Utopia Beryllium

the Spirit of Sound
Focal is a trademark of Focal-JMlab - www.focal-fr.com BP 374 - 108, rue de lAvenir - 42353 La Talaudire cedex - France - Tl. 700 - Fax 704
Focal-JMlab 2004 - SC/AB 040914/1 - PC1021 - R5418 - Studio 36 pictures - Saint-Etienne Due to the continual evolution of its products, Focal may change the technical specifications for these products without notice. Items may vary from those shown in the photographs. Focal, Utopia, Utopia Be, Beryllium Tweeter, TBe Tweeter, Sandwich W, Multiferrite, Crossblock are trademarks of Focal-JMlab

Beryllium to win

Back in September 2002, Focal Home department launched the benchmark Grande Utopia Be, instantly getting worldwide attention. For the first time, pure Beryllium dome technology appeared in a Focal product. Trade publications immediately relayed the event and recognized the Grande Utopia Be quickly as the best loudspeaker in the world, underlining the amazing performance of the state-of-the-art tweeter. Today, December 2004 marks the first introduction of Beryllium in automobile sound systems with the Utopia Be line. More radical, technological and exclusive than ever, the Utopia Be line represents, first of all, an extraordinary human and technological adventure. Our primary goal was to reach sound perfection without restraint or limitation. The pure Beryllium tweeter is the Utopia Be cornerstone. Its performance is such that we had to completely redesign our woofers and subwoofers in order to optimize their integration. We worked from the source and developed new standard-setting drivers, in the spirit of a non-compromising purist research. That approach comes from our passion for utmost quality and our stubbornness in always pushing the limits in spite of technical obstacles encountered. Our main asset in this endeavour is our total control of the manufacturing process, from concept through the different development stages, in our own facilities. Without this comprehensive mastery of the whole process, our achievements would have simply been impossible to realize. Beryllium sets a new standard in the industry in terms of performance and musicality.
We are convinced that there will be a before and after Utopia Be in the history of high-end sound systems on board of automobiles. Share your passion at www.focal-fr.com
Guy Bonneville, Car Division Director
1982 saw the first Focal inverted dome. A daring design based on a relevant analysis on domes behavior: better mechanical coupling, increased efficiency, better control of directivity, more extended frequency response. Twenty years later, this signature has become the symbol of our technological expertise and of our innovation spirit. Since the original glass fiber type, several generations of inverted dome tweeters have followed one another until we reach their ultimate limit in the titanium technology development with the Tioxid 5 tweeter. So, how to improve on the best from there? Thanks to pure Beryllium, the inverted dome tweeter has just made a new and possibly its most extraordinary step in its relentless development.
This exceptional material has been well known for a long time as its characteristics reach perfection. Focal has been the first and the only constructor to have introduce the pure Beryllium foil, and this despite all the difficulties to manufacture. The Beryllium cost is about 100 times that of titanium and it is well over the cost of gold. Almost more importantly its very special physical properties make it extremely difficult to work with. To address that daunting challenge and make our dream come true we had to invent a completely new patented manufacturing process. Beryllium is 7 times stiffer than titanium and aluminum: it is the only metal to scratch glass. It also exhibits high inner damping characteristics, similar to what is encountered in a silk dome. That com-
bined with its extreme lightness makes it a dream material for tweeter dome. These great properties assembled in a single material result in a frequency range covering 5 octaves, from 1.2kHz to 40kHz, thus making any additional super tweeter a thing of the past. The use of a single drive unit to transcribe the upper frequencies range is allowed by a nearly perfect impulse and an unconditional respect of the phase. That in turn conduces to a degree of coherency never obtained by any other technology until now. After your first listening of a pure TBe Beryllium tweeter, there wont be no going back to anything else. Its transparency, its definition, its softness and its energy are so ahead of all you have been listening to until now that is is addictive.

Beryllium Technology

When only the best will do

Aluminum

Lightness (m3.kg-1)

Titanium

Beryllium

Velocity (ms-1)

Rigidity (N.mm)
Waterfall response: linearity from 1.2kHz to 40kHz, fast acoustical decay without resonance characterize the highly efficient Beryllium tweeter. Comparison of Beryllium with Titanium and Aluminum. Beryllium is the lightest, stiffest and has the highest velocity of sound.

TBe tweeter

Over the limit
Coming from the Grande Utopia Be speaker, the tweeter with pure Beryllium inverted dome has been completely redesigned for the specific automobile environment. A new optimization of the magnetic motor, after several simulations, measures and listening sessions, has allowed to considerably reduce the overall size of the Neodymium magnet assembly. We now use the most powerful version of this material and the most capable at handling heat without losing its magnetic force. A tweeter can reach a very high temperature in a short period of time, at which point demagnetization might occur of the standard grade Neodymium magnet. Thanks to the use of a 6 Ohm aluminum former voice coil, as well a powerful motor and the exceptional light weight of
l The TBe tweeter is designed for flush mounting. Its mounting flange, made of thick cast zinc alloy, has been drawn to offer the best performance. Otherwise, the TBe can also be installed as surface mount, with its separate cast alloy movable interface.
the Beryllium dome, this tweeter needs little electrical energy to produce a high sound level, meaning less current is needed and less heat is created. We went clearly as far as possible to stay on the safe side of the overall equation. That was yet not good enough. Thanks to the right alignment of the tweeter parameters, we have succeeded in getting an ideal, natural acoustical damping, without resorting to the use of Ferrofluid in the gap, thus further reducing distortion and increasing definition. It is the approach you will find throughout the whole Utopia Be line: to find or to invent the right solutions from the start, and consequently to avoid the recourse to technical tricks and fixes, which only result in poorer sound quality. The lack of phase plug on the tweeter is a clear example of our thought process: we ma-
naged, by careful and extensive research to come with up with the right combination of dome profile and suspension design to produce a very linear response curve and a very harmonious distribution pattern, thus eliminating the phase plug traditionally used in hard dome tweeters, and its detrimental effects. The pursuit of perfection doesnt seat well with compromise.
The frequency response covers the huge range of 5 octaves from 1.2kHz to 40kHz. This incredible performance allows to do away with any need for a super-tweeter. The impulse response shows clearly the outstanding characteristics of the Utopia Beryllium tweeter: fast response, short well controlled acoustic decay. In itself this demonstrates the qualities of stiffness, lightness and acoustic damping of the Focal Beryllium dome, unmatched by any other dome.

l Structure of the Utopia Beryllium tweeter.

W cone

The manufacturing of composite sandwich cones has been a Focal tradition for nearly 20 years now. It kept on going over generations of improvements, the latest and most impressive being the W composite structure used on the Utopia range. This leading innovation has had some considerable impact in sound quality car audio competition where it helped establish Focal as the most highly respected contender. At the core of the W sandwich is a foam structure whose mechanical properties are exceptional, and a well guarded secret. Both sides of that core are laminated with a thin sheet of glass fabric. The bonding of the outer layers to the core is obtained by full polymerization. This is what gives the W membrane all its integrity and it incredible stiffness: about 20 times that of other competitive membranes at equal mass, while still offering unmatched acoustical damping.
The W cone has been a well known innovation,
The unique concept and manufacturing of our Focal cones is where Focal superior sound comes from. Where most other manufacturers place various importance respectively to damping, weight and stiffness, the essential and determining characteristics of any cone or membrane, Focal managed to pay equal and undivided attention to all three at the same time, making for a truly superior technology, immediately transcribed into truly superior and more refined sound. At the occasion of creating the cones for the drive units of the new Utopia Be line of products, Focal took the W cone one step above. To the point of becoming an art, in many ways comparable to the fine art of wine making. By varying the thickness and the density of the foam core, by adding or removing some layers of glass fabric on the each side of the core, we have succeeded in controlling step
yet we have managed to improve it further
by step these 3 factors independently of each other, in order to fully master the final characteristics of the resulting cone. We will for instance privilege stiffness for a subwoofer cone, while we will privilege acoustical damping and light weight for a midrange cone. Focals cone technology allows a unique flexibility in the design and in the making of each cone in order to obtain for each speaker a frequency response as linear as possible, a well controlled and natural sounding cut off and an harmonious directivity pattern. As a direct result it is now non necessary to include any kind of correction in the crossover and it will allow the full exploitation of the revolutionary Crossblock concept.

l The W composite sandwich, hand-made, gets its name from the double V of Verre-Verre (verre means glass in French), as we use glass on both sides of the high-tech foam core.
l At equal mass and diameter, the rigidity factor of the W cone woofer outpaces all other materials used in speaker cones.
l The legs of the frame are filled with high viscosity rubber, which absorbs all the vibrations in the chassis.

Utopia Be Woofer

Better, louder, greater
The extraordinary performance of the new W cone challenged us to come up with suitable technologies to match, for a no compromise result. A brand new frame was designed for the brand new Utopia Be. It is made of a special aluminum alloy providing strength as well as optimal heat transfer where necessary and good vibration damping. It is finished with finely textured black power coating, for a distinguished aesthetics suiting its performance. The high pressure injection process allowed intricate sculpturing and details. One of the purposes of this new reference line of products was to allow exceptional quality installations, even in the most difficult, intricate and tight areas, which are often found in luxury and high performance automobiles. This was clearly calling for a compact magnetic motor, while at the same time we had to come up with high magnet strength for the performance we were looking for. This is how we ended up designing a brand new powerful ring magnet made of neodymium, material which provides 10 times the energy found in ferrite. To extract the utmost quality of this superb material, we went through the trouble of many Finite Element Analysis based iterations of designs. This is how we determined the right shape of the motor in order to obtain a perfectly symmetrical distribution of magnetic energy in the air gap for optimized control of the motion of the voice coil, from small to large displacements. We literally shaped the magnetic filed in which the voice coil is immersed at all frequencies for most constant force factor. The result is a level of control of the voice coil rarely encountered, insuring extremely low distortion even under the highest stress of hard driving. The woofers of the Utopia Be line have all been designed and engineered with a particular concern for one all too often neglected quality: consistency of tonal character at all levels, from low to high. This means that your system sounds the same, has the same balance, the same sound whether you play soft or loud as all the parameters stay stable under small and large excursions. Rare care for rare quality. The woofers of the Utopia Be line have also been designed so that they work with a perfect mechanical stability over their entire frequency range. To play beautifully, very loud or very soft, for very long time, this is what these woofers are for.

6.99 Time - 110.0 - 100.0 SPL (dB rms) - 90.0 - 80.0 - 70.0 - 60.0 - 50.0 8.1.0K 2.0K 4.0K 10.0K Frequency (Hz) - 40.0
Reaction of the chassis on an impulse: without any rubber, an important quantity of energy is left spread into the frame with a long decay. With damping the energy left is of less amplitude (notably in the critical mid-range and treble frequencies) and immediately absorbed.
l The massive polished alloy circular ring, made by high pressure injection, reinforces the frames rigidity and provides also a solid mounting base for the acoustic grille.
l The surround has been developed to offer a very effective control of the cones displacement, and to maintain specific drivers parameters through several years of intensive use.
l The very high quality spider is made to work for years without any loss of performance. It integrates the electrical connection to the voice coil, doing away with the usual lead wires, thus eliminating the mechanical noise at high power.
l The frame is specially designed to help cooling down the heat generated by the voice coil of the drive unit, further reducing thermal compression.
l The high power neodymium magnet is completely integrated into the frame itself so the heat generated in and around the magnet is directly and efficiently evacuated through the frame itself which acts as a heat exchanger between the motor and the surrounding environment.
l The voice-coil transmits a considerable force to the cone. This force is constantly applied over a long excursion, thanks to the length of the voice coil winding.
l Special attention to details: the gold plated terminals fully encapsulated in specially designed clear polycarbonate blocks inset into the woofers frame to further guarantee reliable contacts over time. l This driver is indeed so close to ideal that we were able to trade the phaseplug that is usually required to improve the off axis response in the higher frequencies for a large aluminum focus cap. l The W composite sandwich cone in its ultimate version, still improved in order to combine and to fine tune all the characteristics needed for the specific functions of this l The frame is widely open in the back to offer minimum resistance to the high displacements of the cone, further eliminating mechanical compression and distortion. l The ring magnet design has been optimized using highly sophisticated Finite Element Analysis so that it keeps full magnetization up to very high temperatures (120 deg. Celsius).

From our laboratory to your automobile
the loudspeakers. This creates an infinity of parameters of which the combined result is impossible to simulate. It is to respond to that situation that we came up with the Crossblock. This is no less than 4480 possible combinations of filtering at your fingertips, all in one compact box, thanks to the use of specific components, specifically developed for Utopia Be. After installation, your retailer will be able to propose an adjustment adapted to your specific situation, to your car as it is, thus entitling you to get the most impressive performance out of your investment, exactly the same this time as what we have designed for you in these products. Once in place it is all yours to explore all the possibilities of fine adjustment. Now, you can even create
your own sound in your own car. This is not so far from what is happening in a recording studio, with the driver in the mixer seat. The excellence of the loudspeakers Utopia Be, their exceptional linearity, their characteristics of directivity and neutrality, have helped to reduce the essential adjustment to four, to adapt ideally the loudspeakers Utopia Be to your car. The Utopia Be loudspeakers characteristics being so close to ideal; there is no need for correcting the eventual imperfections of a speaker with compensating networks. This is what is allowing the simple and elegant solution of the Crossblock. Despite the power of the 4480 combinations of fine-tuning it offers, it is deceivingly simple to use.
l The possible locations for loudspeakers are numerous: top or the bottom of the doors, dashboard, kick panel, roof front pillars. Every location has an important impact on the sound of any loudspeaker in your car, and on its frequency response and the perception of the 3D sonic image.

l S1 adjustment

l S2 adjustment

l S3 adjustment

l S4 adjustment
l The Crossblock: 4 adjustments, which will influence the behaviour in the bass, the mid-range, and the treble, which give a choice of 4480 combinations of fine-tuning.

Using the best of what there is, and going further
Our Crossblock is not an equalizer. It is not a corrector either- our loudspeakers dont need any! It is a fantastic tool, which helps to precisely adapt the crossover to the acoustical characteristics of the car in order to integrate its acoustics into the whole sound system, the source, the amplifiers and above all, the loudspeakers. Without this thought process, there would be no hope of truthful music reproduction. But the making of a perfect crossover, versatile and efficient brought up an expected obstacle: multiplying the adjustment possibilities, therefore the number of components would have called for over a hundreds of parts, something unrealistic, considering the size limits of the crossover itself. The only way would have been to use small size components, which would have been detrimental to efficiency. Once more necessity was mother of invention. Instead of using more than 10 coils we designed a single Multicoil air core inductor which is in essence, thanks to multiple connection points within the winding, 10 coils wound at once into one. This allowed us to use a very large gauge copper wire, which guarantees a very low insertion loss. The same way, instead of using a multitude of capacitors, we designed a Multicap capacitor , which is nothing else but a number of different values capacitors wound together as one. These Multicaps are indeed high efficiency metallized polypropylene capacitors made with the strictest specifications by SCR. We also use high quality switches with very low insertion loss, and we even went as far as wiring in parallel some of the terminals of the switch to further lower the series resistance down to less than a thousandth of an Ohm. To go with the extraordinary performance of the drive units used on these systems, we couldnt accept any compromise, so nothing could deprive you of the most refined tuning system ever designed for your car. We are giving you the unique opportunity in just a few clicks, to almost infinitely refine and enrich the sound in your car, while discovering the essence of the Utopia Be sound.
The Multicoil is a series of many different inductors all wound in one, thus offering a large variety of inductance values for fine tuning of the crossover. It is also a very compact device with extremely low insertion loss which could not have been achieved using many inductors in place of the Multicoil. Capacitors Multicap of SCR with polypropylene film. Combining the know-how of SCR in the field of audiophile capacitor and the Focal expertise in filtering, the Multicap offers a large palette of values in a single element. The switches used on the Crossblock are there to associate various inductance values, capacitance values and resistance values in order to offer no less than 4480 combinations of filters. Because these switches are at the heart of the Crossblock concept we selected them for their very low insertion loss, further reduced by parallel wiring.

Elegance in high technology: live a unique experience
Our N5 two-way system is based on a 5 (130mm) midrange woofer, the 5 W2 Be. It is reproducing a large bandwidth from mid to low frequencies in order to merge easily with a subwoofer, its W cone, both light and well damped, allowing to reach down to 80Hz with a perfectly balanced response. This woofer appears to be the downright complement to the Beryllium tweeter on account of the richness and extraordinary definition of the mid frequencies. Its on axis frequency response and its energy response across the whole spectrum are ideally harmonized and result in an overall low directivity pattern. Its compact design makes it extremely well suited for easy installations just about anywhere in most vehicles, including doors and kick panels, while providing exceptional stereophonic imaging. Wherever you choose to install it, the N5 system state-of-the-art performance will be magically enhanced by the Crossblock crossover, which thoroughly insures a complete adaptation of the loudspeakers to their acoustical environment in the hands of a fine installer. Considering the simplicity of integration and the exceptional Utopia Be sound, system N5 is the perfect solution for a compact 2-way installation complemented by a separate subwoofer.
Type Frequency response (+/ - 3dB) Nominal power handling
2-way, 5 (13cm) W woofer, 1 (2.5cm) Beryllium tweeter 75Hz - 40kHz 75W 89.5dB 4 ohms 11/4 (32mm) 1/2 (13mm) 1/8 (3.5mm)
The 5 W2 Be woofer in its different states, by itself ,with its alloy ring and with acoustic grille.
Sensitivity (2.83V / 1m) Nominal impedance Voice-coil diameter Voice-coil height Xmax
*This system is also available as N5 Active version (without Crossblock filter).

The right balance

The heart of our N6 kit is a 6.5 (165mm) midrange woofer which embodies the cornerstone of the Utopia Be line in this all classic configuration, the 6.5 (165mm) 2-way. For our ambition is to establish the highest degree of realism, the 6 W2 Be is able to deliver utmost performance at both mid and low frequencies, even without a subwoofer and in very large vehicles. The 1.5 (40mm) diameter and.6 (15mm) height voice coil gives to the 6 W2 Be undeniable strength and substantial power handling while allowing impressive bass excursion. Its parameters have been carefully set in order to obtain optimal load when working in typical door panel configuration, in.5cft (15 liters) to 1cft (30 liters) volumes. Here again, thanks to the very efficient design of the frame itself and to the use of a shallow neodymium magnet the 6 W2 Be will mount where other 6.5 (165mm) units could not fit. Powerful, exhibiting tremendous authority in low frequencies, the 6 W2 Be bears all the attributes to play back all styles of music, from the most subtle to the loudest, without any dynamic limitation. The 6 W2 Be and the pure Beryllium inverted dome tweeter combination, merging through the Crossblock, produce a perfectly balanced N6 system with unequalled sound richness and accuracy.

Type Frequency response (+/ - 3dB) Nominal power handling Sensitivity (2.83V / 1m) Nominal impedance Voice-coil diameter Voice-coil height Xmax
2-way, 6-1/2 (16.5cm) Wwoofer, 1 (2.5cm) Beryllium tweeter 66Hz - 40kHz 100W 91.5dB 4 ohms 11/2 (40mm) 5/8 (15mm) 3/16 (4.5mm)
*This system is also available as N6 Active version (without Crossblock filter).
l Stainless steel mounting screw.
l All the Utopia Be systems are delivered in luxury aluminum carrying case.

The experts formula

The concept behind the system N7 lies in a simple fact: in some cases, in some vehicles, and due to improper loudspeakers location, the classic 2-way configuration often ends up altering the sonic imaging perception. The System N7 offers a 100% acoustical solution in order to obtain perfect staging and a realistic sound imaging in the most challenging circumstances. We developed a real midrange driver, the ultra-compact 3 W2 Be. Only 3 (80mm) diameter and 3.15 (35mm) depth, the 3 W2 Be is intended to be installed on the dashboard close to the Beryllium tweeter. Numerous listening sessions told us that this midrange driver needs to function well below 200Hz in order to cover the range of directional sounds and to provide seamless blending with the 6 W3 Be 6.5 (165mm) woofers installed in the doors, for it is imperious that all sounds must originate from the dashboard area to render a truly accurate and stable sonic image. The 3 W2 Be midrange driver can also be used in Kick Panel. Built like the Utopia Be line woofers, with a specific W cone for good damping, the 3 W2 Be retains the same injected compact alloy basket. It is equipped with a 1 (25mm) diameter and.3 (8mm) height Neodymium magnet, to insure a solid reproduction of low midrange without distortion. That concept, similar to our woofers, brings exceptional response down to 180Hz in a limited space of only 0.018 cft (0.5 liters). Here the 3 W2 Be shows its superiority over other types of midrange drivers, such as flexible dome midranges which do not effectively match its low end response and its high energy and fantastic dynamics. The 6 W3 Be woofer is specifically calculated for that system in order to deliver optimal bass performance and, has been specially designed to deliver its optimum performance in vehicle doors.
3-way, 6-1/2 (16.5cm) W woofer, 3 (8cm) W midrange, 1 (2.5cm) Beryllium tweeter 55Hz - 40kHz 100W 89dB 4 ohms 11/2 (40mm) et 1 (25mm) 7/8 (17mm) et 5/16 (8mm) 1/4 (5.5mm)

l The N7 kit features its own specially engineered Crossblock. Functionalities and settings are different from other Crossblock and aim, for the most part, to accurately optimize the midrange/woofer blending.
Frequency response (+/ - 3dB) Nominal power handling Sensitivity (2.83V / 1m) Nominal impedance Voice-coil diameter Voice-coil height Xmax
*This system is also available as N7 Active version (without Crossblock filter).
The Utopia Be kits N5, N6 and N7 will be the essential components of your system. We thought about pushing the envelope and finding cutting edge solutions to further increase the overall performance of your system. Hence, Focal is the first manufacturer to establish the concept of the 5 (13cm) compact subwoofer to be placed in the front of the vehicle in order to reproduce superior quality bass in the 50 to 100Hz range. Considering that it is very difficult for a 2-way system to get optimal alignment at these frequencies where distortion and sound coloration usually occur, the idea is to create a true bass loudspeaker, perfectly controlled by the appropriate limited space load and compact enough to be installed in the front of a vehicle embedded in the doors or dashboard.
Condensed bass for better performance
The 13 WS represents the ultimate development with increased ease of integration thanks to its new basket and to the powerful Neodymium magnet. A.25cft (7 liters) sealed box is large enough to go down to 67Hz (+/-3dB). Thanks to its compact design and to the small volume it requires it will now be possible to bank several 13 WS together in the front of the vehicle to multiply acoustical power. Besides true performance improvement, this concept also brings now bass to the front of the vehicle, where the other drivers are located, so that all sounds can be perceived simultaneously, from the same perspective and without delay or phase alteration. To the contrary of whats commonly accepted, low frequencies above 80Hz are directional. A subwoofer placed in a trunk would cause significant discomfort with bass coming from the back and altering the sonic image. Some electronic equipment, through appropriate digital processing, allows to partially compensate for this type of phase shift, however, they cannot do anything to prevent some frequencies to be perceived from the back of the vehicle. Our solution, 100% acoustical and intuitively more natural, is the right answer in order to reach a state-of-the-art realistic sound reproduction. Progress achieved in consistency and linearity will be as valued as the listening comfort provided.
Type Frequency response (+/ - 3dB) Nominal / Peak power handling Sensitivity (2.83V / 1m) Nominal impedance Voice-coil diameter Voice-coil heigh Xmax Free-air resonance (Fs) Compliance volume (VAS) Total Q (Qts) Electrical Q (Qes) Mechanical Q (Qms) Voice-coil DC resistance (Re) Driver aera (Sd)
5 (13cm) W subwoofer 36Hz 75W / 150W 88dB 4 ohms 11/4 (32mm) 7/8 (22mm) 5/16 (8mm) 53.43Hz 5.25 liters 0.495 0.52 10.09 3.09 ohms 86.6 sq cm

l A.25cft (7 liters) sealed box is enough to to go down to 67Hz (+/-3dB). Therefore, and thanks to its compactness, it will be more easily installed in the front of the vehicle, embedded in the doors or dashboard.
l The 21 WX dynamic behavior is simply astonishing and perpetuates the standards achieved in sound definition, transparency and fidelity by the Utopia Be line.

Bass for Beryllium

What is amazing about the 21 WX subwoofer is that it sustains comparison with much bigger diameter drivers thanks to its exceptional power handling. Correctly tuned in a 1cft (30 liters) bass-reflex enclosure, it will reach notes below 30Hz with commanding energy and it will make you seriously doubt its size It was clear to us that we had to come up with an outstanding subwoofer to be associated with the three Utopia Be systems. This meant that we had to create a bass driver equal in terms of quality to the standard we reached with the pure Beryllium dome tweeter. That kind of challenge leaves no place to casual approach and demands finding innovating solutions. Maximum SPL power was not the primary goal, so our quest focused on the purest fidelity. This is why we decided not to rely on a large diameter subwoofer, but to work on a 8 (21cm) W cone, which offers the great advantage to be much lighter. The ratio between the tremendous power of the Multiferrite magnet and the moving mass is optimal, allowing the bass to be much more dynamic, and perfectly controlled. The crossover between 21 WX and the N5, N6 and N7 systems provides unmatched performance. The 21 WX can also be used to assist one or several 13 WS, especially below 60Hz where true low frequencies are omni directional. The other advantage of a smaller diameter cone is its ability to be mounted in confined space. The 21 WX works in a sealed box of 0,5cft (15 liters), where it will reproduce pure and efficient bass. It will reach its optimal linearity in a 1cft (30 liters) volume.
8 (21cm) Wsubwoofer 29Hz 250W / 500W 86.5dB 4 ohms 2 (50mm) 1 (25mm) 1/3 (8.5mm) 36.63Hz 18.8 liters 0.6 0.77 2.81 3.4 ohms 208.7 sq cm

l The 2 (50mm) diameter and 1 (25mm) height coil allows a 500 watts peak power input. Although maximum SPL level research was not a priority that subwoofer also presents, from that perspective, absolute first class SPL performance.

Subwoofers Parameters

S PECIFICATIONS Nominal power Maximal power Sensitivity (2.83V / 1m) Cone Surround Nominal impedance DC resistance Voice-coil diameter 13 WS 75W 150W 87.8dB W Butyl 4 ohms 3.09 ohms 32mm (1-1/4") 22mm (7/8") Kapton 2 Copper 1.05mH 8mm (5/16") Neodyme 0.7T 6mm (1/4") 0.7kg (2.2lbs) 21 WX 250W 500W 86.5dB W Butyl 4 ohms 3.4 ohms 50mm (2") 25mm (1") Aluminum 2 Copper 1.13mH 8.5mm (1/3") Multiferrite 0.85T 8mm (5/16") 4kg (8.8lbs) 13 WS:
SUGGESTED APPLICATION IN SEALED BOX
Voice-coil height Voice-coil former Layers Wire Inductance Xmax Magnet Flux density Gap height Net weight
T HIELE & S MALL Fs Vas Qts Qes Qms Re Sd Cas Mas Ras Cms Mms Rms Ces Les Res Bl SPL

PARAMETERS

13 WS 53.43Hz 5.24 liters 0.495 0.52 10.09 3.09 ohms 86.59 cm2 3.73 E-08 m5/N 237.93kg/m
21 WX 36.63Hz 18.80 liters 0.604 0.77 2.81 3.4 ohms 208.67 cm2 1.34 E-07 m5/N 141.01kg/m4 11549.11 ohms.ac 3.07 E-04 m/N 61.4g 5.029kg/s 984mF 19.19mH 12.41 ohms 7.9N/A 82.6dB/W/m 21 WX:
7916.47 ohms.ac 4.97 E-04 m/N 17.84g 0.594kg/s 501.28mF 17.7mH 59.96 ohms 5.97N/A 83.7dB/W/m

Utopia Beryllium

the Spirit of Sound

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Summary
Page Precautions 4 Utopia Be line: Users manual 5 Tweeters installation 7 Woofers / midranges mounting 9 N 5 and N6 Crossblock wiring 13 N7 Crossblock wiring 15 Crossblock installation 17 N5 and N6 Crossblock settings 19 N7 Crossblock settings 21 Utopia Be Active Kit 23 Subwoofers installation 25 Box enclosure mounting 27 Kits specifications 28 Subwoofers specifications 29 Conditions of guarantee 30 Dimensions 59 International guarantee 61 Notes 63 Serial numbers 64

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Precautions
Special precautions regarding the Beryllium dome tweeter In its solid form, Beryllium is harmless. However, due to its nature, certain special precautions should be observed to avoid exposure to unnecessary risk. Under no circumstances the Beryllium dome should be subjected to any form of abrasive action. To ensure no accidental damage to the tweeter dome it is advised to carefully replace the protection cover. In the unlikely case of damage to the dome, of any form, the supplied piece of adhesive tape should be immediately used to seal the whole front surface of the tweeter. The protective cover should then be replaced and also taped securely in place. You should then inform the dealer from whom you purchased the product so that the tweeter can be removed by a professional and returned to the product distributor for replacement. If the dome is broken in any way giving rise to loose particles of Beryllium, they should be carefully collected with the use of a supplied adhesive tape and sealed in a ziptop bag to be returned with the tweeter. For further information, please contact Focal-JMlab directly: beryllium@focal-fr.com

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Warning Continued listening at high volume levels above 110dB, can damage your hearing durably. Listening above 130dB can damage your hearing permently.
Running-in period The drivers used in the Uopia Be Line are made up of complex mechanical elements and requires an adaptation period before they deliver their full potential. They must get adapted to the temperature and humidity conditions of their environment. This running-in period depends on the encountered conditions and can last several weeks. In order to shorten this period, we advise you to let your speaker operate for about twenty hours at medium level, playing standard music programs, but with a large amount of bass. Once the components of the speaker are completely stabilized, it is possible to enjoy the real performances of your speakers.
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Utopia Be line: Users manual
Congratulations on purchasing a product from the Utopia Be range. We are happy you share our passion for the Spirit of Sound. Designed using the latest technologies, these speakers continue Focals perfectionist beliefs, developing products with high power handling, and unrivalled sound quality. To obtain the best results from this product, we recommend that you follow carefully all the information contained in this users manual. If not followed correctly any fault observed, may not be covered by the guarantee.
To confirm Focal-Jmlabs guarantee, please register on line on our website: http://register.focal-fr.com, or send the guarantee back to us within 10 days of purchase.

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Fig. 1

Fig. 2 and 3

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Fig. 4 and 5
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Tweeters installation
Location TBe tweeter has been designed for flush mounting (recommended) or surface mounting installation, using the two fixing kits provided. Installations choice position is extremely important. This is a major factor for high frequency SPL, stability of the acoustics, stereophonic imaging, and overall staging. The standard recommendation for an ideal stereo imaging, is to ensure the left and right tweeters are installed in the same positions. Also they are approximately at equal distance to the driver (viceversa for the passenger). Various positions advised should be checked and comparatives made, for an ideal positioning. Tweeter should always be positioned ahead of the normal listening position. The main preferences are the outer positions of the dashboard (fig. 1, A), on the windscreeen pillars (fig. 1, B) (only requires a small amount of install work). The location close to the door mirror (fig. 1, C) is also regarded as a good position. Lastly a position high in the door (fig. 1, D) is also acceptable even if it is not considered as the best to optimize staging. It is imperative to check before any installation is attempted, that enough space is available (especially for flush-mounting appli-cations). Crossblock (included in n5, 6 and 7 kits) contains all necessary functionalities to optimize the tweeter setting, according to its location and vehicle acoustic. Surface mounting Surface mounting fixing kit offers various possibilities, thanks to its wave guide which allows different alignments. Fix the assembly using the screw provided on vehicle trim. Dont forget the washer to avoid rubber joints slide shearing (fig. 2, 3). Thread the cable from the tweeter, through the back. Then fix tweeter using the four stainless steel screws. Flush mounting (highly recommended) Best results will be obtained by a tweeter flush mounting. Cut trim using tweeter as a mould. Push in the support and ensure it remains flat on the surface. Ensure it is locked in place with the screws supplied. Lock the screw. Thread the cable from the tweeter, through the back, then lock in place the tweeter using the four screws provided (fig. 4, 5).

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Fig. 2

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Fig. 3

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Woofers / midranges mounting
Woofer location Woofers positioned ideally high in the doors (fig. 1, A), produce optimal midrange frequencies. Woofers positioned mid in the doors are also a solution to obtain good linearity (fig. 1, B). If the woofer-mids are positioned low in the doors (fig. 1, C),the loss of midrange will be im-portant. The woofer-mids from the Utopia Be range can also be placed low in the kick-panels (fig. 2, D) of the vehicle. This is to further optimize the stereophonic imaging and staging. This mounting only suits to Utopia Be 5. Crossblock will allow to obtain a fine setting according to the location. Midranges location 3 midrange (n7 Utopia Be kit) is made to be install near tweeter, on dashboard (fig. 2, E), in order to have the better staging. 0.5l volume aims at going down to 180Hz. Mounting advises Utopia Be woofers and woofermidranges have been designed for a multitude of vehicles installations. It is worth understanding the basic requirements for installing such products. These woofers and woofermidranges are abble to deliver enormous amounts of energy, during their positive / negative movement. Therefore it is imperative that they be fixed rigid to the desired location (fig. 3, A). Resin might be used (fig. 3, B). The fixing location should also be strengthened when necessary. Panels should be strengthened to eliminate any unwanted vibrations and screwed on a metallic part of the vehicle (fig. 3, C). Such vibrations will drastically reduce the overall performance. These drive units should be fixed and sealed to the baffle or location panel. The use of the foam gasket is advisable for correct air sealing. For added performance, and to better reduce such unwanted vibrations and other acoustical losses, we recommend the use of plain chant. Easily positioned behind the woofer, on the metal-work of the vehicle, Plain Chant soaks-up vibrations as well as acoustic reflections. Always ensure before that enough space is available for the magnet assembly, that it doesnt interfere with safety mechanisms or general working parts. In the case of not using the grilles supplied, it is important to ensure the speakers will fit correctly. Ensure there is enough depth behind the speaker has already been explained,but enough thought must also be given for the forward movement of the cone and surround assembly.

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Fig. 4
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Woofer Set up fixing clips to accept the fixing screws later (fig.1). Set up the fixing ring, ensuring it lines-up with the fixing clip positions.Fix the foam gasket to the back of the drive unit chassis. Fix with the screws provided. Add the grille, clip on the screws head, then push in place. To remove the grille, pull on the tongue. Midrange Set up fixing clips to accept the fixing screws later. (fig.1). Set up the fixing ring, ensuring it lines-up with the fixing clip positions. Fix with the screws provided. Add the grille, clip on the screws head, then push in place. To remove the grille, pull on the tongue.

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N 5 and N6 Crossblock wiring
N 5, 6 Crossblock can be connected to amplifier according to 3 ways: Monowiring: one cable per speakers group (left/right fig. 1) Biwiring: two pairs of cables from amplifier to woofer section and tweeter section. This is an interesting solution for high cabling lenght between amplifier and Crossblock (fig. 2). Biamplification: crossblock is powered separately from woofer and tweeter amplifiers (fig. 3).

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N7 Crossblock wiring

Monowiring: one cable per speakers group (left/right fig.1 ). Biwiring: two pairs of cables from amplifier to woofer section and midrange/tweeter section. This is an interesting solution for high cabling lenght between amplifier and Crossblock (fig. 2). Biamplification: Crossblock is po wered separately from woofer and midrange/tweeter amplifiers (fig. 3). Switch the amplifier outputs on IN crossover inputs. Switch woofer on W inputs, midrange on M and tweeter on T. Warning: ensure both speaker is wired in phase, thus polarities are respected + to + and - to -. If not done correctly, a hole or a peak may result, due to a phase reversal. This will dramatically impair the overall performance.

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Crossblock installation

Warning When using Crossblock in biwiring or biamplification, you must remove the 4 jumpers backside, if you dont, you can damage amplifiers (fig. 1). Keep them on for monowiring. Mounting To access to Crossover fixing holes, remove the fixing screws (fig. 2). Fix Crossblock with the four screws provided on a perfectly flat area (fig. 3). Please bear in mind that you must keep enough space at the back of the Crossblock to easily access the cables.

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Fig. 5
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N5 and N6 Crossblock settings
N5/N6 Crossblock is an exclusive high technology crossover offering 4480 different filtering combinations to adapt kits characteristics to cars environment and to your own tastes. We advise you to refer to the Quality Control Certificate provided with each kit in order to know the reference setting (fig. 1). This setting corresponds to an optimized linearity obtained according to normalized measuring conditions (see file for more informations) and is a good base to refer to before begining settings. The response curve may change according to vehicle acoustic, speakers location, woofer / tweeter distance and speakers orientation. An adapted Crossblock setting will allow to have a flat response curve. We advise you to use a measure equipment (RTA) for a fine setting. We advise you to note the different settings in order to refer to them as often as you need. S1 setting (Low-pass) This setting changes the low-pass frequency value (12dB/octave). 1 refers to the higher value and 10 refers to the lower one (fig. 2). S2 setting (Q factor) This setting allows to boost midrange. It aims at correcting medium when the woofer is out of the listening axis, low in the door for example, midranges losses may occur. 8 refers to a linear response whereas 1 refers to maximum midranges boost (fig. 3). S3 setting (Hi-pass) This setting changes the hi-pass frequency value (12 dB/octave). Seven settings are available. 1 refers to the higher value whereas 7 refers to the lower one (fig. 4). S4 setting (Level) It refers to tweeter level setting. Each value change level around 1dB per step. 8 refers to minimum boost whereas 1 refers to maximum boost (fig. 5).

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N7 Crossblock settings
N7 Crossblock is an exclusive high technology crossover offering 4480 different filtering combinations to adapt kits characteristics to cars environment and to your own tastes. We advise you to refer to the Quality Control Certificate provided with each kit in order to know the reference setting (Fig. 1). This setting corresponds to an optimized linearity obtained according to normalized measuring conditions (see file for more informations) and is a good base to refer to before begining settings. The response curve may change according to vehicle acoustic, speakers location, woofer/tweeter distance and speakers orientation. An adapted Crossblock setting will allow to have a flat response curve. We advise you to use a measure equipment (RTA) for a fine setting. We advise you to note different settings in order to refer to them as often as you need. S1 setting It combines two settings in one. It changes low-pass crossover frequency values (12dB/octave). Steps 1 to 5 refer to different low-pass frequency values, whereas steps 6 to 10 also refer to the same 1 to 5 values but a boost is included. Steps 6 to 10 are interesting in solving level losses due to woofer location (low in the door for example). Steps 1 and 6 refer to the higher frequency pass, whereas steps 5 and 10 refer to the lower one (fig. 2). S2 setting (Hi-pass) This setting changes high-pass frequency values (12dB/octave). Step 1 refers to the higher frequency pass, whereas 7 refers to the lower one. The midrange lowpass value remains fix (fig. 3). S3 setting (Level) Midrange level setting according to 8 values, 1dB per step. Step 1 refers to the higher boost whereas 8 refers to the lower one (fig. 4). S4 setting (Level) It is the tweeter level setting. Eight steps increase or decrease tweeter level (1dB per step). Step 1 refers to maximum level, whereas 8 refers to minimum one (fig. 5).

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Utopia Be Active Kit

Active kits (N5, 6, 7) are provided without Crossblock crossover in order to allow amplification with active crossover. It is specially adapted to numerous speakers configurations. N5 / N6 active kits wiring Wire tweeter and woofer on active crossover, then wire crossover to amplifiers. Please bear in mind that you must respect polarities (+ to +; - to -) (fig. 1). N7 active kit wiring Wire tweeter and woofer on active crossover, then wire crossover to amplifiers. Please bear in mind that you must respect polarities (+ to +; - to -) (fig. 2).
Speaker Tweeter Tbe 3 W2 Be 5 W2 Be 6 W2 Be 6 W3 Be
Recommanded minimal cutt-off frequency (high-pass) 2.5kHz 150Hz 80Hz 70Hz 60Hz
Recommanded maximal cutt-off frequency (low-pass) full 6kHz 4kHz 4kHz 1kHz

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Subwoofers installation

Utopia Be line subwoofers are tailored to be installed in small enclosures to allow their installation in the front of the vehicle. The aim is to bring bass frequencies from the back to the front of the vehicle in order to have a better staging. It also aims at allotting critical frequencies (50 to 100Hz) to real speakers tuned to have a maximum of neutrality, dynamic and behaviour. Subwoofers installation Each subwoofer kit comes complete with its fixing kit and foam gasket. Cut out and place the driver into position and attached securely in place. 13 WS mounting Place fixing clips to accept the fixing screws later. (fig.X). Place the fixing ring (fig. 1), ensuring it lines-up with the fixing clip positions. Fix the foam gasket to the back of the drive unit chassis. Fix with the screws provided. Add the grille and push in place (clip the grille on screws heads). To remove the grille, pull on the tongue. 21 WX mounting Fix the foam gasket to the back of drive unit chassis, then fix with the screws provided. Add the grille and push in place (clip the grille on screws heads) (fig. 3). To remove the grille, pull on the tongue. Wiring You must respect polarities between subwoofer, amplifier and crossover (fig. 2, 4).

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13 WS Clos V (l) 5 liters 3 liters F-3 (Hz) Q factor 0.707 0.82
21 WX clos V (l) 30 liters 15 liters F-3 (Hz) Q factor 0.77 0.907
21 WX bass-reflex V (l) 30 liters 26 English F-3 (Hz) 29 Fb (Hz) 34 Port (d x l) 6 x 20 cm
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Box enclosure mounting

The correct acoustic load, normally the type of enclosure and volume made available to the subwoofer, is of prime importance for maximum performance. All pistonic acoustic devices require a defined acoustic load to work correctly. This means type of charge (sealed or bass reflex) and volume must be chosen wisely, to gain maximum performance. Sealed box enclosure Utopia Be subwoofers have been carefully optimised to work in sealed box enclosure. This type of enclosure ensures sub bass frequencies remain full and controlled. The available excursion of the sub is far more stable, for controlled linearity limiting distortion, ensuring maximum performance is maintained. The added benefit of a properly defined sealed enclosure, is that it remains comparatively small in size. Compared to a defined bass reflex enclosure, which normally has a slight increase in the sound pressure level, Utopia Be subwoofers have improved power handling characteristics. Therefore this slight reduction of level can be compensated with increased amplification (fig 1, 2).a Bass-reflex enclosure Bass-reflex enclosure suits to 21 WX subwoofer under conditions. It brings a boost of energy around 50Hz to have dynamic bass. Bassreflex enclosure distinguishes by an important efficiency in bass and sub bass. Contrary to sealed box, bass-reflex needs a bigger volume. Please follow strckly each instruction (volume, vent size ) (fig. 3). Inverse mounting Because 21WX uses such large impressive multi-ferrite driveunits. You can invert the subwoofer. When choosing inverted mounting, the phase must be inverted, so that the polarity is observed.

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Kits specications

Kit Maximum power Nominal power Sensitivity Frequency response ( 3 dB) Nominal impedance Tweeter Cone Magnet Resonant frequency (Fs) DC resistance (Re) Woofer/midrange N 5 / N 5 Active 150W 75W 89.5dB 75Hz to 40kHz 4 Ohms TBe Pure Beryllium inverted dome Neodymium 1294Hz 6 Ohms 5 W2 Be N 6 / N 6 Active 200W 100W 91.5dB 66Hz to 40kHz 4 Ohms TBe Pure Beryllium inverted dome Neodymium 1294Hz 6 Ohms 6 W2 Be W composite sandwich 40x15mm (1.57x0.6in) Neodymium Rubber 64.39Hz 2.91 Ohms 9.19 liters 0.79 14.73 0.75 132.73cm2 4.95N/A 4.5mm (0.18in) 143mm (5.63in) 72mm (2.84in) 3 W2 Be W composite sandwich 25x8.5mm (1x0.34in) Neodymium Rubber 188.74Hz 3.37 Ohms 0.31 liter 0.77 13.79 0.729 30.19cm2 3.93N/A 2mm (0.08in) 73mm (2.9in) 35.8mm (1.4in) Neodymium 1294Hz 6 Ohms 6 W3 Be W composite sandwich 40x17mm (1.57x0.7in) Neodymium Rubber 55.28Hz 3.22 Ohms 9.92 liters 0.82 11.42 0.765 132.73cm2 5.31N/A 5.5mm (0.22in) 14 mm (5.63in) 72mm (2.84in) N 7 / N 7 Active 200W 100W 89dB 55Hz to 40kHz 4 Ohms TBe Pure Beryllium inverted dome

Cone W composite sandwich Voice coil (d x h) Magnet Surround Resonant frequency (Fs) DC resistance (Re) Vas Qes Qms Qts Sd Bl Xmax Cut-out diameter Mounting depth 32x13mm (1.26x0.5in) Neodymium Rubber 67.47Hz 3.48 Ohms 5.23 liters 0.64 9.37 0.6 86.59cm2 5.08N/A 3.5mm (0.14in) 115.50mm (4.55in) 63mm (2.48in)

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Subwoofers specications

13 WS Maximum power Nominal power Sensitivity Cone Surround Nom. Impedance VC diameter VCV height Xmax Magnet Gap height Fs Vas Qes Qms Qts Re Sd Mms Les Res Bl 300W 150W 88dB W composite sandwich Rubber 4 Ohms 32mm (1.26in) 22mm (0.86in) 8mm (0.31in) Neodymium 6mm (0.24in) 53.43Hz 5.24 liters 0.52 10.09 0.495 3.09 Ohms 86.59cm2 17.84g 17.70mH 59.96 Ohms 5.97N/A 21 WX 500W 250W 86.5dB W composite sandwich Rubber 4 Ohms 50mm (2in) 25mm (1in) 8.5mm (0.33in) Multiferrite (x12) 8mm (0.31in) 36.63Hz 18.8 liters 0.77 2.81 0.6 3.4 Ohms 208.67cm2 61.4g 19.19mH 12.41 Ohms 7.9N/A

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Conditions of guarantee
All Focal loudspeakers are covered by guarantee drawn up by the official Focal distributor in your country. Your distributor can provide all details concerning the conditions of guarantee. Guarantee cover extends at least to that granted by the legal guarantee in force in the country where the original purchase invoice was issued.

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Focal-JMlab - BP 374 - 108, rue de l'Avenir - 42353 La Talaudire cedex - France - www.focal-fr.com Tl. 00 - Fax 57 04
Due to constant technological advances, Focal reserves its right to modify specications without notice. Images may not conform exactly to specic product. Focal-JMlab
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