Wilson audio Sasha DAW VS Focal Scala Utopia EVO Part 2
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- Опубліковано 5 жов 2024
- Part 2: this video will give you a better of idea of how both compare to each other. Both are now placed exactly where they need to be and I matched their volume with a sound decibel meter. Let me hear your comments below !
Extremely interesting for me.
I have a pair of Yvettes and Sopra 3s. I finally moved my Wilson's to be the back surrounds of my 7.1 setup and permanently moved my Focal Sopra's to be my main left and right channels.
For me your experiment and this video directly correlates to my situation but on a more expensive level for you.
To me both sets of speakers are wonderful. However the detail and the soundstage of the Focals are just much better than the Wilson's. Every time I hear Wilson speakers in comparison to Focals, the artist that I'm listening to seems to be further removed from my listening position. Almost like they're in a tunnel in the back. (That was too harsh a statement of course) The Focals just sound cleaner and as a bonus are easier to listen to at lower volume.
I will tell you though, my back channel surround sound speakers are now exceptional!
By the way I just subscribed to your Channel.
jesus christ its unbelievable how good these even sound on decent headphones over youtube. The scale of the sound coming out of speakers at this level is unreal
I prefer the Focals. Cleaner more neutral midrange. While it may not matter to some, if you look at the frequency response curve of the Sasha (see Stereophile review) there is a midrange depression. But as you said, both are fine choices!
Hate that bbc dip or any resemblance of it...No offense to this man's channel, but, Wilson speakers have always sounded bad because of this. At least 3 guys I've known (who've tuned their Wilsons to the nth degree apparently) use some dac/preamp/amp combo to boost the damn mids back!!! And they call it "synergy"!!! It is a moronic journey for some indeed.
@@wa2368 Sasha 1 is much better than Sasha 2. Also Scala III is better than EVO. If you invest into EVO setup maybe it would surpass Scala III but in majority of systems you don't have luxury to tweak it to the extreme to ripe on any benefits EVO may have over other model.
I prefer Focal in this case. Could be the cabling or system synergy but Focal sound more musical and bring out the emotion better.
It’s a really tough choice but I think it’s the Wilson Audio for me. At least in this video.
The song choice is excellent again.
To me the DAW sounds more composed and emotional.
Although the Focal sounds bigger and clearer I don’t think the voice and especially the piano sound as right as on the DAW. But maybe the results change when I hear them in person.
Firstly, I really enjoy your channel, so please keep it up. As far as the speakers go, I gave it 3 listens through and in the end, I personally preferred the Focals. The piano sounded more realistic, and they seemed to have a clearer overall presentation is my quick answer. It really seems to come down to the synergy between the components and the system as a whole though.
Again, I really like your channel, and thank you for taking us along for your journey.
I know both the focal and Wilson are great speakers but neither one is for me. I never really had good experience with beryllium but in this case I like the focal over the Wilson
Focals sound bloated with a constricted soundstage. I'm soon going to be building a dedicated listening room and have my sights on the Sasha DAW's driven by the D'agostino Progression Stereo amplifier.
definitely Focal has bigger soundstage and that s the biggest difference between the 2
I am using a pair of Celesion S 12 bought some 40 years ago driven by a Roksan Blak amp.Still working good.
I think Focal it's more aproach for real sound , but i can tell you ( and you known this ! ) it's a matter of system matching . Nice review , for test one ich other , it's perfect . I use B&W 800d2 . All the Best !
Wow, Focal was better by much in the soundstage and more natural sound.
For this track, I prefer the Wilson - the Focal makes the voice sound too big (I've had a similar experience with the B&W 800 D3 once), although its warmer sound is lovely (and I do love the Scala from personal experience) and the Wilson is almost a bit too bright for me, for the experience as a whole the Wilson does better IMO.
Would love to compare the two on a track I know well though. :)
Wow, I thought Wilson SASHA DAW was the end game speakers for me, but Focal just blew me away. Much bigger sound stage, the bass is fuller, and more air and transparency. I'm impressed and have to reconsider my dream speakers.
This is a very interesting exercise. I queued up the music video of this lovely composition to compare it to the Wilsons and Focal. For me, the Wilsons sound a bit thin and the Focals somewhat bloated compared to the music video. The tonal balance on the Wilsons seemed a bit more accurate but I am not sure if I am listening to the same source as the author is using. Between the Wilsons and the Focals, in this case, I prefer the fuller sound of the Focals. I have some Wilson Watt Puppies, Monitor Gold 10" Tannoys, Vandersteen 2CEs and some good old Gales that I split time between. The most listened to speakers in my house are Apple Home Pods.
Wilson is my favorite speaker😍😍😍
Wow,...here we have two different worlds, thanks man for this video.👍
nice comparison
i k
like choosing focal ,vocal more emotion. we get the music overall .
Wow , it's incredible how the listening changes between the speakers, even through a youtube recording ... sounds almost like 2 different songs, or covers at least. Both sets where excellent as you said, just comes down to choice. For me the Sasha Daw would be perfect for music, it seems so focus, so true or natural...and the tone..., giving you the feeling that you're right there ... The Focal on the other hand, would be perfect for movies and cinema, it has a smoother sound to me, more surrounding, but more "layed back". Though choice...... If you have the pockets to even consider such systems
In my opinion. The Focal is much more clear . Much more natural and transparent .Go TO 10:00 in time where the Focal replace the Wilson.
Thanks a lot, excellent comparison
My pleasure!
Well, I have to say, that for purely vocals, the Focal Scala Utopias, win hands down. The Wilson Sasha's were a little to crisp or had too much light lightheartedness, or whatever. However, with total overall sonic reproduction, the Sashas are probably the better product, all things being equal, in which the rarely are; meaning, it's your total system, especially cables, power supply, power treatment system, and music processor. Great listening test...
I prefer the scala the piano is more real i do own focal sopra 2 which are good but utopia are better
And yes the focal are better away from back wall but you can put skyline difusors behind the speaker and place the speaker closer to the wall.
Absolutely beautiful sound. Can’t go wrong with either, but I prefer the sound from the Sasha.
Слушая wilson у меня бегут мурашки.. С Focal такого чувства нет.. Рафинированный звук, кричащий яркий.. В своё время как раз не выбрал focal из этого... Прошли года, не ошибся я в своём выборе
OK cool.
This demo made me a subscriber Jay. I have listened to both sets of speakers in person. The Scala Utopia is a more dynamic speaker with great low extension and transparency on the highs. Their mid-range and sound-stage is very good, but the Sasha Daw is far superior in these areas. Jay, great work on this demo capturing the sound and extension in your large space. I completely agree with you these are both excellent speakers. The Focals are a bit more room friendly, and will likely appeal to those who listen to dynamic music genres (pop, rock, hip hop). But if your music preference is acoustical (all jazz, symphonic and vocal solos as in the demo, then the Sasha DAW are the better choice. I was mesmerized for 45 minutes when I listen to the DAWs back in February. I can't afford either, but if I could it would be Wilson Audio's fabulous Sasha DAWs all day every day, thanks.
Unfortunately the Focal plays much louder in this clip. So much that the recording equipment is even trying to compress the sound to prevent clipping. This makes it really hard for me to value the sound difference. Also because louder initially seems more impressive. That said main focus on the DAW's seems to be midrange and main focus on the EVO's is bass and treble. The last one sounds to me a bit v-shaped and the opposite to the first one. I would have to listen i real life and a lot of music to choose my favorite
Put on the spikes for Sasha to produce a full spectrum of sound. You can't run fast without good shoes in a sprint.
The casters are for easy to move to test for the best position in set up. Full capacity of Sasha only shines when spikes on.
Wilson. Within the first few notes I knew. Wilson’s literally made me say “wow”. Focal just leans a little on the bright side for me.
The winner goes to Wilson! Kkkkkkk Focal is fantastic! Aber tough choice both are incredible! I heard again and somehow Focal is better in this case! Focal is a winner! More sound stage, more bright and rich in details!
Wow, this is a tough one. the Wilson sure has a big bold 3 dimensional sound, probably would overwhelm a small room, the Focal seems cleaner though,
The Wilson's have that sultry sound I like.
I prefer the Focals. The top and mids are just so good with it. The bass is not as present but still very good. The Sasha is a bit heavy on the bass. I'd really have to hear them in person though to talk on sound stage and the rest.
What is/was the dimension of the room? What distance was the speakers placed? Did you happen to try each pair in different locations within the room? Curious if they sounded more different from one another in different locations within the room ????
For me it doesn't sound like one is better than the other, but rather like two different philosophy. It's about what kind of sound you like.
The Focal is probably more of a "purist" and probably fit more the "audiophile speaker" description. I believe that a sound engineer looking for studio speakers will choose the Focal over the Wilson with no hesitation. You actually see a lot of Focal's in studios. That say, I'm convinced that a lot of peoples will prefer the Wilson sound for their HiFi system and might actually dislike the Focal.
Focal was more composed and has a better definition from the first note onwards….
Sasha. The midrange of the Focal sounds too synthetic.
Do I hear hint of Sasha finesse & smoothness coming through on the vocals where as Focal's high notes distracted me from enjoying the vocal smoothness? In my humble opinion the width, the clarity and dynamic range goes to Focals but is it too clinical... If your system allows option of taming the Focals via. equalization, tone control etc. then maybe Focals. Based on this brilliant demo and my easily fatigued ears I'm leaning toward the Sasha but am very curious to match up my tube system with the Focals. Individual preference.
I find the opposite - the Sasha sounds rolled off and dull compared to the Focal's smoothness and accuracy.
unlike most of your other comparisons I could actually tell a difference on my crappy car stereo this time.
Focals sounded much more intimate, in your face, present, etc blah blah blah. probably more neutral. the wilson audio was distant and seemed to have a little less treble.
I actually liked the tonality of the wilson slightly better but technically speaking the focals are just better for like actual listening
Hi jay , I am also interested in the Sasha Daw too . What amps would you recommend ? I’ m thinking of the McIntosh c1100c+t , MC901 combo ?! Thanks
60- 40 Wilson's for my taste. They both incredible but for my ears I can listen to the Wilson's all day but I can't say that about the Focal' to my ears the Focal just so smooth , so clear so too much of the good thing, it runs through me .
Jay ,you're a fine man ,always seems to care for the others while the world is dealing with the Pandemic. Thanks for taking the time to share ,the world needs more people like yourself.
Thank you so much for your kind words. I appreciate it very much.
Agree. In THIS comparison, with this equipment, it's the Wilsons by a nose. (I like a little more midrange as presented by Sasha). Great stuff that dreams are made of either way.
Who is the female vocalist, wow !
For me the Wilson wins, no contest. I admit I came to this with a bias against the Focal as I have been disappointed every time I hear them in person. I clearly heard the same thing here. The Focal is bloated, smeared. Like Vaseline is smeared on the window. Vs the Wilson the sound shining through an open window. There is a clean clear sound from the Wilson that is missing. A lot of low level info is simply missing in the Focal. I get why lot's of people like the Focal. I think they make everything sound OK. We all have a lot of bad recordings and they will not sound as bad on the Focal as on the Wilson. But if you are spending over $100k you should be hearing the music, not a bloated facsimile. You went to all the trouble to have the DCS with the clock giving exceptionally precise reproduction of the recorded music... then the Focal smears it just in case you don't like what is recorded? No way!
@@TascamTascam Handy tip. If you try to call someone stupid, check your spelling!
It is difficult to judge without being in the same room of this presentation. It is more difficult because I’m a Sasha DAW owner and my opinion can be biased by my personal experiences with these speakers. I agree with you that the Focals have a bigger sound. But, in terms of resolution and fidelity, Wilson’s speakers are in a step ahead.
Jay, have you compared the Focals with the Sabrina X ?
focal sound better
On your phone?
the focal sounds like the sasha 1. that's why i love the sasha 1
OK
Hey Jay, How are you. I interested in buying the Wilson Sasha DAW's Can I send you some mp3 files and you can do a video of how they sound. It would help me choose if its the right speaker for me or if I should buy the Focal Stella Utopias
Also high power tube amp brings Sasha up to a higher level.
Focal !!
I prefer the Wilson’s, I found the Focals too bright, pushing my treble tolerance.
IN THIS LEVEL, WILSON & FOCAL BOTH PLAYED VERY WELL HERE WITH THEIR RESPECTED ELECTRONICS. BUT FOR ME I CHOOSE WILSON SASHA DAW!! WHY?? BECAUSE DAW IS MORE ACCURATE ON VOCALS & INSTRUMENTS. YOU CAN EASILY TO FOLLOW THE INSTRUMENTS AS WELL AS THE VOCAL. WILSON GOT WAY BETTER SEPARATION WHICH IS VERY IMPORTANT TO ME. WILSON IS SUCH A SPEAKER YOU CAN LISTEN LONGER WITH LOWER VOLUME & STILL GET SATISFACTION AS IT SHOULD BE!! HERE FOCAL IS LARGER THEN LIFE SOUNDSTAGE STAGE & I BELIEVE WHICH CAN CREATE FATIGUE AFTER SOME LISTENING. WILSON IS PRECISION & FOCAL IS SMOOTH BUT SOMETIMES HARSH!! TANKS AGAIN!! BYE👍😊😊
Does the Scala Evo work in small spaces like an apartment approx 150sq ft? Realize it is pretty trick that the speaker response can be altered based on the room you place them in.
I would say yes
0:58 Use the WASP set-up for the Wilsons.
Definitely wilson .
I think now what i hear i go for the Sasha. I think the hights of the tweeter from the Focals its a bit to much for my, but i'm not sure. A have a Mark Levinson 532h two channel amp, what do you think its a good match, Dynaudio, Revel, B&W, or maby Focals? Greetings from the Netherlands
Revel is good with Mark Levinson
@@jaysaudiolab oke thanks!
What subs are they in the corner?
For this music track which has a lot of mids/highs, I would choose the Wilson since its midrange driver sounds more natural to me. The Focal is slightly brighter/forward sounding than the Wilson.
I own Focal (Stella Utopia) so I'm partial to their sound. Wilsons have sound advantages over Focal only when you move up the range...(in my humble opinion)
hector alvarez
Need help Hector , my room size is 6.6 meters long x 5 m wide x 2.5 m high . Is Stella too big for my room ???
dreuro100 -your room is similar to mine ...just a bit shorter. The room to include ceiling will require some treatment, and you will need to play with the many available adjustments, but it should be ok. They don’t like to be near walls (side or back). I have Stella Utopia...not Grande BTW
@@hectoralvarez941 Grande is out of my budget but Stella is my target . Tanks for your answer.
@Jay’s Audio Lab Would you choose Focal Scala over Wilson Audio Alexia 2? In my particular case, the Alexia 2’s are only $5k more expensive.
No I wouldn't choose it over.
Jay's Audio Lab Thank you. Would you lay out an extra $8k to go from Alexia 2 to Utopia Maestro? It’s impossible to listen to both in a similar room with similar gear :(
@@monstermind1976 hard to say...too many factors involved such as the system and supporting gear
Jay's Audio Lab I’ll probably end up with Dan D’Agostino Momentum Integrated + dCS Rossini (I only stream Tidal).
Hmmm, GNP Valkiere's?
Wilson Audio Sasha is better in all respect. Better dynamics and overall coherent. Focal Scala Utopia is nicer looking but the sound is not realistic in performance.
It’s focal no contest
I could hear 2nd and 4rd reflections
doono i like the wilson more through my phone speaker
But Elac Concentro M is a better speaker....
Well thats a tough one Jay,like both of what are they doing,but i still like the Wilsons a bit more,the Wilsons have a bit more energy,the Focals a more stable,so you know its tough.
It's a close race, but I prefer the DAW's presentation. More focused and believable vocals and a bit more "meat on the bones" from Wilson. A little more information from Focal which I think I would not miss in long listening sessions with regular music. The song doesn't have any bass (drum kit) to speak of and how they reproduce a drum kit would also help me decide.
Of course the Wilsons, Piano was full scale size, holographic in nature, was real, vocals have more flesh and meat on the bones. More space and air.. Height along with musicality. Focal's were studio and the Wilsons more live and musical. It is a personal preference. The way your setup is, I would not be able to listen to the Focal's for hours. Front end and wires would have to change and possibly the hand shake between the amp and speakers for the Scala's.
Focal is flat, Wilson has more depth. I give a vote to Wilson.
Frankly speaking they both sounded colored and just not right here. Strange. I would prefer the Wilson (heard both on various occasions) but in this video none of the two was convincing.
I perceive some coloration with the Focal: Her voice sounds somewhat nasal (!). Perhaps some error in recording setup?! AND why not record and upload in 4k? Then in 4k you should get the optimal sound quality on UA-cam (according the UA-camr "Pursuit Perfect System" ).
No 720p is already max on audio.
Could the angle of the sacha's tilt them a bit back to get a taller bigger sound stage?
I might try that some day
Jay's Audio Lab tried it on my Martin logans request, had to put them as leveled as possible left right front rear or else the stage and or the singer’s mouth can big as the speakers...
Focal better
The focals actually hurt my ears an the sasha is far too agressive -in your face type sounding speakers. The C4s are so much better.
Thanks for your upload.
focal is much brighter
Wilson
Focal more pure sound
Wow .. what ever...
sasha for me thx
Dayum! Both sound wonderful 😳
Wilson Audio
ua-cam.com/video/BiAP9ucfFzY/v-deo.html
wilson audio is a joke.
Wilson Sasha DAW are far far superior.
wilsons not even close Focals have a nasal sound on voice