New flagship speaker line builds on Focal heritage
CAMARILLO, CALIF., November 8, 2018 (MEDIAWIRE) –Orca Design and Manufacturing, U.S. supplier for Focal mobile audio products, announced Focal has been named a CES 2019 Innovation Awards Honoree in the In-Vehicle Audio / Video category for its just-introduced Utopia M premium mobile speaker line. The second generation of the reference-standard Utopia Be line introduced in 2005, Utopia M is the result of three years of ground-up research and development by a dedicated team and a $2.5 million investment, not only in new tooling, but new manufacturing methods.
The Innovation Awards, presented by the Consumer Technology Association (CTA) and showcased at the association’s annual CES show in Las Vegas, awards products that push the boundaries of technological ingenuity, uniqueness and consumer benefit. (Note: The CES Innovation Awards are based upon descriptive materials submitted to the judges. CTA did not verify the accuracy of any submission or of any claims made and did not test the item to which the award was given.) The Innovations winners were announced Thursday, November 8. Focal made its first presentation of Utopia M at an invitation-only event in November at the Aria Hotel in Las Vegas. Guests were able to experience design and build of the drivers firsthand and hear demonstrations in comparison to the Utopia Be line.
“Utopia M builds upon the groundbreaking technologies of its predecessor with changes that reflect today’s vehicle architecture,” said Nalaka Adikari, sales director for Orca. “In addition to the use of its drivers in custom audio systems, the line was optimized to meet the demands of owners who want to get the best possible performance using their factory multimedia center and amplification. The result is a series of drivers that easily replace factory speakers and also deliver exceptional efficiency and frequency response.”
Utopia M consists of five driver options: a dual-mount tweeter, 3.5-inch, 6.5-inch and 8-inch drivers, and a 10-inch subwoofer. The design of the Utopia M line pays homage to French architecture in the cross-hatch basket structure of the drivers, and to the Utopia heritage with its signature red motor.
All drivers are offered separately or in pairs and without passive crossovers, a departure from the previous line’s full system offerings. This enables professional installers to select specific drivers to build a unique sound profile for each vehicle.
The ‘M’ in Utopia M reflects the new M-shaped inverted cone used throughout the line, which offers four major advantages to the speaker performance. The dust cap-less cone lets frequencies develop across the entire surface for increased bandwidth. It also enables more precise tuning during the manufacturing phase to enhance dispersion. In addition, the new shape allows for a larger voice coil, and for that coil to be positioned closer to the speaker surface, resulting in a shallower structure.
The patented, re-imagined tweeter features a one-inch voice coil and grille-protected Beryllium dome that carries the same M-shaped design. It comes with an optional rear-sealing enclosure that can be removed to allow the tweeter to play a wider frequency range.
The 6.5-inch driver features TMD suspension, a patented design that features ribs in the surround which eliminate distortion at key frequencies to balance out the sound. The 10-inch subwoofer includes braided material throughout its progressive spider to help with stiffness and control.
In addition to the Utopia M line, Focal has upgraded its iconic component set. The 165 W-RC is being supplanted by the 165 W-XP, which retains the W-shaped cone of the original woofer but adds the patented TMD suspension and other M performance cues. The 165 W-XP tweeter gets a Beryllium inverted dome protected by an external grille.
Utopia M will be available to Orca retailers in January and will be on display at the 2019 CES in Las Vegas in the Innovation Awards Showcase, as well as in the Orca suite at the Westgate Hotel during CES. For more information on the Utopia M line, visit focal.com.
Based in Southern California for more than 30 years, Orca is a multi-faceted supplier of premium audio brands and components. Orca is the sole U.S. importer and distributor for Focal mobile audio and Gladen-Mosconi. With in-house design, engineering and manufacturing capabilities, Orca also produces quality products including Blackhole damping materials, Raven pure ribbon tweeters for pro audio applications, and Illusion Audio reference car speakers and subwoofers. For more information, visit our website at orcadesign.com.
