Wharfedale - Denton 1S Bookshelf Speakers (Pair)

A coaxial point-source Denton in matte paint — the tweeter sitting in the middle of the woofer, a wall-mount thread on the back, and a cabinet finished in black, white or blue rather than veneer.

This is not the veneered Denton with new colours. The Denton 1S is a different design that Wharfedale traces to a different ancestor: not the Briggs-era cabinet the anniversary models revive, but the Denton 1 of 1974, a compact speaker in a moulded case. Wharfedale calls the 1S a clean-sheet reinterpretation of it, and the two departures are real.

The first is the driver. Instead of a woofer with a tweeter above it, the 1S uses a coaxial arrangement — a 25mm silk dome mounted in the middle of a 165mm polypropylene cone, so both radiate from the same point. In a conventional two-way the drivers sit in different places, which means the distance from each to your ear differs and changes as you move, and it is why so many speakers have one narrow seat where the image locks in. Put the tweeter in the acoustic centre of the woofer and the speaker behaves as a single source. On a compact speaker likely to end up on a shelf or a wall rather than on ideal stands, that is a genuinely practical advantage, not just an engineering flourish.

The second is the finish. The 1S is painted, in matte black, white or blue — Wharfedale’s own words are “luxurious matte paint finish.” For a Denton that is a real break with tradition, and it is deliberate rather than a cost saving; the cabinet has curved sides that a veneer would struggle with. Wharfedale describes the construction as multi-layer panels with internal bracing and controlled damping, though they name no specific materials.

There is a 9.5mm threaded insert in the back for wall mounting, with a cosmetic cover over the nut. Combined with the coaxial driver, that tells you what this speaker is for.

It is an 8Ω nominal design dropping to 4.5Ω, easier to drive than the 4Ω Denton 85, with 30 to 100 watts recommended. Response is 50Hz to 20kHz within 3dB, with bass extension of 45Hz at −6dB — less bass than the larger, veneered Denton 85, which is what an 11.5-litre cabinet against a 13.5-litre one will do.

One thing to ignore when comparing the two: both are quoted at 88dB, and the numbers are not comparable. Wharfedale measures the 1S at 2.83V into 8Ω and the Denton 85 at 2.0V into 4Ω. Same headline figure, different test.

Features

• Coaxial point-source driver — 25mm silk dome mounted in the centre of a 165mm polypropylene cone
• Both drivers radiate from the same point, so imaging holds up off the ideal seat
• Matte painted cabinet with curved sides, in black, white or blue
• Multi-layer panel construction with internal bracing and controlled damping
• 9.5mm threaded insert on the rear for wall mounting, with a cosmetic cover
• 8Ω nominal, easier to drive than the 4Ω Denton 85
• Crossover at 2.6kHz
• Sold as a pair

Specifications

• Type: Two-way coaxial standmount or wall-mount loudspeaker
• Sold as: A pair
• What it is: A clean-sheet reinterpretation of the 1974 Denton 1, per Wharfedale’s own copy — a separate lineage from the Denton 80 and Denton 85 anniversary editions. It does not replace either; Wharfedale sells all of them concurrently
• Driver: Coaxial two-way: a 1″ (25mm) silk dome tweeter mounted concentrically within a 6.5″ (165mm) polypropylene cone. Wharfedale’s UK site calls the cone Enhanced Polypropylene and their US site calls it Black Polypropylene — a wording difference between their own two sites, not a material difference
• Enclosure: Bass reflex, rear-ported. Wharfedale does not describe the port geometry. Note this is a conventional port, not the slot-loaded distributed port Wharfedale uses on some other ranges
• Crossover frequency: 2.6kHz. Slope not published
• Frequency response: 50Hz–20kHz ±3dB
• Bass extension: 45Hz at −6dB — a separate figure at a looser tolerance
• Nominal impedance: 8Ω
• Minimum impedance: 4.5Ω
• Sensitivity: 88dB at 2.83V into one metre. Do not compare this directly with the Denton 85’s 88dB, which Wharfedale measures at 2.0V into a 4Ω load. The headline numbers match; the tests do not
• Recommended amplifier power: 30–100W
• Peak SPL: 95dB
• Cabinet volume: 11.5 litres
• Cabinet construction: Multi-layer panels with internal bracing and controlled damping, per Wharfedale. No specific bracing or damping material is named
• Finish: Painted, not veneered. Wharfedale describes a luxurious matte paint finish over curved cabinet sides. Available in Matte Black, Matte White and Matte Blue
• Wall mounting: A 9.5mm (3/8″) threaded insert in the rear panel, with a cosmetic cover over the mounting nut
• Binding posts and bi-wiring: Not published. The manual’s wiring section describes single-wire connection only and does not mention bi-wire terminals
• Grille: Classic cloth grille. Wharfedale does not state the attachment method; a review describes it as magnetic, which is that reviewer’s observation rather than a published specification
• Dimensions: 330mm high on the plinth, 236mm wide, 254mm deep including terminals (229mm cabinet plus 25mm terminals)
• Weight: 6.8kg (15.0 lbs) per speaker
• Matching stands: None offered by Wharfedale for this model
• Country of manufacture: Not published. Wharfedale states none on the product page or in the manual. Note that the manual carries an IAG service address in Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire — that is a support contact, not a manufacturing origin, and it should not be read as Made in Britain