Press review Focal XS
© HOME THEATRE HIGH FIDELITY -2009-01
Introduction to the Focal XS 2.1 iPod Dock
The past seven years has seen rapid proliferation of the iPod dock market. Unfortunately, while many of the products have succeeded in following the Apple aesthetic, rarely is there substance behind the flash. Is the entry by Focal merely more eye candy or is there something more compelling? The XS 2.1 distinguishes itself by offering something beyond your typical iPod speaker dock.
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The Design of the Focal XS 2.1 iPod Dock
Gerard Chretien, the general manager at Focal, took some time with me to discuss his approach to design and the development. The XS 2.1 has its roots in the Solo 6 Be powered studio monitors. The Solos have garnered quite a reputation in the pro-audio field, notably with mastering engineer Dave Kutch who has worked with artists Natasha Bedingfield, Erykah Badu and Alicia Keys to name a few. During the development of the Solos Gerard was approached by one of the engineers on the project for a set of critical ears. While Gerard never indicated to me why he connected the Solos to his iMac in the first place, ultimately that was how he tested the Solos.
During this time Gerard realized what many of us have; the computer can provide a good delivery mechanism for both music and video. A question naturally arose following up his listening experience with the Solos and his iMac, “Why can’t multimedia speakers sound this good?” This lead to Gerard issuing a challenge to his team, design a multimedia speaker that replicated the sound of the Solos, but at a multimedia speaker price point. Note the challenge was to design multimedia speakers, and not an iPod dock. The dock was originally included to facilitate charging and simplify setup, as opposed to being an integral part of the overall design.
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Set Up of the Focal XS 2.1 iPod Dock
Setting up the Focal XS 2.1 is rather straightforward. The woofer module houses the speaker and power connections with the inputs present on the dock base. The left channel speaker connects to the woofer model using a standard RCA plug. The plug is integrated directly into the speaker module and is not user-replaceable. The satellite itself is not powered, and the RCA connection is used to deliver a standard speaker level signal as opposed to a line level signal. The right channel and dock are connected using an 8-in DIN connector.
As might be expected with a proprietary connection, this is not user replaceable. Speaking with Gerard, this represented a tradeoff between configurability and cost. The addition of removable cords and connectors would have resulted in increased cost, with little real benefit over the cables used by Focal. Power is supplied to the woofer module using an ungrounded, detachable IEC power cable. The only adjustments on the woofer module are for line voltage, and a knob labeled woofer gain. It is labeled gain, but the knob controls the crossover point for a shelf EQ. The EQ controls the level of bass sent to the satellites with an EQ slope of 12db/octave. The optimal EQ setting depends upon the amount of room loading available to the woofer module.
The Sound of the Focal XS 2.1 iPod Dock
While the primary input on the XS is intended to be a digital USB signal, the presence of the dock lends itself to standalone operation as well. I spent time listening to both the iPod input and USB input on the XS. The mp3s I used for playback were encoded at a minimum bitrate of 192 kbps with a variable bitrate. With my encoding settings, the average bitrate for most of my files exceeds 220 kbps. I tested the system with both CDs, and mp3s to see if the XS could reveal slight differences between the two.
Right out of the box, the XS was quite bright and actually bordered on being a bit harsh in the highs. Burning in the speakers for a couple days made drastic improvements to the overall presentation from the speakers. The speakers maintained a sharp image, while presenting a very smooth sound.
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Conclusions about the Focal XS 2.1 iPod Dock
The iPod dock market is certainly filled with a multitude of products, which by-and-large are aesthetically differentiated. Focal comes to this niche with a product that not only meets the aesthetic requirements typically associated with the market, but also class leading audio performance. It might be more fair to say the XS establishes a new class of performance for multimedia speakers in general. The sub/sats are exceptionally well integrated, and deliver a pure sound that aims to stay as true to the source as possible.
© TONEAUDIO -2008-10 - N°18
Focal's XS
The King of desktop Sound
I like huge speakers, racks full of beefy amplifiers and audio cables thick enough to be gold plated and worn around the neck of a hip-hop star. But not all of us have room for that sort of thing and instead wind up with space-challenged HiFi systems, most of wich have a major problem: they sound dreadful.
JM Labs/Focal stirs up visions of their giant Utopia speakers. By the time most of you read this, I'll be beating back the crowd at the Rocky Mountain Audio Fest to hear Focal's latest flagship speaker, wich is going to run about $180,000. Yet the smaller XS you see here is just as exciting. It takes a company with this kind of manufacturing depth and experience - not to mention their expertise at making drivers for automotive use that regulary win sound-off competitions around the world - to extract this much sound from such small containers. (...)
With the new XS, the engineers at Focal took this concept up to the next step. XS has a slighty smaller woofer (6-inch), wich is claimed to go down to 39Hz and a pair of two-way satellites that incorporate a 3-inch paper-coned midrange and a three-quarter-inch dome tweeter. All housed in stylish enclosures that would look right at home on top of your desktop along-side a computer monitor.
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© ILOUNGE - 2008-10
Focal JMlab Focal XS 2.1-Channel Multimedia + iPod System
As economic conditions remain bleak, $600 iPod speaker systems may well become even rarer than they already are: though companies have made a number of attempts to reach above the $300 mark, and then, above the $400 and $500 marks, a certain trend has repeated itself over and over again with such accessories -- they rarely deliver enough of an advantage over lower-priced alternatives to justify a premium. Geneva Lab's Model L and XL speakers were once exceptions, as was Bowers & Wilkins' Zeppelin, and now French high-end speaker maker Focal JMlab is taking a stab as well.
The Focal XS system ($599) is different from its predecessors in one major regard: it’s designed not as a standalone audio system, but rather as a three-piece audio system that bridges the audio gap between an iPod and an iMac. It was specifically designed to complement the look of the 2007/2008 aluminum iMac, giving you two silver aluminum-suspended black satellite speakers that can be placed on a desk next to a computer monitor, and a large standalone subwoofer unit made from matte and glossy black plastics, accented in front by a silver plastic rim. From the front, each component is mostly black with at least a little silver, a visual balance that is consistent with Apple’s most recent design cues; the satellites each have fabric grilles and glossy plastic bases....
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© PLAYBACKMAG.NET -2008-10
Joie De Vivre Spoken Here - Focal XS 2.1-Channel Multimedia Sound System
For those unfamiliar with the brand, Focal is a wolrd-class French loudspeaker manufacturer wohse products range in scope frome the $t99 XS desktop sound system, wich is the subject of this review, on uo to the mighty Grande Utopia EN floorstanders, wich sell for a mind-bending $180K/pair. But when a manufacturer thqt knows to make great cost-no-object comonent focuses its attention on entry-level products, consumers often benefit from the firm's all around know-how and high-end technology trickle-down. This certainly seems to be the case with Focal's cleverly conceived and brilliantly executed XS 2.1-channel multimedia sound system, wich sounds better than any $599 rig I've yet heard.
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