“Jgreen19, do tell us how you like your new Sopra's and how they compare to the Moabs. Best of luck with them”
Ok, I’m about to hijack my own thread with this answer… here it goes… first, here’s a list of my gear…
Focal Sopra 3s
Pair of REL G1 MK II (subs)
Linear Tube Audio UltraLinear Integrated
Denafrips Terminator DAC
Roon Nucleus (connected to Denafrips via USB)
Marantz SA 8005 SACD/CD Player
Rega P3 Turntable on top of IsoAcoustics Pucks
Schiit Mani Phono Stage
Schiit Loki EQ
Puritan PSM 136 Power Conditioner
Black Cat Coppertone Interconnects, Speaker Cables, and USB Cable
Black Cat Digit-75 MKII SPDIF Cable
Archon Blue Power Cables
Puritan Power Cable (From Puritan Conditioner to wall)
Quadraspire Rack
Room is 25ft long by 17ft wide. 9ft ceilings. Floor to ceiling bass traps in every corner. Absorption on walls, diffusion on ceiling. Room is very well treated by hired acoustician.
…. First response when I hooked up my Sopra 3s was “YES!!”
…. Second response was “Damn, the Tekton Moab’s are an incredible value!!!”
So, do I like the Focals better? The answer is yes…. But I don’t like them 5 times better as the price would indicate…. Not even 2 times better. But yes, I am happier with them. Biggest differences are upper end detail and clarity, and a much larger sweet spot (left to right AND top to bottom). The Moab’s are very directional… not a bad thing, you just have to take your time getting your sweet spot. My Moab’s do NOT have the berilium teeeter… I wonder if the comparison would be a little more fair if they did. The Sopras just sound a little more refined overall. It’s kind of like sitting in a Mercedes. Everything just sounds and feels right. I also don’t find them as bright or fatiguing as some Agoners do. They have a lot of detail but are much less fatiguing to me than B&Ws. I find the Moab’s to be the opposite of fatiguing. And don’t get me wrong, the Moab’s are not “dull” at all. They have great upper register detail but just seemed slightly veiled to me in comparison to the Sopras. That’s why I wonder if the BE tweeter would be a good upgrade for them. But with their stock soft some tweeter you could listen all day and never get tired. As far as midrange goes, it’s a much closer battle. This is where the Tekton shines for me. Vocals sound great on Moab’s. You will hear more lip smack and saliva through the Sopras… a little more audiophile sheen, but some might not want that level of detail…. Some might find it distracting and actually might prefer the slightly warmer sounding vocals on the Moab’s. As far as bass goes, the Moab’s offer quite a lot of slam for the buck. To me the Sopras are a little tighter and faster. Again, more refined. Also, the Sopras are less efficient which has caused some issues. I’m trading in my LTA UL for an LTA 40Zi as I need more power for the Sopras. The UL works very well but if you listen to Classical music with extreme dynamic range, you’ll need more power for Sopras than the Moab’s. And lastly, the Focals win aesthetically by a landslide. I’m not a hater of Tekton aesthetics like some Agoners but the Focals are just beautiful. They ooze class!
So where does this upgrade leave me now??? Down the rabbit hole of more upgrades of course!!! I’m upgrading my Rega P3 to a P10. Trading up the schiit mani to a Simaudio Moon 310LP phono stage. Just ordered a PS Audio SACD Transport with hopes that the I2S will play DSD Raw to the Denafrips. Also ordered a slew of Townshend stuff… speaker and sub decoupling platforms, rack foot corner decouplers and a loom of Fractal cables. So then I’m looking at an MSRP system close to 10x the price of my now wife’s system consisting of the Moab’s and the NAD M33. I’m fortunate enough to be able to afford this stuff (which I’m buying mostly used)… but a pair of Moab’s with a powerful all in one integrated for under 10K??? If I wasn’t addicted to the hobby and I just wanted a killer simple system… that would be hard to beat. And FYI, one of my best friends has Double Impacts with the NAD M10. Total for his set up was only 6K and sounds incredible! Anyway, those are my thoughts… very happy with where my system is now.. no regrets.
