Description
Powerful despite the size, the Focal Sopra No1 speakers combine leading technological innovations including a NIC magnetic circuit, TMD surrounds for the midrange woofer and Infinite Horn Loading of the tweeter. Extremely low distortion gives incredible clarity, high definition and spectacular spatialisation that is typical of bookshelf loudspeakers.
With exceptional texture and smoothness in sound, it provides a solid full sound with an articulated bass. The overall coherence and harmonic richness gives the listener an accurate understanding of the music. Supplied with a special stand designed to expel interfering vibrations from the enclosure towards the floor to avoid any colouration, the steel frame inside the floorstander coupled with the 19mm thick glass base using four adjustable stainless steel spikes, provides very high transmission speeds to guarantee extremely sharp reproduction.
PUSH BACK THE LIMITS OF PRECISION
Innovation at Focal is driven by the delight of sound with harmonic richness, purity and precision in relation to musical work. Efforts are centred on the speaker driver, technology, mechanics and premium materials. Sopra draws on Focal’s technological heritage as seen in the renowned Utopia range to develop new innovations. Engineers optimised magnetic circuits and suspension of transducers pushing back the limits of sound reproduction. Sopra’s midrange provides incredible realism thanks to its new magnetic circuit and TMD suspension.
INNOVATIVE AND SOPHISTICATED DESIGN
In line with all Focal loudspeakers, Sopra is the result of a close collaboration between designers and engineers with a common aim to resolve complex constraints. The Sopra line is destined for sound enthusiasts and the design provides solutions that go far beyond aesthetics and shape. This injected PU component allows for the upper and lower cabinets to be inclined for the “Focus Time”
Substantial efforts were made to give the front a tidy appearance, particularly around the speaker drivers, to ironing out any aspects which could afflict the acoustics or the appearance. The flush cloth frames and the lacquered finishes allow for all sides of the loudspeaker to be the same. The grille with an incremental meshing motif protects the Beryllium tweeter and this motif is repeated for sealing the curved back panel of the middle section. The terminal board, thumb nuts and adjustable spikes have all been specially designed for Sopra, as have the few visible screws, all of which were manufactured by watchmaking experts.
CUTTING EDGE TECHNOLOGY
The precision and detail of audio reproduction depends on the stability of the magnetic field. The Neutral Inductance Circuit (NIC) limits distortion to offer high-definition and an unequalled dynamic to sound. Tuned Mass Damper (TMD) optimises the suspension profile which controls the resonance to drastically reduce distortion and increase the definition of bass and midrange. Finally, the Infinite Horn Loading system (IHL) enables you to load the Beryllium tweeter respecting the compact demand of the speaker. The rear wave of the tweeter is delicately and gradually absorbed to avoid any distortion pushing the treble definition to the maximum.
MASTERING THE CABINET AND MATERIAL CHOICE
Made in France, Sopra’s cabinet was designed in our cabinet-making facility using the same manufacturing process as for Utopia. The 69mm sandwich-machined front panel uses the same principle as ‘Gamma Structure’ to provide inertia and damping. Its density gives it the inertia necessary to provide a stable mechanical reference for optimal definition. The inside of the cabinet has no parallel side panels, and small Helmholtz resonators have been added to the lower section to prevent vertical standing waves. We chose glass as the material for the base of the loudspeaker to provide floor coupling, using spikes, which enabled the fastest propagation time possible, thus eliminating all halo effects in the bass.
