RSPE Audio Solutions, Los Angeles Premier Pro Audio Dealer

Exclusive Acoustical Technologies
40 kHz bandwidth Beryllium tweeter

The reversed dome tweeter is a hallmark of Focal. As a result of more than twenty years of development into a tweeter that could produce a high output, but without requiring high energy input and without increasing directivity. And now the company is ready to make a major leap forward with the introduction of the pure Beryllium version.
Focus Ring

This innovative and patented magnetic structure provides extremely strong flux density (2T) with the highest thermal stability achievable.
The W cone

For more than 15 years the composite cone sandwich technology is a Focal exclusivity. The W process - first initiated in 1995 with the Grande Utopia - now provides a true optimisation of the frequency response by fine tuning of mass, rigidity and damping parameters.
Passive radiator

In order to reproduce the lowest frequency range within a very small volume the SM8 is equipped with a no compromise, custom designed W passive radiator.
Advanced Digital Technologies
24 Bits 96kHz converters

In addition to a direct digital input, the SM8 uses the latest high quality chipsets performing 24 Bits 96kHz A/D and D/A conversion.
Multiple equalisation facilities

The combination of powerful DSP devices and carefully designed algorithms allows multiple and very precise equalisation.
Low sensitivity to vertical or horizontal placement

Due to its internal digital processing, the SM8 can use FIR (Finite Impulse Response) filters which have the property of allowing both very high selectivity and perfectly linear response: indeed the actual filters between the LF and HF sections have slopes reaching 200 dB/octave! Due to the drastic reduction of acoustic interaction between drivers, landscape and portrait orientation are virtually equivalent in terms of performance.
Remote control facilities

The SM8 can be remotely controlled from various sources: PC/Mac dedicated Focal manager software, PDA, MIDI link or proprietary remote control unit.
High Performance Amplification
High efficiency, low distortion class D output stage

Bi-amplified (200W rms/Bass, 100W rms/Treble) the SM8 uses low distortion class D power stages for the low frequency channel, reducing dramatically heat at high power, while wide bandwidth class AB stage is used for the tweeter.


SM8 Specifications |
SYSTEM
Frequency response     45 Hz - 40 kHz 2 dB
Maximum SPL     115 dB SPL (peak at 1 m)

INPUT SECTION
Analogue input     Type / Impedance

Connector
Sensitivity
A/D converter     Electronically balanced / 10kOhms
XLR
+4dBu
24 bits resolution, 96kHz sampling rate
Digital input    

Format

Connector
Sampling rates
AES (110 Ohms with transformer)
XLR
44.1, 48, 88.2 or 96kHz (automatic detection)
Internal section     Processing
D/A converters     Internal DSP
24 bits resolution, 96kHz sampling rate
Dynamic range     > 110 dB

Amplification
LF stage     Class D / 200W rms
HF stage     Class AB / 100W rms



INTERFACE
System Control     Switchable between     Wireless Infra-Red
(handheld)
Serial RS-232 (PC/Mac)
MIDI
Power supply     Mains voltage     230V (1.6A fuse rating)
or
115V (3.15A fuse rating) IEC inlet and detachable power cord



USER CONTROLS AND INDICATORS
Hardware controls     Left / Right AES channel selection switch
System control source (Interface) switch
Software controls     Output level, Shelving EQ, General EQ, Presets, Delays
Indicators     Power on LED, Infra-Red reception LED



TRANSDUCERS
Woofer     W cone, long excursion Focal 8W5456B 8 drive unit
Passive radiator     W piston, extra wide surround Focal 8WPP51 8 radiator
High frequency     Focal TBU SM8 Beryllium dome tweeter with Focus Ring magnet
Shielding     Integral through cancellation magnets / cans or by magnet design