Note that this is a discontinued product. You may want to visit the brand's page here to browse their newer products.
What reviewers think
Bloggers and YouTubers have tried this product—so we've summarized their strongest opinions below. Links to full reviews follow.
What are hifi reviews useful for? (1) Identifying products you should demo in person at a dealer. (2) Learning which products reviewers unanimously praise as the best they've heard (this means they probably are legitimately great). (3) Identifying a product's attributes that satisfy your idiosyncratic needs and tastes. Beyond that, we often discount what reviewers say because they heap praise on most products—and are often apprehensive about publishing strong criticism or comparisons between products. Further, they seldom have more than a few products on-hand, often relying on their memories to compare past products. Always listen for yourself.
All
1000 ICW6
reviews
Video Review
Manufacturer details
Features
Specifications
- Product type: 2-way ceiling/wall
- Membrane: W cone
- Medium: 6.5" (16.5cm) "W" Midrange/Bass
- Response at -6dB (Low frequency point): 45 Hz
- Frequency response (+/- 3dB): 55 Hz - 44 kHz
- Minimum impedance: 4.9 Ω
- Nominal Impedance: 8 Ω
- Recommended amplifier power: 25 - 150 W
- Sensitivity: 89 dB
- Depth: 105 mm (4.12 in)
- Weight: 3 kg
- Allowable ceiling thickness (min): 5 mm (0.25 in)
- Allowable ceiling thickness (max): 30 mm (1.12 in)
- Cut-Out diameter: 216 mm (8.5 in)
- Depth behind surface (Mounting depth): 4 in
Description
The 1000 ICW6 in-wall loudspeaker is a solution that can be fully integrated into walls or ceilings for the ultimate Stereo and Home Cinema experience. Made in France, it combines exclusive technologies, such as the "W" diaphragm of its midrange/bass driver and the pure Beryllium tweeter. The tweeter is also adjustable, for optimum adjustment to your listening room.
Release Timeline
Manufacturer Site
Brand highlights
Taking a step back to look at reviewers' thoughts of the brand's entire lineup—not just this product—what stands out most is the following:
- Focal monitors are noted for their "mid-forward" sound, guiding users toward balanced mixes, particularly in the midrange frequencies, which aids in crucial EQ and dynamics decisions.
- They integrate an inverted dome tweeter crafted from Aluminum/Magnesium or Beryllium, optimizing high-frequency dispersion and minimizing distortion through back wave absorption.
- Focal frequently employs flax or "W" composite sandwich cones in their mid-bass drivers, providing a lightweight yet rigid diaphragm construction that delivers exceptional definition and controlled bass.
Select products
Select product comparisons
Theva
- Positioning: The entry-level series in Focal's high-fidelity lineup.
- Description: Features Focal's signature technologies like the TNF tweeter for clear treble. Compared to the Aria Evo X, offers a more budget-friendly option with simpler cabinet designs. While it lacks the advanced materials found in the Kanta series, still provides a solid performance for its price range, suitable for basic home audio setups.
Aria Evo X
- Positioning: Sits in the mid-range of Focal's lineup, offering a balance between performance and affordability.
- Description: Features flax cone technology, providing natural sound and excellent dynamics. More refined than Theva, offering better build quality and soundstage.
Kanta
- Positioning: A premium series, offering advanced technology and design.
- Description: Known for their innovative design and use of materials like the Flax sandwich cone and Beryllium tweeter, delivering precise and detailed sound. They offer a more sophisticated sound profile than Aria Evo X, with enhanced clarity and warmth.
Sopra
- Positioning: A high-end series, just below the flagship Utopia line, focusing on compactness and performance.
- Description: Excels in sound transparency and precision, featuring technologies like the Infinite Horn Loading system for improved treble. They offer a richer harmonic experience than Kanta.
Utopia III Evo
- Positioning: Focal's flagship series, representing the pinnacle of their speaker technology.
- Description: Renowned for their exceptional sound quality and luxurious design, incorporating technologies like the Beryllium tweeter and W composite sandwich cone. They surpass Sopra in every aspect, offering groundbreaking soundstage and detail, ideal for large dedicated listening rooms and those with no budget constraints.
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Avg. Product Price
$1,001-$2,500
Used For Sale
239
Available (Scroll Down)
Brand Popularity
10
of 900+
Badges
Top 50 Brand
Top 250 Brand
Products Listed
79
Founding Year
1979
Our take on the brand
Focal is a French hifi brand that makes their own drivers in-house, including their highly-regarded beryllium tweeters and unique slatefiber mid/bass drivers made from recycled carbon fiber. Their speakers and headphones feature distinctive technologies like their "W" sandwich cone design for optimal driver performance and Mimi Sound Personalization that adapts audio to individual hearing profiles.
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What if you spend more?
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Wisdom Audio
Insight Series P4i
2760
2760
/
1
Reviews
Compact in size, the Insight Series P4i defies traditional categorization. Sharing the design elements of its larger Insight Series sibling, it is hard to believe the musical and cinematic performance and dynamic quality of this small in-wall loudspeaker. The Insight Series P4i includes a planar magnetic driver – and four robust 3”x5” woofers for low distortion, high-resolution sound, and a superior dynamic range. The result is excellent, uniform horizontal dispersion throughout its operating range, providing superb off-axis coverage in both in-wall and in-ceiling applications.
Wisdom Audio specializes in planar magnetic drivers and line source speaker technology, which provides consistent sound coverage throughout a room and minimizes sound distortion compared to traditional point source speakers. Their speakers are designed to be integrated into walls or ceilings without compromising sound quality.
Expand Details
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Product Strengths
- Truly outstanding sound quality, delivering a near-electrostatic, audiophile listening experience in a disappearing, in-wall package
- Uses planar magnetic thin-film drivers (PMD) which can be highly detailed with excellent transient response
- PMDs are quite reliable because the spread-out "voice grid" is great at dissipating heat
- PMDs are super-easy for an amplifier to drive, as they are "an almost perfectly resistive load"
Product Considerations
- Horizontal center channel use of the Insight P4i requires stud modifications due to its size
Comparisons (according to reviewers)
- The Insight series squeezes most of the sound quality of the Wisdom Audio Sage Series into a less imposing, less costly package
Takeaway: The Wisdom Audio Insight P4i speakers provide excellent sound quality in an in-wall design, and are a great way to get high-end audio without large, free-standing speakers. They could be worth buying for those who want the best possible sound without compromising on interior design.
Video review
Our take on the brand
Wisdom Audio specializes in planar magnetic drivers and line source speaker technology, which provides consistent sound coverage throughout a room and minimizes sound distortion compared to traditional point source speakers. Their speakers are designed to be integrated into walls or ceilings without compromising sound quality.
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What competes at this price?
Focal
300 IWLCR 6
1199
/
Released
Discreetly positioned both horizontally and vertically, this LCR (left, center, right) loudspeaker offers a pure Home Cinema experience, just as it ideally complements a classic floorstanding or bookshelf speaker system. Among its strengths: exclusive Focal technologies for hi-fi sound, discreet, easy installation, and an adjustable turntable that targets the listening point.
Focal is a French hifi brand that makes their own drivers in-house, including their highly-regarded beryllium tweeters and unique slatefiber mid/bass drivers made from recycled carbon fiber. Their speakers and headphones feature distinctive technologies like their "W" sandwich cone design for optimal driver performance and Mimi Sound Personalization that adapts audio to individual hearing profiles.
Expand Details
Our Summary
Product Strengths
- Tool-less design with the Easy Quick Install (EQI) system allows for quick and easy installation
- Flax cone drivers offer light, stiff cones with good natural damping
- The design allows for both horizontal and vertical installation by rotating the high-frequency/mid-range pod
- Delivers impressive dynamics, a clean, neutral balance, and articulate dialogue handling
- Easy to drive with an amplifier
Product Considerations
- The Easy Quick Install (EQI) system may not work in all situations due to space constraints behind the wall
- The open-back design can make the speaker's balance dependent on the installation environment, potentially requiring EQ adjustments
- Adding the included black acoustic cloth to the grille darkens the overall color shade, which is not ideal for color matching applications
- If a clamp breaks on the tool-less design, it is not easily replaceable
- Requires more horizontal spacing than speakers with traditional dogears, requiring installers to be more careful about between-stud placement
Comparisons (according to reviewers)
- Vs Focal Kanta No. 2: The Kanta No. 2 has a weightier midrange, superlative upper frequencies, more depth, wider soundstage, and improved imaging, though the 300IWLCR6's sound quality is satisfying
- Vs PSB W-LCR: The PSB exhibits a very slight nasal characteristic, which is not noticed on the Focal LCRs
- Vs Martin Logan Axis: The Martin Logan Axis has impressive imaging and upper-end frequency output due to its folded ribbon tweeter, which is very different from the Focals' inverted dome aluminum and magnesium tweeter
Takeaway: The Focal 300IWLCR6 in-wall loudspeaker is easy to install and delivers great sound for music and movies, especially when paired with a good subwoofer. The speaker can be easily installed, and it can fit into various home theater setups.
Video review
Our take on the brand
Focal is a French hifi brand that makes their own drivers in-house, including their highly-regarded beryllium tweeters and unique slatefiber mid/bass drivers made from recycled carbon fiber. Their speakers and headphones feature distinctive technologies like their "W" sandwich cone design for optimal driver performance and Mimi Sound Personalization that adapts audio to individual hearing profiles.
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M&K Sound
IW150A
1599
/
Released
2022
The IW150A is a versatile in-wall/in-ceiling speaker, designed for the ultimate home theater experience. Targeted primarily as a Dolby Atmos-friendly in-ceiling model, it can also be used for other in-wall cinema or multi-room music applications. Its single 15-degree angle-fixed tweeter makes the IW150A ideal for effects-based sound in multi-speaker setups.
M&K Sound invented the world's first subwoofer in 1973 and is widely used in Hollywood studios for mixing and mastering film soundtracks. Their push-pull subwoofer design cancels out harmonic distortion, and their speakers deliver professional studio monitor neutrality, making them a top choice for high-end audio production.
Expand Details
Our Summary
Product Strengths
- Retains the neutrality, realism, and musicality associated with the M&K Sound design in a discreet enclosure
- The front three IW150 models perfectly match each other in terms of tonality and are utterly transparent
- Capable of a pleasingly open sound that fills the room with wonderful detail and clarity
- The transient response of these speakers is incredible, viscerally delivering the scares as the soundtrack suddenly goes from relative silence to very loud
Product Considerations
- Slightly lacking at the low-end, designed to be used with a subwoofer
- Placement can be non-trivial and orientation moreso because of the multi-woofer/tweeter design, resulting in a weird dispersion that will sound different depending on which side of the speaker one is on
- Putting them in the wall might change its sonic integrity
Comparisons (according to reviewers)
- IW150 is an in-wall version of the M&K Sound S150
Takeaway: The IW150 delivers the detail, clarity, and transience of a professional studio monitor from a discreet, in-wall enclosure. If one is looking for in-wall speakers that vanish into their decor, then these are worth an audition.
Video review
Our take on the brand
M&K Sound invented the world's first subwoofer in 1973 and is widely used in Hollywood studios for mixing and mastering film soundtracks. Their push-pull subwoofer design cancels out harmonic distortion, and their speakers deliver professional studio monitor neutrality, making them a top choice for high-end audio production.
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