There are certain items where people feel that it’s already a big waste of money. Something that’s already way too expensive just for a simple purpose, and that lesser expensive items can already serve that simple purpose and more, that those items are already just for improving one’s status symbol. One such item is the Focal 165K2P.
Priced at Php 38,000, most people would be surprised on the price for just set of speakers. Some might even call it exorbitant. But for some, it’s audio nirvana disguised as a set of speakers.
Being one of the premium models from Focal’s high-end line, the K2 Power, it promises high-end quality all over it, and it actually does. It’s actually a couple of notches short from Focal’s flagship line, the Utopia Be, which costs at least five times what the K2P costs. Opening the box will reveal a set of beautifully crafted woofers, tweeters and crossovers. Though the box is very simple and shares the design with its lower-end cousins, it’s adequate to house the speakers until it finally gets to be installed and used. Everything comes complete with the kit: woofers, tweeters, crossovers, two sets of mounting cups, screws, brackets, grilles, warranty card and an instruction manual.
The woofers are definitely a work of art, fairly resembling to the high-end home speakers that cost a lot more. The pale yellow cone, called the K2 sandwich membrane by Focal, not only looks beautiful, but it has technology placed all over it. The cone, which is made out of Kevlar, aerospace-grade foam and glass fibers sandwiched together, promises rigidity and damping while being lightweight at the same time. I’ve held a piece of that cone, and it’s surprisingly light. Another plus is that the glass fiber layer on the back side of the cone provides protection from the elements, a huge plus if you are installing the speakers at the doors.
The motor structure is nothing to sneeze at either. Starting at the voice coil, it’s actually made out of materials common to woofers. It’s made out of a Kapton former with copper wires wound around it. Nothing much really, but the difference lies in its size. The diameter is actually 40mm (1.6 in), a huge size considering most 6.5 inch woofers use a 25mm (1 inch) voice coil. From there, one can see that this is a serious woofer.
A voice coil this size definitely needs a larger magnet, and it’ll be a surprise if this woofer has a small one. The magnet, sandwiched between two beautifully machined chrome plates, is huge. Using a large single ferrite magnet, it’s made to match the huge voice coil mounted on its center. Definitely serious indeed.
And finally, the cone is topped off by a beautifully crafted aluminium phase plug, something that adds a touch of high-end to these speakers. Plus, these plugs add directivity to the sound for improved imaging, which is its main reason for being there. I think these plugs made up much of the Php 10,000 difference from the K2P’s little brother, the 165KP. The KP, which is essentially the same as the K2P, lacks the plugs and has a smaller motor coupled onto it.
The tweeters, dubbed the TN 52, are just as serious as the woofer. A huge upgrade from the TN 45 titanium tweeters paired with the K2P’s ancestors, it’s an inverted dome tweeter utilizing a Tioxid dome, titanium coated with titanium oxide for reduced brightness. What sets the TN 52 apart from the TN 45 and the TN 47 is that it already has an independent surround made out of PE foam, where the latter has an integrated surround on it. The foam surround would reduce brightness further and promises linear sound reproduction. Another plus is that the tweeters now have a pair of wave guides located on the top and the bottom of the tweeter aside from the phase plug in the middle. These would give further directivity plus better imaging as well. The tweeters come with two mounting cups: surface mount with two angles, and flush mount.
The crossovers are also a definitely a work of art. A true audiophile-grade network and not something that was thrown together and labelled “audiophile-grade”, this one has very expensive pieces carefully built all over it. Encased in a huge Zamak alloy case, the alloy promises not only added rigidity, but also improved cooling. The sheer size of the crossovers already shows that it means business. Opening the polycarbonate cover reveals what separated the men from the boys. Using Axon polypropylene capacitors, carbon resistors and heavy-gauge air core inductors, these items define the read deal from the pretenders. Tweeter level protection ranges from 0 to -7 dB, with at least +/- 1dB increments via three switches marked -1, -2 and -4 that can be pressed or depressed in combination, this would allow fine-tuning combined with a midrange presence switch for great sound quality wherever the drivers may be located. Truly a great piece of work.
The manual supplied are 20 pages long, with 8 pages each for English and French, and is printed on glossy paper. The English version is properly translated (I don’t know about the French version though), and are properly arranged, with the words on the right side of the manual and their corresponding illustrations on the left side. Very impressive. The next two pages (17 and 18) are guidelines on how to dispose the kit properly once its operating life ends in several languages. The manual’s last two pages (19 and 20) are warranty sheets in both English and French in which you fill up, detach and send it back to Focal. I find this impressive as well as it eliminates the chance of losing your warranty cards before filling them up.
These speakers require at least 100 watts at 4 ohms for it to run properly, and with a slightly lower sensitivity than the Polyglass, these speakers require an external amplifier for it to sound properly.
THE AUDITION
I have acquired a 165K2P kit as an upgrade for my system; replacing the Polyglass 165V2S (see previous post about them).The tweeters are mounted in the dash using the surface mounting cup and were aimed slightly off-axis by at least a few degrees. They were aimed towards behind the map light. The A-pillar is wrapped in cloth to reduce reflections.
The woofers are mounted in the OE position, but due to the larger motor structure, the woofer won’t fit without modifications, so a pair of fiberglass door pods was fabricated to make them fit. Procon deadening was applied on the door skins and Cascade Deflex Power Pads were placed behind the woofer for reducing distortion. To further eliminate resonances and coloration, Dynaliner acoustical foam was applied on the door sidings. Clearaudio interconnects were also installed along with Belden wires for smooth signal transfer.
Crossover settings were set at -3 dB for tweeter attenuation and midrange presence is set to “Flat”. HPF is set at 63 Hz with a slope of -12 dB/octave while LPF is set at 50 Hz with a slope of -18 dB/octave.
A word of warning though, the TN52 is an extremely directional tweeter. If they were improperly aimed, they will sound poorly. In fact, if your tweeters were just off by at least a millimetre, expect drastic changes in sound quality. Aim the tweeters properly in order to get the best tonal accuracy and optimize soundstage and imaging (watch out for reflections). You have been warned..
Also, the speakers require a running-in period of at least 200 hours. That’s roughly three and a half months if you are planning to play them for at least an hour a day. Before evaluating them, they were fully broken-in in order for them to play at their best.
Time to listen.
Sultans of Swing – Dire Straits (Tonal Accuracy/Spectral Balance)
One of the hit songs from the British rock band, Sultans of Swing cover nearly the entire frequency spectrum and has the instruments commonly used in a rock band.
Playing this track on the K2P is a perfect harmony, the vocals and the instruments are quite accurately reproduced and neither is overpowering the other. Vocals are full and crisp, and the electric guitar is smooth and powerful. The drums exhibit good transient response and have body, although it’s still a bit thin for my taste. The cymbals are my favourite instruments on this track, as the speakers perfectly reproduced the “sizzle” that can be normally heard on cymbals, which shows that the tweeters are perfectly capable of high frequency extensions.
When God Dips His Pen of Love in My Heart – Allison Krauss (Stage Depth/Imaging)
This track is relatively simple, with only three singers, a bass and a banjo behind them. Both instruments are beside each other, and the singers, Allison Krauss in the middle, are side by side with each other and at front.
The K2P definitely proved itself well in this test, as the stage was quite deep, ranging from the front edge of the dashboard to just barely one inch from the rear edge. Not exactly very deep like most people would like, but good enough.
Imaging was good as well, as the three singers’ voices did not blend with each other. Each of them can be perfectly distinguished from each other, especially when each of them sings individually. Also, the instruments show good images as well, neither too big nor too small, nor does it overpower the vocals in terms of size.
Afterglow – Kendra Shank (Stage Width/Imaging)
I used this track on my Polyglass review. But this time, I’ll be using the track for a different purpose. The track consists of a single vocalist with a guitar and a triangle on the far right.
The K2P did well here as well, with the guitar/triangle combo on the right-hand edge of the dash, just near the sail panels. Although more can be expected, it’s to be expected since the tweeters are placed on the dash. Maybe some small adjustments might improve the width.
Improvisation Track – Focal Disc No.3 (Transient Response/Attack and Decay)
This track is basically a drum track, where a drum set can only be heard, with a wind instrument on the background during the middle of the track.
During the start of the track, the two cymbals can be heard. Again, it was reproduced perfectly. However, the same can’t be said for the drums, especially the snare drum, where it sounded a bit thin and causes my ears to grow tired. However, they sounded very fast, with no delays. Even the bass drum sounded fast, and blended very well.
In A Sentimental Mood- Jacqui Dankworth (Sibilance)
This track is purely vocal, with minimal instruments on the background, and the vocalist placed her mouth near the microphone, thus creating sibilance. The objective of this test is not to see that sibilance is totally eliminated, but it should see if the speakers would exhibit controlled sibilance, meaning it wouldn’t be very rough nor too bright, just right for the ears.
On this test, all I could say is that the speakers handled the test quite well, too. The sibilance was neither rough nor sharp, it was just right. Although certain parts of the track showed sibilance that was quite sharp, it was perfectly natural as the “s” sound was extended by the vocalist.
Conclusion
This kit definitely delivered it all: precision, smoothness, good transient response, and a lot more. It’s a good upgrade if you seek a lot more from the bread and butter components. However, I noticed that the tweeters were a bit too bright, contributing to the lack of body, especially around the midbass and midrange area. Plus, its sensitivity to slight changes in angles made it undesirable for me, but nonetheless, the tweeter was okay. Maybe swapping it to an Aluminum/Magnesium tweeter, such as the ones in Focal Polyglass V1, VR or Chorus home speakers might improve things a bit, but if you don’t want to swap it out, a little bit of work and long hours of listening sessions would bring out the best in the TN 52. There’s plenty of potential on that tweeter, you just need to know how to tap it.
But such weaknesses don’t make this kit a poor one. In fact, it’s one of the best kits I have owned, and that it’s definitely a one-way ticket to audio nirvana. It’s a big plus to those who want great sound and who want to gain first-hand experience in sound tuning. For people who just want great sound, get the Utopia Be. Just make sure you have enough money for it.
Saturday, October 13, 2007
Friday, July 27, 2007
Focal Polyglass 165V2 separates kit: Review
There are plenty of products that are well-loved by people in several circles, a product where its best salesmen are the customers themselves, and have been used by lots of people because of its performance at a price that can’t be beat. One of them is the Focal Polyglass 165V2 separates.
Deeply rooted in Focal’s lineup, the 165V2 is the latest evolution from the long generations of the Polyglass series, and has received a minor tweak last year. It also shares the same name with its little brother, the 165V1. Something that has a long history like that attached to it would certainly give someone a feeling that it has been perfected already, and that’s exactly what I have felt.
Upon receiving the kit, you will be greeted by a moderately-sized gray box bearing the manufacturer’s name, the model and the features of the kit. On one corner of the box, you will see a small “checklist” which lists down the items included in the box and their corresponding quantities. It comes with pictures so that beginners can identify which is which. Very nice.
Opening the box from the side will reveal a huge chunk of Styrofoam, which you pull out from the box to reveal the items. I recommend doing this in a cushioned area (bed, car seats, etc.) as some parts might fall off as you pull the Styrofoam.
The items embedded in the Styrofoam (it’s probably a good idea to use the “checklist” I mentioned earlier) are what one would expect from a speaker kit: woofers, tweeters, crossovers, tweeter mounting cups, screws, tools, and grilles for the speakers. The woofers are what one would recognize from its ancestors, its cone. The Polyglass cone is what has been unchanged for the longest time. Basically a paper cone coated with glass microballs for rigidity, this material promises added rigidity to an already neutral properties of a paper speaker cone.
The motor assembly is also awesome, with chrome top and bottom plates sandwiching a single ferrite magnet on the outside. On the inside, a 1 inch Kapton voice coil with copper wires wound around it is connected to the cone, a proper size for a 6.5 inch cone, as most manufacturers use this coil size as well. The woofer baskets are made out of an alloy called Zamak by Focal for rigidity and being non-magnetic and non-resonant at the same time. The surround is made out of butyl rubber for longer life that its older foam counterparts, and everything is topped off by a black dust cap at the middle of the cone bearing the company’s logo (This is only available in the upgraded V2S version though).
The tweeters are the marquee of this kit, as it has been a joke that when you buy a Focal kit, you simply pay for the tweeters, and everything else is free. The inverted dome tweeter, which is already synonymous to Focal, is quite unorthodox as most manufacturers use an upright dome design. The dome material is made out of a titanium sheet coated with titanium oxide, called Tioxid 5 by Focal, to absorb any resonances and reduce brightness or sharpness associated with metal domes. The tweeter comes with an integrated surround with grooves cut onto it, most likely for additional damping and further reduction of resonances. The motor structure is basically the same as most speaker manufacturers, utilizing a Neodymium magnet, only there are two of them for push and pull. The tweeter also comes with two mounting cups for flush mounting (if you are planning to put the tweeters in sail panels, A-pillars, etc.) and surface mounting (if you are planning to put it on the dashboard) in two variable angles.
The crossovers are nothing much special, but it is sufficient. Encased in a plastic housing covered in a clear black polycarbonate cover, it is quite small, so small that one can put it in almost anywhere in the car, and hide it. Opening the case will reveal a PCB board slightly smaller than the casing and embedded onto it are polypropylene capacitors, ceramic resistors and air-core inductors. Though these materials are generic, they look like they can do the job. The crossovers come with a tweeter level adjustment of 0, -3 and -6dB and has a midrange presence switch for adjustments if the drivers are placed in different locations. Like I said, nothing special, but sufficient.
The supplied manual is basically pieces of glossy white sheets, with languages in both English and French. It’s 14 pages long (7 for each language), and comes with everything, down from installation guidelines to crossover adjustment tips. And if in case you lost yours, you can get it at Focal’s website. Plus, the last two pages (15 and 16) are warranty sheets both in English and French which you fill up and detach.
Power handling is rated at 75 watts @ 4 ohms RMS, and can be hooked up directly on the head unit’s internal amplifier. But of course, the speaker’s full potential can be realized if it’s externally amplified.
THE AUDITION
The test kit that I used is my own, a 165V2S (yes, the upgraded version), that I had installed in my car, a 2005 Honda Civic. It is amplified by a Butler TubeDriver Blue amp and feeding audio signals to it is an Alpine DVA-9965E head unit. The woofers were placed on the doors and tweeters were mounted on the A-pillars, aiming at the rear-view mirror. The doors were deadened using Procon deadening and Cascade Deflex pads located behind the woofer for reduced distortion.
Crossover settings were set at -3dB for the tweeter and “Full” on midrange presence as suggested by the manual. HPF point is set on 63 Hz with a slope of -12 dB/octave. Equalizer settings are nearly flat, except for a dip of 6 steps around 8 kHz and 3 steps on 16 kHz.
Additionally, the speakers were properly broken in for a couple of months so that the speaker’s true behavior can be realized. Now we’re ready to listen.
Get There (Livingston Taylor)
A remake of a popular song a long time ago, I chose this because most of Livingston Taylor’s songs have minimal instruments, thus giving out more attention to his voice. Plus, this particular song is one of my favorites.
At the start of the track, there is a guitar playing on the right hand corner of the stage. I noticed that the guitar is quite weak and lacking in detail, but it is there. Livingston’s vocals on this track sound heavenly, being natural and defined, and quite clear. I definitely attribute this to the Polyglass cone.
Imaging is good, with a good sense of space between the instruments. Also, the "size" of the vocals and the instruments are correct, and everything is in proportion wit the sound stage. However, there is a slight lack of definition, as there is a bit of diffusion around the vocals and the instruments.
On a certain part of the track, there are bamboo chimes being hit on the left side of the stage. They sounded quite dull and lacking in presence, as if it as played very far away, much like the guitar earlier. But overall, this track is exceptional.
Do That to Me One More Time (Jheena Lodwick)
Moving on to female vocals, this track is also one of my favorites, as I don’t exactly prefer Jheena Lodwick’s songs due to sibilance and harshness, but surprisingly, this one is very smooth.
At the beginning, tom-toms are played before Jheena starts to sing. The tom-toms are “airy”, has good attack and the “body” is full. As the song progresses, Jheena’s voice is as heavenly as Livingston’s vocals earlier, if not much more. Her voice was quite accurate, having definition, clarity and being natural. When Jheena pauses, a flute can be heard until she starts to sing again. It’s quite crisp and clean, with no hint of sharpness as the flute reaches high notes. However, there was a hint of dullness, but great overall.
Imaging is a ok, but I had a hard time locating the flute as is is very diffused. But as for the rest of the insruments, it's definitely okay, with good proportions and definition.
I Can See Clearly Now (Holly Cole)
This track is a good test for sibilance and midbass, as this one is definitely full of them. The track will greet you with several rumbles from your midbasses, and Holly will begin to sing in a few moments. Surprisingly, the speakers have exhibited controlled sibilance. It was neither punishing to the ears nor it was ruining the song. It’s there, but it adds naturalness to the vocals. The midbass were exceptionally good as well, rumbling with authority. Loose door components will definitely rattle, as mine did.
Telegraph Road (Dire Straits)
This track is a recorded live performance, with pianos, drums, guitars, and the vocals that should definitely take you to the front seat.
At the beginning, you will be greeted with claps from the audience. I noticed that they are quite dull as well, and can be barely heard. The vocals are also clean, as earlier tracks have exhibited, but also quite dull. Once the vocals stop, cymbals can be heard at the right-hand corner of the stage. I’ve been told that most systems, around 90%, are having a hard time reproducing the cymbals perfectly. In my case, I was part of the statistic. The cymbals were very, very weak and very dull as well. But that made me happy because at least it was there.
Afterglow (Kendra Shank)
This is a Bossa Nova track, with a good test for imaging and sense of space, but we’ll leave that for now. Instead, there is a good test for high-frequency extensions on that track, as a triangle can be head on the right corner of the stage, and the V2 produced that with ease. However, the sound would sometimes turn full, then dull, then full again. I’m not sure if it was part of the track or that the tweeters were already having a hard time reproducing high-frequency extensions. Testing this further in the future would reveal the cause.
CONCLUSION
Overall, the speakers were great, with the midrange being very natural and color-free, and the controlled sibilance means that the tweeters and the woofers blend well to each other. However, I noticed that the tweeters start to roll off slowly further, as evidenced by the dullness of some instruments, lack of detail and high-frequency extensions. That can probably be remedied by facing the tweeters a bit towards the listeners (being a bit on-axis) and additional tuning, but I feel that it’s already the tweeter design in itself that’s causing the lack of detail.
Aside from that, everything else is perfect. This kit can put other higher-priced kits to shame, and will definitely give you a rewarding performance without spending too much.
Deeply rooted in Focal’s lineup, the 165V2 is the latest evolution from the long generations of the Polyglass series, and has received a minor tweak last year. It also shares the same name with its little brother, the 165V1. Something that has a long history like that attached to it would certainly give someone a feeling that it has been perfected already, and that’s exactly what I have felt.
Upon receiving the kit, you will be greeted by a moderately-sized gray box bearing the manufacturer’s name, the model and the features of the kit. On one corner of the box, you will see a small “checklist” which lists down the items included in the box and their corresponding quantities. It comes with pictures so that beginners can identify which is which. Very nice.
Opening the box from the side will reveal a huge chunk of Styrofoam, which you pull out from the box to reveal the items. I recommend doing this in a cushioned area (bed, car seats, etc.) as some parts might fall off as you pull the Styrofoam.
The items embedded in the Styrofoam (it’s probably a good idea to use the “checklist” I mentioned earlier) are what one would expect from a speaker kit: woofers, tweeters, crossovers, tweeter mounting cups, screws, tools, and grilles for the speakers. The woofers are what one would recognize from its ancestors, its cone. The Polyglass cone is what has been unchanged for the longest time. Basically a paper cone coated with glass microballs for rigidity, this material promises added rigidity to an already neutral properties of a paper speaker cone.
The motor assembly is also awesome, with chrome top and bottom plates sandwiching a single ferrite magnet on the outside. On the inside, a 1 inch Kapton voice coil with copper wires wound around it is connected to the cone, a proper size for a 6.5 inch cone, as most manufacturers use this coil size as well. The woofer baskets are made out of an alloy called Zamak by Focal for rigidity and being non-magnetic and non-resonant at the same time. The surround is made out of butyl rubber for longer life that its older foam counterparts, and everything is topped off by a black dust cap at the middle of the cone bearing the company’s logo (This is only available in the upgraded V2S version though).
The tweeters are the marquee of this kit, as it has been a joke that when you buy a Focal kit, you simply pay for the tweeters, and everything else is free. The inverted dome tweeter, which is already synonymous to Focal, is quite unorthodox as most manufacturers use an upright dome design. The dome material is made out of a titanium sheet coated with titanium oxide, called Tioxid 5 by Focal, to absorb any resonances and reduce brightness or sharpness associated with metal domes. The tweeter comes with an integrated surround with grooves cut onto it, most likely for additional damping and further reduction of resonances. The motor structure is basically the same as most speaker manufacturers, utilizing a Neodymium magnet, only there are two of them for push and pull. The tweeter also comes with two mounting cups for flush mounting (if you are planning to put the tweeters in sail panels, A-pillars, etc.) and surface mounting (if you are planning to put it on the dashboard) in two variable angles.
The crossovers are nothing much special, but it is sufficient. Encased in a plastic housing covered in a clear black polycarbonate cover, it is quite small, so small that one can put it in almost anywhere in the car, and hide it. Opening the case will reveal a PCB board slightly smaller than the casing and embedded onto it are polypropylene capacitors, ceramic resistors and air-core inductors. Though these materials are generic, they look like they can do the job. The crossovers come with a tweeter level adjustment of 0, -3 and -6dB and has a midrange presence switch for adjustments if the drivers are placed in different locations. Like I said, nothing special, but sufficient.
The supplied manual is basically pieces of glossy white sheets, with languages in both English and French. It’s 14 pages long (7 for each language), and comes with everything, down from installation guidelines to crossover adjustment tips. And if in case you lost yours, you can get it at Focal’s website. Plus, the last two pages (15 and 16) are warranty sheets both in English and French which you fill up and detach.
Power handling is rated at 75 watts @ 4 ohms RMS, and can be hooked up directly on the head unit’s internal amplifier. But of course, the speaker’s full potential can be realized if it’s externally amplified.
THE AUDITION
The test kit that I used is my own, a 165V2S (yes, the upgraded version), that I had installed in my car, a 2005 Honda Civic. It is amplified by a Butler TubeDriver Blue amp and feeding audio signals to it is an Alpine DVA-9965E head unit. The woofers were placed on the doors and tweeters were mounted on the A-pillars, aiming at the rear-view mirror. The doors were deadened using Procon deadening and Cascade Deflex pads located behind the woofer for reduced distortion.
Crossover settings were set at -3dB for the tweeter and “Full” on midrange presence as suggested by the manual. HPF point is set on 63 Hz with a slope of -12 dB/octave. Equalizer settings are nearly flat, except for a dip of 6 steps around 8 kHz and 3 steps on 16 kHz.
Additionally, the speakers were properly broken in for a couple of months so that the speaker’s true behavior can be realized. Now we’re ready to listen.
Get There (Livingston Taylor)
A remake of a popular song a long time ago, I chose this because most of Livingston Taylor’s songs have minimal instruments, thus giving out more attention to his voice. Plus, this particular song is one of my favorites.
At the start of the track, there is a guitar playing on the right hand corner of the stage. I noticed that the guitar is quite weak and lacking in detail, but it is there. Livingston’s vocals on this track sound heavenly, being natural and defined, and quite clear. I definitely attribute this to the Polyglass cone.
Imaging is good, with a good sense of space between the instruments. Also, the "size" of the vocals and the instruments are correct, and everything is in proportion wit the sound stage. However, there is a slight lack of definition, as there is a bit of diffusion around the vocals and the instruments.
On a certain part of the track, there are bamboo chimes being hit on the left side of the stage. They sounded quite dull and lacking in presence, as if it as played very far away, much like the guitar earlier. But overall, this track is exceptional.
Do That to Me One More Time (Jheena Lodwick)
Moving on to female vocals, this track is also one of my favorites, as I don’t exactly prefer Jheena Lodwick’s songs due to sibilance and harshness, but surprisingly, this one is very smooth.
At the beginning, tom-toms are played before Jheena starts to sing. The tom-toms are “airy”, has good attack and the “body” is full. As the song progresses, Jheena’s voice is as heavenly as Livingston’s vocals earlier, if not much more. Her voice was quite accurate, having definition, clarity and being natural. When Jheena pauses, a flute can be heard until she starts to sing again. It’s quite crisp and clean, with no hint of sharpness as the flute reaches high notes. However, there was a hint of dullness, but great overall.
Imaging is a ok, but I had a hard time locating the flute as is is very diffused. But as for the rest of the insruments, it's definitely okay, with good proportions and definition.
I Can See Clearly Now (Holly Cole)
This track is a good test for sibilance and midbass, as this one is definitely full of them. The track will greet you with several rumbles from your midbasses, and Holly will begin to sing in a few moments. Surprisingly, the speakers have exhibited controlled sibilance. It was neither punishing to the ears nor it was ruining the song. It’s there, but it adds naturalness to the vocals. The midbass were exceptionally good as well, rumbling with authority. Loose door components will definitely rattle, as mine did.
Telegraph Road (Dire Straits)
This track is a recorded live performance, with pianos, drums, guitars, and the vocals that should definitely take you to the front seat.
At the beginning, you will be greeted with claps from the audience. I noticed that they are quite dull as well, and can be barely heard. The vocals are also clean, as earlier tracks have exhibited, but also quite dull. Once the vocals stop, cymbals can be heard at the right-hand corner of the stage. I’ve been told that most systems, around 90%, are having a hard time reproducing the cymbals perfectly. In my case, I was part of the statistic. The cymbals were very, very weak and very dull as well. But that made me happy because at least it was there.
Afterglow (Kendra Shank)
This is a Bossa Nova track, with a good test for imaging and sense of space, but we’ll leave that for now. Instead, there is a good test for high-frequency extensions on that track, as a triangle can be head on the right corner of the stage, and the V2 produced that with ease. However, the sound would sometimes turn full, then dull, then full again. I’m not sure if it was part of the track or that the tweeters were already having a hard time reproducing high-frequency extensions. Testing this further in the future would reveal the cause.
CONCLUSION
Overall, the speakers were great, with the midrange being very natural and color-free, and the controlled sibilance means that the tweeters and the woofers blend well to each other. However, I noticed that the tweeters start to roll off slowly further, as evidenced by the dullness of some instruments, lack of detail and high-frequency extensions. That can probably be remedied by facing the tweeters a bit towards the listeners (being a bit on-axis) and additional tuning, but I feel that it’s already the tweeter design in itself that’s causing the lack of detail.
Aside from that, everything else is perfect. This kit can put other higher-priced kits to shame, and will definitely give you a rewarding performance without spending too much.
Thursday, July 12, 2007
Focal Polyglass 27V2 subwoofer: Review
There are rare instances where you stumble upon a subwoofer that’s different among the rest. Something that’s not made for everyone, and requires a lot of thought before you purchase one. Some people won’t give it a second look because it’s different, and it serves a purpose for only a select few. And the Focal 27V2 is one of those subs.
The 27V2, a part of Focal’s Polyglass lineup, is one sub where it could not please everybody, but pleases those who seek for a different purpose. Yes, it’s a sub not made for ground pounding, but it’s a sub the promises accurate bass reproduction. In other words, it’s an SQ sub.
Being a part of the Polyglass subwoofer lineup, it uses an 11’ Polyglass cone, basically a paper cone coated with glass microballs for improved stiffness. This material promises rigidity, lightness and internal damping, all desirable properties in a speaker cone, while keeping costs very low. Plus, paper has been credited as a material that can produce the most neutral sound since it compromises all of the three traits of a speaker cone. The cone is housed on an alloy basket, which Focal calls Zamak. The material promises rigidity while being non-magnetic and non-resonant. Bonding the cone directly on the basket is a huge rubber surround mainly for long life compared to foam surrounds.
The motor assembly is also impressive, with double stacked ferrites sandwiched between chrome top and bottom plates. People who wish to install their subs facing the passenger cabin need not worry about aesthetics, as the sub looks great from behind. The voice coil, with a diameter of 65mm, features an aluminium former wrapped in 4 layers of copper wire. The aluminium would help in resistance against deformation in extreme heat. And to top it all up, it’s a 4 ohm dual voice coil, which means it can be wired in either 2 or 8 ohms.
The cooling system for the motor looks like it’s been overdone, with a huge pole piece on the bottom of the sub and air vents located on the bottom of the basket, with most subs incorporating only either a pole piece or air vents for cooling. But then again, there’s no such thing as an overdone cooling system as cooling the motor system is of vital importance for subwoofers.
Power handling is rated at around 300 Watts RMS, so almost any 300-Watt or higher mono or two-channel amp can power these subs.
THE AUDITION
I was able to acquire a 27V2 from a friend who decided to replace it for a smaller sub. The sub was second hand but in pristine condition, and since it was used, it was already fully broken in. The sub was installed in a 1.0 cu.ft sealed box, as recommended by Focal, and placed in the trunk of my car, a 2005 Honda Civic. It was matched to an Audiosystem F2 190 amp and wired in 2 ohms, giving out at least 500 watts of power. Crossover settings were set at 80Hz, with a slope of -12 dB/octave, phase is set at 0 degrees or normal, and sub level is set at +8. Finally, we’re ready for some serious listening.
Grandma’s Hands (Livingston Taylor)
This track is approximately a little under 2 minutes long, with Livingston and his back-up vocals singing soulfully all throughout. It’s purely a vocal track, with its only instrument being the finger snaps heard all throughout the track. This is mainly a test for midrange purity, but it can be used to test low-frequency extensions as well.
In most good systems, faint but heavy foot stomps can be heard all throughout the track, and the 27V2 definitely shined on this track. The foot stomps can be heard very clearly, and once Livingston pauses to catch his breath, the foot stomps can be heard much more clearly. I was impressed on this, with the sub exhibiting great bass reproduction.
Magnificent Seven (Elmer Bernstein)
For you non-smokers, this is also known as the Marlboro track, as this is a rendition of the Marlboro soundtrack (think of the Marlboro TV ads a few years back). This track is a complete orchestra, with woodwinds, brass, cymbals, strings and bass drums. Let’s focus on the bass drum.
At the beginning of the track, once the tempo starts to rise, the bass drum will start to hit a couple of times or more until the tempo starts to slow down. The bass must be clean and fast as a slight delay would destroy this beautiful rendition.
The 27V2 shined on this one as well, with the bass being deep and clean. The drum was accurately reproduced and at the same time, fast. The bass was exactly at the same time it was supposed to be there, with absolutely no delays, largely due to the light Polyglass cone. Plus, once the tempo has slowed down, I’ve heard the bass drum being hit again, but very faint. That kind of reproduction from the sub is very impressive for me, as I don't think some subs can still be able to show that.
This track was also a test to the sub’s enclosure size, as it exhibited balance between deep, clean and fast bass. Although the sub was already well-balanced to begin with, the enclosure improved it further, and a sloppy enclosure would surely throw off the accurate reproduction. It just goes to show how much Focal did its homework in providing the correct enclosure sizes for it’s customers.
Superman (Cincinnati Pops Orchestra)
Now we move to another orchestra track, this time with the rendition of the Superman soundtrack. Towards the end of the track, there should be a big rumble for at least a few seconds, and in some cases, small rumbles can be heard, or rather felt, before the big one.
Unfortunately, the sub did not do much here, as the huge rumble was particularly not that powerful, and the small rumbles are just intermittent faint rumbles. So faint, it’s hardly noticeable along with the engine vibrations. I’m guessing it’s already due to the small size of the sub.
Further Tests on SPL (Various R&B Tracks)
Surprised by the lack of rumble, I popped in a couple of R&B CD’s (particularly Anthony Hamilton and Mario Winans) and tested the sub for SPL. The results are the same. Rumble was there, but not that strong or powerful. Even cranking the sub level up to maximum won’t improve rumble significantly. But on the plus side, even with the R&B music, the sub still exhibited clean and deep bass, something that I appreciated.
CONCLUSION
Like what I’ve said above, the 27V2 is a sub made for a different kind of duty. It was an almost perfect sub, exhibiting clean, deep and fast bass, and bass reproduction was superb. The only thing that’s keeping it from becoming a perfect sub was its lack of rumble. Even if it’s purely an SQ sub, a little bit more rumble could’ve made it much better.
With plenty of subs available in the market, and with a price of around Php 16,000, people might look for a cheaper sub that will fill their needs and budget. But for those who would install a sub purely for SQ and is looking for accurate bass reproduction, the 27V2 is for them.
The 27V2, a part of Focal’s Polyglass lineup, is one sub where it could not please everybody, but pleases those who seek for a different purpose. Yes, it’s a sub not made for ground pounding, but it’s a sub the promises accurate bass reproduction. In other words, it’s an SQ sub.
Being a part of the Polyglass subwoofer lineup, it uses an 11’ Polyglass cone, basically a paper cone coated with glass microballs for improved stiffness. This material promises rigidity, lightness and internal damping, all desirable properties in a speaker cone, while keeping costs very low. Plus, paper has been credited as a material that can produce the most neutral sound since it compromises all of the three traits of a speaker cone. The cone is housed on an alloy basket, which Focal calls Zamak. The material promises rigidity while being non-magnetic and non-resonant. Bonding the cone directly on the basket is a huge rubber surround mainly for long life compared to foam surrounds.
The motor assembly is also impressive, with double stacked ferrites sandwiched between chrome top and bottom plates. People who wish to install their subs facing the passenger cabin need not worry about aesthetics, as the sub looks great from behind. The voice coil, with a diameter of 65mm, features an aluminium former wrapped in 4 layers of copper wire. The aluminium would help in resistance against deformation in extreme heat. And to top it all up, it’s a 4 ohm dual voice coil, which means it can be wired in either 2 or 8 ohms.
The cooling system for the motor looks like it’s been overdone, with a huge pole piece on the bottom of the sub and air vents located on the bottom of the basket, with most subs incorporating only either a pole piece or air vents for cooling. But then again, there’s no such thing as an overdone cooling system as cooling the motor system is of vital importance for subwoofers.
Power handling is rated at around 300 Watts RMS, so almost any 300-Watt or higher mono or two-channel amp can power these subs.
THE AUDITION
I was able to acquire a 27V2 from a friend who decided to replace it for a smaller sub. The sub was second hand but in pristine condition, and since it was used, it was already fully broken in. The sub was installed in a 1.0 cu.ft sealed box, as recommended by Focal, and placed in the trunk of my car, a 2005 Honda Civic. It was matched to an Audiosystem F2 190 amp and wired in 2 ohms, giving out at least 500 watts of power. Crossover settings were set at 80Hz, with a slope of -12 dB/octave, phase is set at 0 degrees or normal, and sub level is set at +8. Finally, we’re ready for some serious listening.
Grandma’s Hands (Livingston Taylor)
This track is approximately a little under 2 minutes long, with Livingston and his back-up vocals singing soulfully all throughout. It’s purely a vocal track, with its only instrument being the finger snaps heard all throughout the track. This is mainly a test for midrange purity, but it can be used to test low-frequency extensions as well.
In most good systems, faint but heavy foot stomps can be heard all throughout the track, and the 27V2 definitely shined on this track. The foot stomps can be heard very clearly, and once Livingston pauses to catch his breath, the foot stomps can be heard much more clearly. I was impressed on this, with the sub exhibiting great bass reproduction.
Magnificent Seven (Elmer Bernstein)
For you non-smokers, this is also known as the Marlboro track, as this is a rendition of the Marlboro soundtrack (think of the Marlboro TV ads a few years back). This track is a complete orchestra, with woodwinds, brass, cymbals, strings and bass drums. Let’s focus on the bass drum.
At the beginning of the track, once the tempo starts to rise, the bass drum will start to hit a couple of times or more until the tempo starts to slow down. The bass must be clean and fast as a slight delay would destroy this beautiful rendition.
The 27V2 shined on this one as well, with the bass being deep and clean. The drum was accurately reproduced and at the same time, fast. The bass was exactly at the same time it was supposed to be there, with absolutely no delays, largely due to the light Polyglass cone. Plus, once the tempo has slowed down, I’ve heard the bass drum being hit again, but very faint. That kind of reproduction from the sub is very impressive for me, as I don't think some subs can still be able to show that.
This track was also a test to the sub’s enclosure size, as it exhibited balance between deep, clean and fast bass. Although the sub was already well-balanced to begin with, the enclosure improved it further, and a sloppy enclosure would surely throw off the accurate reproduction. It just goes to show how much Focal did its homework in providing the correct enclosure sizes for it’s customers.
Superman (Cincinnati Pops Orchestra)
Now we move to another orchestra track, this time with the rendition of the Superman soundtrack. Towards the end of the track, there should be a big rumble for at least a few seconds, and in some cases, small rumbles can be heard, or rather felt, before the big one.
Unfortunately, the sub did not do much here, as the huge rumble was particularly not that powerful, and the small rumbles are just intermittent faint rumbles. So faint, it’s hardly noticeable along with the engine vibrations. I’m guessing it’s already due to the small size of the sub.
Further Tests on SPL (Various R&B Tracks)
Surprised by the lack of rumble, I popped in a couple of R&B CD’s (particularly Anthony Hamilton and Mario Winans) and tested the sub for SPL. The results are the same. Rumble was there, but not that strong or powerful. Even cranking the sub level up to maximum won’t improve rumble significantly. But on the plus side, even with the R&B music, the sub still exhibited clean and deep bass, something that I appreciated.
CONCLUSION
Like what I’ve said above, the 27V2 is a sub made for a different kind of duty. It was an almost perfect sub, exhibiting clean, deep and fast bass, and bass reproduction was superb. The only thing that’s keeping it from becoming a perfect sub was its lack of rumble. Even if it’s purely an SQ sub, a little bit more rumble could’ve made it much better.
With plenty of subs available in the market, and with a price of around Php 16,000, people might look for a cheaper sub that will fill their needs and budget. But for those who would install a sub purely for SQ and is looking for accurate bass reproduction, the 27V2 is for them.
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