Wharfedale DX-3 Home Cinema Package

The Wharfedale DX-3 Home Cinema Package is compact, stylish and offers incredible value for money. Marking the 3rd iteration of the acclaimed system, the satellite speakers bring in new heritage and are now styled closer to the award-winning Diamond 12 series, making for a more contemporary solution. The cabinets have also been revised in looks but also with a new structure, not only to enhance the aesthetic but also to aid with the resonant control and dynamic performance, resulting in an even more impressive mini loudspeaker cabinet. Handling dialogue, sound effects and music with ease, solidity and detail, the DX-3 is extremely versatile.

The Wharfedale DX-3 is compact, stylish and offers incredible value for money. Marking the 3rd iteration of the acclaimed system, the satellite speakers bring in new heritage and are now styled closer to the award-winning Diamond 12 series, making for a more contemporary solution. The cabinets have also been revised in looks, but also with a new structure, not only to enhance the aesthetic but also to aid with the resonant control and dynamic performance, resulting in an even more impressive mini loudspeaker cabinet. Handling dialogue, sound effects and music with ease, solidity and detail, the DX-3 is extremely versatile.

Each DX-3 speaker measures just 19x12x12.2cm (HxWxD), its closed-box design making it ideal to position against a wall, whether placed on a shelf or mounted on the wall itself. It replaces the DX-2, an equally diminutive speaker that has proved highly popular, especially as part of the ‘DX-2 HCP’ 5.1 home cinema speaker pack. In fact, the DX-2 HCP has won Best Speaker Package at the industry-leading What Hi-Fi? Awards for five consecutive years since 2018, as well as ‘best buy’ accolades from the likes of AVForums, Home Cinema Choice and Trusted Reviews, lauded for its affordable price and engaging sound that belies the speakers’ compact size.

The new 5.1 home cinema pack, the DX-3 HCP, combines two pairs of DX-3 speakers for the front and rear channels with the DX-3 Centre and DX-3 Subwoofer.

DX-3 sparkles like a Diamond

The new DX-3 speaker takes inspiration from Wharfedale’s multi-award-winning Diamond 12 Series hi-fi speakers, both acoustically and aesthetically. The cabinet shape, front baffle design, driver surrounds, and black and walnut finish options are all distinctly reminiscent of the Diamond 12 standmount models, albeit in miniaturised form.

The DX-3’s mid/bass driver incorporates a 75mm cone fashioned from a woven polypropylene matrix. While not the same composition as the mineral-loaded polypropylene material called Klarity that features in the larger, more expensive Diamond 12 Series speakers, this formulation delivers a superb combination of lightness, strength and rigidity, delivering low colouration and impressive speed.

This driver combines with a 19mm silk dome treble unit, its profile modified to take on board some of the elements engineered for the Diamond 12 Series. This has enhanced its integration with the crossover, which has been revised to take advantage of this improvement. This results in a more seamless blend between the drivers and a more stable acoustic performance across a wide listening angle, increasing the speaker’s flexibility in terms of positioning without compromising sonic clarity.

The structure of the DX-3 speaker’s cabinet has also been improved by elements trickled down from the Diamond 12 Series, enhancing resonance control and dynamic performance. An additional panel fixed to the cabinet enclosure strengthens the front baffle and braces the cabinet, allowing the drivers to do their work unsullied by unwanted resonance.

Centre speaker and powered subwoofer

The DX-3 Centre speaker that comes as part of the DX-3 HCP measures 12x31x12.2cm (HxWxD) and, like the main DX-3 speaker, it can be placed on a shelf or mounted on a wall. It benefits from the same cabinet, driver and crossover enhancements and incorporates the same 19mm silk dome tweeter flanked by two identical 75mm mid/bass drivers. These combine with an aperiodic bass loading system consisting of a vent filled with resistive porous foam to control airflow, contributing to a rich, detailed and dynamic centre channel performance – a critical part of the surround sound experience.

The matching DX-3 Subwoofer combines a 200mm long-throw woven polypropylene bass cone with a 70W amplifier to deliver fast, deep and well-defined bass from an extremely compact unit – just 29.8×26.8x30cm (HxWxD). The quality of the subwoofer’s design ensures it integrates superbly with the other speakers in the package, without any hint of bass bloating or overhang. It also includes an ‘auto-power’ facility, automatically going into standby when not in use and switching itself on when a signal is detected.

A blockbuster sequel

The DX-3 HCP has been system-tuned to ensure a seamless surround experience, delivering a space-saving, budget-friendly package that doesn’t skimp on the cinematic thrills. Its sound is punchy, detailed and expansive, conveying dynamic intensity and a sense of scale that belies the diminutive size of the speakers. When combined with an AV amp/receiver from, it delivers an authentic surround experience that’s far more immersive than any soundbar can muster.

Small in stature and big on entertainment, the DX-3 Stereo and DX-3 HCP are ideal for music and movie fans who are tight on budget and space.

Specification of the Wharfedale DX-3 Home Cinema Package

Model
 DX-3 Satellite DX-3 Centre
General description 2-Way Closed Box Bookshelf Speaker 2-Way Aperiodic Centre Channel Speaker
Bass driver 3″(75mm)Woven Polypropylene cone 3″(75mm)Woven PP Polypropylene cone x2
Treble driver 3/4″(19mm) High frequency silk dome 3/4″(19mm)High frequency silk dome
Sensitivity (2.83V @ 1m) 86dB 87dB
Recommended amplifier power 25-100W 30-100W
Nominalimpedance 4Ω 4Ω
Minimum impedance 3.6Ω 3.6Ω
Frequency response(+/-3dB) 100Hz – 22kHz 80Hz – 22kHz
Bass extension(-6dB) 100Hz 70Hz
Crossover frequency 2.8kHz 2.6kHz
Dimensions
Height 190mm 120mm
Width 120mm 310mm
Depth (with terminals/grille) 122mm 122mm
Net weight 2kg 2.7kg
Finish Black oak / Walnut Black oak / Walnut
Model
 Subwoofer
General description Active Dynamic-Drive IB subwoofer system
Bass driver 8″(200mm)Woven Polypropylene cone
Amplifier Power Output 70W
Peak Power Output 150W
Line Input Sensitivity 10omv for maximum output
Crossover Range 40Hz – 150Hz
Inputs 2 X RCA Phono, LFE Line-in RCA
Input Impedance Line In 10kΩ
LFE 5kΩ
Signal-to-noise ratio (S/N) 285dB
Avg. Max Output @1m 105dB
Features Low-pass filter slope adjustment
Phase inversion
Auto on-off
Dimensions(mm)
Height (on plinth) 298(+30)mm
Width 268mm
Depth (with terminals/grille) 300(+22)mm
Net weight 7.8kg
Finish Black oak / Walnut