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Focal Aria 906 Speaker Review

Notice that they used different measurement axes for the two speakers (why?). The original was measured at the tweeter axis, while the K2 was measured with the axis between the tweeter and midwoofer.
I don't know why.
The speakers may have a different crossover design axis and they were informed by Focal or they just measured differently.

They are 2meters away in the NRC chamber so I think the variation won't be huge at that distance, still it may be a factor in terms of apples to apples.
 
I don't know why.
The speakers may have a different crossover design axis and they were informed by Focal or they just measured differently.

They are 2meters away in the NRC chamber so I think the variation won't be huge at that distance, still it may be a factor in terms of apples to apples.

I agree - the change in axis was probably at the request/instruction of Focal. And it probably doesn't make a large difference. But since the measured difference is small, and measured on a different axis, we can't really tell how much is due to design change and how much is due to measurement axis change.
 
Want something a little different? Check out the Aria K2 936 and Aria K2 906 with their characteristic yellow Kevlar drivers and warmer, more tape-like bass reproduction.
 
It seems the main differences are that the K2 is just tuned a tad hotter in the treble and its woofer compression and mid distortions are a bit lower, in my opinion nothing that would make up the significant price difference though.
 
Want something a little different? Check out the Aria K2 936 and Aria K2 906 with their characteristic yellow Kevlar drivers and warmer, more tape-like bass reproduction.
I personally find the flax drivers substantially more attractive than the yellow Kevlar, but that's just a taste thing and everybody is different.
 
I personally find the flax drivers substantially more attractive than the yellow Kevlar, but that's just a taste thing and everybody is different.
I am now going to dedicate my life to developing "UltraBlack™ Kevlar" which will be infused with carbon fiber for a darker sound. The carbon fiber will be spun from carbon derived from the CO2 being sucked out of the atmosphere at the Orca plant in Iceland, the carbon being split from the oxygen in a reaction powered by the abundant green geothermal energy there.
Hmmm.
Just read how Kevlar is made, OMG how toxic and nasty. Maybe I can develop some kind of paramecium that can grow it? Or perhaps better to use the liberated oxygen to grow flax in nearby greenhouses. I can dye the flax yellow using natural dyes from plants also grown in said greenhouses and call it "Natural Kevlar™"...
 
After a long search for the right fit for my rather weak Yamaha CR400 amp I bought the 906 and I’m really happy. Are there any alternative stands that fit ? The original ones seam pretty pricey.

Do I need to use banana plugs or can I wire them normally ?
 
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After a long search for the right fit for my rather weak Yamaha CR400 amp I bought the 906 and I’m really happy.
Weak maybe, but it's a very good looking receiver:
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Are there any alternative stands that fit ? The original ones seam pretty pricey.
I have the Norstone Stylum 2 (60cm) for my ATC SCM19. There is also a Stylum 3 (80cm). They should be below 150€.
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Do I need to use banana plugs or can I wire them normally ?
You can use both. The terminals look like the ones on the Focal Chorus 706:
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In EU, Banana plugs are not usable anymore with 906 (the hole is literally filled). On mine, nor many pairs I saw recently, you couldn't use bananas.
On my pair the plastic inserts preventing the use of banana plugs were removable. I used a thin knife to pop them out.
 
I picked them up almost exactly a year ago at Sevenoaks. Do you have a photo of the back? I can let you know if mine looked the same.
 
In EU, Banana plugs are not usable anymore with 906 (the hole is literally filled). On mine, nor many pairs I saw recently, you couldn't use bananas.
A friend has them and he has taken the inserts out. I made pictures on my new Chora 806 and asked him if his Aria 906 are like that, he said yes, not sure when he bought them.

You remove the nut and use a knife to pry the plastic pin out. One pin was very easy to remove, the other was a bit more tricky.
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If Focal glued the pins in with new production runs, then they should get a few angry mails.
The pins prevented reliably that one plugs a power plug into the terminals before.
 
And yet i faintly remember a Steve Guttenberg video where he complained about the pins not coming out.
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Different production runs?
Different batches where the upstream manufacturer of the terminals forgot to glue them in?
A mystery.
 
Very old Focal Chorus 706, pins removed, for reference:
PXL_20220423_103923656.jpg
 
And yet i faintly remember a Steve Guttenberg video where he complained about the pins not coming out.
I'm perfectly familiar with hard to remove pins/caps. I'm indeed talking about impossible to remove ones.;) I know that earlier production (2013-2018) Arias had caps easily removable with fingers. But for some reason (I believe some EU regulations about banana plugs) it changed after that.
 
But for some reason (I believe some EU regulations about banana plugs) it changed after that.
I know there is a regulatory reason why the pins are in there for a long time, decades, and so i would have to see that new regulation to believe it.
 
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