In this review, we will be comparing Passif 50 and LINTON Heritage, two Passive Bookshelf speakers from PSB and Wharfedale. Let's have a brief look at the main features
of PSB Passif 50 and Wharfedale LINTON first before getting into our more
detailed comparison.
PSB Passif 50 Key Specs
- 2-way Design
- 1" Dome Tweeter
- 6.5" cast aluminum basket, paper cone Woofer
- 50-20k Hz Frequency Response
- 87 dB Sensitivity
- Impedance: 6ohms
- Power Range:30-200 Wattswatts
- Weight:13.70kg
- Dimensions (H x W x D): 660.0" x 11" x 10"( 660 × 280 × 254mm )
Wharfedale LINTON Key Specs
- 3-way Design
- 1" Soft-dome Tweeter
- 5" Midrange
- 8" Woven Kevlar Woofer
- 5" Midrange
- 40-20k Hz Frequency Response
- 90 dB Sensitivity
- Impedance: 6ohms
- Power Range:25-200watts
- Weight:18.40kg
- Dimensions (H x W x D): 565.0" x 11.8" x 14.2"( 565.0 x 300.0 x 360.0mm )
What size room are the PSB Passif 50 and Wharfedale LINTON 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* |
PSB Passif 50 |
Wharfedale LINTON |
| Near-field |
Poor |
Poor |
| Small Room |
Average |
Average |
| Mid-size Room |
Good |
Good |
| Large Room |
Average |
Average |
| Very Large Room |
Poor |
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.)
In the following sections, we will get into more detail in order to better understand how the PSB Passif 50 and Wharfedale LINTON 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 Passif 50 is a 2-way design whereas the LINTON Heritage 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.
| Driver |
PSB Passif 50 |
Wharfedale LINTON |
|
Driver Setup
|
2-way
|
3-way
|
|
Tweeter
|
1-inch
|
1-inch
|
|
Midrange
|
- |
1 x 5-inch |
|
Woofer
|
1 x 6.5-inch
|
1 x 8-inch
|
Passif 50 features a 1" titanium dome with ferrofluid and neodymium magnet Dome Tweeter and 1 x 6.5" cast aluminum basket, paper cone Woofer with a Crossover frequency at 1800Hz. On the other hand, the LINTON Heritage features a 1" woven textile Soft-dome Tweeter , a 5" Midrange and 1 x 8" Woven Kevlar Woofer with a Crossover frequency at 630Hz and 2400Hz.
Frequency Response
Passif 50 has a frequency range of 50-20k Hz whereas LINTON Heritage has a frequency range of 40-20k Hz. With a minimum frequency of 40Hz, the LINTON Heritage can go significantly deeper on the low side and provide stronger bass compared to the Passif 50's min frequency of 50Hz.
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 Bookshelf class in our database.
Low Frequency
Bookshelf Speakers
High Frequency
Bookshelf 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
Passif 50 and LINTON Heritage have the same Impedance of 6 ohms but where they differ is the sensitivity levels. Passif 50 sensitivity is rated at 87 dB and the LINTON Heritage's is at 90 dB. This 1 dB difference makes the Wharfedale LINTON a more sensitive speaker compared to PSB Passif 50, hence will play louder with the same amount of watts.
Sensitivity
Bookshelf 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.
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
Passif 50 features 5-Way post posts which make bi-amping or bi-wiring possible. LINTON Heritage has a Post which doesn't feature bi-amping/bi-wiring.
PSB Passif 50's 5-Way post terminals allows Bi-amping or bi-wiring
Wharfedale LINTON's Post terminals
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 PSB Passif 50's and Wharfedale LINTON's external dimensions. PSB Passif 50 has external dimensions of 660 × 280 × 254mm ( 26 x 11 x 10-inch) whereas Wharfedale LINTON has external dimensions of 565.0 x 300.0 x 360.0mm ( 22.2 x 11.8 x 12.9inch) .
PSB Passif 50 is 20mm narrower and 106mm less deeper than Wharfedale LINTON but it is also 95mm taller.
Below you can see the front view size comparison of PSB Passif 50 and Wharfedale LINTON in scale.
Comparison image of PSB Passif 50 and Wharfedale LINTON 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 PSB Passif 50 is approximately 712.0cm2 / 110.4inch2 and base area of the Wharfedale LINTON is approximately 990.0cm2 / 153.5inch2. The Passif 50 requires 28% less surface area than the LINTON Heritage which gives it a small advantage 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 PSB Passif 50 weighs 13.70kg / 30.1lbs and the Wharfedale LINTON weighs 18.40kg / 40.5lbs. This makes the LINTON Heritage 34% heavier than the Passif 50.
Here is a comparison of how Passif 50 and LINTON Heritage's weights compare with the average, max and min weights in Passive Bookshelf class.
Weight
All Bookshelf Speakers
What's in the Box of Wharfedale LINTON?
Here are the items that come with the LINTON Heritage:
Bookshelf loudspeaker Grille (pre-installed) 4 Self-adhesive rubber feet Pair of white gloves User's Manual