Has anyone heard the Focal 1028BE ?

For that room size, I'd go with 1038. I have had both 1028 and 1038. 1038 is better in every way. Also do note, 1028 is back-ported (plus downward firing port) but 1038 only has downward firing port. Cross-over points are different and 1038 has bigger cabinet for midrange driver, of course not to mentioned approximately 70% more bass driver cone area (2x6.5 vs. 3x7) with bigger cabinet behind them.

Thanks for the Advice.
I ended up ordering the 1038's mostly for the reasons you cited. Can't wait, I demoed the 1028's and loved them so I am looking for good things in the 1038's

Congrats! You're gonna love them.

My room is 26 x 13 with 8' ceilings.  Listening position is approx 9-12 feet from the speakers, which will be positioned about 6 feet from the rear wall and ~8-9 feet between the speakers.

I'm leaning towards getting the 1028 BE II's and augmenting them (if needed) with a fast quality pair of subs (such as REL T9 or SHO-series, SVS Ultra 13; etc) or alternating splurging for the 1038's now. The advantages of the 1028/sub combo are more flexibility when it comes to placement and I can delay the sub upgrade (if needed) into the future.  Looking for anyone who's had experience with both speakers and their thoughts / advice on my plan

I’d go 1038 honestly.  They’re both amazing, but the height advantage of the 38 alone is big.