Focal 826W and Dynaudio Focus 140

@ Maxboy 00

Regarding the Arcam amps, I think Arcam amps sound a bit polite & lean for my taste. My local Totem dealer who happened to carry Focal, Totem, and Arcam said the same thing.

If you are already happy with Focal/JMLab, go up a notch to the Electra or Utopia line as suggested by the other Agoners.

Dynaudio is a pretty popular brand. Thus their monitors have been sold and resold several times. If you budget allows buy them new. If you don't like them, you can always resell them.

Again thanks for the feed back!

I will certainly check out both the 52SE and Contour S 1.4's, I have seen them both listed here before and agree they seem to be priced better.

Also with the Dynaudio being rated at 4 ohms and my Focals rated at 8 ohms, I and can see there is a mismash in impedance and they probably won't provide greater depth in overall sound.

As far as second amp, any thought on the Arcam A38, as compared to the Bryston B100 SST, aside from the cost difference of the Bryston. The Arcam is more in my budget and seveal AV stores in my area have it.

I would make one final suggestion to you. If you are thinking of setting up another 2.1 system I would consider the Audience 52SE or the Contour S1.4's instead of the Focus. The 52SE use higher end drivers found on the Contour line and can be found used for a very reasonable price right now. The Focus line is a great speaker, but for the money the Contour line would be an upgrade (with a sub) in driver quality over what you have. I think the Focus lineup is on par or slightly less so than the 800 series Focals.

i wouldn't do it either, not so much because of concenrn for overstressing my amp than because adding more speakers, esp. ones with mismatched drivers, just won't sound better. the instinctive way we hear music is in two channel, front firing--hence at a concert we fact the amps and musicians face us. now i personally think the focals, esp. as augmented with a sub, are very fine speakers; as nhtly suggests, if you want significantly better, i'd upgrade to the utopias, or soemthing equivalent.

Thanks, for all the responses.

I'm very happy with my Focals, they sounded better any other speaker I auditioned in that price band. My only goal is I wanted to know if I could expand the range of sound by adding an additional pair of speakers, using a two channel amp (I perfer a 2 channel to AV proccessor.) From this feedback, I can see nothing of value will be obtained. My wife will be glad to hear that.

I'm interested in the Dynaudio from reading the glowing reviews and thought they would be a good choice as a second pair. I may still get them and set-up a secondary system someday, but will be content to enjoy what I have now.

This feedback has been very helpful and I thank you.

My first question is what are you trying to accomplish by adding two monitors to your system? Do you feel it is lacking in some way, or are you just trying to get a better sound? Focal make some fantastic speakers, with drivers that are second to none. But like everything else, it comes down to preference as much as anything with their sonic properties. I like Focal as much as I do Dynaudio, even though I exclusively own Dynaudio speakers. If given a choice and a limitless budget, I would go with Focal Utopias over Dynaudio's Evidence Masters from both a sound and aesthetic perspective (I have heard both, simply amazing!).

As far as overworking your amp, it is possible. Tpreaves is right, only your amp manufacturer can accurately answer that question. I will say that Dynaudios are notoriously power hungry and will make an amp work hard trying to power their 4 ohm load. Focal bookshelf speakers are slightly more efficient, so you might want to consider using the 806 0r 807 instead of the Dyn 140 if amp load is a primary concern.

Have you considered upgrading your 826? If you are looking for a fuller sound you might consider the Focal Electra's especially the 1027BE's (if you can afford them, they are pricey).

The total impedance will drop when running 2 pair of speakers. Do you know if your amp has an over-current protection circuit? If there is no over-current protection I would NOT do it. The Dyns are 4ohm. If the Focals are 4ohm that would be a 2 ohm load to the amp. Years ago I had a Denon pma700 that I would drive 6ohm and 8ohm speakers together and at loud listening levels the Denon would shut down. Normal levels were fine.

Just my experience.

Is their any benifits to use a four speakers' w/a 2 channel amp?

This is purely a subjective matter.You are the only one that can answer this.What someone else hears is what they hear,and you may have a totally different perspective.

Lastly do I risk working the amp too much w/the additiona; load?

The manufacturer can answer this question better than anyone else can.