6,179 plates of herring in Copenhagen to be precise.
Bang & Olufsen raised a few eyebrows with the release of the $115,000 BeoLab 90 loudspeakers — but the DALI KORE at $120,000 USD are more likely to pass the proverbial smell test. That’s not a fish joke. Maybe it is.
2024 Update: The DALI KORE’s original launch price in 2022 was $110,000 USD. The price has been changed within the article to reflect the current retail price.
The Danish manufacturer is widely respected in Europe and Asia and it might shock some audiophiles to learn that DALI is the second largest manufacturer of loudspeaker cabinets in the world. Klipsch still holds that title.
Their audiophile loudspeaker line ranges from $500 to $25,000 pair, so its rather shocking to see the company throw the kitchen sink into a state-of-the-art loudspeaker.
Lenbrook Americas, a distributor of high-performance and high-value audio components, is showing the DALI KORE flagship speakers at the 2022 Toronto AudioFest. Attendees are the first in North America to hear the DALI KORE.
Tip: Toronto Audio Fest Program
A Little Background
DALI first announced the KORE in September 2022, and represents what can be developed when no limits are placed on the product team. The acoustic engineering and industrial design enunciate subtle musical detail, rich dynamics, and lifelike imaging that is unexpected. The KORE is assembed in Nørager, Denmark.
According to Lars Worre, CEO of DALI: “There is so much to be proud of in this speaker…We set out to test the limits of what our product team could do, and the process was utterly revealing in that not only could we see all that was possible, but it also told us where we needed partnerships to realize our ambitions.”
Core Features (not a pun!)
The KORE incorporates two 11-inch woofers and a 7-inch mid-range driver, produced with the brand’s signature wood fibre cones and honeycomb sandwich paper-pulp diaphragm. This is designed to balance stiffness with nuanced movement for optimal frequency and dynamic response.
High frequencies are handled by an all-new EVO-K hybrid 35mm dome and soft fabric ribbon tweeter, tuned to deliver the high-frequency octaves between 15 and 30kHz with the dome tweeter elegantly crossing over to the midrange driver.
The drivers are controlled by a patented dual voice coil design with next-generation SMC (Soft Magnetic Compound) material that prevents electromagnetic forces from interfering with the circuitry that precisely regulates coil movements.
In addition to its sonic quality, DALI has also made sure that the KORE’s design is visually pleasing. The KORE comes with an Ammara Ebony finish, featuring elegant golden veining through a rich and warm ebony wood.
The cabinet features 17 layers of birch wood veneer, with each layer oriented so the wood grain is perpendicular to the one below it. The layers are adhered together by a glossy lacquer that creates a very stiff and low-resonance cabinet that can withstand the daily wear and tear of residential furniture.
The KORE’s cabinet is further reinforced with a 34 kg concrete base, a die-cast aluminum mid-range and tweeter baffle assembly, and strategically placed woofers. The KORE features optimized horizontal and vertical dispersion without distortion from standing waves or crosstalk.
From Krestian Pedersen, DALI Head of Product Management: “DALI KORE is the culmination of everything we have learned about speaker design and manufacture since 198…Each pair takes us a week to produce, with a combination of hand-crafted care and precision tools, and none leave our premises without thorough testing for what we hope is life-long musical enjoyment.”
DALI KORE Specifications
| Frequency Range (+/- 3 dB) | 26 Hz – 34 kHz |
| Sensitivity | 88 dB @ 2.83 volts |
| Nominal Impedance | 4 Ohm |
| Minimum Impedance | 3.2 Ohm @ 72 Hz |
| Recommended Amplifier Power | 50 – 1,000 watts |
| Maximum SPL | 118 dB |
| Bass Drivers | 2 × 11-1⁄2 inch Balanced Drive SMC |
| Midrange Driver | 7 inch Balanced Drive SMC |
| Hybrid High Frequency Driver | 35 mm (1.4″) soſt textile dome |
| Hybrid Super High Frequency Driver | 10 × 55 mm (2.2″) ribbon |
| Crossover Frequencies | 390/2,100/12,000 Hz |
| Low Frequency Enclosure Type | 2 × 72 litre reflex loaded |
| Reflex Tuning Frequency | 22 Hz |
| Midrange Frequency Enclosure Type | Aenuated open back line |
| Enclosure Construction | Curved 28 mm birch laminate composite with aluminium die-cast, thermoset resin and cast composite structural elements |
| Enclosure Finishes | Gloss Lacquer Ammara Ebony veneer with contrasting textured finishes |
| Connections | Custom designed, machined and gold-plated terminals suitable for bare wires, spade terminals and 4 mm plugs. Bi-wire/Bi-amp capable |
| Dimensions (H × W × D) | 1,675 x 448 x 593 mm (66 × 17.6 × 23.3 inches) |
| Weight | 148 kg (326 lbs) |
| Shipping Dimensions (H × W × D) | 1,950 × 800 × 1,200 mm (76.7 × 31.4 × 47.2 inches) |
| Shipping Weight | 246 kg (542 lbs) |
According to Jason Zidle, DALI Brand Manager Lenbrook Americas: “While the brand has wide acclaim in other parts of the world, it is our hope that DALI KORE makes a gutsy statement for the brand in Canada and the United States…Combined with the artisanal nature of their production, only retailers who are capable of reinforcing the exceptional level of design and manufacture that DALI KORE represents will be allowed to carry the product.”
Availability and Pricing
DALI KORE will begin arriving at very select North American dealers in November 2022, starting with Soundlux in Miami, FL, and followed by Simply Stereo in Chicago, IL, and Origin HiFi in Austin, TX, in early 2023 for an expected launch price of $110,000 USD.
As of 2024, the current retail price is $120,000 a pair (USD).
Related Reading
ORT
October 21, 2022 at 3:20 am
Beautiful.
“…Only God creates. The rest of us just copy.”- Michelangelo
Mayhap these were inspired by the Pillars of Heaven itself that hold upright the famed pearly gates?
At least we know the dark monolith of “2001 A Space Odyssey” had nothing to do with them…Those were surrounded by the simian-like precursors of the modern frAudiophile. Not music enthusiasts by any stretch of the imagination and one shudders to think of what the majestic soundtrack to that film might be if Hollyweird ever becomes so desperate (and it will) as to remake.
In the wonderful musical, “My Fair Lady”, What does Eliza sing? “Wouldn’t it…Be loverly”?
Ugh…One imagines that today they would give that musical masterpiece a form and title steeped in their own inimitable style and seeking inspiration in the original title of the play call it, “Pigmaleon”. The children will have to pause and seek adult guidance on that one as its meaning is twofold, LOL!
My lack of that kind of money denies me from ever owning such a pair of beautiful speakers, but my upbringing prevents me from disparaging any that can and do.
Loverly indeed.
ORT
Please pardon any and all errors these past two or so days as I am not yet even close to being close to “me” but they are working on it. 😉 And my thanks to Mr. Silva for the article!
Guy H.
October 22, 2022 at 4:11 pm
110k for carpenters work, absorb!
Compare this piece to a speakers like the Magico S7, we’re Science meets sophisticated material and exemplary production, costing closer to half the price of the Kora and you can understand something is wrong.
Mark Shaheen
October 23, 2022 at 1:52 pm
Price in Europe is 88k Euros or $85,000. Once again Dali wholesaler is marking them up by a wide margin.
Tim
October 23, 2022 at 11:20 pm
Your kidding right?
I guess with this new , insane inflation…. makes sense.
Ian White
October 23, 2022 at 11:37 pm
Tim,
There are at least 20 loudspeakers I can think of (off the top of my head) that are over $100,000. I’ve heard a few over $200,000 and none of them impressed me.
DALI isn’t unique here, but I’m surprised that they went down this road.
PSB has resisted and I highly doubt Paul Barton will do that.
It’s not inflation. It’s the desire to sell 10 of these to people who will show them off to their friends.
IW
Tim
October 24, 2022 at 4:17 pm
Ian,
Couldn’t agree more …
They lost me when I first read about the $15k Koetsu cart and the $95k Walker TT back then.
JMHO but these prices are in spooky territory now !
Adina Hirschmann
October 24, 2022 at 10:47 am
IMHO, they resemble outdoor waste receptacles, leak excess noise through the rear and vibrate the floor , that could disturb the neighbors and void your lease.
Ian White
October 24, 2022 at 12:58 pm
Adina,
That’s one way of looking at it.
What kind of jazz do you love?
Ian White
John P
October 29, 2022 at 7:53 am
If I had that much herring I would gladly swap it for speakers. I would swap it for practically anything that wasn’t herring.
Ian White
October 29, 2022 at 3:08 pm
John,
A plate of herring in Copenhagen is $17 USD. The price might be going up on the speakers. Already.
Ian White