Wharfedale Diamond 8.4

Yes just recently.They where driven by a 'Mid-fi'surround reciever(wood floor)great performance to cost ratio,decent bass,musical,warm,bit lively in lower treble,tad rolled in the top-top,could be played reasonably loud,cleanly.
BTW Rich they are front ported.
But when moved close to the wall they became very boomy. Remember wood floor,budget reciever,so take it in consideration.Do a search on 'kevlar driver colorations'I've heard rumor that budget kevlar has a irritable sonic trait long term,can't remember what.

CL:

I owned the 8.1's for about a year, so I am aware that the 8 series Diamonds are front ported. Given that, I still found that the Wharfedales tended to sound their best when out in the room a bit. Even though you might categorize the B&K as a mid-fi and/or budget receiver, the B&K is still on par with the Wharfedales (mid-fi/budget speakers themselves) from a quality and matching perspective. For near rear wall placement, acoustic suspension speakers are still the way to go and the NHT's would fit that bill.

Regards, Rich

Rich
Let me clarify ,I felt the 8.4 set we auditioned driven by a JVC-9010 delivered a wonderful sound.It's the JVC I call mid-fi,the implication being Rrekstads Ref10/DNA-1 pairing should be much. Port mention merely an FYI you didn't need and we are in agreement they sound better out into room.
Either of you see or hear any of the new Evolution series?
They look well done.

Thanks for the comments guys. Ive also heard that the Totem Arro might fit my needs well. Any thoughts on that?

I liked the Totem Arro a lot when I heard it at the Montreal show a few years ago. Vince Bruzzese was playing it with a SimAudio I-5 integrated and a Rega Planet--this was before Totem brought out their own integrated amp. Very musical, lots of presence and rhythm, sounded good next to the wall. Personally, and without having heard your components, I would guess by its reputation that the Totem Arro would be closer in quality to what you have than the Wharfedale model you're considering, but I would like to have that confirmed, please.