Does anybody own or has listened to the Focal Electra 1028 Be II? I am looking into this, but I have not listened to them. Their specs sound good, there’s a review on YouTube speaking highly of them, but nothing equals actually listening to the speaker you have in your cross hairs.
Any impression or advice would be highly appreciated.
BHK 300’s are a marvelous, synergistic match for my Focal Sopra No. 2’s. If you’re using either the 300’s or the 250 to power your system, I suspect the Electra 1028 Be II will be worth auditioning.
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I have the focal 1038 be , I use them with ss amplifiers and tube amps. I am very happy with them and I think they worth auditioning
I own the 1028 Be II… I LOVE them. And I never heard any speaker as good at their price point.
I think these are discontinued… are you looking at used?
Sound: Ok, really, how the H am I going to describe them? They are forward, dynamic, and rock. The speakers I had before them were the magnificent Magnepan 20s but I changed my listening environement and I had to sell them. When it comes to naturalness and imaging, nothing beats such as world class speaker as the Magnepan… but, the Magnepans don’t rock like a traditional dynamic cone speaker like Focal. So I am re-enjoyning my old rock records so much more.
The tweeter is super extended and very revealing. It is not bright… but if you have any piece of equipment that is bright or hard, it will show through. This is a bit of a warning. I use older Cardas interconnects and Transparent MusicWave Plus speaker cables… these cables sound the most “natural” to me and I am pretty sold on the brands. These cables are not bright or etched.
The Focals are very efficient so you don’t need a ton of power for them to play loudly. And the load is very benign so you don’t need a high current amp. I am very impressed with the engineering of these speakers. I power them with a PrimaLuna Dialog Premium HP integrated and they just play beauty. I love these speakers and tube amp combination.
The speakers need to be very near a rear wall to get the best extended bass. If you put them too far out in the room… even three feet, the bass falls off pretty quickly. This is actually great for smaller room as I have them in now.
The PrimaLuna tube amp and Focal speakers are really wonderful. I love it. One of the best sound systems I have owned. The Magnepans were very special and honestly, I would like them back… but these Focals are just as enjoyable.
BTW… my system now is a lesson in that spending more does not always lead to more enjoyment. I had VTL 300 Deluxe monoblocks on the Magnepans and then on the Focals… The VTL-Magnepan was an expensive system and the VTLs had more “clarity” and accuracy. But now the PrimaLuna and Focals are just as rewarding regarding getting emotional connection with music … and quite a bit cheaper.
Peace
Bruce in Philly
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Donkt150… how does my description of the 1028s compare to your 1038s?
Peace
Bruce in Philly
Is there a difference in the Be II vs just Be?
I could not agree more with you.
I love mine I added SVS subs to my system, so good. At the price they are at now there is no way you can go wrong.
I have my 1038s for 5 years now, I paid all most full price at the time and I feel it was worth it then. At the reduced priced they are going for now that is a deal and a half I don’t think you can find another speaker that will come close I’ve been building speakers for over 30 years and the Electra series for Focals just do almost everything right. And really right for the money.
I believe the Focal be 2s are the same I don’t recall the Electra line having 2s not in the US anyway I will have to look that up .
I was looking all over for a difference, but even the Focal website just goes to a page that drops the “II” from the title.
Yes I really think They are one in the same I think a advertisement at one time was made up that way but they are actually the same speaker may have been a typo at the time
Thank you for the detailed information. I am indeed looking at demo 1028 models, since they are on the way out of the Focal current models.
I will be driving them with a Hegel H20 ss amplifier, which is not bright by any means, but rather neutral.
Looking forward to bringing them in my listening room.
I am confident that you will find that amplifier and those speakers are going to be a very nice pair up enjoy if you do get them .keep us updated
I will. Thank you for all your help.
I’m so glad I found this thread as I’m in much need of some good advice.
I’m completely torn between the 1038 & the 1028’s
Some of the reviews I read on the 1038’s recommend needing a large room to really make these shine. With that on my conscious it really makes me lean towards the 1028’s, but just for the sake of having the better of the two my heart is really set on the 1038’s.
My room size is 21L x 14W drop ceiling, sound insulation in-wall, additional sound treatment panels will be added, carpet, 50/50 music/movies. I do want to incorporate some 2 channel listening so I’m hoping to add a nice primaluna amp in at some point.
Seems like musicdirect has some good deals on both and even better on open box
I can’t imagine those aren’t worth picking up for that price
Your room is ideal for the 1038’s.
Get them and be happy!
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Any recommendations on a decent priced amp that won’t break the bank that will pair nice with these? I’d like a 3 channel to also power my center when needed, but having something that will make these sing in 2 channel is most important?
It’s hard to beat the m700’s for the money unless you don’t want class D amps. There was a set on this site for really good asking price.
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As I noted, I used PrimaLuna tube equipment to drive them. I find the Focal load to be so benign that they are a great match for tubed equipment. Further, the “forward” presentation of these speakers works well with tube sound.
Peace
Bruce in Philly
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