John Darko
After ten years of active service, Focal has this week upgraded its Aria 900 series of loudspeakers to Aria Evo X status. That means five new models – a standmount and three floorstanders (and a centre channel) – each sharing the French company’s magnesium-aluminiiun inverted dome tweeter and waveguide.
Focal claims that its tweeter can reach as high as 30kHz (and those raising the issue that humans cannot hear above 20kHz should look into if/how out-of-band signals can influence what we hear:
Let’s break down the new models:
The No. 1 standmount is a two-way design where the M-shaped tweeter is paired with a 16.5cm mid/bass driver.
The No. 2 floorstander marries that tweeter to a pair of 16cm bass drivers and 16.5cm midrange driver for a three-way design.
The No. 3 then adds a third 16cm bass driver to the mix for a floorstander whose driver count reaches five.
The No. 4 puts the same driver array as the No. 2 in a much larger floorstanding cabinet.
All Aria Exo X models (centre channel excepted) are front ported and all midrange and bass drivers are made from “signature flax cone” material. Focal has also reportedly bolstered the performance of the bass drivers over and above the Aria 900 series and has fitted a “Tuned Mass Damper” to the Aria Evo X’s midrange drivers to further reduce distortion.
Pricing comes in as follows:
Aria Evo X No.1: US$2398/pair
Aria Evo X No.2: US$4798/pair
Aria Evo X No.3: US$5198/pair
Aria Evo X No.4: US$5998/pair
Aria Evo X Center: US$999
Your choice of high gloss Black, Prime Walnut or a new high gloss Moss Green. Shipping begins in February 2024.
Further information: Focal
