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.
oh yeah the Focus XD’s might work out great for you. I often forget about the brand, not sure why as they seem great
As for price/other brands
Don’t get me wrong I like focals and have owned a few pairs but when other brands increased prices in the last few years 10%-15% focal did a 40% increase. That is the root of my comment on price. The speaker came out at $14k and was compared to higher prices speakers. Imo they just increased the price to what the market would bear.
New revel and old revel sound about the same. I have heard both the Salon 2 and 328be in the same room. The new one are much easier to drive but don’t go as low. But if you did not like the old ones you will not like the new ones either.
The 328be is $3ish cheaper than the Sopra 2. It has the same sound quality (while a touch different) but out put the Sopra 2s can’t dream of touching. I have never heard a “modest” size (lol) speaker that can play so loud. I hear no compression at ear bleeding levels which is nice for a duel home theater setup not to worry about damage.
All in all they all sound great and it is only money. The focals look very nice and that look is a good bit of the price. Revels look very plain.
here is a video that show a bit of how the house sounds compare. The revel in this video are roughly $7k and I think the focal in around $10. They sound a bit different but if you like one you will probably like the other. I think the mids are a little more open on the focals and I feel the highs are softer/cleaner on the revel. Bass is so room dependent is it hard to say.
I guess what it comes down to is if the Sopra's are overpriced then they wouldn't sell many. But these days nothing makes sense financially.
They are very nice-looking and good sounding speakers. I like mine alot. Especially once I placed them on top of the Townshend Podiums and used them with Townshend F-1 speaker cables.
I agree Focal is overpriced but everything is IMO. There is no reason on the planet a speaker should cost as much as a car. I do like me some Focal though. I like them better than Revel but have not heard the new Revel stuff.
I should have bought me them Utopias a few years ago cause even the used ones are super high! Just somethin about Focal I find really appealing. Makes most speaks sound boring but they still have meat on the bones and are fast as hell. Just IMHO of course.
The focal’s are way over priced since the price hikes. At their original price of $14k they were good. Now they are what over $20,000. if you want a cheaper option that sound very similar the Revel 228be (these need subs too imo) are about 1/2 the price and maybe a better speaker. Even the 328be is cheaper and I would say a better speaker to me (cleaner highs, more bass output). I would still run subs with the 328be… actually I would run subs with every speaker on the market that was not powered…
but honestly if you like what you have just keep them. Bass is super important and you seem to like what you have. It will be hard to move away from the powered subs in your speakers without throwing cash at a sub/crossover system.
@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.
I owned the Legacy Focus speakers (albeit an earlier version) about 6-7 speaker changes ago. Each progression through my speaker evolution improved greatly in sound quality.
Too bad you can’t hear both the Sopra and the Legacy in the same room.
Added:
I see that the Focus XD version is amplified, it seems you like that feature in a speaker. So enjoy!
I have decided against the Focals. They are kinda overpriced IMHO, I am seriously looking into the Legacy Audio Focus XD's instead. I've made a deal with a local dealer, jst need to get in and audition them.
i've used Gryphon Diablo 120 (clas A/B) and Gato DIA400s integrated amps with my Sopra 2's and the tweeter never sounded 'hot' or bothersome. Quite the opposite...The sopra's sound is full, with a lush midrange, and a very tuneful bass. I can feel the floor (concrete) of my apartment when i crank them up to about 90-92dB. I picked the 2's over the 3's. For a small/medium room, the Sopra 3's might be overwhelming.
I auditioned the Focal Kanta 2, 3, then the Sopra 2 and 3. Ended up taking home the Kanta 3s which weren't far off the Sopra 3 with bass output, but Sopras had a more pronounced mid-range. Stepping down to the 2s was a noticeable drop in bass output on both models.
My room is slightly larger than yours with vaulted ceilings, and the Kanta 3s easily overpower the room with bass without proper treatment. Basic room treatment is a must, but I personally do not feel the need to add subs with the larger 3s.
@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.
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.
One of the reasons I am using subs is because I pulled the Sopra’s about 8 feet out into the room. When you do that, you lose some of the deep bass provided by wall enforcement. I like the extra wide soundstaging and just added subs to provide that deep bass 40hz below. Otherwise, the Sopra's provide very tuneful bass.
Subs are used by many people because a good sub or subs tuned correctly will yield better-sounding music. The two speakers you asked about do not require subs in my opinion but most speakers will sound better with a pair of correctly tuned subs as mentioned before.
It's kinda disheartening to hear that a set of subs is required with them. (Sopra 2) A pair of REL 812's would be $6K. My Triton 1.r's really don't need them at all. They are actually really good speakers especially with my particular amp. Sandy Gross used tube amplification with his.
I would go with Sopra 2's. They should have enough low end in your room. Mine are in a 14x20x8 listening room and they fill it up nicely. I've never used tubes on my pair, but they should sing with the VAC pre/amp combo. Good luck!
I've just sold my Sopra 2s. Was running them with a 50 WPS Triode 845 Class A amp. It was a great combination and I liked the speakers very much. I also used a pair of Rel s/812 subs to give that extra bass "feel" that most speakers lack. I think the Sopra 2 is a good speaker if you can pick up a set slightly used at half the list price or better. I would not have been as happy if I had bought them new. Then I would have thought they are very much over priced for the performance. IMO.
I listened to the Sopra 3’s at a dealer’s showroom and liked the sound very much. I think, the 3’s will give you more bass response, but it may be too much for your room and limit placement within the room. The tweeters were kinda bright for a while but mellowed out nicely with more hours on them.
I ended up buying though the Sopra 2’s and I am very happy with that decision. Placement of the smaller Sopra 2’s was easier and important for soundstage.
I'm not too keen on many systems people put together but I have to give yours a big thumbs up. It's exactly the direction I would go. So having said that, if there is a way to swing a pair of Sopra 3s, I would do that, but I would not be too disappointed if a really nice set of 2s popped up.
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