Focal JMLab Alpha 50

The French company Focal has made its name on premium speakers, but with the boom in home studios, it has redefined its priorities and released two-way Alpha studio monitors, which on the one hand are based on Focal's patented technologies, and on the other are designed for buyers on a limited low-cost. Alpha immediately stand out for its unusual design: the MDF case is finished with black vinyl, the convex side walls give them an unusual rounded shape, and on the bottom of the front panel there is a pair of original dual bass reflexes. And between them flaunts the company logo, which is highlighted in white when the power is turned on.

Focal Signatures

The monitors are built using the technology of separate amplification of sections — separate amplifiers (class, A and B) work in the low-frequency and high-frequency channels with support for Auto standby mode. As for the speakers, as always with Focal, everything is cunning and unusual. The woofers are made of Polyglass, a proprietary material that has proven itself in the company's Hi-Fi acoustics. In fact, it is a thin paper with an adhesive layer, on top of which a layer of glass microspheres is sprayed. Speakers made from this material are stiffer and lighter than polypropylene and single-layer Kevlar, which in fact provides more accurate sound transmission. In turn, the Alpha 50 tweeter is an inverted (concave) aluminium dome, which creates a better coil-to-transmitter grip, reducing distortion and giving out an honest “top” without colour and parasitic overtones.

Honest and balanced sound

If we move away from technology to subjective sensations, then the Alpha 50 is primarily distinguished by a clear tonal balance at almost any volume. These are very honest and balanced monitors with reliable timbre reproduction, which is just what you need for studio use. In terms of character, it's open and airy, the complete opposite of KRK's bass power and exuberance. The only bad thing is that in some cases the bass is frankly lacking here, especially in comparison with the older Alpha 65. However, a little trick was discovered during operation. The high-pass and low-pass filters are located on the rear panel and are not configured in the usual way: if you add a little bass and remove the tops, then the sound becomes completely indistinguishable from the older Alpha models. Moreover, readability remains approximately at the same level, and the number of misses during mixing, if it grows, is hardly noticeable.

Not enough volume?

The only inconvenience is that the monitors do not have an external volume control, and the power reserve itself is more modest than other 5-inch models. An additional 6 dB can be obtained using the button on the rear panel, but again, not everyone knows about this, so on the forums you can periodically find criticism in the spirit of "they play great, but there is not enough bass and volume." Although, this is not a question for the monitors themselves, but for the people who use them.