Denon ceol n9 and dali zensor 5

Good morning everyone.

I am a rather novice in HI-FI and could really use some advice.

I have a denon ceol n9 that are set up with a pair of dali zensor 3 speakers. But because of some changes in the room ( and my wife's opinion the stands the speakers are placed on ) I am considering buying small floorspeakers.

I have looked at and listened to some dali zensor 5 floor speakers at my local hifi store. And the salesman is in no doubt they will play well with the ceol n9.

I am in doubt though.. the zensor 5 has recommended amp watt between 30 and 150 watts. My ceol n9 delivers 2x65 watt

So what does the experts in here say. Will the ceol n9 and a pair of zensor 5 work well together. Without pushing the components to much.

Thanks all.

And have a great day

Søren

 

If the Dalis recommend 30watts to 150watts 65 should be fine. Are the 5s more or less or similar sensitivity (dB) as the 3s. There's a chance the ceol power is represented into 4 ohms but it should still be enough. The ceiling body is tiny, I suggest bring it down to the shop and plus the dalis into it to give a go

 

Thanks for your reply
Here is links for dali homepage with some more specs

DALI ZENSOR 3 | Compact and stylish loudspeaker

DALI ZENSOR 5 | Slim and compact floorstanding loudspeaker

 

Specs wise all should be well, but I'd still suggest a demo

 

I think I will buy them. The store gives you the opportunity to return them within 14 days if you regret your choise. And i have good experience with the store.

 

The Denon outputs (according to Denon) 65W at 4ohms, which is roughly 40W at the usual 8ohm measure.

The power supply only requires 55W from the mains to so it’s not going to be a powerful amp by any stretch, even though it should be efficient as a class D.

No reason at all why it won’t drive the Dali 5s of course.

But not to their best on dynamic music.

 

Thanks for your reply.. looking at the specs for the zensor 5 I can see they have a Nominal Impedance of 6 and not 8. Will that make them a bit easyer to drive ?

Also searching for the subject, I found a couple of UK webstores selling the n9 and the zensor 5's as a bundle.

Søren

 

The lower the impedance the more current is required. So not easier to drive.

Also websites will sell whatever bundle will make them the most profit.

However I’m not at all trying to put you off the combination; it will work.

I mention all this just so that you’ll know you won’t be getting the very best out of your speakers with the Denon.

That doesn’t mean you won’t be happy with the sound.

 

Thanks a lot for your reply.. nice to learn something new.

I am aware that no matter what you have.. there will always be something better. I just want to be able to count on the setup will play fairly good. Without destroying each other the first time the beers get on the table, and the volume goes up.

Søren

 

Hmmm...

If I was going to party hard often I think I’d consider a more powerful amp...

Otherwise they’ll work together fine, if not optimally.

 

Can I ask why you wont bring the ceol to the shop for a listen?

 

Well.. it not that I don't want to. But just got off the phone with the store. He will get home a ceol n9 and set at up with the zensor 5's. So I can go by tomorrow after work and listen to it.

 

That will help cement your decision

 

I think so yes.

I was listening to them at the store a week ago. But there they where connected to a NAD d3020 v2. Wich I assume is a more competent product then my ceol n9.

But we will see

 

I once owned a CEOL, I thought it was a nice little unit, although it did lose internet connection on a few occasions. Mine was connected to a pair of Wharfedale 9.1s and they went plenty loud enough for me with the CEOL driving them. Not sure how they compare to the Dalis. I did use it with my Q Acoustic Concept 20s for a few weeks and it seemed to drive them pretty well too.

 

Mine had the thing with loosing the internet connection ones in a while.. never while playing. But sometimes it took maybe 30 seconds to find the internet radio when turning it on. The last firmware update cured that.

 

I seem to recall I rang Denon in Northern Ireland they did a factory reset which sorted it. Had to reset all my Internet radio stations which was a pain! I think my one surprise when I got it was that it was plastic, previously I had a DM37 and that was metal. The sound was much the same though. Good luck with your speakers! You can still get the 9.1s on Superfi and Amazon if you do not like the Dalis. They have a good reputation and of course you could return them under distance selling regs.

 

Thanks for your good advice. But I am looking for some small floor speakers. Also I do like dali as a brand. And think you get a lot for your money in the zensor series. Also ( and some might think this is a stupid reason ) but I prefer putting my money in a local Danish firm and local jobs.

 

Report back on how the demo went and what your final decision was. I bought a pair of Zensor 5s before Christmas last year and I really like them. (driven with a 60w Audiolab 8000A). But just to note, they sound awful out of the box! They take along time to break in until they sound lovely. Manual says 100 hours and it means it!

"Ceol" - Irish for "Music". I never seen one before, nice looking little unit.

 

I got to the store and all was ready as promised. I listened to it for about 30 mins with some of the music I hear the most. And really liked it. They played easy and light. And the vocals was really clear open and filling the room. I also tried a pair of Cervin-vega xls-12.

But I liked the dalis most. So brought a pair home.

Now they are in my living room. And I can certainly hear they need a bit of playing in compared to the ones down in the store. So now I play them every chance I get.

Søren