FOCAL Aria K2 936 3-Way Floor Standing Loudspeaker User Manual

: June 4, 2024
: FOCAL

FOCAL Aria K2 936 3-Way Floor Standing Loudspeaker

Thank you for purchasing a Focal product. Welcome to our High-Fidelity world. Innovation, tradition, excellence and pleasure are our values; our one and only aim is to bring you a sound that is rich, pure and true. To get the most out of your product, we recommend that you read the instructions in this booklet, then store it in a safe place to refer to in the future.

Specifications

FOCAL Aria K2 936 3-Way Floor Standing Loudspeaker-
fig13

IMPORTANT SAFETY INSTRUCTIONS !

The exclamation mark represented in an equilateral triangle is intended to alert users to the existence of important instructions in the user manual relating to the use and maintenance of the device.

Read these instructions.
Keep these instructions.
Take the warnings into consideration
Follow all the instructions.
Do not use this device around water.
Only clean with a dry cloth.
Keep the loudspeakers away from sources of heat, such as radiators, stoves, heat register or any other devices which give off heat (including amplifiers).
Only use fixing devices, stands, tripods, supports or tables recommended by the manufacturer or those supplied with the product. If using a trolley or cart, pay particular attention when moving the equipment to avoid any risk of damage or injury.
All maintenance must be carried out by a qualified professional. Maintenance is necessary if any damage has been caused to the device, damage due to liquid spilt on the device or objects inserted into the device, exposure to rain or humidity, a malfunction or physical damage.
Do not use accessories not recommended by the manufacturer to prevent any risk of damage or injury.
Never insert an object into the vents on the device. It may come into contact with high-voltage components or cause a short circuit which may lead to fire or electric shock. Never get liquid on the device.
Never try to repair this device yourself; opening the device may expose you to high-voltages and other risks. For any maintenance or repairs, contact a qualified professional.
When it’s necessary to replace components, make sure the technician uses the components specified by the manufacturer or ones which have exactly the same characteristics as the original. Components which aren’t compliant may cause a fire, an electric shock other accidents.
After any repairs or an intervention on the device, ask the technician to test the equipment in order to check that the product works correctly and is safe.
The device must not be mounted to a wall or ceiling unless intended by the manufacturer.
In order to avoid damaging your hearing, do not listen to speakers at high volumes for extended periods of time.
Listening to speakers at high volumes can cause damage to the user’s ears and may lead to hearing problems (temporary or permanent deafness, buzzing in the ears, tinnitus, hyperacusis).
Exposure to excessive volumes (over 85dB) for more than one hour can cause irreparable damage to your hearing.

Please validate your Focal-JMlab warranty, it is now possible to register your product online: www.focal.com/warranty

Running-in period

The Aria K2 936 loudspeaker is a complex mechanical assembly which need a period of adaptation (“runin”) to operate at their best and to become acclimatised to the temperature and humidity conditions of your environment. This running-in period varies depending on the conditions in question and may last for some weeks. To facilitate run-in, we recommend operating the speakers for approximately twenty hours consecutively. Once the loudspeakers’ characteristics totally stabilised you will be able to enjoy your Aria K2 936’s performance to the full.

Carton contents:

1 loudspeaker
1 user manual
1 cleaning cloth
1 spike adjustment spanner
1 aluminium alloy plinth
4 screws + Allen key

Specifications

Aluminum/Magnesium alloy inverted dome TNF Tweeter : the tweeter developed for the Aria K2 936 range uses Focal exclusive inverted dome technology, for optimal energy transfer and limited directivity. The dome’s Aluminum/Magnesium alloy guarantees outstanding stiffness and damping. The mechanical properties of the new suspension system using Poron, an open cell polyrethane microcellular foam, provide numerous benefits: excellent dimensional stability and no degradation over time. The advantages of the use of Poron in this tweeter are obvious in terms of linearity and distortion reduction. This leads to a silkier, more precise sound with greater harmonic richness. The tweeter mounting has an integral waveguide which maximises horizontal directivity and minimises diffraction.
K2 cone midrange and bass drivers: aramid fiber is a textile with astounding structural properties: It is rigid and light and well damped for great dynamism and precision
Magnetic front grille: easy to fit; more modern design.
Powerflow System : port tube air speed cut by half compared to traditional technology. No bass dynamic compression.
Profiled vent: powerful, distortion-free bass.
High-efficiency acoustic wadding: excellent internal damping, sustained, deeper bass.
High-torque, reliable multi-purpose cable connections.
Decoupling spikes included.

Attaching the base to the cabinet

To attach the base to the cabinet, firstly turn the cabinet over so that it is resting on its top (on the packaging padding), taking care not to damage the cabinet-work, glass top-plate or speaker cones when carrying out this operation. Position the base on the cabinet and screw in the four screws provided. Tighten the screws using the Allen key (fig. A).

Connections

The connectors provide reliable, multi-purpose contacts for stripped cables (up to 4 mm diameter) or fork terminals. Banana jacks are covered for compliance with electrical and connection standards in force in some countries. Do not remove the plastic covers.
It is essential to connect the loudspeakers using the correct polarity. The connector marked ” + ” must be connected to the matching output on the amplifier and the connector marked ” – ” must be connected to the negative terminal (fig. B). If the loudspeakers are connected with incorrect polarity there will be considerable degradation to both the stereo image and the audio perception of bass.

Where to position your loudspeakers

Your Aria K2 936 loudspeakers have been designed to reproduce as faithfully as possible every kind of music and home cinema programme. Nonetheless, it makes sense to follow some simple rules to optimise their performance and to guarantee good tonal balance and a realistic sound stage.
The loudspeakers should be positioned symmetrically, facing the listening area, ideally forming an equilateral triangle with it. It is, however, possible to change these distances to reach the ideal compromise for any particular conditions (fig. C).
The loudspeakers should be positioned at the same height, in the same horizontal plane. Ideally, the tweeter should be positioned at the same height as the listener’s ear when listening normally (fig. D). Do not position your loudspeakers too close to a corner of the room and do not place them too close to a wall. If they are positioned close to a wall or a corner this has the effect of exciting certain resonances within the room and artificially increasing the bass. Conversely, if the bass level is judged to be insufficient, you could try moving the loudspeakers nearer a wall to re-balance the bass level (fig. E).

Optimisation

For perfectionists, here is the formula for optimal positioning:
If A is the distance from the centre of the woofer to the nearest floor or wall, B is the distance to the next closest floor or wall and C the greatest distance (A < B < C), the equation B2 = AC defines the ideal loudspeaker position.
- For example:
  If the centre of the woofer is 50 cm away from the back wall (A) and 60 cm from the floor (B), then the side wall will ideally be 72 cm away (C = B2⁄A = 72 cm) (fig. F).

Recommendations for use

The behaviour of Aria K2 936 loudspeakers depends on the acoustics in the listening room, on the correct positioning of the loudspeakers within the room and on the position of the listener. It is possible to work these elements together to correct or improve a desired effect.

Stereo perception is imprecise and poorly centred : try moving the loudspeakers closer to one another and/or have them facing the listening point
Sound is harsh, aggressive : the acoustic in your listening room probably has too many reverberations. Consider using sound softening (carpets, upholstered furniture, wall hangings, curtains, etc.) and sound reflecting materials (furniture) to absorb or diffuse resonance.
Sound is “flat”, “strangled”: there are too many sound absorbent items in the room, the sound is soaked up, it has no relief. Look for the best compromise between sound absorbing and sound reflecting materials in your room.
In general terms, it is good to aim for the wall behind the loudspeakers being reflective for the sound to develop correctly. The wall behind the listening position, on the other hand, is ideally sound absorbing to avoid rear reflections “contaminating” the stereo image. Furniture can be judiciously placed near the side walls of the room to diffuse sound waves and ensure certain frequency zones, particularly in the mid-range, are not excited (“flutter echo” suppression).

Accessories

Aria K2 936 floor standing speakers are fitted with spikes on their metal plinth. These can be adjusted in height using the tool provided. After use, this tool is stored behind the loudspeaker protection grille (fig. G, H).

Precautions for use

The TNF tweeter uses a relatively flexible Aluminum/Magnesium alloy, with a “shape memory” enabling it to withstand the majority of small impacts in the home. Nevertheless, we recommend leaving the fabric grilles in place to protect the dome. If the dome surface is marked this could have an impact on the tweeter.

Cleaning instructions

The only maintenance required for the Aria K2 936 is dusting with a dry cloth. If the cabinet becomes marked, we recommend simply using a damp cloth. The glass top-plate can be cleaned using a soft cloth and a standard glass cleaning product.
Never use solvents, detergents, alcohol-based or corrosive products, scrapers or scourers to clean the loudspeaker surface.
Keep the loudspeakers away from sources of heat.

Choice of amplifier

It is not an excess of amplifier power that can damage your loudspeakers and drivers but a lack of power. Moreover, if the volume is turned too high, the amplifier saturates and generates parasite signals that may destroy the tweeter.
The dynamic capacity and definition of Aria K2 936 loudspeakers are sufficient to show up the strengths and weaknesses of whatever amplifier is connected. Your retailer will be able to guide your choice, to suit your tastes and budget.

Choosing cables

Choose good quality cables with a cross-section appropriate to their length: your retailer will be able to advise you.

Fitting spike protectors (fig. I,J)

Conditions of warranty

All Focal loudspeakers are covered by warranty drawn up by the official Focal distributor in your country. Your distributor can provide all details concerning the conditions of warranty. Warranty cover extends at least to that granted by the legal warranty in force in the country where the original purchase invoice was issued.
Our policy of continual product improvement means that Focal-JMlab reserves the right to modify the technical specifications of its products without notice. Product may vary from images.

Correct elimination of this product.

This marking indicates that within the EU this product should not be disposed of with other household wastes. To prevent any risk to the environment or human health, please recycle them responsibly to encourage the reuse of material resources. To return your used device, please use the return and collection systems available, or contact the retailer where you purchased the product. They can recycle this product safely.