PRODUCT DETAILS
Built for a bookshelf or stand mounting in a small to medium sized room, IKON 1 MK2 is equally suited for compact stereo set-ups or as front/rear speakers in a complete surround sound set up in your home cinema.
Even at high sound pressures IKON 1 MK2 is capable of reproducing surprisingly deep bass due to the wood fibre 5” mid/woofer that integrate superbly with the hybrid tweeter module. All in all, this ensures you that IKON 1 MK2 is true to the classic IKON’s warmth, clarity, and authenticity.
DALI’s engineers have ably captured the powerful dynamics, high sensitivity and volume potential in a compact package by means of creativity, technology, and further knowledge.
Since the IKON 1 MK2 features a bass port on the back instead of on the front, it has been possible to design it slightly lower than its predecessor while at the same time conveying a warmer and even more inviting sound. In every way this bookshelf speaker offers you gentle changes taking surface and substance into account. A loudspeaker that is designed to perform exquisitely wall-mounted (in combination with the optional wall bracket) or placed discreetly on your bookshelf.
WOOD FIBRE CONE
In recent years, DALI’s signature cone material – light paper reinforced by mechanically processed wood fibres – has undergone extensive research and development. Following numerous in-house experiments, today this material is applied in almost all our driver designs. Also the precise structure of the ‘acoustical ensemble’ – cone, dust cap, coating, and glue - has been established through a vast number of experiments with geometry and materials.
Wood fibres add stiffness to very light paper cone membranes, ensuring non-uniform break-up characteristics within the material. Because of the random position of the wood fibres, resonances are eliminated before they can pick up enough energy to become an audible problem. The unique mixture of structural stiffness, low mass and damping improves behaviour of the cone, resulting in outstanding sound reproduction.
The wood fibre technology has proven to be a key element in reproducing the finest details and dynamics in the music with very low loss of information.
MECHANICAL DAMPING
It is well-known within the industry that it is quite easy to control frequency response by adding lots of mechanical damping in e.g. surround and cones. But our approach remains: We do not want to use non-linear mechanical effects to control, damp or limit the movement of the parts that should reproduce the music. The amplifier voltage and current must be the factors that control motion.
DALI was one of the first manufacturers to insist on controlling frequency response through carefully balanced designs, even with low-loss rubber surrounds that will reveal problems in many well-known driver designs.
Listening to the IKON MK2 family shows that it is worth the struggle, however. By letting the amplifier take control, we strive for the music to dominate – and not the character of the speaker.
Consequently, free and open performance is achieved. Increased dynamics is an added benefit. No matter if you play at subtle levels or crank up the volume, the IKON MK2 products will ensure that no details are left out.
HYBRID TWEETER
Just as important as it was to improve certain aspects of bass reproduction, it was crucial to preserve the fine performance of the proprietary DALI hybrid tweeter module in the IKON series. We wanted to maintain the transparent and solid rendering of even the most subtle high frequency details.
The IKON 1 MK2 employs a tweeter solution inherited from our high end EUPHONIA and HELICON series. Extensive experience and know-how from these series as well as the MENTOR family coupled with further research has enabled us to incorporate the hybrid tweeter technology in a speaker series at a very attractive price level.
There are two hybrid tweeter modules for the IKON MK2 series – the one implemented in the IKON 1 MK2 is based on a neodymium magnet for the dome. Both versions of the hybrid tweeter module consist of a 28 mm lightweight dome tweeter and a 17 x 45 mm ribbon tweeter. Working in unison, the soft dome tweeter and the ribbon tweeter form the ideal high frequency solution. Combining the advantages of each tweeter’s unique properties is a technology which DALI has spent years in perfecting.
In our view, the hybrid tweeter module is the perfect high frequency solution. Both the soft dome and the ribbon tweeter are free of artefacts, e.g. resonances and high Q peaks within their working range. The Hybrid Tweeter Module features an extremely smooth and wide horizontal dispersion - one of our sound design trademarks. Even the detailing of the faceplate of the tweeter module is designed for optimal horizontal dispersion.
Developing the DALI ribbon tweeter was no easy task. Years were spent on research until the desired performance was achieved, and all parts were ready to go into production. The EUPHONIA MS5 was the first product to benefit from the hybrid tweeter module. Today, this technology is applied in all IKON MK2 speakers.
WOOFER
With the design experience from the MENTOR series in mind we have developed two new woofers – a 5” and a 6½” chassis. Applied in different variations for the individual speakers this new woofer integrates even better with the hybrid tweeter module, adding improved dynamic capabilities and enhanced bass performance.
The woofer is housed in a rigid die-cast aluminum chassis. The chassis has been designed to provide a free flow of air from the backside of the cone, both below and above the spider. Actually, the ventilated area below the spider has increased by a solid 17% compared to the woofer in the original IKON series.
Combined with careful milling of the front baffle, the optimized airflow ensures very limited loss of energy within the driver, minimizing compression – resulting in uncolored, transparent and time coherent reproduction.
The long-throw ratio design of the chassis provides headroom for extreme cone excursions. Even when the cone is pushed to the maximum, it will not reach physical limits of motion.
MOTOR SYSTEM
The motor system within the woofer is based on a solid ferrite magnet. The magnetic saturation of the centre pole prevents distortion through a stable magnetic flux density in the voice coil gap. On top of this, the drilled and chamfered ventilation in the centre pole provides total ventilation behind the dust cap.
We use a 1” voice coil providing the optimum combination of low moving mass and long linear motion. This offers a wide frequency band and dynamic, unrestrained reproduction.
CABINET
Our large and efficient woodworking facility handles everything from cutting out the cabinet and applying the vinyl to mounting the drivers and performing the final tests and approvals on each and every speaker.
The high-grade vinyl is carefully selected among the finest available. Extensive testing is carried out to make sure that the surface and joints of the cabinet will stand the test of time. Through strict inhouse control of every aspect of production, IKON MK2 achieves a level of fit and finish typically found only well beyond its price point.
Those familiar with the original IKON series will notice that there are alterations to the IKON 1 MK2 cabinet which is lower than its predecessor and features a bass port on the back.