Focal Aria 906 Speaker Review

[delta76]

Thanks for help!

I bought one today at a special confidential price that was so good I nearly fell off my chair. In reality, all these speakers in the store are overpriced by 2-3 times, so the cheapest and best option will always be DIY if the requirements are high, but I don't have such high requirements.

And also, I've read elsewhere that these speakers will sound good with time, the manufacturer also recommends it, so maybe many people sell new ones because they think they don't sound good or they bought them at half price and now they're making money, including without paying VAT. I don't know, just a guess.

Speaker burn-in is just a myth. Your brain adapts with new speaker sound and you either feel it is better or worse over time, but the sound does not change.
Enjoy your new speakers anyway!

 

[anotherhobby]

Pretty true. Not many discounts and deals being thrown around the past couple years. I think $850 for an open box pair is a pretty good deal here in the states. All documentation and box included.

Back in 2017 when Focal switched their wanlut laminate from the one you have pictured (vinyl) to the newer lighter colored walnut veneer (real wood), there were some excellent deals for several years on the old finish. I also got a pair of 906's in the vinyl walnut finish, then traded them a year later for 936's with the same discounted finish, and I still own those. I do like the newer finish a little better, but I only paid $2300 for my pair of 936's new in 2018, and now they sell for $6000 a pair in the US, so I'm pretty happy with the pair I have.

 

[sniegs]

Hmm. This topic probably falls into two camps. Perhaps placebo and hearing habit affect us mainly.
The most important thing for me is that it sounds good at very low volume, that's why I bought it, because you already know, some people said that on YouTube.... . The sensitivity seems to suit it and I can get a bigger sound from a bigger speaker (because currently I have a Polk Signature S15 whose membrane size is only 3.35" and it sounds like that, although it has a good stereo panorama, a certain spatiality and you can hear the nuances very well after it , when I placed them differently and probably changed the phase of the amplifier or it is a placebo...).

 

[sniegs]

Back in 2017 when Focal switched their wanlut laminate from the one you have pictured (vinyl) to the newer lighter colored walnut veneer (real wood), there were some excellent deals for several years on the old finish. I also got a pair of 906's in the vinyl walnut finish, then traded them a year later for 936's with the same discounted finish, and I still own those. I do like the newer finish a little better, but I only paid $2300 for my pair of 936's new in 2018, and now they sell for $6000 a pair in the US, so I'm pretty happy with the pair I have.

Dark ebony version, laminate is vinyl or veneer (real wood)?

 

[anotherhobby]

Dark ebony version, laminate is vinyl or veneer (real wood)?

The darker "walnut" version are indeed a vinyl wrap. Don't let it bother you though, it looks great and it's not easy to tell unless you know. I bought my 906's not knowing this, but I did know this by the time I upgraded to my 936's, and still did not care and instead enjoyed the massive discount. I actually prefer the looks of the darker walnut, even if the snob in me would have preferred a real dark walnut wood veneer.

Vinyl Wrap:

Wood Veneer:

 

[sniegs]

Thanks!
My version is dark ebony and it's not one of the ones you listed. I'm not worried about vinyl or wood, I'm just interested in what I've bought and as you said, I didn't pay for extras because of it and I even think I like dark ebony better than white, black, etc.

P.S. The finish is one of the reasons why I am with the 906 version, because the sound is one thing, but the body is also important. And 20 years will pass and its price will probably be the same as it is with the Cobalt 806 today, that is, the liquidity is also there for these speakers if the quality control is at the level.

 

[chingaling]

When the dealer realized they didn’t have the Dark colored one in stock they offered me the lighter colored wood veneer for the same price but I liked the darker color better.

 

[sniegs]

I compared the F906 with the Polk S15. The two speakers are the opposite of each other. If with the S15 I can lose myself in the music on the wide stage, then with the F906 I have to open my eyes and check if the pillow has fallen in front. Yes yes, the F906 sounds exactly like this Tharbamar video . Pronounced laid-back, the piano sounds like under a pillow (you can also hear it in the Tharbamar video) in any tracks. Forget about electronic music altogether . Energy and vitality here is 0 (zero).
The high frequencies were ringing in my ears, so I thought mesh was a little better. I even covered the S15 and F906 tweeters to understand what was happening with the stereo image. From S15 it still remained. I even connected the two together, but the S15 overwhelmed the F906 so much that I thought the 906 wasn't on (even though the F906 has a much bigger speaker).
I wanted to bring the F906 to life, so I switched from analog and directly to full treble/bass, but it's the same as dragging the dead .

They are not bad speakers, but those who buy the F606 should understand why they are buying them.

 

[delta76]

But shouldn't you put them vertically?

 

[Chromatischism]

And not level-matched...

 

[sniegs]

But shouldn't you put them vertically?

It was more convenient for me to compare and why not. The F906 is very demanding about the placement of the triangle, no 10 cm to the right or left, but I followed the manufacturer's recommended 2.5 meters needed to create a minimal acoustic panorama. The S15 is not as critical in placement.

P.S. Every day, I have speakers lying on "Ikea Vilto" (designed for bathrooms shelves. I don't buy speakers that don't fit on a shelf. The shelf takes up the same space as the stand, but you can put a sub, an amplifier, two pairs of acoustics and also serve as an acoustic trap.

 

[Steven Holt]

Just read this review for the hell of it and became fascinated. Currently, the 906 is selling in the US for $2200/pr while the Chora 806 is 598/pr.

 

[delta76]

It was more convenient for me to compare and why not. The F906 is very demanding about the placement of the triangle, no 10 cm to the right or left, but I followed the manufacturer's recommended 2.5 meters needed to create a minimal acoustic panorama. The S15 is not as critical in placement.

P.S. Every day, I have speakers lying on "Ikea Vilto" (designed for bathrooms shelves. I don't buy speakers that don't fit on a shelf. The shelf takes up the same space as the stand, but you can put a sub, an amplifier, two pairs of acoustics and also serve as an acoustic trap.

most bookshelf speakers do not perform well in a horizonal placement due to directivity and whatnot - with only few exception like KEF R3 due to its coaxial design.

It is your speaker and you use it the way you see fit, but placing 906 horizontally is asking it to underperform. Yes every "listening test" is subjective but this is unfair even.

 

[sniegs]

most bookshelf speakers do not perform well in a horizonal placement due to directivity and whatnot - with only few exception like KEF R3 due to its coaxial design.

It is your speaker and you use it the way you see fit, but placing 906 horizontally is asking it to underperform. Yes every "listening test" is subjective but this is unfair even.

Is the driver rectangular or round in 360 degrees and can be rotated accordingly?

P. S. Yes, forgive ASR for the subjectivity, but otherwise I have no knowledge yet, however, we hardly choose a speaker based on measurements.

 

[LilacWineisSweet]

Just snagged a deal for the s900 matching stands and the 906s in black for £657 total. Very excited to burn them in.

Do they absolutely need a sub after burn in?

 

[delta76]

Just snagged a deal for the s900 matching stands and the 906s in black for £657 total. Very excited to burn them in.

Do they absolutely need a sub after burn in?

No you don't need burn in. They will be fine without a sub but will definitely be better with a good one.

 

[LilacWineisSweet]

Thanks for replying - a follow up question:

I live in a flat/apartment with one neighbour below. Will I get the benefits of a sub in terms of how it aids mids and trebles given that I won’t be able to blast it at high levels without warranting him getting angry with me? Haha.

For reference I don’t listen to hip hop or dance/electronic in living room. I’ve got good IEMs for that when out and at gym.

Thanks

 

[sniegs]

Paldies par atbildi - papildu jautājums:

Es dzīvoju dzīvoklī/dzīvoklī ar vienu kaimiņu zemāk. Vai es gūšu priekšrocības, ko sniedz zemfrekvences svira, ņemot vērā to, kā tas atbalsta vidējos un augstos toņus, ņemot vērā, ka es nevarēšu to uzspridzināt augstā līmenī, negarantējot, ka viņš uz mani dusmojas? Haha.

Uzziņai es neklausos hip hopu vai deju/elektronisko mūziku viesistabā. Man ir labas IEM, lai to izmantotu gan ārpusē, gan sporta zālē.

Paldies

My F906 is accompanied by a Sub8 Dynavoice (which is smaller than recommended because it fits on the rack) closed type design! which does not cause additional problems. This creates a wider stereo picture and depth where the F906 is not deep. Don't worry about the neighbors, because as I described, sub is not only meant for bass.

P.S. For me, the amplifier has never been more than 15% and spotify has a playlist with songs without bass if you want louder. Maybe I will get a second sub as well, but it's only for these speakers, I don't think I'll need the next ones.

 

[rcstevensonaz]

Just snagged a deal for the s900 matching stands and the 906s in black for £657 total.

That is insane — and the stands are amazing! I just spent (in USD) the equivalent of £490 for a pair of Chora 806 + stands to use as surround rears -- I would have happily added the extra £150 for matching 906s in back.

As other noted, you do not need a sub but it will make a difference. But if you do add a sub, get dual subs even it means you need to buy two smaller ones instead of the larger size you would prefer to fit your budget.

 

[sniegs]

I'm thinking about a second sub, because two small subs would be ideal instead of one, but for all this money you can buy a DIY CSS Criton 1, which probably doesn't need a sub. Or get both, F906 and CSS-C1 if both will be used (I got the idea of using both speakers from this Nemo Propaganda video, there although it is about Buchardt, but hifishark can also find it at an affordable price).