Focal Chorus 816V & 826V opinions

I been looking hard at these two speakers online but their aren't many reviews in the cyber world. All the ones I have read on Focal speakers in general are positive though, and I know it's considered a high end line. Wondering if anybody on the forum has either of these or has heard a pair and has insight on the sound, etc. These focals are appealing to me with the front ports for the bass which works with my room setup and the need to be able to place my speakers close to the walls.

 

I recently bought a pair of Focal 816v(s), and I'm very happy with them. I don't have a lot to compare them to because they absolutely slay the old JBLs that I replaced. The Focals pair nicely with my Arcam A19, and I've been enjoying my new set-up for the past few weeks a great deal. In a month or so I'm looking to upgrade my turntable to a Rega RP6 from my older Pro-ject Debut III w/ Ortofon OM20.

But yeah yeah, I'm rambling....the sound of the Focal 816v(s) - nice taught bass and really good stereo imaging. Like I said...sounds really great to me! But I'm coming from a pair of much older speakers that couldn't compete when they were brand new. There aren't a lot of (actually any) Hi-Fi shops in the New Orleans area, so I bit the bullet and bought the speakers from MusicDirect. I'm happy.

Hope this helps.

 

I have previously owned 806V and currently have 714V. Focal along with Dynaudio are probably my favorite speaker lines.

Here's a pretty good deal on that series.

http://www.dedicatedaudio.com/inc/sdetail/2647/38576

 

I own a set of Focal Chorus 816v speakers and I am still very happy with them. After listening to offerings from B&W, Paradigm & Klipsch in the same price point I walked away with the Focal pair. Very good set of speakers for the price point. My speakers are pretty close to the wall due to limited space in the room but I have no complaints with the sound (great soundstage and not overwhelming in the bass).

 

I would think that your required placement might be helped by the Focal front facing port rather than those designs with a rear facing port.

 

I hear nothing but good reviews on these speakers. The one concern I do have though is using them with my Sony 7.1 receiver. It is rated at 110wpc for 2 channel stereo. Some of the reviews online stated that you really need a tube amp or high end integrated to do these speakers justice---or at least the 826v(the one I read reviews on). If I pull the trigger, I would hope that the sony will be sufficient. Not ready to fork out big money on a high end amp yet.

 

If your Sony receiver has audio pre-outs, then think of a phased upgrade path - get the Focals, see how they work with your Sony, then get a good external amp later when you have more money to add more 'oomph'.

There is no 'end state' in this hobby!

 

Looking to revive this thread. I'm looking at a pair of Focal Chorus 816's and wondering if everyone is still enjoying them? I've got a Marantz PM6005 amp, 45wpc, and wondering if that would be a good match? I can always upgrade the amp, but I want to nab these speakers as the price is great as they are being liquidated. Would appreciate any feedback.

 

I have a pair of 826Vs. I own and have listened to them through:

1. CJ PV-12 > Aragon 4004
2. Exposure 2010s
3. Marantz 2238b

They sound good, but they sound different in each case. They truly allow you to differentiate what is driving them.

The combo that works best for my ears is with the 2238b! I love how they sound, especially with vinyl. YMMV.

(I'm using Kef 104.2s with the CJ/Aragon combo - midrange heaven. The Exposure is retired for the winter now.)

Synergy is everything.

 

I'm just concerned that the PM6005 won't be enough to power them. I've read that the amp should always be more powerful than the speakers, is this true?

I can get a new pair for $1300, and the reviews I've read are stellar.

 

The Marantz 2238b is 38 watts. The volume knob is off at 7 o'clock and I never turn it past 10 o'clock.

Your PM6005 is 45 watts, yes? How loud do you plan to listen?

 

Yes 45 watts into 8 ohm's. I don't think I've ever gone past 7, but I'm in a condo now and will be moving into our new home next year, so I won't be as limited.

Today I listened to b&w CM6 and the 683 s2's, I was really impressed with the CM6's. Then I got home from work and did some online research and came across the Focals and the liquidation sale. I'm going to hear them tomorrow, I just need to know if I'm being realistic about my amp.

 

Do you plan to play your Marantz with the volume fully cranked?

 

I have owned the 816's for a couple of years now and am very pleased with their performance, use a parasound A23 to power them.

 

No, I really don't enjoy listening to music that loud.

 

Most of the reviews from owners are very very good. So the whole metal tweeter thing didn't turn you off then? Was it a concern when you were shopping for new speakers?

Out of curiosity, what other speakers did you audition?

 

Then you don't have to worry about a power matchup between your amp and the speakers.

When you go to hear them can you possibly bring your amp?

 

Yes I'm going to bring my amp, even though the salesman told me they have my model in stock, I'm going to bring mine to audition. Thanks for the feedback, I'm looking forward to hearing these tomorrow. They look really nice and well built.

 

Good that you're bringing your amp. Pay attention to the high frequencies. When I hook up the 826Vs to the Exposure 2010s it's a treble fest and I don't care for it. They're great speakers but synergy is everything. Good luck!

 

wimp.

 

I have been looking at these for a while, seems like Music Direct carries these? Question for those that have them - do you feel they need a subwoofer to get decent bass response? Do they crank out bass comparable to the old school 15" woofer floorstanders?

 

In all the material I've read online about these, it seemed split from owners that claim you don't need one, and others that claim they do. From what I read it depends on what you are using these speakers for. Those that used them for just music claim they were impressed with the bass response and didn't feel the need for a subwoofer, those that had them set up as part of their HT config, claimed they needed one. Probably due to the sound from movies and TV.

At the moment I'm really torn, and I have been dreading this whole process of buying speakers. I'm usually very good at picking out other items, but when it comes to speakers I'm clueless. I'll go into a store and listen to certain models that others claim are fantastic and I end up not liking them.

Also I'm really torn between floor standing speakers and bookshelf speakers. Yesterday when I heard the B&W CM6's, I was very impressed. I loved the sound, crisp, detailed, not muddy or too bassy. I also loved how the tweeter was placed on top, outside of the speaker box. When comparing them to the floor standing 684's, I thought they were much much better. So this kind of took me by surprise actually, I had to say that I much preferred the sound of the bookshelf on stand speakers to the floor standing 684's. I know that might change upon hearing other floor standing model's, I guess we'll see tomorrow when I visit the store.

 

Thank you. It's a bit of a pain to unhook everything and lug my amp there, but I really feel it's the best way to go about this. I need to hear what the combination will sound like. It's impossible to recreate my home listening experience, but at least I can do what I can, and bringing the amp is a big part of it.

To be honest I don't think I'm as refined as others in terms of being able to say what makes a good speaker. I'll go into various stores and listen and I'll stand there and say ok I guess that's good. While others can ramble on about all these specifics and it really goes over my head. I'll say the CM6's really impressed me, they sounded right to me. When the sales guy was playing Clapton unplugged it was beautiful. Then he put on Motley Crue album from 1994 and I was still impressed with how they handled that heavy music, but the Clapton disc impressed me more.

 

let us know how it goes with the focal audition. Even though I never did buy a pair of Focals, I'm still curious to see others opinions.

 

Will do, I'll report back tomorrow. The salesman at the store told me they don't sell a lot of Focals, he told me for this region they are not as well known. He said it's too bad as they are a great speaker, so I'm game, why not? I do like the build quality, the fact that they don't out source the components from other suppliers, everything in the speaker is made by them.