I know that I’m probably advertising the OGY speakers unintentionally. I won’t mention them in this thread anymore.
The reason I’m not a fan about Focal is because they are a huge international brand like B&W. So you don’t get that exclusivity you typically see from smaller boutique manufacturers. Moreover, the branding of Focal products is also reflected in the price. I have no doubt that medium/high end Focal models are built in France. There are factory tours on the web. I’m just hesitant about lower-end Focal models. To further my point, high-end Focal speakers seem to be using unique flax composite drivers. Low-end Focal speakers seem to be using paper cones. I’m just speculating that the paper cones are built overseas. I could be wrong. But I digress.
Moreover, France is a Hi-Fi paradise. Hundreds of tiny manufacturers are building innovative and unique products which get no attention from the English-speaking world. It’s just silly that brands like Tekton and OJAS are more well-known than Apertura and Davis Acoustics. America is the centre of the universe, so it’s understandable. Anyways, Focal doesn’t feel as exotic or French to me because of its big brand status. Even luxury cars are equipped with Focal. Call me a hipster, I don’t care.
At the same time people want to see popular products in shootouts, for comparison sake. So Focal, Buchardt, Sonus Faber, KEF, B&W are your usual suspects.
In retrospect, including an obscure boutique brand which sells a few dozen speakers every year in a shootout is futile.
