I bet I had my Sopra 2's playing for 500 hours before I really felt they settled in. It's little bit by little bit. It, for me, did not miraculously happen at one magical hour. Now I have 2k hours and with my all PS Audio suite and all Synergistic Research cabling the sound is marvelous!!
I had a few drinks and bought some speakers, I've now sobered up
Ok, so I purchased some Sopra 2's two weeks back and was throughly excited to own them. They came in a few days ago and look just beautiful. The problem is, I don't feel like sonically they are that much "better" than my 1028's. Visually I'd take the Sopra's any day. Sonically they sound good but:
Sopra 2's sound (too) laid back compared to the 1028. I'm honestly perfering the 1028's as they have snap and feel a little more in your face. The higher mid bass frequencies feel better blended with the upper frequencies.
The upper frequencies did feel harsh at first but settle down and some placement helped satisfy that. But it still it doesn't feel blended. The top frequencies are more clear and the mid bass is more pronounced and clear, but not as blended.
I'm listening to punk, classic rock and experiential music and feel the 1028 is the better performer. I feel wrong for saying it, but it's true. Any help or advice or are these to be put up for sale as I'm expecting?
(Gear: PL Dialogue Premium pre/power, Clearaudio Concept Wood, Hana EH, Musical Surroundings Nova III, nice cables. 13x9 small bedroom with first reflection treatment)
Sopra 2's sound (too) laid back compared to the 1028. I'm honestly perfering the 1028's as they have snap and feel a little more in your face. The higher mid bass frequencies feel better blended with the upper frequencies.
The upper frequencies did feel harsh at first but settle down and some placement helped satisfy that. But it still it doesn't feel blended. The top frequencies are more clear and the mid bass is more pronounced and clear, but not as blended.
I'm listening to punk, classic rock and experiential music and feel the 1028 is the better performer. I feel wrong for saying it, but it's true. Any help or advice or are these to be put up for sale as I'm expecting?
(Gear: PL Dialogue Premium pre/power, Clearaudio Concept Wood, Hana EH, Musical Surroundings Nova III, nice cables. 13x9 small bedroom with first reflection treatment)
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Here's a interesting look at Speakers deconstructed, with a cutaway of the Focal Sopra no.2. https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/speakers-deconstructed.12518/ It's fascinating to see the differences between enclosures. My personal preference is to have the best absorption material so that the internal sound is dissipated as much as possible so it unable to return to the rear of the driver and influence or compromise its movement. |
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I used to have the 1028 Be as well and loved them. I upgraded over a year ago to the Sopra 2’a. I also have a PrimaLuna, so we have almost the same experience. I am absolutely in love with the Sopra’s. Unfortunately there is a Break in period, that takes time. There are ways to accelerate the process. You can read up on it. I think your in shock you spent a bunch of money, and are questioning yourself. I am confident in time you’ll look back and chuckle how superior the Sopras are to the Electras. As others mentioned, try moving around your placement. Time will change a lot. Good luck, and give in and enjoy. In 6 months if you feel the same, they are highly desirable. The still can be sold. Give them a chance. |
Any impulse purchase is a bad thing. Take your time and do your research. If necessary, put it in the cart and wait a day or two. By then you should have a good feeling whether the proceed or not. In the end the only way to really know if something lives up to expectations is to preview it in your own environment with your own equipment. Without a trial period it can be an expensive process if it doesn't live up to expectations. Read the reviews, try to ignore the influencing PR and look for any negatives. Check for consistencies between other reviewers. Apart from that, caveat emptor. |
@macct more time is underway. I've moved the 1028's to a different room to ease the comparison thoughts. I'll give it a few weeks before I revisit. The upper range and bass range aren't even comparable to the 1028's. Maybe more honest. The 1028's were a lot of fun so it's possible just an adjustment to the "truer" representation of sound. Though I've heard some complaints from the MDF cabinets. @bpoletti thanks for the advice. The experience was done neurotically sober this weekend. It could have been the style of music as well. My Bloody Valentine - Loveless might have been the culprit.... |
Your 1028 speakers blend better with your tube amp than the sopra because prima luna tube amps have a high output impedance that changes the sound of all the speakers connected to them and it just so happens that the 1028 is a better match with your particular setup. Tube amplifiers are very speaker sensitive and you have found a good match but the best matches with tube amplifiers are the pre 1965 vintage 16 ohm speakers made in america. |
NEVER TRUST YOUR EARS WHEN YOU'RE UNDER THE INFLUENCE. Upper midrange and above frequency balance is skewed and perception is not as keen with alcohol coursing through you veins. Always best to do audio evaluation completely sober. Once the system is set up and satisfying, then enjoy the extra musical benefits alcohol can induce. |
Sorry to hear of your doubts. As other stated, I would give it more time to see if your opinion changes. I have fairly new Sopra 2's (450 plus hours). I was concerned they may sound bright in my space, but they are absolutely not. I really like their top end versus Focal's older models. With the exception of 'shouty" I agree with your other descriptions. Hopefully you are not in a rush to decide. |
Give it 200hrs of solid play time at least. Members over at the PS Audio forum commented a nice change with the Sopra 2s after several months (up to 6 months) before they truly relaxed and settled in. This is not an uncommon situation with some of the better quality drivers and stiffer surrounds on the mid-woofers and tweeters too. My sister's Focal speakers were bright and mid-bass peaked at first and settled in nicely after 4-6 months of casual play time. You can speed this up of course playing them a bit louder and longer when possible. |
I must agree with twoleftears on this. Listen to the Sopras for at least a week. Get acquainted or acclimated to their sound. Don’t be in analytical mode the whole time but relax and enjoy the music. Pay attention to what your feet do. Do they move instinctively? If you must tap your feet, that’s a good sign. After you have had enough casual time with them, then put the old ones back in the system. Most of the time I can tell within 2 minutes which ones I prefer by what’s missing or what’s been added. Take your time. And if you bought them new, then it is a matter of break in. I’ve had to leave the room during the break in of some pieces. It was that awful. But it settled in nicely. Also, you may need to load the cartridge differently to dampen the highs or adjust subwoofers differently (if you have any). |
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Well those are very good speakers. I'd give things time to settle and break in before doing anything. Speaker changes often trigger other changes/tweaks in order to get things tuned back in. You can either give them time and do what you feel justified to make them work or eventually punt and move on. Just avoid snap decisions, especially when you are juiced. |
Stop switching back and forth for a while. Leave the Sopras in the system. Let your ears acclimatize to them. They may well have qualities that only show themselves on more extended listening and which you're currently missing. Eventually, you can do another A/B if you like, but get fully used to the Sopras first. |
The Sopra's definitely bring a different attribute and some of it is very nice. Imagining and depth of sound is stellar. Bass has more depth and chestiness. But man, the treble can be almost shouty at times. That's one of my biggest concerns. Also, the emotional connections I've read people have with speakers is real. I've done (quite) a few back and fourths between speakers this weekend and Satellite of Love definitely has more emotion through the 1028 than Sopra's. Maybe more time it is.... |
Buyer's remorse is a terrible feeling. I think many of us here have suffered with it at one time or another. I suffered from buyer's remorse all my life until I was around 25 or 30, somewhere in there. Took me that long I guess to become aware enough of what was going on and figure out what to do about it. From then on, as long as I do those things, no problem. |
That's normal, give it time. There are multiple reasons why: 1. When we upgrade a major component, especially speakers, it's a shock to our system. We are used to a kind of sound we know and love for so long, that a big change will sound off, strange, and wrong to our ears. It takes time to learn what the new component is doing, sometimes initial impression of laid back and dullness is actually improved refinement and lack of certain distortion or coloration. Similarly sometimes the first impression of excitement and brilliance becomes fatiguing and annoying after awhile. 2. Speakers take awhile to break-in, you might want to get to at least 150-200hrs before forming an opinion. 3. After speaker change, often times you need to re-evaluate your speaker placement as well as cables. Both of those need to fit your new speaker to get the best from it. Different speaker require different placement in the room and distance to listener to really couple well with the space. |
Yes but a few drinks of what, that is the question. Saturday we had ribs and Tom Petty, with of course a lot of Deschuttes Black Butte Porter. The might Moabs can support a big bold porter like that no problem. Sopras you probably want to stick with something fruity and fizzy, maybe a wine spritzer, anything with any real flavor is bound to easily overwhelm the performance. Sure you can always try and make up for quality with quantity, but more than likely end up with only a headache the next day. There once was a time we all knew these things. Yet another sign of cultural collapse. We are losing our heritage before our own eyes. These are not the speakers you are looking for. Now that's culture! |
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