Studio Focus Audio FS-68

1 REPRINTED FROM JUNE 2004 Studio Focus Audio FS-68 . Closefield Loudspeaker I do a great deal of recording and mixing for BY RICHARD KING. multichannel, and for SACD in particular, n the search for the perfect bookshelf I. so I have been looking around for a set of loudspeaker (an oxymoron in itself!), I. five matched monitors to place in my living have come across many models that room for accurate playback. Having full- have been very satisfactory for pop lis- range monitors in the front left and right, tening, but entirely inappropriate for classi- and smaller speakers in the center and the cal program.

2 Musical content with strings rear has been widely accepted by consumers come back sounding lean, glassy or too for watching movies or sporting events. bright, and classical vocals are sometimes This configuration, however, does not do so much in your face that they seem too loud justice to music mixes with substantial full- at any listening level! range Audio coming from the surround Conversely, I have become attached to channels, especially high-resolution pro- certain speakers that work very well for gram material. classical music and jazz, but yet when I play In addition, I do not believe that the sub- any pop music, the monitors sound too slow woofer should be responsible for reproduc- in the bass and the mids tend to be recessed.

3 Ing the low end of the surround channels, or the front channels for that matter. Even with a set of five small-sized monitors I set the Fast Facts bass management so that only the actual soft dome tweeter in a 13 inches (H) by 7. inches (W) by 1 inch (D) cabinet, weighing Applications: LFE channel gets routed to the sub, and not in at 20 pounds. Frequency response is list- Studio , post production a mix of low-frequency information from ed as 45 Hz - 22 kHz, 3 dB, and sensitiv- the other channels. Since full-size rear Features: ity is rated at 85 dB at 1 watt/1 meter.

4 Two-way; Nomex/Kevlar speakers would pretty much block the use of Impedance is 8 ohms, recommended power Hexacone woofer; 1 1/8-inch soft my front door, I had to investigate the book- is 20 - 200 watts. The custom-designed dome tweeter; optional furniture- shelf option. Is there truly a closefield out crossover sits at kHz. The particular set grade finishes there that is optimized for all types of music I have been auditioning has a Piano Walnut Price: program? Well, I think the Focus Audio FS- finish, but it is also available in Burr Oak $2,150 per pair 68 deserves a listen.

5 And black. Contact: FEATURES The tweeter is a 1 1/8-inch ferrofluid Focus Audio at 905-415-8773, The Focus Audio FS-68 ($2,150 per soft dome design with nonresonant cham- pair) comprises a 5 1/2-inch driver and a ber damping made by Scanspeak of Copyright 2004 JRS Publishing, Inc. Reprinted with permission. To start your own FREE subscription to Pro Audio Review, just click the link below and complete the appllication. Denmark. Unlike the FS-688, the FS-68 IIs, which were placed directly onto a hard- On the Bench: has an offset tweeter, mirror-imaged on wood floor.

6 The speakers are adhered to the Focus Audio FS-68 . each pair. This feature comes in handy for stands using Blue Tack, as recommended by Figure 1 shows the free-field frequency placing the speaker on its side on the meter the stand company. Amplifiers used during response of the Focus Audio FS-68 , measured bridge of a mixing desk - less high-fre- auditioning were Chord SPA 1232 DA, with the microphone midway between the quency diffraction off the edges of the con- Bryston 3B, and a Sony ES Series multi- woofer and tweeter, 1 meter away, and 1/3- sole surface.

7 I actually listened with the channel receiver. The monitors performed octave smoothed. The response is very wide cabinets sitting upright, both in the Studio very well on all three amps. It is refreshing range for such a small speaker: 3 dB from 45. Hz to 20 kHz. That deep low-frequency and at home. This has to be one of the to come across a speaker that isn't too fussy response is aided by a well-damped port reso- smoothest tweeters out there; it produces about power requirements. Subjectively, the nance centered around 70 Hz. accurate top end on orchestral recordings Chord amp was the best to my ears.

8 The without sounding aggressive film scores, Bryston was an honest, accurate and pleas- symphonic pieces, and large ensemble jazz ing sound generally quite workable. The recordings with strings. At the same time, Chord, however, was exceptional. Greater it plays back pop high-end with great clar- resolution, slightly more high-frequency ity and resolution. extension (12 kHz and up) and more core to The low/mid component is a Nomex/ the sound were the net results of switching Kevlar Hexacone driver with polymer voic- amps. I also listened in surround using two ing coating.

9 It is a custom design, manufac- Chord 1232 amps for the front and back tured for Focus Audio by Eton (Germany). pairs, and one Chord 1424 mono amp for The cabinet has a rear port and really goes Not shown is the frequency response at 30. the center speaker. This combination was degrees off-axis. It matches the on-axis down to 45 Hz. There is impressive bass outstanding for both LCR and front-to-back response within 2 dB up to 10 kHz, which is response from such a small enclosure the imaging. I also added a Genelec 1092 sub- excellent performance.

10 Speakers sound much larger than a book- woofer for full playback that was fun! shelf set. I compared them to my old unport- I tried my Sony amp at home and I was very ed closefield speakers (which shall remain surprised at 100 watts per five channels, it nameless) and it was no contest! The FS 68s actually sounded all right lots of sparkle sound very full at first I was running with- and definition at both loud and soft listening out a subwoofer, and I was really enjoying levels (I expected much lower fidelity after it. I do not think a sub is needed for stereo the Chord lineup at the Studio ).