Focal shape 65?

Oscarraap

Member
Hi, any focal shape users? How do you like those?

I like the passive radiator design for supposedly tighter bass. But I briefly listened to them in a shop and the high end seemed a bit harsch to me, possibly the metal tweeters.

I tried many studio monitors with ported designs (adam ax7, neuman kh 120) but they seem to have woofy low end, in particular front ported ones.

Currently i have yamaha hs7 for many years but this one also tends to be harsch with guitars, so i never really liked them. The neumanns were nice and smooth but i didnt think the bass is as tight as they are credited for so i returned them. I think 5 inch drivers are limited in this regard so 6.5 is probably the best size for small home studio.

So, the focal 65 matches my wish list in terms of specs, but Im asking focal users to share their experience in practise.

Thank you!
 
Hi, any focal shape users? How do you like those?

I like the passive radiator design for supposedly tighter bass. But I briefly listened to them in a shop and the high end seemed a bit harsch to me, possibly the metal tweeters.

I tried many studio monitors with ported designs (adam ax7, neuman kh 120) but they seem to have woofy low end, in particular front ported ones.

Currently i have yamaha hs7 for many years but this one also tends to be harsch with guitars, so i never really liked them. The neumanns were nice and smooth but i didnt think the bass is as tight as they are credited for so i returned them. I think 5 inch drivers are limited in this regard so 6.5 is probably the best size for small home studio.

So, the focal 65 matches my wish list in terms of specs, but Im asking focal users to share their experience in practise.

Thank you!
Disclaimer, haven't used them.

A passive radiator design is basically the same as a ported design. And a studio monitor being woofy has nothing to do with its port location. Whether the bass is tight or not probably depends more on your room, speaker/listener location, acoustic treatment, etc.

Focal Shapes and the previous CMS line both seem to have some quality control issues with their electronics. Some CMS were noisy cus of transformer hum, and some Shapes have issues with standby mode. FYI if you're getting them.
 
Thank you, i understand the dependence of room.characteristics, however, i tried many different monitors in thesame room/ location and i got some greatly varying results, bass response in particular.

I disagree on the statement that pr and ported designs are thesame. Yes the intended purpose is thesame, which is increased bass extension, but the technology and respective benefits and drawbacks are very different.

Port resonance was probably my biggest issue because i sit quite close to the monitors.

But anyway im not worried about the bass of the focals. My question is about harshness. According to magazine reviews they are supposed to be smooth sounding, but that was not my first impression in the shop.

Anyone else tried them?
 
I disagree on the statement that pr and ported designs are thesame. Yes the intended purpose is thesame, which is increased bass extension, but the technology and respective benefits and drawbacks are very different.

Port resonance was probably my biggest issue because i sit quite close to the monitors.
Unwanted port resonance usually occurs quite above the woofy frequencies, so the woofiness you describe has nothing to do with whether speakers are ported, whether they're front ported, etc. If anything, all else being the same, passive radiator designs have slightly worse bass transient response. FWIW, I've had the Neuman KH 120 and I didn't find them to be woofy sitting close.

Trying many different monitors in the same room/location can be tricky, as a few inches this way or that way with the monitors can have a big impact on their bass response, whether they sound woofy, etc. So if you're comparing two pairs of speakers, let's say one pair is on the desk and the other pair is next to or on top of the first pair, their bass response will be different because of their placement. If you try to physically swap speakers real quick to the same spot, unless you have someone do it for you, retaining auditory memory in that time to compare can be difficult, at least for me.

Anyway, hopefully someone chimes in about whether they're harsh sounding. Cheers.
 
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I have a pair of Focal Shape Twins. I love them. They are pricey, but honestly, I'm hearing beautiful mastering balance in my own CD releases that I didn't know was there (I never master my own CDs... have a great engineer for that!)
I've also been re-listening to many of my favorite CDs (e.g., Rush: Permanent Waves, King Crimson: Discipline, Brian Eno: Another Green World, Peter Gabriel: Secret World Live, etc), and hearing new details that I never noticed before.

These are the monitors I use when building / editing my AxeFX patches, and they are fantastic. The low end is very clean and balanced. Studio monitors tend to have a bit of their own personality, but the Focals are very honest, and quite flat. I have mine set up in the usual equilateral triangle configuration, and the wall behind them is treated with acoustic foam (the pyramid shape tiles). The Focal Shape Twins have their radiators on the sides, which I think contributes to their overall smoothness and balance.

I auditioned a lot of monitors before selecting the Focals. Very pleased with them. Also: they need a good number of hours of normal break-in. I probably ran them six hours a day for two weeks before I felt they were fully developed in their sound.
 
Use caution when listening to monitors in a store. Placement is everything, and no two monitors will be in the same place. In a shop, It’s not unusual to find rows of monitors lined up next to each other and shoved against a wall. Even identical monitors can sound very different in that situation.

I was in one GC recently where they had two shelves of monitors stacked one above the other, with a third, larger shelf overhanging everything. That made for an unavoidable resonant chamber that hurt some of the speakers more than others.
 
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Not a direct comparison, but I have/use the Focal Solo 6BE monitors, and have for probably 5 years. Nothing but good things to say. My old subwoofer just gave up the ghost, so I ordered the matching subwoofer from Sweetwater (Focal Sub 6). None of these are cheap, but they are definitely worth it.
 
My search is over...the shape 65s are wonderful. No issues in my small studio. Smooth, tight and detailed. Comfortable to listen to.

Fantastic, super happy. I tried Adam A7X, Neumann KH120 and Mackie XR 624, HR 624 and HR 824. My previous set was the yamaha HS7.

Cheers!
 
Not a direct comparison, but I have/use the Focal Solo 6BE monitors, and have for probably 5 years. Nothing but good things to say. My old subwoofer just gave up the ghost, so I ordered the matching subwoofer from Sweetwater (Focal Sub 6). None of these are cheap, but they are definitely worth it.
Yes I agree, love my Solos...and I have been thinking about the matching sub as well...i see Sweetwater still has em in stock, you didnt get the last one......!
 
Also just took advantage of a one day sale on another Focal product, the new Elegia closed ear headphones ....awesome and comfy....
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My search is over...the shape 65s are wonderful. No issues in my small studio. Smooth, tight and detailed. Comfortable to listen to.

Fantastic, super happy. I tried Adam A7X, Neumann KH120 and Mackie XR 624, HR 624 and HR 824. My previous set was the yamaha HS7.

Cheers!

I have the kh120 and I’m annoyed they don’t quite bump enough - did you find the 65 better in this respect? Literally between both of them and I knowneither will be perfect in a small space next to a a wall but I need something fun to work on with a client / vocalist in the room.

how do they compare? I have used the kh120 for 1 week now and I’m within return period!
 
I have the kh120 and I’m annoyed they don’t quite bump enough - did you find the 65 better in this respect? Literally between both of them and I knowneither will be perfect in a small space next to a a wall but I need something fun to work on with a client / vocalist in the room.

how do they compare? I have used the kh120 for 1 week now and I’m within return period!

Well I was unable to compare side by side but the 65 obviously has a bigger driver. Another difference is the passive radiator compared to the ported design of the Neumann. So the 65 handles the bass differently for these technical reasons. And it shows in my room. Bass is tight and clear with some small adjustments of the controls at the back.

Very happy with them
 
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