Reintroducing the Trio6 ST6

The Trio6 ST6 is a three-way design that measures 21.12″ in height, 11.5″ wide and 14.5″ deep. The cabinet is made of reinforced MDF cabinet. While the signature dark cherry side panels remain, the entire cabinet has a gently more angular appearance that matches the other members of the ST6 family.

The Trio6 ST6 is a hefty 55.12 lbs, so a robust, appropriately sized speaker stand is recommended. For this review, I placed them on a pair of Sound Anchors stands (reviewed October 2023).

Low-End and Mid-Range

The Trio6 ST6 features an 8″ bass driver and a 5.5″ mid-driver built upon the latest (even thinner) version of the company’s W composite sandwich cone drivers with new and improved paper-pulp dust caps.

The W cones are comprised of thin layers of woven glass fiber pressed together onto a structural foam core designed to be thin, lightweight and homogenous yet highly stiff and rigid, resulting in a fast transient response and accurate sound.

Each speaker is mounted in a new Tuned Mass Damper (TMD) consisting of two tubular rings molded onto the surround to help maintain better sonic consistency with the tweeter and offer lower distortion.

There are three front-firing laminar bass ports on the enclosure located under the 8″ woofer and flanking each side of the 5.5″ mid-driver.

High-End

The star of the Focal show has long been the paper-thin yet extremely rigid 1″ inverted dome beryllium tweeter. In the ST6 models, this is seated in a newly designed, recessed surround to improve its dispersion and throw for a broader, more natural sweet spot.

The new tweeter housing also uses a large Infinite Acoustic Load (IAL) baffle with a rear chamber that increases the tweeter’s throw and reduces stray resonance.

Flip and Rotate

The Trio models can be used vertically or horizontally in your studio. The entire tweeter and mid-section can be unscrewed and rotated to accommodate your set-up preference.

On the Back

Input is a single balanced XLR jack. There is also a pair of ¹/₄” I/O for Focus mode and an IEC mains socket. Three toggle switches engage or turn off Auto Standby mode, adjust the input sensitivity (+4 or -10dBv) and control the Focus mode options.

EQ adjustments are via four recessed set-screws and with +/- 3dB of control over a high-pass filter (45, 60 and 90 Hz), Low-Frequency Shelving (250 Hz), Low-Mid Frequency EQ (160 Hz) and a High-Frequency Shelf (4.5 kHz).

Dual-Focus Mode

The Trio6 ST6 sees the most advanced iteration of the Focus Mode in a Focal monitor yet with Dual mode options selected by the rear toggle switch and engaged with an optional 3rd-party latching footswitch and a pair of ¹/₄” TRS cables. Focal recommends the BOSS FS-6 double control pedal to jump between both modes.

Focus Mode 1 (green LED) sends the audio signal just to the 5.5″ mid-driver, turning it into the equivalent of a classic full-range, single-driver check speaker with a 100 Hz–15 kHz frequency response. Focus Mode 2 (orange LED) disengages the 8″ driver only turning the Trio6 ST6 into a two-way full range speaker.

Focus Mode 1 does its job well to offer a constrained mid-forward presentation of a mix, great for sussing out mix placement issues, especially in the vocal range.

Focus Mode 2 is the best-sounding two-way implementation of Focus Mode yet. It sounds so good and full that more than a few times (beyond the taming of the bass), I forgot I had it engaged.

New Six Versus Eleven

In side-by-side comparisons with my larger 10″ driver Trio11 Be monitors, overall, I found the Trio6 ST6 much tighter and focused compared to the Trio11, which is wider and more sonically diffused to a degree. The low-end exhibits more of a “punch in the chest” rather than engulfing the room. The midrange is more full and detailed on the Trio6 ST6 than the Trio11 Be, and the high-end response is a touch more seated and less sparkly on the Trio6 ST6. This high-end difference was similar to my experience when reviewing and comparing the Solo6 ST6 to the Focal Solo6 Be.

Overall, I found the new Trio6 ST6 not as musically pleasant or exciting as the Trio11 Be. I don’t mean to infer one is better than the other, only that the sonic representation is noticeably different, much of that owing to the size and power of each box.

In Use

Comparisons aside, I found the Trio6 ST6 to have a firm, focused and equal sonic representation from top to bottom. The highs are clear but not sparkly or crisp; the lows are full and punchy; and the mids are wonderfully neutral and even.

I experienced no distortion even at 102dB, and what I appreciated, even more, was how much they retained their even fullness at 72–82dB, where nothing gets lost in translation, making these fantastic mixing monitors.

The Trio6 ST6 offers plenty of low-end, and the sub-frequencies were represented in a very tangible way rather than just a big, low boom. Unless you are using this speaker in a large treated room or as part of an immersive setup, I see little to no need for a subwoofer.

All-In-All

I need to reiterate I am a big fan of the sound of the Focal Trio11 Be, and while the Focal Trio6 ST6 may not be as exciting or impressive in comparison, I genuinely think that the way frequencies are focused and represented in the Trio6 ST6 makes it the better choice for most people looking for a great mixing tool. I don’t say this lightly, but the Focal Trio6 ST6 may be the most balanced monitor that Focal has ever made.

Price: $3,499 (each)

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