 20mm wider, 67mm taller and 131mm deeper than Castle Windsor Earl.

Size, drawn to scale

Both speakers and both views share one scale, so everything here is directly comparable. Hover a box for its dimensions.

One scale for both, standing on the same surface and pushed back to the same wall, so the deeper one visibly sticks out further.

Wharfedale EVO5.2 needs about 63% more floor or shelf area. Wharfedale EVO5.2 is 131mm deeper, so it stands that much further out from the wall. Wharfedale EVO5.2 is 67mm taller.

Base Surface Area Comparison
Base surface area of a loudspeaker may become a determining factor when the space in your room or desk is limited. The base surface area of the Castle Windsor Earl is approximately 624.0cm² / 96.7inch² and base area of the Wharfedale EVO5.2 is approximately 1016.6cm² / 157.6inch². The Windsor Earl requires 39% less surface area than the EVO5.2 which gives it a small advantage on placement in tight spaces.

What's in the Box of Wharfedale EVO5.2?

Here are the items that come with the EVO5.2:

2 Bookshelf loudspeakers
2 Grilles
4 Jumper-bars (pre-installed)
8 Self-adhesive rubber feet
Pair of white cloth gloves
User Manual

Reasons to choose Castle Windsor Earl over Wharfedale EVO5.2

Sensitivity	89 dB vs 88 dB	Play louder with same amount of amplification power
Nominal Impedance	8 ohms vs 4 ohms	Less selective with amplifiers
Minimum Impedance	4.3 ohms vs 3.2 ohms	Very low impedance levels puts more pressure on amplifier
Height	430mm vs 497mm	Easier to fit in smaller spaces
Base Surface Area	624cm² vs 1016cm²	Takes less floor space

Reasons to choose Wharfedale EVO5.2 over Castle Windsor Earl

Max Input Power	120 watts vs 100 watts	Handle more power from your amplifier
Driver Setup	3-way vs 2-way	Have a dedicated mid-range driver
Low Frequency Response	44 Hz vs 58 Hz	Generates deeper bass
High Frequency Response	24k Hz vs 22k Hz	Generates higher frequency
Price per pair*	1799USD vs 5250USD	costs less (*prices may change depending on the seller, location and time)

Castle Windsor Earl vs Wharfedale EVO5.2 Specs Table

Detailed comparison of specifications

General	Castle Windsor Earl	Wharfedale EVO5.2
Brand	Castle	Wharfedale
Speaker Type	Bookshelf speakers	Bookshelf speakers
Power Range	25-100 watts	25-120 watts
Sensitivity	89 dB	88 dB
Impedance	8 ohms	4 ohms
Impedance	4.3 ohms	3.2 ohms
Frequency Response	58-22k Hz	44-24k Hz
Drivers
Woofer Quantity	1	1
Woofer Size	6.5"	6.5"
Woofer Composition	Woven Polypropylene	woven Kevlar
Woofer Surround Material	n/a	Rubber
Tweeter Size	1.1"	1.375"
Tweeter Type	Soft-Dome	AMT (Ribbon)
Aimable Tweeter	No	No
Midrange Driver	No	2"
Crossover Frequency	2.2 kHz	800 Hz and 4.3 kHz
Firing Direction	rear	bottom
Physical Specs
Height	430.0mm (16.9")	497.0mm (19.6")
Width	240.0mm (9.4")	260.0mm (10.2")
Depth	260.0mm (10.2")	391.0mm (15.4")
Weight	n/a	15.05kg (33.1lbs)
Enclosure	Bass Reflex	Bass Reflex
Finish	Walnut veneer, Mahogany veneer	MDF/Wood-veneer
Available Colors	n/a	Walnut, Grey. Black, White
Mounting Bracket		No
Recommended Stand Height	n/a	18-22"
Grille	n/a	Yes
Moisture Resistancy	No	No
Connections
Biamp Inputs	n/a	No
Other
Parts Warranty		5 Years
Labor Warranty		5 Years

Verdict

These sit in different price classes - Castle Windsor Earl costs roughly 2.9x what Wharfedale EVO5.2 does. Expect it to lead on paper; the question is whether the gap is audible enough in your room to be worth it.

Area	Better	Why
Bass	B	Wharfedale EVO5.2 digs deeper - 44Hz against 58Hz.
Amplifier needs	evenly matched	Similar sensitivity (89dB vs 88dB) - both want much the same power.
Amplifier match	A	Castle Windsor Earl is the easier load at 8 ohms; the other is 4 ohms and wants an amplifier rated for it.
Headroom	evenly matched	Similar power handling (100W vs 120W).
Size	depends	Castle Windsor Earl is easier to place; Wharfedale EVO5.2 is bigger, which usually goes with fuller bass. Your room decides.
Expandability	depends	Neither adds bi-amping, a sub output or height drivers. Wharfedale EVO5.2 sits in a wider range (5 models), so a matched surround system is easier later.
Price	B	Wharfedale EVO5.2 is cheaper - $1,799 against $5,250, about 66% less; arguably a different class.

A Castle Windsor Earl B Wharfedale EVO5.2
depends neither is better in the abstract - it turns on your room, your system or how you will use them. Only specs published for both speakers are judged; anything missing on either side is left out rather than guessed.

Which should you choose?

Neither runs away with it - they trade advantages. Let the "depends" rows and your own room settle it. If a subwoofer is in your plans, the bass gap largely stops mattering - you would be crossing over above 58Hz anyway, so judge these on the other rows instead. Match it to your room: we rate Castle Windsor Earl the better fit for near-field listening and a small room, and Wharfedale EVO5.2 for a mid-size room and a large room.

And remember what a spec sheet cannot show: how each looks in your room and whether the finish suits it, what dealer support and warranty are like where you live, and how they actually sound to you. If you can hear them first - ideally with your own music - that will tell you more than any number above.