In this review, we will be comparing SONIK 9 and Triton Five, two Passive Floor-standing speakers from DALI and GoldenEar.
Let's have a brief look at the main features
of DALI SONIK 9 and GoldenEar Triton Five first before getting into our more
detailed comparison.
DALI SONIK 9 Key Specs
- 3-way Design
- 0.6875 x 1.75" Planar Tweeter
- 1.125" Midrange
- 3 x 7.0" Wood fiber Woofer
- 34-30k Hz Frequency Response
- 90 dB Sensitivity
- Impedance: 6ohms
- Power Range:50-300watts
- Weight:24.65kg
- Dimensions (H x W x D): 1126.0" x 12-9/16" x 14-13/16"( 1126.0 x 320.0 x 377.0mm )
GoldenEar Triton Five Key Specs
- 2-way Design
- " Folded Ribbon Tweeter
- 2 x 6" Polypropylene Woofer
- 26-35k Hz Frequency Response
- 90 dB Sensitivity
- Impedance: 8ohms
- Power Range:15-400watts
- Weight:18.18kg
- Dimensions (H x W x D): 1131.0" x 11-1/16" x 16-9/16"( 1131.0 x 281.0 x 421.0mm )
In the following sections, we will get into more detail in order to better understand how the DALI SONIK 9 and GoldenEar Triton Five compare and hopefully end up with enough arguments to decide which one of these loudspeakers is the better choice for you.
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Drivers
One of the fundamental differences between these two speakers is that SONIK 9 is a 3-way design whereas the Triton Five 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.
| Driver |
DALI SONIK 9 |
GoldenEar Triton Five |
|
Driver Setup
|
3-way
|
2-way
|
|
Tweeter
|
0.6875 x 1.75-inch
|
-inch
|
|
Midrange
|
1 x 1.125-inch |
- |
|
Woofer
|
3 x 7.0-inch
|
2 x 6-inch
|
SONIK 9 features a 0.6875 x 1.75" Planar Tweeter , a 1.125" Midrange and 3 x 7.0" Wood fiber Woofer . On the other hand, the Triton Five features a " Folded Ribbon Tweeter and 2 x 6" Polypropylene Woofer .
Frequency Response
SONIK 9 has a frequency range of 34-30k Hz whereas Triton Five has a frequency range of 26-35k Hz. With a minimum frequency of 26Hz, the Triton Five can go significantly deeper on the low side and provide stronger bass compared to the SONIK 9's min frequency of 34Hz.
Below graphs depict how these two speakers compare with the max, min and average values of the Min and Max Frequencies of other speakers in the Floor-standing class in our database.
Low Frequency
Floor-standing Speakers
High Frequency
Floor-standing Speakers
None of these speakers achieves full range experience which is commonly agreed as 20Hz-20kHz. In order to achieve lower lows / deeper bass, we recommend you pair these with a subwoofer. Visit our Powered Subwoofers section to find out more about the available options.
Impedance and Sensitivity
SONIK 9 is a 6 ohms speaker compared to the Triton Five which has a nominal impedance of 8 ohms.
On the other hand, they have the same sensitivity of 90 dBdB.
Sensitivity
Floor-standing Speakers
Power Range
Power
range is the range of input power in watts RMS that a loudspeaker is designed to handle. While using
an amplifier within this range ensures the nominal performance , inputting a power that is higher than the
max wattage can result in a damaged speaker.
SONIK 9 can handle a max power of 400 watts RMS from the amp the whereas SONIK 9 has a max power handling value of 300 watts RMS , 100 watts less than the Triton Five.
Keep in mind that a higher max power handling value doesn't necessarily make that a louder speaker
compared to a lower max handling speaker. Loudness or the sound level is also impacted by parameters
such as Impedance, sensitivity and system efficiencies.
Input Type and Bi-Amping / Bi-Wiring
SONIK 9 features 5-way Post type posts and Triton Five has a 5-way Post type posts. None of these speakers feature bi-amping/bi-wiring.
Cabinet Type and Port Position
Both SONIK 9 and Triton Five 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
Size of a speaker can sometimes become 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 SONIK 9's and GoldenEar Triton Five's external dimensions. DALI SONIK 9 has external dimensions of 1126.0 x 320.0 x 377.0mm ( 44-5/16inch x 12-9/16inch x 14-13/16inch ) whereas GoldenEar Triton Five has external dimensions of 1131.0 x 281.0 x 421.0mm ( 44-1/2 x 11-1/16 x 16-9/16inch) .
DALI SONIK 9 is 5mm shorter and 44mm less deeper than GoldenEar Triton Five but it is also 39mm wider.
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 SONIK 9 is approximately 1206.4cm2 / 187.0inch2 and base area of the GoldenEar Triton Five is approximately 1183.0cm2 / 183.4inch2. The SONIK 9 requires 2% more surface area than the Triton Five which gives it a small disadvantage on placement in tight spaces.