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Focal Speakers The Spirit of Sound

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  #11  
Old 08-26-2018, 12:59 AM
Down Under Down Under is offline
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I don’t own either speaker but have heard both.Both like plenty of current to perform at their best.
The 802 D3 is a lot of speaker for the money.I was never a fan of B &W,but this speaker changed my mind quickly.
Good luck with your search.
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  #12  
Old 08-26-2018, 08:39 AM
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I helped a friend dial in his Sopra No. 3’s with McIntosh C2300 and MC 452 which is similar to MC 352. It sounds just fantastic m, more than enough power and really controls the bass very well.
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  #13  
Old 08-26-2018, 02:16 PM
JBT JBT is offline
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For around the same price if you can try and audition the T3s. Amazing sounding speakers!


https://www.stereophile.com/content/...t3-loudspeaker
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  #14  
Old 08-27-2018, 11:53 AM
mintakaX mintakaX is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by JBT View Post
For around the same price if you can try and audition the T3s. Amazing sounding speakers!


https://www.stereophile.com/content/...t3-loudspeaker
I'll check them out, thanks ! Would be a BIG savings over Sopra N3 or 802 d3 !
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  #15  
Old 08-27-2018, 12:24 PM
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I have enjoyed a pair of Sopra No2's driven by an MC452, in a 24x26' room. The Sopra's are really efficient (91 db) and for me, when I'm really "cranking it", the needles on my amplifier dance around the 4.5 watt level.
Depending on how large your room is, and how loud you like to drive your Sopra's, I suspect an MC275 might be sufficient.
I have found that Sopra's need a "warm" sounding amp to sound their best, so the MC275 should be a great match.
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  #16  
Old 08-28-2018, 02:24 PM
jakegt3 jakegt3 is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by mintakaX View Post
I have a few questions but the inability to post a new thread until I'm fully approved is really quite barbaric ! At any rate, I am allowed to comment so here goes:

I'm on an upgrade path to a 2 decade old system. I just upgraded my tube pre to a Moon 740P and was very happy with the results. The rest of my system is : Bluesound node 2 (soon to be Lumin 2), Esoteric DV-50s (don't use much), MC 352 amp and B&W 802 Nautilus speakers (circa 1999). My next purchase is going to be new speakers. My budget is $20K + or - . So, I'm in the range of Focal Sopra No. 3s or B&W 802 3ds, neither of which I've been able to audition yet. Will I be able to drive the Sopra No. 3s with the MC 352 ? I was hoping to use it until its last breath but don't want to drop $20K on speakers I can't appropriately drive. If its a toss up between the B&Ws or Sopras, I'll go Sopras because they are quite attractive.
I have the Sopra 3's and drive them with the ARC Reference 150 (150W/channel). It works wonderfully in a 24x14 foot room but I would not skimp on power. The Sopra's can project a big, wide, deep soundstage with a lot of weight behind it and that takes power.

I chose the Sopra 3's over the 802D3 because I thought it was a more musical, emotionally engaging speaker, at least for classical music which is what I listen to 90% of the time. I would characterize the B&W's as more clinical and cooler sounding but with outstanding bass response. To my ears the Sopra 3's sounded more coherent and transparent, with superior soundstaging.
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  #17  
Old 08-29-2018, 06:00 PM
mintakaX mintakaX is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by jakegt3 View Post
I have the Sopra 3's and drive them with the ARC Reference 150 (150W/channel). It works wonderfully in a 24x14 foot room but I would not skimp on power. The Sopra's can project a big, wide, deep soundstage with a lot of weight behind it and that takes power.

I chose the Sopra 3's over the 802D3 because I thought it was a more musical, emotionally engaging speaker, at least for classical music which is what I listen to 90% of the time. I would characterize the B&W's as more clinical and cooler sounding but with outstanding bass response. To my ears the Sopra 3's sounded more coherent and transparent, with superior soundstaging.
I generally prefer warmer myself. How sensitive are Sopras to room placement ? Thats my big concern because I have no wiggle room .
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  #18  
Old 08-29-2018, 08:31 PM
jakegt3 jakegt3 is offline
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I generally prefer warmer myself. How sensitive are Sopras to room placement ? Thats my big concern because I have no wiggle room .
I was in the same boat--little wiggle room for the Sopra 3's. However, I was able to get the sound dialed in by playing with toe in (aimed directly at the listening position worked best for me) and front/back adjustment of the spiked feet to get the tweeter aimed exactly at the listener. I have the speakers about 8 feet apart and 9-1/2 feet from the listening position, not quite ideal but that's what I was constrained to work with. They are about 2-1/2 feet from the rear wall and about 3 feet from the side walls. I have heavy sound treatment on the side walls to kill unwanted wall reflections. All my audiophile friends remark that the imaging and depth is unlike anything they have ever heard.
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  #19  
Old 08-29-2018, 11:45 PM
mintakaX mintakaX is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by jakegt3 View Post
I was in the same boat--little wiggle room for the Sopra 3's. However, I was able to get the sound dialed in by playing with toe in (aimed directly at the listening position worked best for me) and front/back adjustment of the spiked feet to get the tweeter aimed exactly at the listener. I have the speakers about 8 feet apart and 9-1/2 feet from the listening position, not quite ideal but that's what I was constrained to work with. They are about 2-1/2 feet from the rear wall and about 3 feet from the side walls. I have heavy sound treatment on the side walls to kill unwanted wall reflections. All my audiophile friends remark that the imaging and depth is unlike anything they have ever heard.
I have lots of side wall clearance, but only 1 foot from back walls, unless I gradually sneak them forward so my wife doesn't notice
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  #20  
Old 08-30-2018, 08:19 AM
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mcpaf76 mcpaf76 is offline
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Originally Posted by mintakaX View Post
I have lots of side wall clearance, but only 1 foot from back walls, unless I gradually sneak them forward so my wife doesn't notice
See if you can get away with it, mine are positioned very similar to jakegt3's. They really open up and the Soundstage depth and layering increases further from the back walls.
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