Focal ALPHA 50/65/80 - Loudspeaker Manual

Important safety information

An example of this equipment has been tested and found to comply with the following European directives and international standards: Electromagnetic compatibility EN 55013, EN 61000. Electrical safety EN 60065. Product in conformity with the DIRECTIVE 2009/125/EC and the REGULATION (EC) No 1275/2008.

Attention!

Risk of electric shock
Do not open
Do not expose to rain or moisture

1. Read these instructions.
2. Keep these instructions.
3. Heed all warnings.
4. Follow all instructions.
5. Do not use this apparatus near water.
6. Clean only with dry cloth.
7. Ensure that the ventilation is not impeded by covering the ventilation openings with items such as newspaper, table-cloths, curtains, etc.
8. Ensure a minimum distance of 5 cm around the apparatus for sufficient ventilation.
9. Do not install near any heat sources such as radiators, heat registers, stoves, or other apparatus (inlcuding amplifiers) that produce heat.
10. Do not defeat the safety purpose of the polarized or grounding-type plug. A polarized plug has two blades with one wider than the other. A grounding type plug has two blades and a third grounding prong. The wide blade or the third prong are provided for your safety. If the provided plug does not fit into your outlet, consult an electrician for replacement of the obsolete outlet.
11. Protect the power cord from being walked on or pinched particularly at plugs, convenience receptacles, and thepoint where they exit from the apparatus.
12. Only use attachments/accessories specified by the manufacturer.
13. Only use accessories provided within the packaging. Use with caution.
14. Unplug this apparatus during lightning storms or when unused for long periods of time.
15. Refer all servicing to qualified service personnel. Servicing is required when the apparatus has been damaged in any way, such as power-supply cord or plug is damaged, liquid has been spilled or objects have fallen into the apparatus, the apparatus has been exposed to rain or moisture, does not operate normally, or has been dropped.
16. 
    To reduce the risk of fire or electric shock, this apparatus should not be exposed to rain or moisture and objects filled with liquids, such as vases, should not be placed on this apparatus.
17. WARNING for Class 1 apparatus: Connect apparatus only to socket with protective earth connection.
18. To completely disconnect this equipment from the mains, disconnect the power supply cord plug from the receptacle.
19. The mains plug shall remain readily operable.

The lightning flash with arrowhead symbol within an equilateral triangle, is intended to alert the user to the presence of uninsulated «dangerous voltage» within the product's enclosure that may be of sufficient magnitude to constitute a risk of electric shock to persons.

The exclamation point within an equilateral triangle is intended to alert the user to the presence of important operating and maintenance (servicing) instructions in the literature accompanying the product.

Packaging content

The loudspeaker is supplied with the following elements (apart from this manual):

• 1 power cord
• 4 rubber pads
• 1 guarantee card

Please check that none of these items is missing, and remove all accessories from the box. To remove the loudspeaker from its box without damage, open the end flaps fully and bend them right back. Then remove the upper cushion and lift the loudspeaker out gently. Inspect the speaker for signs of any possible damage. In the unlikely event of this having occurred, please inform the carrier and supplier. It is a good practice to keep the packaging in case of future transportation.

Preliminary recommendations

We would like to give a word of warning about the high sound pressure levels that can be generated by these loudspeakers, especially in a 5.1 configuration. Because of their low levels of distortion, and the minimal fatigue incurred by the user, it is not always obvious to realize the actual sound pressure level while working. Please bear in mind that exposure to excessive levels over a sustained period of time may lead to permanent hearing loss.

Warranty

These products are guaranteed against defects in components and workmanship only, for a period of two years from the date of shipment to the end user for countries of the European Union. For other countries, please refer to the law in effect. During the warranty period Focal will, at their discretion, either repair or replace products which prove to be defective, provided that the product is returned, shipping prepaid, to an authorised Focal service facility. Defects caused by unauthorised modifications, accident, negligence or any misuse are not covered by this warranty.
For further information please contact your dealer or the distributor in your country. Register your product online:
www.focalprofessional.com/warranty.

Quick start

1. Before starting, make sure the monitors and audio source are off and all setttings are located on 0 position.
2. Connect the audio signal coming out from your audio source to both monitors. To do so, use either RCA or XLR inlets.
   In order to allow you to plug up to two audio sources to the monitors using RCA and XLR inlets, please note that both inputs will remain on.
3. Make sure the mains voltage mentioned at the bottom of the back panel (below the IEC inlet) is matching your local mains voltage range. If it is not the case, do not connect the monitors to a power source and contact your dealer or distributor. Use the power cable provided to connect the monitors to the AC sockets.
4. Switch on the audio source connected to the monitor and make sure the output level of the audio source is set at -∞ or at a very low level.
5. Switch on your monitors. The monitors are now in "Standby" mode.
6. Increase the output level of your audio source slowly to unmute the monitors.
   After switching on the monitors, and after activation of the automatic "Standby" mode, the signal detector circuit will need approximately few seconds to unmute the monitors.
7. After your tracking, mixing or mastering session, we recommend you to switch of the audio gears this way:
   1. Switch your monitors off
   2. Switch the audio source off

Overview

ALPHA 50
The ALPHA 50 is an active 2-way near field professional monitoring loudspeaker (2 internal amplifiers), composed of a 5" (13cm) woofer/ midrange speaker with a Polyglass cone loaded in a large laminar port and of an aluminum inverted dome tweeter.

ALPHA 65
The ALPHA 65 is an active 2-way near field professional monitoring loudspeaker (2 internal amplifiers), composed of a 6.5" (16.5cm) woofer/ midrange speaker with a Polyglass cone loaded in a large laminar port and of an aluminum inverted dome tweeter.

ALPHA 80
The ALPHA 80 is an active 2-way near field professional monitoring loudspeaker (2 internal amplifiers), composed of a 8" (21cm) woofer/ midrange speaker with a Polyglass cone loaded in a large laminar port and of an aluminum inverted dome tweeter.

Installation

Mains voltage
Your products must be earthed using the power cord supplied.

Audio input connections

The audio signal input is to connect up to two audio sources using XLR inlet and/or RCA inlet.
The XLR inlet permits the connection of a source with balanced signal and uses standard wiring instructions:
Pin 1 = Ground (shield)
Pin 2 = In phase voltage ("hot")
Pin 3= Out-of-phase voltage ("cold")
The RCA inlet permits the connection of a source with unbalanced signal. It's common to link the out-of-phase voltage (Pin 3) to the ground (Pin 1). This connection is generally made at wire level.

In order to allow you to plug up to two audio sources to the monitors using RCA and XLR inlets, please note that both inputs will remains on. If you want to take benefit of this feature by plugging two audio sources, make sure only one audio source is on to avoid any unwanted interaction or sound from the second audio source.

AUTO-STANDBY MODE

The ALPHA monitors are equipped with an "Auto Standby" mode. When switching the monitors on, the "Standby" mode is active. To deactivate it, send audio signal to monitors by slowly leveling up the output level of the audio source. After about 30 minutes without receiving audio signal, the monitors will automaticaly go to "Standby" mode. In "Standby" mode, the power consumption is less than 0,5W.

Positioning

The ALPHA loudspeakers are near field monitoring loudspeakers and should be positioned at a distance between 40cm and 3 meters from the listener, pointing towards the listening position. They can be sitting on the console top or placed on appropriate stands. In any way, it is recommended that the tweeter is at a height from the floor approximately equivalent to that of the listener's ears. If required, it can make sense to place the speakers upside down so that the previous rule is better fulfilled. The ALPHA loudspeakers must be placed vertically pointing towards the listener.

Once the position is defined, decouple the monitors from the stand / desk by positioning the 4 rubber pads provided. The gap and the right/left positioning of each loudspeaker permit to control the width, the centering and the global coherence of the soundstage (left/center/right), at the source of your recording/mixing precision.

Stereo positioning

We highly recommend you to position the monitors to have an equilateral triangle. The 3 points of the triangle are composed of the 2 monitors and your listening position.

Surround positioning

In case of 5.1 set up, we recommend you to position the monitors on a circle to have the same distance between the sweet spot (listening position) and every single monitor. The center monitor should be placed at 0°, front right monitor at 30°, rear right monitor at 110°, rear left monitor at 250° and front left monitor at 330°.

Running in

As in all brand new loudspeaker, the drivers need some run-in period: the ALPHA transducers are mechanical elements demanding a little time to settle and adapt to the climatic environment. This period will vary, depending on the working conditions and may take up to a few weeks. Avoid pushing the speakers very hard during their first hours of use, but to accelerate the run-in process, it is good practice to operate the speakers at moderate levels for 20 hours or so, with programs having significant low frequency content. Only once the transducers have come to stabilize will you get the optimum performance.

Controls and connectors

1. BALANCED
   The XLR inlet permits the connection of a source of balanced signal and follows standard wiring instructions.
   Pin 1 = ground (shielding)
   Pin 2 = In phase voltage (hot)
   Pin 3 = Out-of-phase voltage (cold)
   The balanced input is already set on +4dBu sensitivity to match the sensitivity of any balanced audio source.
2. UNBALANCED
   The RCA inlet permits the connection of a source of unbalanced signal. It is common to link the out-of-phase voltage (Pin 3) to the ground (Pin 1). This connection is generally made on the wires. The unbalanced input is already set on -10dBV sensitivity to match the sensitivity of any unbalanced audio source.
3. SENSITIVITY
   This switch function is to allow more SPL from the monitor if necessary. The available sensitivities are 0dB and +6dB. We recommend you to set the sensitivity on 0dB. The +6dB is an interesting solution when you want more SPL whereas your audio source is already reaching its output limit.
4. ON/OFF
   The ON/OFF switch permits to switch the internal amplifiers ON or OFF. When switching on the monitor, the standby is activated. To unmute the monitor, send audio signal to the monitor which will detect it and will automatically unmute the monitor.
5. STANDBY
   The standby LED is off when the power switch is off. It is on when powering on the monitor. As soon as the monitor is detecting an audio signal, the standby is deactivated and the LED is off. After about 30 minutes without audio signal, the monitor is automatically muted to avoid unecessary power consumption. When muted, the power consumption is <0,5W. To unmute the monitor, send audio signal to the loudspeaker. The loudspeaker will require few seconds to unmute.
6. LF SHELVING
   The LF SHELVING potentiometer permits to activate or not a correction of the sound level under 300Hz. We advise you to set the LF SHELVING potentiometer on +2dB when the premises acoustics naturally soften that frequency range. We advise you to set the LF SHELVING potentiometer on 0 when the premises acoustics is neutral. We advise you to set the LF SHELVING potentiometer on -2, -4, or –6dB when the loudspeakers are placed next to a wall or an angle.
7. HF SHELVING
   The HF SHELVING potentiometer permits to activate or not a correction of the sound level from 4.5 kHz. We advise you to set it on +2dB when the premises acoustics naturally softens this frequency range (mat environment). When the premises acoustics is neutral, 0dB setting is recommended. –2 or –3dB are recommended when the premises acoustics naturally increases this frequency range (bright environment).
   
8. IEC INLET
   Connect the power cord provided to the IEC inlet.
9. FRONT PANEL LED
   The front panel LED is off when the power switch is off. The front panel LED is on when powering on the monitor. As soon as the monitor is detecting an audio signal, the standby is deactivated and the front panel LED remains on. After about 30 minutes without audio signal, the monitor is automatically muted to avoid unecessary power consumption. When muted, the front panel LED is off and the power consumption is <0,5W. To unmute the monitor, send audio signal to the loudspeaker. The loudspeaker will require few seconds to unmute.

Technical specifications

Due to constant technological advances, Focal reserves its right to modify specifications without notice.
Images may not conform exactly to specific product.

Documents / Resources

References

• Professional audio - Focal | Focal

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