@james633 The Focus XD's are also ave powered bass drivers with a 750 watt icepower amp inside. So they can be bi amped with my VAC amp.
Focal Sopra 2 or Sopra 3?
This isn't going to be happening soon as I need to save more for them. (I will have to find a good used set)I have a VAC Renaissance 70/70 amp that I am getting updated by VAC in January to MK IIIS. I love this amp and i am not looking to change it. I may be interested in working toward a different speaker for it some day and these Focals may work. 91 db sensitivity which should work with my amp's 65 pure class A WPC. My current speakers really match well with it, they are Goldenear Triton 1.r's and to me they sound very good. But someday I may want even better resolution, not sure. What issues may I find mating these to my amp in the future? My Preamp is a VAC CLA1 Mk III, it was just serviced by VAC and completely updated to Mk III with new parts. So my pre/ Amp combo is tubes. I've read in reviews different opinions on how these sound, some say rather bright and forward and others do not, say they are really smooth in the midrange so it's confusing. I may just take my amp to a dealer about 1.5 hours away and make an appointment to audition them. Are these a reasonable option? My room is a dedicated listening room with a great deal of treatments, especially with bass absorbers, diffusion etc. The room is 14 x 18 x 6.5 ceilings. The Tritons have a lot of bass so it seems to handle it well after a lot of experimentation in placements of speakers. They are 7 feet out from the front wall and over 3 feet from side walls and about 7.5 feet apart.
Showing 5 responses by fthompson251
@ozzy My Tritons are out almost 7 feet, (6.87’) Which is about 1/3 into the room. I too like a deep and wide 3D soundstage. That’s what my amp excels at, holographic sound. But I still get outstanding bass. I used some free calculators I found online to get some ideas for speaker placement. This seems to work the best. @lak I am fully aware of subwoofer reinforcement. I’ve seen $100K speakers paired with a 6 pack of Rel 25’s. It sounds spectacular. I get it.
It’s just that a speaker upgrade is really a stretch for me now that I am retired and I have to be smart about it. I am in the exploration phase for the validity of weather I can achieve a refinement over what I have already. I am maximizing the effectiveness of what I have now which is kinda fun. But someday a speaker change may be the last hurrah and end point. Biggest bang for the buck, but I will need to find used and I want them to mate with my cherished amp I’ve owned over 20 years. Kevin Hayes still listens to a Renaissance amp occasionally at his home after all these years, they're kinda special. Thank you all for the advice and insight. |
@ozzy Well I have settled on my amp, it would be far too expensive to replace it with something that would make me happier. So I need to find something that works with it. My previous Genesis V’s (speakers) had a powered bass amplifier. This allows the VAC amp to sing IMHO. So I am sticking with what works. (for me) The Goldenear Triton 1.r have very, very good bass, it became addictive to me. I think the Focus XD’s will continue down that path, yet be an upgrade to my GE’s at 2X their price. 3X or 4 X the price for the Focals just isn’t in the cards for me, and I am not sure they will really work exceptionally well with my amp. I have researched that they like current and power to be their best. I know I was looking into the Focals but after giving myself a reality check I have realized it would be financially unattainable. I've been retired since 2018. |