Francois Aubin

I have both the Focals Aria 948 and the new Cornwall IV at this time in my living room. Just bought the Cornwall’s and wanted to compare them with my Focals before selling them. The Cornwall’s have a big sound, huge soundstage, with a clear emphasis in the midrange (vocals are amazing) but not imaging champs. They are also very sensitive to placement. The Focal’s on the other end have a more beautiful sound. They are much more well balanced speakers. They produce a beautiful transparent sound, with much more precise details than the Cornwall’s, with layers and a sense of deepness that is quite addictive. They have less soundstage than the Cornwalls but they can achieve pinpoint imaging. With all these qualities, one might ask « then why did you go for the Cornwalls ? ». Well, although the Focals have a more beautifull refined and balanced sound, the Cornwalls have a way to make me forget about the speakers and just wanting to listen to more and more music! They barely have 20 hrs of listening time, so they will certainly evolve with time... I use a Leben CS600 Tube amp with MHDT Orchid dac. Hope this helps.