Thanks for the comparison.
I currently own the FR5 and running a hybrid 3-way active analog crossover to 2 powered subwoofers.
When I retire in a few years and move across the country, I’ll either upgrade to the FR20/FR30 or go for something totally new with active speakers:
| My dream tri-amped system is a clean look $69k/pair active speakers Focal: |
|---|
| https://www.ecoustics.com/products/focal-diva-mezza-utopia/ |
A lot has changed for me since June of 2023. I still have the FR20, and like them more than ever as I have upgraded everything else in the system around them. Others on the forum criticized the active crossover that was in my system, and they were right. When I added a REL subwoofer with a high level connection from the speaker outputs from the amp, my system really opened up. As part of your future upgrading plans, add in either a REL sub or a future PS Audio sub with a high-level connection from the speaker outputs from the amp.
Now for that second subwoofer. 
Maybe 5 years from now if I retire from quitting upgrades 
I predict an early retirement. Rumor has it you are on the list to beta test the new PS Audio Chris Brunhaver subs.
I am already using two independent powered (1200-1500 watts) sealed subwoofers that each have 2 bass radiators.
At first I connected the subs via high speaker level and used the sub’s builtin active crossover.
But using 2 active crossovers (first from the preamp, then the subwoofer’ built in XO) didn’t sound as good as using an analog active 3-way XO that coordinated all three drivers (high, mid ,low) to make them all sound as one.
Also didn’t make sense to me to waste the amp powering the speaker level just to have the subwoofer cut out the unused frequencies; I feel it’s better to only send the frequencies that the sub can play , and use the unused power for more headroom for the other drivers.
my video:
Wow, a hifi 3-way analog active crossover is like an orchestra conductor-- Sublime Acoustics K231
The high-level connection to the amp is supposed to not draw current from the amp because of the impedance of the internal amps in the subwoofers. REL subs are ideal in not drawing current from the amp. I switched from using preamp outputs to the subs to using an active crossover between pre and power amps (with an output to a sub and output to the amp) to using the speakon connection to the sub from the amp outputs and running the main speakers full-range. The last configuration really opened up my system, way more than I thought it would, and is the method recommended by the elite members of this forum
Rumors are only as good as the source
Have you considered the Grimm LC1b’s as an alternative? Well reviewed by Stereophile.
I am considering a move to the FP 20 speakers after living with the very efficient (93-94 dB) Focal/JM Labs Mezzo Utopias for more than 20 years, which I feed with a Pass XA-25 amp and previously with 300B SETs until I decided I only wish to mess with tubes in my preamp now. I have some concerns about the XA-25 powering the FP-20s, but Stereophile measured it actually producing 130 watts into 4 ohms, so I think it should be fine, but would welcome other opinions. I also utilize dual REL S510 subs.
The volume level that you listen to music will help guide you. Get a decibel meter app for your phone if you do not already have one, and measure the decibels at 1 meter from your current speakers, using normal listening levels.
While my amp can pump out 250 watts into 8 and 500 watts into 4, I do not listen to music loud enough to use that power. I am under 1 watt for most listening with my FR20’s. I also have a 45 watt tube amp that I rotate into the system, and have not had any flashing lights indicating a maximum power draw, so the 45 watt tube amp is ok for my listening levels.
Caleb, one our our sales associates had a pass XA30.8 for a while. He was running FR10 porotypes (which has about a dB less sensitivity than the FR20). We were rocking out pretty loud and there was absolutely no shortage of power. However, something like 300B SETs at 8 watts or something are not nearly enough power.
We were recently doing some listening tests on a prototype amp where the current protection hadn’t been set correctly yet and so was artificially limiting the amplifier to about 40 watts of power. It’s surprising how loud the system can get but I was able to trip the protection playing loud bass music (EDM). Most of the time, you’ll only be using a few watts of power and the rest of the amplifier watts are just for the dynamic peaks or when you’re showing your system off to your neighbor or buddy when he comes over for the first time.
I am a (newly) retired Audiologist so of course I have both a dedicated sound pressure level meter and multiple apps on my iPhone which are surprisingly accurate. I often listen loud to rock, with dBA peaks hitting mid to upper 90’s at my listening seat, but because I have my speakers about a third of the way into the room from the front wall and my listening chair a good distance from the rear wall, I am only about 8 feet from the speakers (another reason I would opt for the FR20s over the FR30s is the semi-near-field listening position) so I also believe there should not be an issue with available power delivery. While one day I dream of a pair of Pass XA 60.8 mono-blocks, making just the speaker change requires careful budget consideration for someone like me who is just getting used to retirement and doesn’t have loads of free cash laying around. I was hoping to make the 570 mile round-trip from Dana Point to Las Vegas to audition the speakers and take my amp with me, but Lifestyle Audio has me in a holding pattern while they are in the process of moving their entire store. I was thinking I might be able to swing this using the trade-in and shipping offer PS Audio has on through the end of October.
Lol, I know that Chris, it is just your power recommendations are pretty conservative and not specified clearly. When my neighbor and friends listen and I give them the remote, it is often louder than I would like. My concern comes from your recommendation for a minimum of 50 watts, and requesting (and not receiving an answer) from PSA whether that is 50 watts into 8 ohms or the 4 ohms the speaker presents. Again, based upon Stereophile magazine’s actual measurements, the XA-25, while rated at 25 watts Class A, was putting out close to 70 watts into 8 ohms and 130 watts into 4 ohms. I am just trying to make an informed decision as just the Herculean task of getting the FR-20s up to my 2nd story and my even heavier speakers downstairs and packed up, is not to be taken for granted by someone in their 70s.
Wow, an audiologist! Ok, we’ll you understand this very well then.
We are a little non-specific in our rating because most power ratings standards for speakers are designed around professional use and compression or permanent damage, not sound quality.
With a 10’ listening distance, you can hit those mid-90’s peaks with around 50 watts from an FR20 and everything else is just headroom (where the average dynamic ranges and perceived loudness varies a lot by program material).
Thanks Chris. This is reinforcing my belief that I likely won’t feel the need to have to buy a new amp right away. My listening set-up is almost an 8 foot sided equilateral triangle with the distance from the speakers varying between 8 1/2 to 9 feet depending on from how high up I drop my butt into my listening seat 
that’s loud
That is for peaks, not average, but yes, I am accustomed to amplified music and set my levels accordingly. I listen primarily to Rock, Blues, male and female pop and folk, and to a lesser extent classical, rap, and jazz. I only measure level when I am aware that I am listening to loud levels, and being an Audiologist, I limit my exposure time and take breaks which facilitate recovery from metabolic exhaustion of the outer hair cells.
