Focal News.

The N.J. Cugnot secondary school for vocational training (automobile profession pole), situated in Neuilly sur Marne (93), set up a project centred on a customized vehicle, a Peugeot 205, fully mended (from the body, to the mechanics, the engine and the inside). This ambitious project has mobilized about fifteen teachers and eighty pupils as well.

In October 2006, the finalization phase is close but an essential point hasn’t seen the light yet, through lack of means for this State school: the Hi-Fi installation.

That’s when Focal has decided to help these passionate young people along and has become a partner of the creation. The vehicle is therefore equipped with a Focal Power FP 5.500 amplifier, a 2-way K2 POWER 130 KF kit in the front, Polyglass 130 CV1 coaxial kit at the rear and a K2 POWER 33 KX subwoofer in a sealed enclosure of 40 Litres.

We are proud to have taken part in the realization of this project and helped these pupils to express their talents.

You will find any information on this school on this website:
http://boursinp.free.fr/

From now on, the original "S-I-B" of "Small Is Beautiful" can as well be "Smart In Black".

Black being a very hot present trend for flat screens and Focal products, the Jet Black finish now arrives on the scene. It harmoniously combines brilliant black and matte black Nextel to create a logical and natural aesthetic evolution for Sib & Co.
If we preferred not to technically modify this series, it was simply because this loudspeaker product had been received so well by journalists. In both stereo and home theatre modes, Sib & Co collected an impressive quantity of trophies in France and around the world, some of them being particularly prestigious.


Sib, "Smart In Black"
Since 2002, Sib has watched the passing of many generations of its competitors’ disposable speakers. It first evolved with a small aesthetic change (2004 with the Technic version) and now this more radical change of the Jet Black 2007 finish. While the majority of competitors play latest "pin-up" of the month, Sib just keeps making beautiful music! For this reason, Sib has great lasting power, and this leads to its increasing success from year to year as it becomes a truly indisputable reference in its genre.
Sib keeps its agile stand that acts as a mini bracket-stand. It can be used for an installation on a bookshelf or as an adjustable and attachable wall bracket, thanks to the included Allen key. The dedicated 35" (90cm) high Hip stand in steel is renewed as well. In Jet Black version obviously.

Sib XL: Sib size, XL performance!
The "Small Is Beautiful" XL version was designed from the start to accompany wide plasma and LCD screens whilst offering a sound quality to match that of the video. Produced in 5mm thick ABS, Sib XL can be attached to the wall (like a flat panel) thanks to its wall mounting system called Polyfix. It can be as well placed on furniture thanks to its stand Jet Black Bop. Or even installed on the dedicated 35" (90cm) high Jet Black Hop stand. Despite the Sib size, the performance is indeed XL. Used in stereo thanks to its excellent bass performance, the Sib XL is the definition of power in surround, especially when combined with the Cub2 subwoofer.

Cub2 : bass performance... squared!
The Cub2 is a compact subwoofer. But great power lies within: 150 Watts of BASH® to drive a 8" (21cm) woofer. The remarkable performance and build quality are maintained to ensure powerful bass performance in rooms up to 30m2.

The year 2006 was marked by the numerous awards granted to Focal products.
First decoration and not the least, the International Design and Engineering Award given to the Utopia Be N°7 kit right from the start of the year, in January.
Then comes the turn of the European continent, through Germany, to underline the performance of the line. The Utopia Be N°6 kit wins the first place in the rankings of the high-range speaker category (referenzklasse) in the CAR & HIFI magazine. (Download the article)
Another reference magazine, Auto Hifi , also from Germany, goes even further by giving the historical mark of 95 points over 100 for the Utopia Be N°7 kit which is thus ranked first in the 16.5cm kit category. Auto Hifi has then opened the vote to the ardent supporters of the magazine. As for them, they have decided to grant the Readers’ Price to the Utopia Be N°6 kit. At the end of the year, thanks to the Japanese Auto Sound magazine, Asia has put forward the tremendous technological challenge taken up by the Utopia Beryllium line by giving the Speaker of the Year Award to the N°7 kit (Download the article)


Download the Utopia Be press review
Maxi Tuning (France) Utopia Be n°6 – July 2005

Boost Tuning (France) 21 WX – September 2006

Autohifiworld (Germany) Utopia Be N°5 – February 2005

Autohifi (Germany) Utopia Be N°7 – April 2005

Autohifi (Germany) Utopia Be N°6 – September 2005

The recent `Le March` inetriors trade show held in Egypt is an important event for promoting quality Hi-Fi and Home Cinema installations. Focal`s exclusive distributor Nirvana Distribution presented a wide range of Focal products to Egyptian trade and public visitors.