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Focal Sopra 2's vs Titron GoldenEar Reference speakers

Hello there, After a long and drawn out process, I’m finally down to a couple of choices for my New Speakers. The two speakers are the Focal Sopra 2 and the Golden ear Triton Reference Speakers/ I’ll either buy the golden ears new or buy second hand sopra’s 2’s only used for 2 months. The price is the same either way. I have heard both speakers in perfectly attuned rooms that were tweaked out. The last set of speakers I purchased sounded very different in my NON dedicated listening room than they did in the store. After this speaker purchase " which is a big one for me at these prices" I don’t want to even think of buying new loud speakers for years. I’m not one to change his gear often. Though I do change my underwear everyday. That was a very poor attempt at humor. If any of you reading this have heard both of these speakers, I would love to hear your thoughts on them good, bad or indifferent. My non dedicated listening room DIMENSIONS are 8 FEET HIGH,20 FEET LONG and 14 FEET WIDE. I will be using Mcintosh solid state preamp and power amp for the new speakers. After the speaker purchase, future purchases and time spent reading about hi-fi will be dedicated to room improvements. I like to listen to music loud, very rarely do I listen at low volumes. I’m 50 percent split on the music of my youth, Metal and punk. The other 50 percent Diana Krall, Duke Ellington
and more audiophile like music. It seems to me at the 11 Canadian price point it’s hard to find a speaker that does it all well. I have to admit I’m a huge mark for the look of the sopra 2 loudspeaker. Of course the Golden ear reference come with built in woofers which is a plus. I’m not a big bass head though. If any of you fine people could offer me your opinions or some insight to either speaker, It would be greatly appreciated. I;m a bit antsy as this is a big purchases for me and I don’t want to mess it up. A huge thank you for taking the time to read this long winded post. Would love to hear some strong opinions. Enjoy the music.

Mikey

riverboat

Showing 3 responses by jchiappinelli

jchiappinelli's avatar
jchiappinelli
120 posts
 
You're talking about two very highly regarded speakers here and either should serve you well. A couple of points to consider. Both of these speakers have sensitivities over 90 db. I think the Focals are 91 db and the Triton References are over 93. While you didn't specify the power of your amp, either one should be very easy to drive. However, the Tritons each have an 1800 watt Class D amp to handle the low frequencies which go as low as 12 HZ. That, combined with the higher sensitivity allows you to use a low wattage tube amp should you choose. I wouldn't think such an amp would match as well with the Focals. The Vocals don't go as deep (34 HZ) if that matters. 

Regarding the comments about the upper range. Quality speakers such as these are not just thrown together with quality parts. There is a lot of engineering that goes in to "voicing" the sound. I think most get it right enough to avoid harsh or shrill top ends. Such aspects, when heard, are most likely related to room acoustics which are difficult to get right. 

If loud and deep is what you like, you cannot beat the Triton References or the Triton 1r for the price.

J.Chip
jchiappinelli's avatar
jchiappinelli
120 posts
 
I have the Triton 1r's driven by an old Classe Audio Fifteen amp (175 W) through a Prima Luna Dialogue Premium preamp. My listening position is about 8 feet away and rarely do I need to move the volume control on my preamp beyond 9 o'clock. I've also found it necessary (in my room) to turn the bass driver amps down to 9 o'clock as well. Probably will switch out to a pair of lower powered tube mono blocks down the road. If i turn the volume up with my 175 W amp, the Triton 1r's can peel my skin off. 

J.Chip
jchiappinelli's avatar
jchiappinelli
120 posts
 
For what its worth, at AXPONA 2019, the Triton 1r's were very favorably reviewed. One of Absolute Sounds reviewers considered the GoldenEar Triton 1r's to be the "best sound for the money" calling it "no contest".

J.Chip
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