DALI Oberon 3 Bookshelf speakers

DALI Oberon 3 looks impressively and respectably. The oak finish of the bodies (assembled from MDF panels of increased density with an internal damper) is perfect - the decor realistically imitates not only the color and texture of real wood, but also does not seem artificial to the touch, because it conveys the characteristic roughness of natural material. Dustproof nets on magnetic mounts also look very fashionable. This is just one of the four finishes invented for the entire Oberon series. Others are more classical.

Almost the entire width of a 20-centimeter front panel is occupied by mid-woofers enlarged to seven inches, and such a caliber is not often found in the available speakers. A tweeter with a soft fabric dome is also expensive and stylish.

Change-over to 178-mm diffusers, made according to an exclusive formula (cellulose + wood fibers), allowed increasing the area ofradiating surfaces by 15%. Accordingly, this is a plus for dynamics and a minus for distortion at high volume levels. In order for the new diffuser to retain the required rigidity, technologists slightly adjusted the composition of its impregnation, and the engineers, using laser analysis methods, re-calculated the required curvature of the surface and endowed the diffuser with a new long stroke suspension made of elastic rubber. But that's not all. The magnetic system used elements from SMC - compound with a high magnetic permeability, but with less electrical conductivity than ferrites. Thanks to it, the negative influence of eddy currents is reduced and the best linearity of the field in the gap with a four-layer aluminum coil is achieved.

I had the opportunity to listen to and evaluate the new shelf speakers immediately after the tests of the floor speakers and what is important - to do it in the same system. I was surprised at how different they were from their older relatives. And I see that it is Oberon 3 that best conveys the ideology of the new series, although their bass potential is weaker than that in the "sevens", and the tonal balance is slightly clarified. But if we talk about the quality of the bass, and not its quantity, as well as spatial accuracy, all this is more pronounced than in the "towers" with five-inch drivers and perhaps even better than in the flagships, although much depends on the placement of loudspeakers, on the quality and height of the racks, as well as on the class of cables used.

DALI Oberon 3 gives a very open sound in all dynamic levels available to them. It does not fade at low volume and does not become caustically aggressive near the maximum. Excellent speed, clarity, shock percussion, organic continuity of sounds point to a very successful combination of driver and acoustic design. Side-tones of the bass-reflex are not audible at all.

You can count on excellent live dynamics when you listen to classics, jazz, jazz-rock, blues and in general any compositions (even rock in its heaviest and fastest form) recorded with high quality on good equipment. Such musical material may sound even more spectacular than on floor loudspeakers and this is not surprising - although DALI Oberon 3 is inferior in power, the threshold for loss of sound purity is higher. Dynamic contrasts are in fact their native nature.