Focal JM Labs Electra 937 Be vs Electra 946


I was looking to buy an Electra 946, based on previous auditions that impressed me favorably to say the least. A local dealer raved that the sonic virtues of the 937 Be far exceed the 946's. Reluctantly, I agreed to purchase a 937 Be.
I have not yet heard these loudspeakers. I find the specs on the 946 to be much impresive.
Have I made a good purchase? Has anyone made a listening comparison of these two speakers and give me their opinion?
128x128drmoles
You shouldn't ask these questions after the purchase. ;)

I think you made the right choice. I know a dealer that went from 926 to 937be and said the improvement was significant. Also, the narrower cabinet of the 937 will improve the imaging over the very-wide 946. I compared my 926 to the 946 directly and the former had more impressive and stable imaging which won me over. I think you will be very happy with your decision unless your room is huge.

Also, I have a lot of experience with the VR4jr and I feel the Electras are head and shoulders above them. The Electras are much more refined and are considerably more resolving. This leads me to my final point: Be warned that the Electras will let you hear your equipment very clearly - if anything upstream has shortcomings, they will be made audible. The VR4jrs won't do that.

I think you made a great choice. I would love a pair of 937Bes myself. Take care, Arthur
Hi Aball: thank you for your response. Your comments, however, raised another concern. I you look at my posted system, you'll see that I own a pair of odyssey mono extremes. Do you think these are too powerful and could damage the 937 Be's? I am not sure about the output power on the extremes but is somewhere between 250-280 wtts.
Not to worry - your ears will blow out before you even get to 150W on the Electras. My only suggestion would be to not wear any ear muffs while listening. :)
I own a pair of 946 Electra's and I have heard the 937 Be's at a local dealer. The complete Electra line are ALL fabulous speakers. I like the 946 because it is a rather large size speaker and gives a large live type sound due to the cabinet size and the dual 10 inch woofers. Later on a local dealer got a set of the 937 Be's in and when I heard them I was expecting them to not be quite as strong in the bass department because they only have 8 inch woofers but I was very surprised that the bass energy was very close to my 946 Electras. The Be tweeter is truly amazing and is very highly rated as being possibly the world's best tweeter. As good as the 946 Electras are, the 937 Be's are still a little smoother sounding and a little better in imaging, transparency, detail, very close to Utopia level. Although they might give up a small bit of bass energy and slam to the 946's, their exceptional midrange and treble performance make up for it. I just wish they would have come out with a 947 Be, that would be my ultimate choice. You made a fine choice with the 937 Be, they are superb speakers, enjoy them.
the 937 Be Electras are exceptional speakers. If I hadn't bought Alto Utopias, I would have been very tempted to choose the 937Be over the Diva Utopias. I think they're a better value and I prefer the more directional drivers. Good choice. You'll be very happy with them.
Hey Guys, thank you all for your kind responses to my questions. I think I might have paid too much for the speakers (7K) but if the sound is as good as you say, I guess, I'll reap the benefits in sound rewards.