Dali’s compact standmounts, side by side. Here is the Sonik 1 alongside Dali Kupid and Sonik 3, showing what your money buys at each step.

The Sonik 1 is the smallest model in Dali’s Sonik range, and it brings the company’s engineering to a genuinely affordable compact standmount. Dali’s calling card at every price is its wood-fibre cones and its low-loss SMC magnet technology, and the Sonik 1 carries both, so it sounds like a Dali rather than a generic budget speaker. It is a two-way designed to work in a normal room, on a stand, a shelf or a wall, and to partner the compact streaming amplifiers that have transformed affordable hi-fi.

Brief product overview

A two-way rear-ported standmount with a 29mm soft-dome tweeter and a 5.25-inch wood-fibre Clarity Cone woofer using Dali’s SMC magnet technology, which reduces distortion by lowering mechanical loss in the motor system. Sensitivity is 86dB with a 6-ohm nominal impedance, an easy and friendly load, and Dali recommends amplification between 25 and 100 watts. The rear port means the speaker prefers a little space behind it, and Dali quotes optimal placement somewhere between 1 and 50cm from the rear wall. An integrated keyhole bracket allows wall mounting as an alternative to stands. Finishes are contemporary and varied.

How it sounds

The Sonik 1 has the clean, open, lively character Dali is known for, with the wood-fibre cone giving the midrange a natural quality and the SMC motor keeping distortion low for a speaker at this price. It images well, handles voices convincingly and stays composed rather than harsh, which makes it easy to live with over long sessions. Its 86dB sensitivity and benign 6-ohm load mean it is not fussy about amplification, so it works happily with the modest, compact amplifiers it is designed for, though as with any small standmount its bass has limits and it is happiest in a small-to-medium room.

What we’d partner it with

The WiiM Amp Pro is an ideal match in size, price and capability: a compact streaming amplifier delivering 60 watts into 8 ohms and 120 into 4, with an ESS ES9038Q2M DAC, room correction, HDMI ARC for a television, and streaming across Spotify, Tidal and Qobuz Connect, Chromecast and Roon, so the pair make a complete system on their own. Its power suits the Sonik 1’s easy load well. Good alternatives from brands we carry are streaming amplifiers and integrateds from Bluesound, Pro-Ject and Rega.

For vinyl, note the WiiM Amp Pro has no phono stage, so the turntable needs to supply one. The Rega Planar 1 Plus solves that neatly: it is the Planar 1 with a phono stage built in beneath the tonearm, outputting at line level straight into the Amp Pro’s line input, so nothing else is required.

For stands, the Solidsteel NS-4 is a well-made partner, a welded steel design that can be filled for added mass; the Sonik 1’s keyhole bracket is the alternative if you would rather wall-mount. On cabling, use a well-made speaker cable of appropriate gauge for the run; the WiiM uses recessed sockets for banana plugs. AudioQuest and Chord are the cable brands we stock.

Who shouldn’t buy it

If your room is larger or you want more scale and bass, the Sonik 2 uses a bigger cabinet and driver. If you want genuine low-end extension, a compact two-way has its limits, so consider a subwoofer, which the WiiM Amp Pro’s subwoofer output makes easy to add. And if you are building around a powerful amplifier and demanding sources, the Sonik 1 is aimed at compact, affordable systems rather than that kind of setup.

The Sonik 1’s rear port means it wants a little space behind it, so follow Dali’s guidance of somewhere between 1 and 50cm from the rear wall, and toe the speakers slightly towards the listening seat. Set them on the Solidsteel NS-4 stands, which can be filled with sand or shot for added mass, or use the integrated keyhole bracket to wall-mount them. Set the WiiM up through the WiiM Home app and run room correction once the speakers are positioned. For vinyl, connect the Planar 1 Plus to the amplifier’s line input, not a phono input, since the deck outputs at line level and the Amp Pro has no phono stage. The subwoofer output is worth remembering if you later want more bass.