Focal
There are loudspeakers that produce sound. And there is Focal, which transforms sound into emotion. Since 1979, this French house has been designing and manufacturing loudspeakers from Saint-Étienne that are regarded by audiophile connoisseurs and sound engineers worldwide as the absolute reference point for musical purity. From the legendary Grande Utopia to the invisible 1000 Series in-wall speakers: Focal combines groundbreaking driver technology, artisanal production and impeccable design in every product that leaves its workshops.
At Integration At Home, we integrate Focal loudspeakers as the acoustic backbone of your smart home and home cinema. Every Focal speaker is professionally positioned, amplified and controlled via your Control4 or KNX system, so you enjoy reference-level sound that seamlessly moves with your daily life.
The Story of Focal – From Workshop to World Brand
What followed was four decades of uninterrupted innovation. The DB 13 bookshelf speaker revolutionised the segment with Polyglass and Polykevlar cone technology. The Grande Utopia, launched in the nineties, was hailed by the international audiophile press as a technological and aesthetic masterpiece. In 2002, Focal introduced the beryllium tweeter — only the second time ever that this exceptional material was applied in a tweeter. Beryllium is seven times stiffer than titanium and delivers a virtually flat frequency response up to 40 kHz.
In 2011, Focal merged with Naim Audio, the prestigious British brand for hi-fi electronics. The Vervent Audio Group that emerged from this merger combined the acoustic mastery of Focal with the electronic precision of Naim. In 2022, the group achieved a turnover of 156 million euros with more than 430 employees.
Focal was recognised in 2014 as an Entreprise du Patrimoine Vivant, an official French recognition for exceptional artisanal craftsmanship. Since January 2024, Focal has been a member of the prestigious Comité Colbert, which represents more than 90 French luxury brands.
All high-end products are manufactured in-house at the factories in Saint-Étienne and the cabinet workshop in Bourbon-Lancy. Made in France is not a marketing slogan at Focal — it is an ideology.
Technological Innovation – The Soul of Focal
Focal distinguishes itself through an impressive portfolio of patented driver technologies, all developed and produced in-house.
Beryllium Tweeter
The flagship of Focal’s innovation. Beryllium is seven times stiffer than titanium and extremely light, allowing sound waves to travel 2.5 times faster than through aluminium or titanium. The result is a tweeter with a virtually flat frequency response up to 40 kHz. Production takes place in a hermetically sealed room where employees wear protective suits due to the toxicity of the material in powder form. These extreme production requirements partly explain why beryllium tweeters are found exclusively in the very highest segments of the audio industry.
W-Sandwich Cone
Focal’s signature W cone consists of two layers of fibreglass on either side of a structural foam core. This sandwich construction optimises three crucial parameters simultaneously: low weight, high rigidity and excellent damping. The result is an extremely linear frequency response with minimal distortion and complete transparency in the midrange and low frequencies.
Flax Cone
A revolutionary application of natural flax as a cone material. The Flax cone combines the rigidity of synthetic materials with the natural damping properties of plant fibres. Warm, natural and musical sound that performs exceptionally well in the midrange.
Slatefiber Cone
Focal’s newest cone technology, consisting of recycled carbon fibres that form a non-woven composite. Slatefiber offers a perfect balance between rigidity and damping for detailed, dynamic sound with excellent impulse response.
TAM Tweeter
The TAM tweeter (Tuned Aluminium/Magnesium) with its characteristic M-shaped profile extends the frequency response, improves dispersion and lowers distortion. Present in the Vestia, Omada and Theva series.
TMD and IHL
TMD technology uses an additional mass that oscillates in opposition to the resonance frequency to minimise distortion. IHL loads the rear of the beryllium tweeter via a small cavity for measurably lower distortion.
The Speaker Lines – From Audiophile to Home Cinema
Focal offers an exceptionally broad range of loudspeakers, from standalone hi-fi masterpieces to fully invisible built-in solutions.
Utopia – The Absolute Reference
The Utopia line represents the very highest that Focal can offer. The Grande Utopia EM goes through more than 600 production steps and requires three months of build time. Every Utopia loudspeaker is equipped with beryllium tweeters, W-sandwich cones and the most advanced cabinet constructions. Destined for listeners for whom the very best is the only acceptable option.
Sopra – Performance Without Compromise
The Sopra line excels across all sound registers thanks to Focal’s most advanced technologies. The Sopra No.2 features a beryllium tweeter reaching up to 40 kHz, a 6.5-inch midrange driver with NIC and TMD technology, and two 7-inch woofers delivering bass down to 34 Hz. The Gamma Structure anti-vibration cabinet and Helmholtz resonators minimise distortion.
Kanta – Personality in Sound
With their Flax cone and unconventional design, the Kanta loudspeakers are full of personality. Matte front finish, coloured lacquered side panels and hi-fi sound: the Kanta gives both your music and your interior a distinctive style. Available as bookshelf (No.1), floorstanding (No.2 and No.3) and centre speaker.
Vestia – Made in France
The Vestia line reveals the purity of the Focal sound through five products manufactured in France with technologies from the higher series. With TAM tweeters and Slatefiber cones, the Vestia loudspeakers offer direct access to the Focal universe.
Aria EVO X
The renewed Aria EVO X line combines Focal’s Flax cone technology with an updated design. Available as bookshelf, floorstanding, centre and surround, Aria EVO X forms a versatile foundation for both stereo and full surround sound.
Theva
The Theva line is Focal’s gateway to the world of hi-fi, with models that benefit from the expertise of the higher series and a model with Dolby Atmos effects.
Omada
The newer Omada line positions itself between Theva and Vestia with TAM tweeters and Slatefiber cones in a high-gloss black finish with curved front panel.
Custom Installation – The Focal 1000 Series and 300 Series
For Integration At Home, Focal’s custom installation range is of particular importance. These in-wall speakers disappear completely into your walls and ceilings while delivering the sound level you expect from Focal.
1000 Series – Utopia-Level Behind Your Wall
The 1000 Series is Focal’s flagship line for custom installation. Three years of R&D resulted in seven products that combine the very best of Focal’s technology with total installation flexibility.
The IWLCR Utopia is the centrepiece: a three-way in-wall loudspeaker with seven drivers, including a beryllium tweeter, two W-cone midrange drivers with M-profile and four W-cone bass drivers. The rotatable d’Appolito configuration can be aimed at the listening position. Jumpers on the front panel provide independent level control per driver section. The IWLCR Utopia can be paired with one to six IWSUB Utopia in-wall subwoofers for full-range capability.
The series further includes the IWLCR6, the IW6, and three ceiling models: the ICLCR5 with adjustable swivel plate for Dolby Atmos, the ICW6 and the ICA6 with 35° angle. All models feature magnetic, paintable grilles. The ceiling models use Focal’s Easy Quick Install system.
300 Series – Flax for Every Room
The 300 Series offers high-quality built-in speakers with Focal’s Flax cone technology for those who do not need the absolute top level of the 1000 Series but still want the DNA of Focal in every room. The same form factors as the 1000 Series make a future upgrade straightforward.
Home Cinema with Focal – The Ultimate Cinema Experience
Astral 16 – The Conductor
The Focal Astral 16 is a 16-channel AV processor and amplifier that gets the very best out of your Focal loudspeakers. Built on the Storm Audio platform, the Astral 16 delivers 200 watts per channel across 12 channels simultaneously. With Dirac Live room correction and support for Dolby Atmos and DTS:X, this is the nerve centre of a reference home cinema.
Utopia Cinema
The new Utopia Cinema line is exclusively designed for home cinema with LCR loudspeakers and subwoofers that deliver the sound level and dynamics that blockbuster films demand, combined with the musical finesse for which Focal is celebrated worldwide.
Sib Evo and Mu-so Hekla
The Sib Evo range offers compact surround packages with Dolby Atmos support in 5.1 and 5.1.2 configurations. The Mu-so Hekla is an all-in-one immersive system with 15 integrated loudspeakers, 600 watts of power and Dolby Atmos technology for spectacular sound reproduction from a single elegant device.
Focal in Your Smart Home – The IAHome Integration
Control4 Integration
Via the Control4 X4 OS, you control your Focal installation from the same interface as your lighting, climate and security. The Astral 16 processor and Naim streaming amplifiers are linked to your Control4 system for unified control via touchscreens, the Halo Remote or Siri. One press on Movie Night: the Delta Light spots dim, the curtains close, the Barco projector starts and your Focal 1000 Series system activates the correct Dolby Atmos configuration.
Multiroom with Focal and Bluesound
Focal hi-fi loudspeakers in your main listening room, Bluesound multiroom throughout the rest of the house — all controlled via the same Control4 ecosystem. In the living room, you listen to the Focal Sopras powered by Naim amplification. In the kitchen, the same playlist plays via Bluesound. Seamless, synchronised and intuitive to operate.
Amplification and Sources
Focal loudspeakers perform at their best with high-quality amplification. We advise and install Naim amplifiers as the natural partner of Focal, but also integrate amplification from other brands that suit your specific configuration. Streaming sources such as Apple Music, Spotify Connect, Tidal and Qobuz are made directly available via your Control4 interface or Naim streaming platform.
Why Focal at Integration At Home
Focal loudspeakers are precision instruments that only reveal their full potential when correctly placed, amplified and tuned to your space. A Focal 1000 IWLCR Utopia that is incorrectly positioned or underpowered delivers a fraction of what it can.
At Integration At Home, we guide the entire process. We advise on the right Focal line for your space, budget and listening habits. We calculate the optimal speaker position, amplifier pairing and acoustic treatment. We install everything with an eye for aesthetics: paintable grilles that blend into your walls, invisible cabling and cabinetry that seamlessly matches your interior.
And we programme your complete system in Control4 or KNX so that reference-level sound is available with a single press.
French craftsmanship, Belgian integration. That is what perfection sounds like.
Frequently Asked Questions about Focal
Yes. Focal was founded in 1979 in Saint-Étienne, France by Jacques Mahul. The company designs, develops and produces all its high-end products in France: the drivers and loudspeakers in Saint-Étienne, the cabinets in Bourbon-Lancy. Focal is recognised as an Entreprise du Patrimoine Vivant and has been a member of the Comité Colbert, the association of French luxury brands, since 2024.
Focal offers a layered range. The Utopia line is the absolute top level with beryllium tweeters and W-sandwich cones. Sopra combines beryllium tweeters with advanced cabinet constructions for a slightly more accessible reference level. Kanta uses Flax cones with a more expressive design. Vestia and Aria EVO X bring Focal technology to a wider audience. Theva and Omada form the entry point. The 1000 Series and 300 Series are specifically designed for installation in walls and ceilings.
Absolutely. At Integration At Home, we integrate Focal amplifiers, processors and streamers into your Control4 system. The Focal Astral 16 and Naim amplifiers are controlled via Control4 for one unified operation of your complete home cinema and multiroom audio. Lighting scenes, curtain control and audio scenes work together in automated routines.
The 1000 Series combines Utopia-level technology with complete invisibility. The IWLCR Utopia contains seven drivers including a beryllium tweeter, offers modular subwoofer pairing of up to six units per channel, and has adjustable driver levels for perfect tuning to your room. All models have magnetic, paintable grilles. The result is reference home cinema sound without any visible loudspeaker.
Contact us by phone on 0487/59.46.38 or email cedric@iahome.be. We schedule a listening session in our showroom where you can experience various Focal configurations. Based on your space, requirements and budget, we put together a proposal that integrates Focal loudspeakers into your complete smart home concept. From design to acoustic calibration: one point of contact for a flawless installation.
