Verdict
The DALI IO-12 are a opulence twosome of headphones with lovesome , melodious sound , strong wireless operation and long assault and battery life . Its ANC satisfies , though it ’s gravel by less expensive alternatives . Still , these are DALI ’s good headphones yet .
Pros
Cons
Key Features
Introduction
Salvador Dali is principally known as a loudspeaker brand , but has dabbled in the world of headphones . The DALI IO-12 marks its most premium effort yet .
These headphones feature alive noise - cancellation and higher - quality Bluetooth streaming at a premium price of £ 999/$1299/€999 .
Plenty of rival make have looked to make their mark in this area of the securities industry , with efforts from Bowers & Wilkins , Mark Levinson , and Focal all bustling for attention . DALI are still young to the headphone game , but do n’t calculate that against the IO-12 , these are very impressivewireless earphone .
Design
The Salvador Dali IO-12 design seems dial in for comfort . The earpads are square in shape which means they cover a wide airfoil , but the level of padding is generous and voiced .
The clamp violence is ab initio tight , as the headphones bosom the head quite securely , but I ’ve not found they ’ve poke – I just even notice the headband , and after a while the earpads seem to equalise the atmospheric pressure of the clamp force for a good tantrum . Give them time and the Salvador Dali IO-12 become a comfortable duad of headphones to wear .
They ’re big headphones too . Even with my ( somewhat large ) oral sex , I palpate as if my head is ( well ) stifle by the IO-12 . The earcups can be rotated but the frame ca n’t be fold , which intend the ( luxury ) convey shell these phone come in in is large in sizing ( candidly , it ’s a couple inches magnanimous than my laptop computer on either side ) .
There are two pocket for cables ( USB - A and two 3.5 mm ) , with a 3 - m prospicient 3.5 mm cable television if you need to connect to your menage Hawaii - fi , and there ’s an airplane jack , which is appreciated given how flimsy onboard flight headphones are .
In terms of operation , the DALI use forcible controls . At first I was baffled as there are n’t many buttons on the correct earcup , but beseech down on the right earpad controls playback . Push and hold down and that contribute up a part helper , while the horizontal agate line at the top of earcup are there for volume . printing press three times on the main surface and it skips back , while twice jumps forwards .
I care this agency of interaction , stave off the pitfall of swipes and touch gesture which do n’t always work as they ’re meant to . This is much more responsive and dependable .
On the earcup itself is a clitoris for EQ ( Bass and Hi - Fi modes ) , power , which only requires a touching to turn on the headphones , while around the other side is the disturbance - cancelling button . There are LED for Bluetooth and battery ( green is good , violent is dead ) . A strong-arm 3.5 mm and USB - C ports round up the design portion of this review .
Well , almost . The DALI IO-12 are only useable in one striking colourway – a dark chocolate finale . I ’m not a big umber fan but these headphones look luscious . And most surprising is that these headphones have an IP rating of IP52 . An IP evaluation for any over - ear is rare enough with IP52 protecting against rubble and atomiser of water .
Features
allow ’s quetch off with the racket - cancellation . These headphones be £ 999/$999 , but it ’s a Fool ’s Errand to cogitate that gets you a performance three times as good as theSony WH-1000XM5 . But I ’d say that the performance you do get is solid enough .
walk around Oxford Circus I find I ’m not distracted by what ’s around me . Cars are quiet enough , people walking past do n’t distract – there ’s lots of noise in this environment and while I can hear some of it , it ’s suppressed effectively enough .
The Heathrow Express is n’t the meretricious train , but a drive to the airport swept by without beguilement as the DALI reduced haunting sounds like the air - shape . Used on an airplane , they suppress the sound of the plane cabin solidly for a calmer experience , and it puts the squeeze on voices so they ’re less audible .
The noise - cancelling is not as strong on the Underground when it get really flash – it ’s helped out by music being loud enough that it does n’t get all swamped , but the IO-12 ’s ANC does reduce the intensity level of the winding rushing by in the tunnel .
For commute , there are much stronger pick in terms of suppression , though it does depend on which billet you take ( the Jubilee is a bit quieter than the Northern or Victoria ) . Like theFocal Bathys , the DALI IO-12 do n’t strike me as the commuter train ’s selection , more the option for travelling .
Despite the headphones featuring DALI ’s Wind Noise Suppression tech , some noise is audible when a gusty gale blows about . I do n’t have much to say about the transparency way other than it ’s fantabulous . It sound very natural with almost no racket to speak of . The environs around me sounds almost precisely as it does when I take the headphone off .
There ’s Bluetooth 5.2 support , and compatibility with AAC , aptX , aptX HD , and aptX Adaptive rain buckets codecs . Wireless stability with an Android phone has been first-class with no drop outs walking through Paddington station concourse ( doubly ) or Victoria station .
If you ’re using these earpiece with the cable , the Salvador Dali IO-12 support audio up to 24 - bit/96kHz through the 3.5 mm and USB cables .
There are ( amazingly ) four modes of listening with these earpiece . Its wireless active way ( i.e. via Bluetooth ) , wire dynamic mode ( powered on with the USB wired link ) , analog wire mode ( the same but with 3.5 mm ) , and analogue passive mode ( off with the 3.5 millimeter mode ) . ANC does n’t sour when the earphone is in its passive way .
DALI claims battery life-time is 35 time of day , and that seems about veracious . A three hour battery drain bring the headphone down to 91 % , which should get you at least 30 hours of playback .
Like the IO-6 there is no app , which felt strange at first but is a decision I ’ve come to apprise – everything in terms of operation is onboard . What you ’re miss out on is more customisation beyond the EQ button and firmware updates . But it does make thing simpler – the motive to arrive at for your phone to open up an app is gone .
I would rank the call carrying into action as very good . Heading to my usual haunt of Borough nutrient market ( the small one ) , and the somebody on the other end could n’t find out what was around me , aside from some diminished things and voice in the market . They did mention that I sound muted at first – they had to move around the loudness up on their ending to get a line me .
Sound Quality
right on off the bat , the DALI IO-12 is a pair of phone that sound positive and musical . Its broad sound is clear and elaborate , with a fragile confidential information of richness across the frequency range , but a hint that does n’t get in the way of the insight these headphones declare oneself .
A comparison with theFocal Bathysshows the Salvador Dali to be faintly warmer , with the Janelle Monae ’s vocals in Ca n’t hold out Without Your Love smoothly reproduced and pitched very up front and centre in the soundstage . The Focal , however , is the clearer of the two , revealing a slightly crisper midrange that elicits a little more point . I would say the DALI describes the running with a little more stereo depth in the handling of her voice and the layering of the championship vocals out to the side .
Like the Focal , the Salvador Dali ’s ‘ loudness ’ is well bring . These are n’t headphones you need to raise the volume up . At around 50 % mass they ’re more than loud enough . They ’re dynamic both on a small and large shell , adept at switching pace from slow to fast or vice versa in an unhurried and flowing manner .
Clarity and detail levels are gamey ; with music swarm services such asQobuzand Tidal , I palpate like I ’m flummox plenty of closure over a Bluetooth connexion . I find Focal Bathys offer more insight , but the Salvador Dali are more free - course and fluid in their manner than the warmer , weightier - soundingBowers & Wilkins Px8headphones .
To my ear , the IO-12 resolve item with more clarity – they feel lighter describing the mids and highs than the Px8 – though the Bowers carry more of a mien in the bass part with mellow Ground from the TNGHT album , displaying more self-assertiveness and office in the small frequencies .
Though the Salvador Dali lack that same level of punch in the low frequencies in its Hi - Fi fashion , switching to Bass mode with Justice ’s Genesis adds more weight as well as warmth , though it sacrifices some lucidness and definition . With and without Bass mode occupy , the DALI still give up an energetic rendering that catch my attention from the beginning to stop , more so than the Focal achieves .
With Naima ’s Love Song from Jon Batiste and detain Human , the Salvador Dali puts forrard a wide soundstage and one of the DALI ’s more notable traits is how exit the soundstage is bring to the attender . They sound vivid , but do n’t exaggerate it , able to bring out proficient point from the trembling of the tambourine yet not sound too incisive to be affected , with enough uncloudedness to pluck and highlight it from the rest of the song ’s instrumentality .
In the death , the DALI , Focal , and Bowers & Wilkins all have fantabulous attributes but take unlike approaches to bring music to life . I think the Bathys voice best with its neutral approach that grant you to piece out detail and vocalization . The Px8 are n’t as clear or sharp , but put up more confidence with basso , while the IO-12 sounds a small more dynamic , fluid , and melodic .
you may associate via the 3.5 mm or USB cable , but of the two the latter proffer the best sound tone , while the former sounds less detailed . The carrying into action is like what I ’ve described above , with a warmth that brings a ample quality to the top ending , mining higher faithfulness and greater resolve ( depending on the quality of your audio files ) from Isfar Sarabski ’s Planet album .
It ’s more convincing in terms of its dynamic art too , the vocals in Phoebe Bridgers ’ Garden Song laced with mellow levels of clarity and detail . There ’s a realism about the DALI ’s carrying out that I find to be absolutely consuming . It ’s a revealing , well balanced listen .
Whether wireless or cable , you could count on the DALI IO-12 to put up terrific melodic operation .
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Should you buy it?
From the esthetic , to the sound and overall performance , the DALI IO-12 exude class .
The DALI ’s noise - cancellation is salutary but theBowers & Wilkins Px8is better and for less .
Final Thoughts
The DALI IO-12 are n’t a twosome of headphones for everyday use , work , or the commute . They are luxury wireless phone for the individual who has expensive habit and taste , and in that context of use , the DALI IO-12 excel .
Their exonerated , elaborated , and slightly full-bodied audio flavour makes them a musical sound yoke of headphones , whether listening via Bluetooth or passively via a pumped association . The wireless functioning is very in force , the degree of comfort are good , though their size of it and weight are cistron some might not gel with .
The noise - cancellation is good enough to clear away ambient noise , though you could get better noise - cancelling from the likes of theBowers & Wilkins Px8 . There ’s no app support which is a refreshingly dim-witted way to go about thing , and to be honest , earpiece at this price do n’t often have extensive app features anyway . I think the simplicity here is a good affair .
With the DALI IO-12 luxury and simple mindedness go bridge player - in - hand . A great combination that makes for an impressive duad of wireless headphones . condition out our Best Headphones scout for more options .
Trusted Score
How we test
We try out every circle of earphone we review thoroughly over an extended period of time . We use industriousness standard tests to equate lineament the right way . We ’ll always tell you what we find . We never , ever , accept money to review a product .
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FAQs
The DALI IO-12 uses a Bluetooth 5.2 joining , and stream in AAC , aptX , aptX HD , and aptX Adaptive .
