NOW DEMO'ing Focal Solos and Twins - NEED HELP!

PDXROX · 19th December 2007, 09:02 PM

So I've got the Focal Solo 6's and Twin 6's in my untreated bedroom studio right now, making my trusty Mackie 824's sound like garbage, there is just no comparison. I never realized just how boxy and distorted the Mackies are until two days ago!

My test setup is both speakers stacked horizontally, with MoPads between them to decrease coupling and angle everything towards me.

HERE'S THE PROBLEM: On the Twins, I hear a ton of information, more information than the solos, but not necessarily the most accurate information. Specifically, the stereo field on the Twins seems to be extra-wide, which is very euphonic for listening, and gives everything tons of space, BUT I'm not sure it is as true of a listening experience as the Solo 6. Listening to hours of different styles of music, I usually enjoyed the Twins more with their other-worldly dispersion, but find the Solos to be more honest and focused with the stereo field. The issue is slightly remedied by just moving further back (from 3ft to 6ft), but I'm still not sure about that stereo image. Listened to a trumpet solo from Buena Vista Social Club, and on the Solos I heard the source on the right, the wall reflection on the the left. With the twins, the localization was shifting a little. Maybe it gets better with a long burn in - or maybe I just don't like two drivers causing slight phase anomalies.

So buy the Solos, right? I wish it were that easy.

The Solos are great, love em, but there's two things they just don't seem to do as well as the Twins - upper bass and midrange. I generally find them to be a little lacking in both warmth and presence - they seem a little scooped perhaps. Maybe rolling off a tad bit of bass and treble would help, but that seems like a last resort.

I found I like hip hop and heavy rock a little better on the solos, the honest thump, smooth mids, and extended highs play very together for aggressive music.

But when I switch to ambient, classic, or acoustic music, I just cream myself! listening to the Twins. The present upper bass and mids just sounds entirely more natural than the Solos.

In general, I can't believe two speakers with the same component drivers sound so different. At this point, I have no idea which one I prefer.

Guess I just gotta move 'em around a little more and do some quick mixes to get a real world feel, but from just listening to songs I've heard 100+ times in a many different stereos, I really don't know which one I'll end up with.

andygomez · 19th December 2007, 09:07 PM

the big difference between the Solos and the twins is that on the twins one of the woofers is actually reproducing lower midrange along with the bass and the other is reproducing bass only . they are kinda like a 3 way hybrid. I would say go with the Twins they are way more defined in the midranged

leadplayer · 19th December 2007, 09:15 PM

The real key here is "untreated room." (like hearing a band play
out of tune...) Kill your corners, get something on the ceiling
over the mix/monitor area, then treat the wall behind you.

The stereo field will redefine itself.

PDXROX · 19th December 2007, 10:09 PM

See Andy, that's what I'm wondering - are the twins more detailed in the mids than the solos, or are they a little hyped? I feel like the mids on the twins is a little overstated, on the solos a good deal understated.

And yes, I'm a a crappy bedroom setup. I'm in the process of looking for a new place where I can set up a proper control room, but I've been making records in this room, in this position for a few years. Some of them even sound good!

This is the setup I have to decide which monitor to buy. However, these speakers WILL be moving to a treated room within a couple months, so I'm looking for the more accurate speaker in a general sense. Obviously, what I truly want is monitors that, when set up in a good room, help me make great mixes that translate all over.

Most Slutz report great translation results using both of these speakers, and I could certainly get used to either of them, and as of now the Twins sound better on most sources, but they still seem a little cloudy / overpowered in the upper bass and mid. Again, this is in a little bedroom.

I'm gonna try them vertically, and see if that helps....

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19th December 2007, 09:02 PM	#1
PDXROX Gear interested Join Date: Mar 2006 Posts: 2	NOW DEMO'ing Focal Solos and Twins - NEED HELP! So I've got the Focal Solo 6's and Twin 6's in my untreated bedroom studio right now, making my trusty Mackie 824's sound like garbage, there is just no comparison. I never realized just how boxy and distorted the Mackies are until two days ago! My test setup is both speakers stacked horizontally, with MoPads between them to decrease coupling and angle everything towards me. HERE'S THE PROBLEM: On the Twins, I hear a ton of information, more information than the solos, but not necessarily the most accurate information. Specifically, the stereo field on the Twins seems to be extra-wide, which is very euphonic for listening, and gives everything tons of space, BUT I'm not sure it is as true of a listening experience as the Solo 6. Listening to hours of different styles of music, I usually enjoyed the Twins more with their other-worldly dispersion, but find the Solos to be more honest and focused with the stereo field. The issue is slightly remedied by just moving further back (from 3ft to 6ft), but I'm still not sure about that stereo image. Listened to a trumpet solo from Buena Vista Social Club, and on the Solos I heard the source on the right, the wall reflection on the the left. With the twins, the localization was shifting a little. Maybe it gets better with a long burn in - or maybe I just don't like two drivers causing slight phase anomalies. So buy the Solos, right? I wish it were that easy. The Solos are great, love em, but there's two things they just don't seem to do as well as the Twins - upper bass and midrange. I generally find them to be a little lacking in both warmth and presence - they seem a little scooped perhaps. Maybe rolling off a tad bit of bass and treble would help, but that seems like a last resort. I found I like hip hop and heavy rock a little better on the solos, the honest thump, smooth mids, and extended highs play very together for aggressive music. But when I switch to ambient, classic, or acoustic music, I just cream myself! listening to the Twins. The present upper bass and mids just sounds entirely more natural than the Solos. In general, I can't believe two speakers with the same component drivers sound so different. At this point, I have no idea which one I prefer. Guess I just gotta move 'em around a little more and do some quick mixes to get a real world feel, but from just listening to songs I've heard 100+ times in a many different stereos, I really don't know which one I'll end up with.

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19th December 2007, 09:07 PM	#2
andygomez Gear addict Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: New York Posts: 348	the big difference between the Solos and the twins is that on the twins one of the woofers is actually reproducing lower midrange along with the bass and the other is reproducing bass only . they are kinda like a 3 way hybrid. I would say go with the Twins they are way more defined in the midranged

19th December 2007, 09:15 PM	#3
leadplayer Gear interested Join Date: Jul 2007 Posts: 21	The real key here is "untreated room." (like hearing a band play out of tune...) Kill your corners, get something on the ceiling over the mix/monitor area, then treat the wall behind you. The stereo field will redefine itself.

19th December 2007, 10:09 PM	#4
PDXROX Gear interested Join Date: Mar 2006 Posts: 2	See Andy, that's what I'm wondering - are the twins more detailed in the mids than the solos, or are they a little hyped? I feel like the mids on the twins is a little overstated, on the solos a good deal understated. And yes, I'm a a crappy bedroom setup. I'm in the process of looking for a new place where I can set up a proper control room, but I've been making records in this room, in this position for a few years. Some of them even sound good! This is the setup I have to decide which monitor to buy. However, these speakers WILL be moving to a treated room within a couple months, so I'm looking for the more accurate speaker in a general sense. Obviously, what I truly want is monitors that, when set up in a good room, help me make great mixes that translate all over. Most Slutz report great translation results using both of these speakers, and I could certainly get used to either of them, and as of now the Twins sound better on most sources, but they still seem a little cloudy / overpowered in the upper bass and mid. Again, this is in a little bedroom. I'm gonna try them vertically, and see if that helps....