Are the Focal Solo 6 too "hifi"?

[Joe_caithness]

Funny how people seem to say that, that they need a sub, I hear really low on mine, it's almost weird how low, I use shelves down at 37hZ and I can hear the Qs changing etc. Would still love to hear em with the sub though, will probably buy one eventually. Do love these a lot, never heard bottom end like them on nearfields.

[BusyBoxSt7]

Originally Posted by Surbitone

I'm a PMC guy, but Focals the are great speakers and the salesman is full of sh*t. That's why he's a salesman, and not an engineer.

I'm an engineer first and salesman second. I do sell Focals all the time, but I recommend then routinely against my paycheck (cause most people can't afford them and walk away without purchasing).

Dragging bass response? I'd say that of a number of other popular speakers WAY before Focals. Read the TapeOp review comparing Solo6s with Barefoots. You can hear the shape of the bass ridiculously well on Solos (and Focals in general, very clear and balanced).

[Joe_caithness]

The Solos somehow seem to keep the bass dynamic and clean all the way down to where they drop off .. witch craft!

[BusyBoxSt7]

Heck, even the CMS40 are surprisingly flat and unstrained down to their 65Hz.. Seems easier to mix w/ accuracy down to a higher pitch than something that "goes down to 20Hz" or whatnot but isn't even down there.

[JBVries]

Too Hi-Fi? Meh. I can hear why you would pose such a question but I have enjoyed mixing on my pair for the last year and a half and gotten great results with them.

I am letting them go though as I am now mixing on the Sonics - Anima. So if you are looking for a pair of gently used Solo6s, check it out......

(http://www.gearslutz.com/board/gears...ml#post7439089)

Please don't consider this spammin' and report me or something. :-)

[Tube World]

Twins are a lot cheaper than the Barefoots so it's. It really fair to compare them to each other. Solos's are great monitors, Twins are a little better due to the extra bass and mid clarity.

[ORC]

I used to love the solo 6's. I never realized how boxy they sounded until I got my manley ML-10's. There is really no comparrison here, but there shouldn't be considering the price difference.

[fccmt]

Anyone tried the PSI A21 vs Focal solo?

thanks

[Jantex]

I did, no comparison, PSI is absolutely another league in all areas.

[AngeFragile]

Originally Posted by Jantex

I did, no comparison, PSI is absolutely another league in all areas.

Agreed. I for one have issues with the Focal tweeter, it cuts my ears. The PSI 21 and even the smaller 17's are a huge step up.

Sent from my HTC Desire HD A9191 using Gearslutz.com

[fccmt]

Originally Posted by Jantex

I did, no comparison, PSI is absolutely another league in all areas.

The price is almost similar....and what about the bass response on the 21? Is the sub a must have?

thanks.

[Arksun]

Originally Posted by fccmt

The price is almost similar....and what about the bass response on the 21? Is the sub a must have?

thanks.

The A21 is almost double the price of the Focal Solo's, so not really similar in price. The A17 is much closer price wise.

I personally feel no need for a sub with the A21 it goes plenty deep enough for nearfield use, but its soo subjective some people are bass junkies, or have huge rooms :D.

I'm with Jantex on this one, for me the A21-M is totally in another league over the Solo, but its not really a fair comparison. Though I would still pick the A17-M over the Solo as well, but then I have a personal issue with the sound of the Solo's beryllium tweeter, can't get on with it at all.

Monitors are such a personal choice though and the Solo's aren't bad by any means!. Just ignore the sales guy chatter they're not the one who's going to be using them in your room you are.

I remember back in 2006 when I bought the Dynaudio BM6A MK1, the sales guy in Turnkey was pushing the Genelecs HARD!. Just kept going on about how awesome the 8040 was and I should buy that instead. He failed

[fccmt]

Originally Posted by Arksun

The A21 is almost double the price of the Focal Solo's, so not really similar in price. The A17 is much closer price wise.

I personally feel no need for a sub with the A21 it goes plenty deep enough for nearfield use, but its soo subjective some people are bass junkies, or have huge rooms :D.

I'm with Jantex on this one, for me the A21-M is totally in another league over the Solo, but its not really a fair comparison. Though I would still pick the A17-M over the Solo as well, but then I have a personal issue with the sound of the Solo's beryllium tweeter, can't get on with it at all.

Monitors are such a personal choice though and the Solo's aren't bad by any means!. Just ignore the sales guy chatter they're not the one who's going to be using them in your room you are.

I remember back in 2006 when I bought the Dynaudio BM6A MK1, the sales guy in Turnkey was pushing the Genelecs HARD!. Just kept going on about how awesome the 8040 was and I should buy that instead. He failed

Indeed my mistake. The first price I mentioned was a B sale...it was a little bit lower.

Anyway Solo (1000€/uni) Psi A21(1600€/uni) does it worth the extra 600? has you said, it can be very subjective...

[Russell Myers]

After being confused for a long time between A8x and focal solo, i ordered focal solo6 be. I didnt have a chance to listen to any of them but i took my audio school teacher's advice and a bit of research here with the sluts. Hopefully they will serve the purpose.

[Russell Myers]

I just got my focal solos 6 be and im amazed at the craftsmanship. They absolutely look brilliant and totally different from what they look in the photos. Each speaker is pretty heavy about 16kg and i got them in 2 different boxes packed quite nicely in order to avoid any damages. The total weight was about 30kg. I will hook them up tomorrow for the initial run. The running time advised in the manual is about 10hours on a moderate level. Im so excited :D

[Thor]

I stood all of 5 minutes in front of a wall of speakers at Guitar Center, blindfolded, listening to some self-produced crossover EMD/Hip hop/folk CD the guy working there had made. Did the same thing at the Wal Mart across the street (same guy, same CD, just to make sure all variables were identical) and ended up carting off a pair of Pelonis Sound 4288s. They really stood out from all the others.

Still loving the sound, even after getting them into the studio. How ridiculous is that?!?

Thor

[Russell Myers]

Originally Posted by Thor

I stood all of 5 minutes in front of a wall of speakers at Guitar Center, blindfolded, listening to some self-produced crossover EMD/Hip hop/folk CD the guy working there had made. Did the same thing at the Wal Mart across the street (same guy, same CD, just to make sure all variables were identical) and ended up carting off a pair of Pelonis Sound 4288s. They really stood out from all the others.

Still loving the sound, even after getting them into the studio. How ridiculous is that?!?

Thor

Wish i had that opportunity to hear them all before i bought one...It would make it a bit easier.

[BusyBoxSt7]

Originally Posted by Russell Myers

I just got my focal solos 6 be and im amazed at the craftsmanship. They absolutely look brilliant and totally different from what they look in the photos. Each speaker is pretty heavy about 16kg and i got them in 2 different boxes packed quite nicely in order to avoid any damages. The total weight was about 30kg. I will hook them up tomorrow for the initial run. The running time advised in the manual is about 10hours on a moderate level. Im so excited :D

10 hours? I'd shoot for 25-50, even 100 (and a few people say more).. I've talked with the focal rep a good bit and 25-50 at least is recommended. You'll still have a long way to go at 10 (i.e. they'll still sound kinda harsh in the top and notched/not fat enough in the lows).

[Russell Myers]

Originally Posted by BusyBoxSt7

10 hours? I'd shoot for 25-50, even 100 (and a few people say more).. I've talked with the focal rep a good bit and 25-50 at least is recommended. You'll still have a long way to go at 10 (i.e. they'll still sound kinda harsh in the top and notched/not fat enough in the lows).

yea mate thats what im doing. I have left them playing a playlist.

[BusyBoxSt7]

just make sure it's loud enough to move the woofers (just a good way to know, though you're breaking in the tweeter, electronics etc as well)...

[Russell Myers]

Originally Posted by BusyBoxSt7

just make sure it's loud enough to move the woofers (just a good way to know, though you're breaking in the tweeter, electronics etc as well)...

Cant play them too loud at the moment but its kinda in the middle..not loud and not low either. Ive burned them for about 270 hours now.

[BusyBoxSt7]

For my twins, an SPL meter maybe 5' from speakers was registering between 90-115dB (depending on weighting/speed settings)... take them somewhere to get them up loud enough to shake the woofers at least a little (to where you see kicks some, maybe 1/4"? Use your judgement)

[fdc]

took mine at least 100 hours (4 weeks of usage) till they sounded good...

[Russell Myers]

Originally Posted by Russell Myers

From the thread focal solo one speaker sounds gloomy! on 7th Jul 2012

I hear some kind of whistle noise coming out of both the tweeters. Its not loud though. When i stop playing music its only audible then. Any idea what it is? Is it normal?

[BusyBoxSt7]

the fact that it's out of BOTH tweeters makes a factory error sound not likely, have you verified your cabling etc? tested with other speakers hooked up same way?

If that were normal, there wouldn't be so many glowing reviews. Contact Focal directly (always better support than a forum of course).

[Russell Myers]

Originally Posted by BusyBoxSt7

the fact that it's out of BOTH tweeters makes a factory error sound not likely, have you verified your cabling etc? tested with other speakers hooked up same way?

If that were normal, there wouldn't be so many glowing reviews. Contact Focal directly (always better support than a forum of course).

I havent been able to check them with other cables but yea thats a good idea. Its not about how focals sound. I love the sound but its just that the whistling is weird. I was wondering if there is other focal solo owners hear something like that out of their tweeters.

[spectrasound]

Don't know about the solo 6's, but I had the Twin 6bs w/sub on loan with 5 other high end systems when I auditioned control room speakers. The twins came in 2nd. place. (Bought Barefoot MM27s) My wife kept remarking how "pretty" the Focals sounded....scared me. I mixed a jazz recording (from zeroed board) on the Focals and the BArefoots and got input from a well know mastering engineer. I labeled the files A & B, so they were unknown to him. He picked A "hands down" from his perspective. A was the MM27s. My 2 cents.

[Russell Myers]

Originally Posted by spectrasound

Don't know about the solo 6's, but I had the Twin 6bs w/sub on loan with 5 other high end systems when I auditioned control room speakers. The twins came in 2nd. place. (Bought Barefoot MM27s) My wife kept remarking how "pretty" the Focals sounded....scared me. I mixed a jazz recording (from zeroed board) on the Focals and the BArefoots and got input from a well know mastering engineer. I labeled the files A & B, so they were unknown to him. He picked A "hands down" from his perspective. A was the MM27s. My 2 cents.

You know... so many great records have been mixed on speakers we've all had and sold on this site that the fact that people think the barefoots blow away any of the others is kinda misleading imo.
The sound of it might scare you but awards someone else a Grammy. Who knows?