In this review, we will be comparing Oberon 9 and Oberon 7, two Passive Floor-standing speakers by DALI.
Let's have a brief look at the main features
of DALI Oberon 9 and DALI Oberon 7 first before getting into our more
detailed comparison.
| Key Specs | DALI Oberon 9 | DALI Oberon 7 |
|---|
| Brand | DALI
Denmark · founded 1983 | DALI
Denmark · founded 1983 |
|---|
| Design | 3-way | 2-way |
|---|
| Tweeter | 1.125" Soft-Dome | 1.125" Soft-Dome |
|---|
| Midrange | 7" | — |
|---|
| Woofer | 2 x 9" Wood Fiber | 2 x 7" Wood Fiber |
|---|
| Frequency response | 35-26k Hz | 36-26k Hz |
|---|
| Sensitivity | 90.5 dB | 88.5 dB |
|---|
| Impedance | 4 ohms | 6 ohms |
|---|
| Power range | 50-400 watts | 30-180 watts |
|---|
| Weight | 37.10kg / 81.6lbs | 14.80kg / 32.6lbs |
|---|
| Dimensions (H x W x D) | 46-1/8" x 10-1/4" x 16"
1172.0 x 260.0 x 407.0mm | 40" x 7-7/8" x 12-15/16"
1016.0 x 200.0 x 329.0mm |
|---|
Oberon 9 and Oberon 7 are members of DALI's Oberon series of speakers. Below you can find the loudspeakers from this series.
DALI Oberon Series
History
What size room are the DALI Oberon 9 and DALI Oberon 7 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* |
DALI Oberon 9 |
DALI Oberon 7 |
| Near-field |
Are you nuts? |
Bad |
| Small Room |
Poor |
Poor |
| Mid-size Room |
Average |
Good |
| Large Room |
Good |
Good |
| Very Large Room |
Good |
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 Oberon 9 is a 3-way design whereas the Oberon 7 is a 2-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.
DALI Oberon 9DALI Oberon 7
TweeterMidrangeWoofer
Front view, drawn to scale - cabinets and drivers share one scale, so sizes are directly comparable. Hover a driver for its size.
| Driver |
DALI Oberon 9 |
DALI Oberon 7 |
|
Driver Setup
|
3-way
|
2-way
|
|
Tweeter
|
1.125-inch
|
1.125-inch
|
|
Midrange
|
1 x 7-inch |
- |
|
Woofer
|
2 x 9-inch
|
2 x 7-inch
|
Oberon 9 features a 1.125" Soft-Dome Tweeter, a 7" Midrange and 2 x 9" Wood Fiber Woofer with a Crossover frequency at 780Hz and 3400Hz. On the other hand, the Oberon 7 features a 1.125" Soft-Dome Tweeter and 2 x 7" Wood Fiber Woofer with a Crossover frequency at 2300Hz.
Frequency Response
Oberon 9 has a frequency range of 35-26k Hz whereas Oberon 7 has a frequency range of 36-26k Hz. With a minimum frequency of 35Hz, the Oberon 9 can go slightly deeper then the Oberon 7's min frequency of 36Hz.
The graph below depicts how these two speakers compare with the max, min and average Low Frequency values of other speakers in the Floor-standing class in our database.
Low Frequency
Floor-standing Speakers
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
Oberon 9 is a 4 ohms speaker compared to the Oberon 7 which has a nominal impedance of 6 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 Oberon 9 can provide this impedance level.
These two speakers also have different sensitivity levels. Oberon 9 sensitivity is rated at 90.5 dB and the Oberon 7's is rated at 88.5 dB. This 2 dB difference makes the DALI Oberon 9 a more sensitive speaker compared to DALI Oberon 7, hence will play louder with the same amount of watts.
Sensitivity
Floor-standing Speakers
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.
Oberon 9 can handle a max power of 400 watts RMS, whereas Oberon 7 has a max power handling value of 180 watts RMS, 220 watts less than the Oberon 9.
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.
Input Type and Bi-Amping / Bi-Wiring
Oberon 9 features Post type posts and Oberon 7 has a Post type posts. None of these speakers feature bi-amping/bi-wiring.
DALI Oberon 9's Post terminals
DALI Oberon 7's Post terminals
Cabinet Type and Port Position
Both Oberon 9 and Oberon 7 have rear firing ports. Rear ported speakers generally need more room between the backside of the speaker and the wall compared to sealed and front/bottom ported speakers. Placing the speakers too close to the walls may cause the bass to sound boomy.
If you are limited in space and can't get the speakers away from the backwall, check our Speakers with Front Firing Ports page.
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 DALI Oberon 9's and DALI Oberon 7's external dimensions. DALI Oberon 9 has external dimensions of 1172.0 x 260.0 x 407.0mm (46-1/8 x 10-1/4 x 16inch) whereas DALI Oberon 7 has external dimensions of 1016.0 x 200.0 x 329.0mm (40 x 7-7/8 x 12-15/16inch).
DALI Oberon 9 is clearly the larger of the two speakers. Its body is 60mm wider, 156mm taller and 78mm deeper than DALI Oberon 7.
Below you can see the front view size comparison of DALI Oberon 9 and DALI Oberon 7 in scale.
Comparison image of DALI Oberon 9 and DALI Oberon 7 Size and External Dimensions
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 DALI Oberon 9 is approximately 1058.2cm2 / 164.0inch2 and base area of the DALI Oberon 7 is approximately 658.0cm2 / 102.0inch2. The Oberon 9 requires 61% more surface area than the Oberon 7 which gives it a small disadvantage on placement in tight spaces.
Weight Comparison The weight of a loudspeaker can become an important factor if you need to move and reposition the unit often. Weight of a speaker can also "sometimes" be an indicator of the rigidity of the enclosure and the quality of the internal components used. The DALI Oberon 9 weighs 37.10kg / 81.6lbs and the DALI Oberon 7 weighs 14.80kg / 32.6lbs. This makes the Oberon 9 151% heavier than the Oberon 7.
Here is a comparison of how Oberon 9 and Oberon 7's weights compare with the average, max and min weights in Passive Floor-standing class.
Weight
All Floor-standing Speakers
What's in the Box of DALI Oberon 9?
Here are the items that are included inside the box of Oberon 9:
- Floorstanding loudspeaker
- Grille
- 4 Rubber feet
- 4 Spike-feet
- 4 Hex-nuts
- Manua
What's in the Box of DALI Oberon 7?
Here are the items that come with the Oberon 7:
- Floorstanding loudspeaker
- Grille
- 4 Rubber feet
- 4 Spike-feet
- 4 Hex-nuts
- Manual
 Max Input Power |
400 watts
vs
180 watts
|
Handle more power from your amplifier |
 Driver Setup |
3-way
vs
2-way
|
Have a dedicated mid-range driver |
 Sensitivity |
91 dB
vs
89 dB
|
Play louder with same amount of amplification power |
 Woofer Size |
9 inches
vs
7 inches
|
Larger woofer |
|
Low Frequency Response |
35 Hz
vs
36 Hz
|
Generates deeper bass |
 Nominal Impedance |
6 ohms
vs
4 ohms
|
Less selective with amplifiers |
 Height |
1016mm
vs
1172mm
|
Easier to fit in smaller spaces |
 Base Surface Area |
658cm2
vs
1058cm2
|
Takes less floor space |
 Price per pair* |
1700USD
vs
2500USD
|
costs less (*prices may change depending on the seller, location and time) |
| General |
DALI Oberon 9 |
DALI Oberon 7 |
| Brand |
DALI |
DALI |
| Speaker Type |
Floor-standing speaker |
Floor-standing speaker |
| Power Range |
50-400 watts |
30-180 watts |
| Sensitivity |
90.5 dB |
88.5 dB |
| Impedance |
4 ohms |
6 ohms |
| Frequency Response |
35-26k Hz |
36-26k Hz |
Drivers |
|
|
| Woofer Quantity |
2 |
2 |
| Woofer Size |
9" |
7" |
| Woofer Composition |
Wood Fiber |
Wood Fiber |
| Woofer Surround Material |
Rubber |
Rubber |
| Tweeter Size |
1.125" |
1.125" |
| Tweeter Type |
Soft-Dome |
Soft-Dome |
| Aimable Tweeter |
No |
No |
| Midrange Driver |
7" |
No |
| Crossover Frequency |
780Hz and 3400Hz |
2300Hz |
| Firing Direction |
rear |
rear |
Physical Specs |
|
|
| Height |
1172.0mm (46.1") |
1016.0mm (40") |
| Width |
260.0mm (10.2") |
200.0mm (7.9") |
| Depth |
407.0mm (16") |
329.0mm (13") |
| Weight |
37.10kg (81.6lbs) |
14.80kg (32.6lbs) |
| Enclosure |
Bass Reflex |
Bass Reflex |
| Finish |
MDF/Wood-grain vinyl |
MDF/Wood-grain vinyl |
| Available Colors |
Black Ash, Light Oak, Dark Walnut, White |
Black Ash, Light Oak, Dark Walnut, White |
| Grille |
Yes |
Yes |
| Moisture Resistancy |
No |
No |
Connections |
|
|
| Biamp Inputs |
No |
No |
Other |
|
|
| Parts Warranty |
5 Years |
5 Years |
| Labor Warranty |
5 Years |
5 Years |
Siblings in DALI's Oberon series, so they share a family sound. It comes down to size, output and price.
| Area | Better | Why |
|---|
| Bass | evenly matched | Much the same reach (35Hz vs 36Hz). |
| Amplifier needs | A | DALI Oberon 9 is more sensitive (91dB vs 89dB), so it goes louder on the same amplifier. |
| Amplifier match | B | DALI Oberon 7 is the easier load at 6 ohms; the other is 4 ohms and wants an amplifier rated for it. |
| Headroom | A | DALI Oberon 9 takes more power (400W vs 180W) - more in hand in a big room. |
| Size | depends | DALI Oberon 7 is easier to place; DALI Oberon 9 is bigger, which usually goes with fuller bass. Your room decides. |
| Price | B | DALI Oberon 7 is cheaper - $1,700 against $2,500, about 32% less. |
A DALI Oberon 9 B DALI Oberon 7
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?
DALI Oberon 9 is ahead, but only on 1 of the measured areas, and it costs about 47% more. That is a lot of money for a narrow margin on paper - DALI Oberon 7 looks like the sensible buy unless something else about the DALI Oberon 9 appeals to you. Match it to your room: we rate DALI Oberon 9 the better fit for a very large room, and DALI Oberon 7 for a mid-size room. In a large or open-plan room, DALI Oberon 9 has the cabinet volume to fill it more easily; in a small room, near a wall or at desk distance, DALI Oberon 7 is the easier speaker to get right.
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.