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CEDIA 2009
Focal Celebrates 30th Anniversary
Mark Fleischmann  |  Sep 11, 2009
Of the two towers and one stand-mount labeled "new" at the Focal booth, the center of attention was the 30th anniversary tower, the 826W, at left, price n/a. New beryllium-tweeter models included two more towers and another stand-mount ranging from $4495/pair to $12,495/pair.
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Headphone Reviews
Focal Clear Headphones Review
Mark Fleischmann  |  Jun 21, 2018

Performance
Build Quality
Comfort
Value
PRICE $1,499

AT A GLANCE
Plus
Aluminum/magnesium diaphragms
Impeccable construction
Balanced presentation
Minus
Less than spacious imaging

THE VERDICT
Focal’s Clear headphones are admirably well-balanced performers with irreproachable build quality and a gorgeous look.

Is $1,499 a lot to pay for headphones? Well, how much is a lot? Only you can make the definitive decision about what is a good buy and what would be an undue burden on your checking account. Here’s how Focal thought through the problem. This formidable loudspeaker manufacturer gave its emergent headphone line its best shot in the Focal Utopia, a four-thousand-dollar product that we hailed with a five-star review. Its latest offering, the Focal Clear, borrows technology developed for the Utopia and cuts the price by more than half.

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Surround Sound System ReviewsBookshelf Speaker ReviewsSubwoofer Reviews
Focal Dôme Flax 5.1 Speaker System Review
Mark Fleischmann  |  Feb 02, 2017

Dôme Flax 5.1 Speaker System
Performance
Build Quality
Value

Sub Air Subwoofer
Performance
Features
Ergonomics
Value
PRICE $1,999

AT A GLANCE
Plus
Flax cone woofer
Aluminum-magnesium inverted-dome tweeter
Wall-hugging sub
Minus
Limited bass from sats

THE VERDICT
Unique driver materials, overall quality of construction, and adroit voicing make the Focal Dôme Flax 5.1 one of the best-sounding compact sat/sub systems I’ve heard.

As the home theater milieu increasingly divides into Atmos and non-Atmos camps, the satellite/subwoofer category seems destined to remain part of the old guard, usually sold in a set of five little speakers and a sub or two. Is it possible for a satellite speaker to retain its merciful compactness if it’s also to include an Atmos-enabled upfiring driver? I’d love to review such a product, but right now it’s a figment of my imagination and hopes. Focal, the prodigious French speaker manufacturer, does now offer a 5.1.2-channel Atmos-capable sat/sub system that takes a different approach (see below), but you’ll be happy to know that plain ol’ 5.1 is still alive and supported by this and other fine speaker makers. Even now it remains the bedrock configuration of surround sound.

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Bookshelf Speaker Reviews
Focal Dôme Speaker System
Mark Fleischmann  |  Dec 14, 2009
Price: $2,599 At A Glance: Unusual shapes and many choices of color • Better build quality than most sat/sub sets • Balanced performance

From People Who Do It Right

Whenever the depravity of the human race plunges me into despair, I think of Paris. Then I feel better.

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CES 2009
Focal Ennobles the Multimedia Speaker
Mark Fleischmann  |  Jan 08, 2009
The Focal XS is one cool-looking 2.1-channel iThing-docking multimedia system. It has a 24-bit USB DAC, 30 watts times two, and 70-watt sub for $599. The price includes a card remote.
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CEDIA 2012
Focal Gives Us the Bird
Mark Fleischmann  |  Sep 06, 2012
Focal's Sub Utopia EM earns its $13,999 pricetag with the use of an electromagnetic active voice coil, pictured to the right of the sub. This affords its 13-inch driver a degree of control and damping not possible with a conventional passive voice coil. Outboard amp required, 500 to 1000 watts recommended. Focal also showed three multimedia speakers: the Little Bird, the Bird, and the Super Bird, hence the headline. The cool thing is the flat box that goes with them. It combines the functions of a stereo integrated amp, headphone amp, DAC, and active sub, with wireless connectivity for iOS devices. Pricing is $995, $1199, or $1499 for the package depending on size of fowl. Add another $99 for an iOS or USB dongle.
CES 2014
Focal Is Flaxen
Mark Fleischmann  |  Jan 09, 2014
The 6.5-inch woofer in Focal's Aria 906 monitor is made of a hollow flax fiber sandwiched in a layer of transparent plastic-like glass tissue. The combination is light and tough and we've never seen the like before. The tall stand-mount also includes a one-inch aluminum-magnesium tweeter. The monitor began shipping in October 2013 for $1499/pair and can be accompanied by a matching center; a sub will follow in May 2014. Three towers are also available. In an adjoining room Focal showed its first soundbar, the Dimension, which will get separate coverage. The products are made in France so you know they'll be delicious.
CES 2016
Focal Sub Has Flax Driver
Mark Fleischmann  |  Jan 07, 2016
Focal says the flax composite driver in its SUB1000D sub ($1499) is tougher than Kevlar and prized for its low mass and high damping.
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Headphone Reviews
Focal Utopia Headphones Review
Mark Fleischmann  |  Jul 07, 2017

Performance
Build Quality
Comfort
Value
PRICE $3,999

AT A GLANCE
Plus
Beryllium diaphragm
Rock-star cosmetics
Fine-tuned highs and timbre
Minus
Expensive

THE VERDICT
Focal’s Utopia headphones are a bleeding-edge statement from a pedigreed loudspeaker manufacturer that has made the most of its speaker-designing experience.

When I look back on all the dumb things I did as a kid, surely one of the dumbest was pitching rocks and dirt balls at a wasp nest. With each impact, a cloud of wasps rose from the nest. It was mesmerizing—until one of us got stung. Reviewing Focal’s Utopia headphones isn’t at all stupid, but I suspect the results are going to be similar: a cloud of wasps, maybe a sting. Some readers will look askance at $3,999 headphones, especially since the things I have on hand for comparison cost a fraction of that. I don’t often breathe such rarefied air.

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Audio Video News
Folks Fuss Over FCC's CNBCU Deal
Mark Fleischmann  |  Jan 20, 2011
The Federal Communications Commission's conditions for the merger of Comcast with NBC-Universal are attracting comment. Media giants are dreading what will happen at the negotiating table as they cut deals for their own content. At the same time, others are saying that the FCC's net neutrality rules don't go far enough.

The initial fussing is coming from Disney and News Corp., both of whom own motion picture studios, TV networks, and cable channels. One of their concerns is that the FCC's requirement that Comcast make available programming it owns to online video services it doesn't own. This could complicate their ongoing negotiations with the likes of Netflix and Apple, pointed out The Wall Street Journal.

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