Small satellites as surrounds - Focal Dome Flax or Gallo Micro

[bkdc]

I’m running RAAL towers and a Duo Ribbon center but I’m looking for aesthetically subtle appearing surrounds with decent sound. I am looking at Focal Dome Flax satellites and Gallo Micro SE satellites for surrounds and ceiling channels. I doubt there will be a perfect timbre match but as long as the sound is reasonable, aesthetics may win over perfect timbre. Has anyone tried the Gallos or Focals with their Ascend setup?

I love my Ascends but with my current situation it may make sense to get the Focal Aria 900 center channel and run the dome satellites for L R and surrounds/ceilings unless we move soon. It would make me sad to part with my Ascends.

[natetg57]

I’m running RAAL towers and a Duo Ribbon center but I’m looking for aesthetically subtle appearing surrounds with decent sound. I am looking at Focal Dome Flax satellites and Gallo Micro SE satellites for surrounds and ceiling channels. I doubt there will be a perfect timbre match but as long as the sound is reasonable, aesthetics may win over perfect timbre. Has anyone tried the Gallos or Focals with their Ascend setup?

I love my Ascends but with my current situation it may make sense to get the Focal Aria 900 center channel and run the dome satellites for L R and surrounds/ceilings unless we move soon. It would make me sad to part with my Ascends.

I would keep the Ascends up front and try the smaller surrounds. I think they will match well enough.

[curtis]

I would keep the Ascends up front and try the smaller surrounds. I think they will match well enough.
But I wonder how high the crossover will have to be for the smaller surrounds, and if it will cause any issues with being able to locate sounds coming from the subwoofer.

[N Boros]

But I wonder how high the crossover will have to be for the smaller surrounds, and if it will cause any issues with being able to locate sounds coming from the subwoofer.

The Focal dome flax speakers have a -3dB point at 80Hz. They will crossover just fine with a subwoofer especially since they are going to be wall mounted. Focal’s are pretty neutral speakers so I think they will blend just fine with the Ascend speakers. Definitely keep the Ascend’s up front and just use those Focal’s as surrounds.

The Luna’s and HTM 200’s are also quite compact and easy to wall mount. Why go with Focal’s over one of those choices from Ascend?

[curtis]

Thanks...wonder of that -3dB point at 80Hz is accurate.

Lunas are pretty small...and would be a great option.

[bkdc]

Thanks...wonder of that -3dB point at 80Hz is accurate.

Lunas are pretty small...and would be a great option.

Pretty phenomenal claim for the size, right? I’m looking for something smaller and more subtle than the Lunas. Small dome white satellites would blend in with my interior so the Gallos and Focal domes are on the radar.

Low frequency extension is not a big priority. I’m running dual subs so I have no issues regarding low frequency extension on satellite/surrounds. I also don’t care about it on main speakers because it makes speaker placement much easier…. Place the high quality mains where I care and then deal with low frequency sub placement separately.

[davef]

Thanks...wonder of that -3dB point at 80Hz is accurate.

Lunas are pretty small...and would be a great option.

I can tell you right now that the -3dB point for the Focal Dome Flax is not even remotely possible. It is a physical impossibility for any speaker with a 4" woofer in a sealed enclosure of that size to have a -3dB point that low combined with an 88dB sensitivity rating. More likely, this satellite will start rolling off at around 150Hz and lower sensitivity.

Actually, a quick search brought up measurements from S&V. -3dB is 133Hz and sensitivity looks to be ~ 83dB. These specs are realistic for this size speakers...

Based on these measurements, I would not use these speakers.

[curtis]

Pretty phenomenal claim for the size, right? I’m looking for something smaller and more subtle than the Lunas. Small dome white satellites would blend in with my interior so the Gallos and Focal domes are on the radar.

Low frequency extension is not a big priority. I’m running dual subs so I have no issues regarding low frequency extension on satellite/surrounds. I also don’t care about it on main speakers because it makes speaker placement much easier…. Place the high quality mains where I care and then deal with low frequency sub placement separately.
It isn't the overall low frequency extension of the system, it is the high crossover point. This will cause the sound from the subs because of the high crossover point (>120hz) to be localizable....not good if you want the sounds to be coming from the surrounds.

[bkdc]

It isn't the overall low frequency extension of the system, it is the high crossover point. This will cause the sound from the subs because of the high crossover point (>120hz) to be localizable....not good if you want the sounds to be coming from the surrounds.

I had the chance to buy new Flax Domes at half MSRP but from a functional perspective you are correct. After searching, I may have I found myself an alternative. SVS Prime satellites are available in gloss white and are slightly smaller than the Luna which will have a high WAF.

You're right that I should try to keep the Sierra Towers up front! I had sold them once before and I ended up purchasing another pair the following year out of regret as I missed the airy transparency of the tweeters. Once you've heard them, it is so difficult to listen to something else. Aside from the limited vertical listening window which is an issue if I'm listening to music while walking around the room, it is such an ideal speaker.

[N Boros]

I had the chance to buy new Flax Domes at half MSRP but from a functional perspective you are correct. After searching, I may have I found myself an alternative. SVS Prime satellites are available in gloss white and are slightly smaller than the Luna which will have a high WAF.

You're right that I should try to keep the Sierra Towers up front! I had sold them once before and I ended up purchasing another pair the following year out of regret as I missed the airy transparency of the tweeters. Once you've heard them, it is so difficult to listen to something else. Aside from the limited vertical listening window which is an issue if I'm listening to music while walking around the room, it is such an ideal speaker.

Those are much better choices than the Focal’s. It seems Focal let the marketing department give the specs for the speakers rather than anyone even remotely knowledge about the specs. The prime satellites should have accurate specs, from the manufacturer and would work fine. I think the Lunas look better and would match better overall sound wise, but I realize the price of the SVS speakers is probably a big factor here.

[petmotel]

I bought a couple pairs of the SVS Elevation speakers for Atmos height speakers. I played a pair full range in a stereo configuration, and they sounded pretty good except for the port chuffing that was extremely annoying. Properly crossed over at 80hz, they no longer exhibited the port noise. In their limited assignment as Atmos height speakers, I found the Elevations to be a good fit.

If the quality of the sound field is truly important to you (and some may not be terribly picky about this aspect), I don't find a dome tweeter to match up well with a ribbon equipped front stage. Especially if 5.1 or 7.1 music tracks will be a substantial part of the system usage (for instance Blu-Ray concerts), I'd highly recommend a full ribbon complement at ear level. I'm not sure others feel the same way, until you hear a surround sound field done right, I would suggest you don't know what you're missing.

WAF will dissipate once a woman (who usually has better hearing than her male counterpart) gets to indulge in a truly magnificent surround experience.

Standard legal disclaimer applies to my comments,

Jay

[bkdc]

I can understand the implementation for rear channels with ribbon monitors if listening to Auro 3D music or a multi-channel SACD but the limited vertical dispersion of the ribbon is a real minus for ceiling channels as I'd want broad dispersion to hit all potential viewer locations. I'm tempted to try the Klipsch RP-500SA as reflective Atmos enabled speakers and see how much ceiling reflection I can get.

You don't know my wife. She could care less. She is happy with built-in speakers in the TV.

[Pogre]

You're right that I should try to keep the Sierra Towers up front! I had sold them once before and I ended up purchasing another pair the following year out of regret as I missed the airy transparency of the tweeters. Once you've heard them, it is so difficult to listen to something else. Aside from the limited vertical listening window which is an issue if I'm listening to music while walking around the room, it is such an ideal speaker.

I hear you about missing your towers man. I had mine for a few months and had to go without for a couple of weeks so I hooked my old towers back up while I waited and was immediately taken back at the difference. My Ultra towers that I loved for so long sounded fuzzy and etched compared to my Sierras with RAALS. I had never thought that about my Ultras! I know it's an old canard but... my wife even noticed. I looked over at her and she was sitting there with a frown and her nose wrinkled.

We eventually acclimated and got used to it again, but it's pretty clear we've been spoiled, lol.

I think those Prime Sats will work out pretty well for you. Like you said unless you're listening to a lot of multichannel music effect speakers don't really get that much critical action outside the occasional whiz, bang or s'plosion.