Audio Plus - The JMlab Products

The Utopia Be Line:

Early in 1993, 13 years after I founded Focal-Jmlab, I realized the need to launch a special project for the Focal-Jmlab team of engineers to design and build a one-off, no compromise, reference loudspeaker. The objective was simple, to create a loudspeaker by which all others could be judged. In able to offer a consistent and class leading sound reproduction over a wide range of products, there had to be a clear goal, a utopian product. All future Focal-Jmlab products would strive to live up to the qualities delivered by this reference.

In 1995, after two years of intensive development which gave birth to the 'W' sandwich cone and Tioxid inverted dome tweeter, we realized our dreams. The Grande Utopia was unique in every sense utilizing the best technologies we could find and where shortcomings were encountered we invented and created to one end perfection.

But what had started as a laboratory project quickly became the object of interest for audiophiles the world over. In the Spring of '95 the Stereophile high-end show at Los Angeles saw the first public demonstration of the Grande Utopia a laboratory reference loudspeaker. I could never have imagined that a few months later we would be delivering homes of dedicated audiophiles. It was an exciting year for Focal-JMlab.

It's my belief and the spirit of Focal-Jmlab to relentlessly research and develop to improve the state of the art of sound reproduction. So it is an emotional moment for me to be writing this introduction to our second laboratory reference loudspeaker, the Grande Utopia Beryllium. It builds upon the principles and knowledge gained from the original research starting in 1993, but shares no single component in common with the original Grande Utopia. Every single minute detail has be studied, re-designed, developed and tuned to re-define, once again, a truly reference loudspeaker.