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Focal Solo6 Be Review (Studio Monitor)

Here we go:

www.soundandrecording.de

Focal Solo6 aus der ST6-Serie – 2-Wege-Nahfeldmonitor im Test

Mit der ST6-Serie präsentiert der französische Hersteller Focal eine neue Baureihe in der Kategorie Pro Audio und Studiomonitore. Hausintern sind die neuen ST6-Modelle im Ranking weit oben noch vor der SM6-Serie und den preiswerteren Modellen der Serien Shape und Alpha Evo angesiedelt. Die...
www.soundandrecording.de www.soundandrecording.de
 
heflys20 said:
Here we go:

www.soundandrecording.de

Focal Solo6 aus der ST6-Serie – 2-Wege-Nahfeldmonitor im Test

Mit der ST6-Serie präsentiert der französische Hersteller Focal eine neue Baureihe in der Kategorie Pro Audio und Studiomonitore. Hausintern sind die neuen ST6-Modelle im Ranking weit oben noch vor der SM6-Serie und den preiswerteren Modellen der Serien Shape und Alpha Evo angesiedelt. Die...
www.soundandrecording.de www.soundandrecording.de
Click to expand...

I think their tweeters are why I don't care for their speakers. That one looks particularly bad though, somethings just not right there between 3-8khz. Perhaps related to the concave tweeters. Might explain why I felt that something was off in the top end of the alpha series but could never put my finger on it. Not a very good showing for the price.
 
I agree, the tweeter does not perform well, it's two leagues below the Neumann soft dome and not good enough for this price class. On the Alpha it's ok, but those are 700€, not 2600€. The first version measured by Amir has similar bahavior, but it still looks better than the new one.
The woofer is really impressive though, remarkably good performance surpassing the KH150 below 100Hz. Although they are cheating somewhat with the 2dB bass bump just above where it starts to roll off to make it sound bigger than it really is.
Unfortunately that is probably the most irrelevant part because anyone spending this kind of money will have one or two subs to handle that. And with them rolling off from 50Hz-ish neither will be really satisfying without a sub.

Rather unimpressed with that "upgrade".
 
3125b said:
I agree, the tweeter does not perform well, it's two leagues below the Neumann soft dome and not good enough for this price class.
Click to expand...
I agree, just for completeness the Neumann is a hard (metal) dome.

Worse I find the highly uneven directivity which is getting very wide between 5-10 kHz.

S6-SPIN-580x353.jpg
 
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thewas said:
I agree, just for completeness the Neumann is a hard (metal) dome.
Click to expand...
You're right, I always thought is was a soft dome. Neumann calls it "alloy fabric dome", apparently it's a metal dome tweeter with a farbic surround.

What I find a little strange is that the new ST-6 is not a DSP speaker. Not sure why Focal wouldn't go that direction, might have helped then with the tweeter response (although that would not help the overall performance to be competitive).
 
I'm fairly convinced I'd pick the Neumann's over these given the choice. I do like the lower distortion on these, though.
3125b said:
What I find a little strange is that the new ST-6 is not a DSP speaker. Not sure why Focal wouldn't go that direction, might have helped then with the tweeter response (although that would not help the overall performance to be competitive).
Click to expand...

They actually used to make DSP speakers, but have since (seemingly) become more dogmatic in their belief that a well made, 100% analog speaker is superior to DSP focused ones . It's the same with brands like PSI. It's probably why this speaker still uses A/B amps as well. Makes sense, since there's still a large portion of folks who believe DSP is evil (they always bring up latency), and that A/B amps are more "musicial."
 
If you read the entire review (in the issue) Dr. Goertz actually has a very positive opinion of these Focals.
 
RobL said:
If you read the entire review (in the issue) Dr. Goertz actually has a very positive opinion of these Focals.
Click to expand...
I can paraphrase his listening impressions:

“The results of the hearing test can be summarized.

The Solo6 delivered an excellent impression in every respect in the stereo set. The bass reproduction was completely convincing despite the compact format of the monitor. The mids and highs, as well as the spatial representation, offered a precision that could rarely be experienced. The sometimes heard statement that the listening pleasure is lost in a too neutral and exact reproduction can easily be disproved by the Solo6 and even support the opposite.

Conclusion: With the Solo6 from the new ST6 series, Focal is launching another monitor on the market, with the purchase of which you can't go wrong. Compact dimensions, best workmanship, excellent drivers and good measurement results, as well as the hearing impression, leave nothing to be desired. “
 
I'm honestly not surprised he loves them. They're not horrible by any stretch. I'm just not convinced of price vs performance ( reflecting on speakers like the aforementioned kh 150, which beats speakers 2x its price)
 
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FWIW, added the Sub12 (holy, it's larger and heavier than I expected) sitting on IsoAcoustics ISO-pucks. The bottom opens up quite a bit. Not boomer like one expects a sub to be. It's very nice.
 
HedgeHog said:
FWIW, added the Sub12 (holy, it's larger and heavier than I expected) sitting on IsoAcoustics ISO-pucks. The bottom opens up quite a bit. Not boomer like one expects a sub to be. It's very nice.
Click to expand...
Pics and more info please!
 
heflys20 said:
I'm honestly not surprised he loves them. They're not horrible by any stretch. I'm just not convinced of price vs performance ( reflecting on speakers like the aforementioned kh 150, which beats speakers 2x its price)
Click to expand...
At $1500 each, I'd choose a speaker that comes with room correction software capability, either the Genelec 8340A or iLoud Precision speakers. Focal needs to raise its game
 
Spocko said:
At $1500 each, I'd choose a speaker that comes with room correction software capability, either the Genelec 8340A or iLoud Precision speakers. Focal needs to raise its game
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Hopefully. It's like I said, I think they're own that whole "DSP bad. Analog good." I see some studio monitor brands with this thought process, but it's not going to stick for long I bet.
 
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