In this review, we will be comparing TSi100 and LINTON Heritage, two Passive Bookshelf speakers from Polk Audio and Wharfedale. Let's have a brief look at the main features
of Polk TSi100 and Wharfedale LINTON first before getting into our more
detailed comparison.
Polk TSi100 Key Specs
- 2-way Design
- 1" Dome Tweeter
- 5.25" Organic Fiber Woofer
- 61-24k Hz Frequency Response
- 89 dB Sensitivity
- Impedance: 8ohms
- Power Range:20-100watts
- Weight:4.53kg
- Dimensions (H x W x D): 279.4" x 7.0" x 10.1"( 279.4 x 177.8 x 259.0mm )
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 Polk TSi100 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* |
Polk TSi100 |
Wharfedale LINTON |
| 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.)
In the following sections, we will get into more detail in order to better understand how the Polk TSi100 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 TSi100 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 |
Polk TSi100 |
Wharfedale LINTON |
|
Driver Setup
|
2-way
|
3-way
|
|
Tweeter
|
1-inch
|
1-inch
|
|
Midrange
|
- |
1 x 5-inch |
|
Woofer
|
1 x 5.25-inch
|
1 x 8-inch
|
TSi100 features a 1" Dome Tweeter and 1 x 5.25" Organic Fiber Woofer with a Crossover frequency at 2500Hz. 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
TSi100 has a frequency range of 61-24k 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 TSi100's min frequency of 61Hz.
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
TSi100 is a 8 ohms speaker compared to the LINTON Heritage which has a nominal impedance of 6 ohms.
These two speakers also have different sensitivity levels. TSi100 sensitivity is rated at 89 dB and the LINTON Heritage's is rated at 90 dB. This 1 dB difference makes the Wharfedale LINTON a more sensitive speaker compared to Polk TSi100, 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.
TSi100 can handle a max power of 200 watts RMS from the amp the whereas TSi100 has a max power handling value of 100 watts RMS , 100 watts less than the LINTON Heritage.
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
TSi100 features Post type posts and LINTON Heritage has a Post type posts. None of these speakers feature bi-amping/bi-wiring.
Wharfedale LINTON's Post terminals
Cabinet Type and Port Position
Both TSi100 and LINTON Heritage 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 Polk TSi100's and Wharfedale LINTON's external dimensions. Polk TSi100 has external dimensions of 279.4 x 177.8 x 259.0mm ( 11.0 x 7.0 x 10.1inch) whereas Wharfedale LINTON has external dimensions of 565.0 x 300.0 x 360.0mm ( 22.2 x 11.8 x 12.9inch) .
Wharfedale LINTON is clearly the larger of the two speakers. Its body is 122.2mm wider, 285.6mm taller and 101mm deeper than Polk TSi100.
Below you can see the front view size comparison of Polk TSi100 and Wharfedale LINTON in scale.
Comparison image of Polk TSi100 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 Polk TSi100 is approximately 460.5cm2 / 71.4inch2 and base area of the Wharfedale LINTON is approximately 990.0cm2 / 153.5inch2. The TSi100 requires 53% 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 Polk TSi100 weighs 4.53kg / 10lbs and the Wharfedale LINTON weighs 18.40kg / 40.5lbs. This makes the LINTON Heritage 306% heavier than the TSi100.
Here is a comparison of how TSi100 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 Polk TSi100?
Here are the items that are included inside the box of TSi100:
2 Black bookshelf speakers Detachable cloth grille (installed) 8 Self-adhesive rubber feet Owner's Manual Wall-Mount template Online registration sheet Polk Audio product brochure
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