Focal Kanta No.2 speakers - any thoughts? Also in comparison with Sonus Faber Olympica 3s?


Hi,

I am very excited about these new speakers and am looking for some help with a decision I am trying to make. I have an opportunity to buy a used (mint) pair of Sonus Fabre Olympica iii speakers for around $7000 but unfortunately can’t audition them for too long due to travelling schedule and as the seller is moving out soon. The Focal Kantas sounded very good to me (driven by a Devialet 130 pro) at the dealers but the Olympica IIIs  also sounded good albeit possibly a bit more laid back (they were driven by an Audio Research tube preamp and a pass labs power amp). Also, the listening room at the seller's place was not at all ideal/treated so is difficult to do a fair comparison. 

Compared to almost all other speakers I have seen so far the Olympicas are the most beautiful and almost high-end furniture like but the new Kantas don't give the Sonus any advantage in this regard as they are also really lovely looking speakers with many different finishes!  I am planning to run wither of these speakers with a Prima Luna Dialogue HP integrated amp so any feedback in that regard will also be much appreciated. 

If anyone here has heard both these speakers, any suggestions on whether the new Kantas are possibly worth giving up on the Olympicas at $7,000?  The Kanta's are retailing at a bit under $10,000.  If I decide on the Kantas then I will push out the purchase until I can find a better discount at some stage but if with the Sonus then will have to buy right away.

Thanks!
rsure
Hi sorry about the silly question but how do I message individual members of the group?
rsure,  Thought Id lend a voice for the SF Olympica III's I currently own the OlyII's and love them.  I have driven them with lots of differing gear, old and new... The PL gear is wonderful stuff... 

My Oly II's sound great with my ARC DS-135 130 watt amp and LS17SE preamp... I do have an ancient M&K 125 sub which I have crossed over at about 35Hz and blends seamlessly driven off the ARC speaker outputs... I rarely listen at ultra high db levels however it does crank up nicely when I do.

My room is about 24x20 carpeted, glass at the far end from the system with an 8' ceiling and is open to the kitchen in an L shape which is another 15x20 space. Far from an ideal listening room...

The Oly II's are 1 db less efficient that the III's and don't have the same bottom end response however they are amazing in many similar ways... I would have purchased OlyIII's if I could have found them used at the price you are pondering given that they may be in excellent condition with original boxes etc.

My suggestion to you is this...  it's hard to go wrong either way and there is a bit if time pressure on the OlyIII's... I'd suggest  you BUY THEM and if you get tired of them simply sell them... like rent, it might cost you a few hundred $$ over the course of a year or two to use while you may save up for whatever comes next... or like myself you may have no need to upgrade.  Buy them and you get enriched with more listening experience...

I have found my audio "hobby" to be highly experiential even after working many years in the business myself... Those Oly's are a beautiful pair of speakers to live with and listen to. I think you will love them, of course keeping them long term will be up to you and yes they do need air around them, 2 feet in each direction of clear space is probably minimum but it is all unique to your own room  for image and overall listening at their best as well as high grade cables, sources etc.

A friend was the rep for SF and ARC for years and she came by at some point and adjusted them in the room to her liking with instructions "Don't move them!" ... They have about 2' behind them and about 3' open to  either side.

I have friends that LOVE the Prima Luna gear and I have had great experiences listening to the PL HP through SF $25K higher end speakers... great gear and amazing setup...  I may swap some of that PL into my system at some point to see if I like it here..
Anyway, nothing ventured nothing gained... good luck and enjoy the music!

I know both speakers more so the Sopra though here ,snd recently sold the  Olympia-3 this summer for ML
11-a. Thst too Sold. After  I found a speaker right in the $7k range that hit me Like a ton s bricks and consistently bests speakers at much more money.
The Pure Audio Project  Loudspeakers , if you can use a screw driver and Allen wrench these wonderful open baffle speakers beat by a Wide margin the emerald,and spatial by s long Margin.  Just research them I bought with the simple 1 capacitor Leonitis  crossover,and Voxativ full range driver but  used from 350hz to around 20khz - magical I use a clarity CSA capacitor and a 2uf Duelund JAM Copper oil cap .if you want a speaker that disappears and does Bass to 29hz
And 95db efficient look no more . Plenty of reviews online.
I own the Olympica 3 in my second system.  Unless I get the opportunity to buy a Futura, that O3 isn’t ever leaving my family room.
Thanks again for the feedback.  Where I'm located it is not easy to sell used equipment given the small market for these products and so I need to be reasonably sure that I'd hold on to something for a while before buying it.  And so I've decided for now to not rush into the purchase and audition a few more speakers before making the decision.  If the Olympicas get sold before that I'll just consider that a sign that they weren't for me ;-)

On another note, I just recently read about the new Magico A3 announcement and that has me super excited given that they cost the same as the Kanta's!!  It's just speculation on my part but I'd expect them to be better than the Kanta's for sure?!  Of course will have to wait for it to be released and more importantly have a listen before reaching a conclusion.  But I for one feel like it's worth putting off my purchase for now and wait for the A3s!

What do you'll think - are you'll excited about the new "cheaper" Magicos too?