In this review, we will be comparing Chora 826-D and Triton Seven, two Passive Floor-standing speakers from Focal and GoldenEar.
Let's have a brief look at the main features
of Focal Chora 826-D and GoldenEar Triton Seven first before getting into our more
detailed comparison.
| Key Specs | Focal Chora 826-D | GoldenEar Triton Seven |
|---|
| Design | 3-way | 2-way |
|---|
| Tweeter | 1" inverted dome | Folded Ribbon |
|---|
| Midrange | 6.5" | — |
|---|
| Woofer | 2 x 6.5" Slatefiber | 2 x 5.25" Polypropylene |
|---|
| Frequency response | 48-28k Hz | 29-35k Hz |
|---|
| Sensitivity | 91 dB | 89 dB |
|---|
| Impedance | 8 ohms | 8 ohms |
|---|
| Power range | 40-250 watts | 10-300 watts |
|---|
| Weight | 22.20kg / 48.8lbs | 14.55kg / 32lbs |
|---|
| Dimensions (H x W x D) | 41-7/16" x 12" x 16-1/2"
1053.0 x 305.0 x 420.0mm | 40-1/2" x 10-1/2" x 14-1/2"
1029.0 x 267.0 x 369.0mm |
|---|
What size room are the Focal Chora 826-D and GoldenEar Triton Seven speakers good for?
The size of the room in which you are planning to use these loudspeakers is an important decision
factor. Here we have compared their suitability to various sizes of environments considering their size
and max power parameters:
| Listening Environment* |
Focal Chora 826-D |
GoldenEar Triton Seven |
| Near-field |
Bad |
Bad |
| Small Room |
Poor |
Poor |
| Mid-size Room |
Average |
Average |
| Large Room |
Good |
Good |
| Very Large Room |
Average |
Average |
(* Approximate Room sizes: Small < 100sq. ft / 9 m2,
Mid-size: 100-220 sq. ft / 9-20 m2, Large 220-400 sq. ft / 20-36 m2, Very Large: >
400 sq. ft / 36 m2.
Average Floor Height: 9" / 2.7m. Typical room sizes differ from country to country, and the actual
listening experience changes depending on floor height, room shape, surface materials, listening
position, speaker locations, etc.)
The sections below take each area in turn: drivers, frequency response, physical size and what you get in the box.
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Drivers
One of the fundamental differences between these two speakers is that Chora 826-D is a 3-way design whereas the Triton Seven is a 2-way speaker. 3-way designs utilize a midrange driver in addition to the tweeter and woofer on 2-way designs. Designing a crossover for a 3-way speaker is a complicated process and generally increases the overall cost of the speaker.
Focal Chora 826-DGoldenEar Triton Seven
TweeterMidrangeWoofer
Front view, drawn to scale - cabinets and drivers share one scale, so sizes are directly comparable. Hover a driver for its size.
| Driver |
Focal Chora 826-D |
GoldenEar Triton Seven |
|
Driver Setup
|
3-way
|
2-way
|
|
Tweeter
|
1-inch
|
-inch
|
|
Midrange
|
1 x 6.5-inch |
- |
|
Woofer
|
2 x 6.5-inch
|
2 x 5.25-inch
|
Chora 826-D features a 1" TNF Al/Mg inverted dome Tweeter, a 6.5" Midrange and 2 x 6.5" Slatefiber Woofer with a Crossover frequency at 270Hz and 2700Hz. On the other hand, the Triton Seven features a " Folded Ribbon Tweeter and 2 x 5.25" Polypropylene Woofer.
Frequency Response
Chora 826-D has a frequency range of 48-28k Hz whereas Triton Seven has a frequency range of 29-35k Hz. With a minimum frequency of 29Hz, the Triton Seven can go significantly deeper on the low side and provide stronger bass compared to the Chora 826-D's min frequency of 48Hz.
The graph below depicts how these two speakers compare with the max, min and average Low Frequency values of other speakers in the Floor-standing class in our database.
Low Frequency
Floor-standing Speakers
Neither pair reaches down to 20Hz, the usual definition of full-range, which is normal for speakers of this size. If you want the bottom octave for movies or bass-heavy music, add a subwoofer to whichever you choose. Visit our Powered Subwoofers section to find out more about the available options.
Impedance and Sensitivity
Chora 826-D and Triton Seven have the same Impedance of 8 ohms but where they differ is the sensitivity levels. Chora 826-D sensitivity is rated at 91 dB and the Triton Seven's is at 89 dB. This 2 dB difference makes the Focal Chora 826-D a more sensitive speaker compared to GoldenEar Triton Seven, hence will play louder with the same amount of watts.
Sensitivity
Floor-standing Speakers
Power Range
Power
range is the range of input power in watts RMS that a loudspeaker is designed to handle. Staying
within that range gives nominal performance; driving the speaker beyond its maximum wattage can damage it.
Triton Seven can handle a max power of 300 watts RMS, whereas Chora 826-D has a max power handling value of 250 watts RMS, 50 watts less than the Triton Seven.
Note that higher power handling does not make a speaker louder: that depends mainly on
sensitivity and impedance. The calculator below shows how loud each of these actually plays
on a real amplifier.
Which plays louder on your amplifier?
Starting with a popular amplifier — change it to the one you own, or any you are
considering, and watch both numbers move.
Input Type and Bi-Amping / Bi-Wiring
Chora 826-D features 5-way Post type posts and Triton Seven has a 5-way Post type posts. None of these speakers feature bi-amping/bi-wiring.
Focal Chora 826-D's Binding post terminals
Cabinet Type and Port Position
Chora 826-D has a front firing port whereas Triton Seven has a rear firing ports. Focal Chora 826-D's front-firing port gives more flexibility in placement in regards to proximity to walls compared to GoldenEar Triton Seven with its rear-firing port.
Physical Specs
The size of a speaker can sometimes be an important decision factor due to space constraints or in some cases purely for esthetic reasons. In this section, we are going to compare Focal Chora 826-D's and GoldenEar Triton Seven's external dimensions. Focal Chora 826-D has external dimensions of 1053.0 x 305.0 x 420.0mm (41-7/16 x 12 x 16-1/2inch) whereas GoldenEar Triton Seven has external dimensions of 1029.0 x 267.0 x 369.0mm (40-1/2 x 10-1/2 x 14-1/2inch).
Focal Chora 826-D is clearly the larger of the two speakers. Its body is 38mm wider, 24mm taller and 51mm deeper than GoldenEar Triton Seven.
Base Surface Area Comparison
Base surface area of a loudspeaker may become a determining factor when the space in your room or desk is limited.
The base surface area of the Focal Chora 826-D is approximately 1281.0cm2 / 198.6inch2 and base area of the GoldenEar Triton Seven is approximately 985.2cm2 / 152.7inch2. The Chora 826-D requires 30% more surface area than the Triton Seven which gives it a small disadvantage on placement in tight spaces.
Weight Comparison The weight of a loudspeaker can become an important factor if you need to move and reposition the unit often. Weight of a speaker can also "sometimes" be an indicator of the rigidity of the enclosure and the quality of the internal components used. The Focal Chora 826-D weighs 22.20kg / 48.8lbs and the GoldenEar Triton Seven weighs 14.55kg / 32lbs. This makes the Chora 826-D 53% heavier than the Triton Seven.
Here is a comparison of how Chora 826-D and Triton Seven's weights compare with the average, max and min weights in Passive Floor-standing class.
Weight
All Floor-standing Speakers
What's in the Box of Focal Chora 826-D?
Here are the items that are included inside the box of Chora 826-D:
- Dolby-Atmos enabled floorstanding loudspeaker
- Base
- 4 Rubber feet
- 4 Spike feet
- 4 Nuts
- 4 Screws
- 4 Washers
- Hex-key
- 2 Grilles
- User manual
What's in the Box of GoldenEar Triton Seven?
Here are the items that come with the Triton Seven:
- Floorstanding loudspeaker
- 4 Rubber feet (pre-installed)
- 4 Spikes
- 4 Locking nuts
- Owners Manual
 Driver Setup |
3-way
vs
2-way
|
Have a dedicated mid-range driver |
 Sensitivity |
91 dB
vs
89 dB
|
Play louder with same amount of amplification power |
 Woofer Size |
6.5 inches
vs
5.25 inches
|
Larger woofer |
 Port Position |
Front
vs
Rear
|
Gives more flexibility placing close to walls |
 Dolby Atmos Drivers |
Built-in 1 x 5-1/8
vs
No
|
Dolby Atmos Compatibility |
 Max Input Power |
300 watts
vs
250 watts
|
Handle more power from your amplifier |
|
Low Frequency Response |
29 Hz
vs
48 Hz
|
Generates deeper bass |
 High Frequency Response |
35k Hz
vs
28k Hz
|
Generates higher frequency |
 Passive Radiator |
dual 8-inch infrasonic planar sub-bass
vs
None
|
Increases the bass performance |
 Height |
1029mm
vs
1053mm
|
Easier to fit in smaller spaces |
 Base Surface Area |
985cm2
vs
1281cm2
|
Takes less floor space |
 Price per pair* |
1798USD
vs
2998USD
|
costs less (*prices may change depending on the seller, location and time) |
| General |
Focal Chora 826-D |
GoldenEar Triton Seven |
| Brand |
Focal |
GoldenEar |
| Speaker Type |
Floor-standing speaker |
Floor-standing speaker |
| Power Range |
40-250 watts |
10-300 watts |
| Sensitivity |
91 dB |
89 dB |
| Impedance |
8 ohms |
8 ohms |
| Impedance |
2.9 ohms |
n/a |
| Frequency Response |
48-28k Hz |
29-35k Hz |
Drivers |
|
|
| Woofer Quantity |
2 |
2 |
| Woofer Size |
6.5" |
5.25" |
| Woofer Composition |
Slatefiber |
Polypropylene |
| Woofer Surround Material |
Rubber |
Rubber |
| Tweeter Size |
1" |
- |
| Tweeter Type |
inverted dome |
Folded Ribbon |
| Aimable Tweeter |
No |
No |
| Midrange Driver |
6.5" |
No |
| Crossover Frequency |
270Hz and 2700Hz |
n/a |
| Firing Direction |
front |
rear |
Physical Specs |
|
|
| Height |
1053.0mm (41.5") |
1029.0mm (40.5") |
| Width |
305.0mm (12") |
267.0mm (10.5") |
| Depth |
420.0mm (16.5") |
369.0mm (14.5") |
| Weight |
22.20kg (48.8lbs) |
14.55kg (32lbs) |
| Enclosure |
Bass Reflex |
Passive Radiator |
| Finish |
MDF/Vinyl-wrap |
MDF/Lacquer |
| Available Colors |
Black, Dark wood, Light wood |
Gloss Black |
| Grille |
Yes |
n/a |
| Moisture Resistancy |
No |
No |
Connections |
|
|
| Biamp Inputs |
No |
No |
Other |
|
|
| Parts Warranty |
5 Years |
5 Years |
| Labor Warranty |
5 Years |
5 Years |
These sit in different price classes - Focal Chora 826-D costs roughly 1.7x what GoldenEar Triton Seven does. Expect it to lead on paper; the question is whether the gap is audible enough in your room to be worth it.
| Area | Better | Why |
|---|
| Bass |
B |
GoldenEar Triton Seven digs deeper - 29Hz against 48Hz. |
| Amplifier needs |
A |
Focal Chora 826-D is more sensitive (91dB vs 89dB), so it goes louder on the same amplifier. |
| Headroom |
evenly matched |
Similar power handling (250W vs 300W). |
| Size |
depends |
GoldenEar Triton Seven is easier to place; Focal Chora 826-D is bigger, which usually goes with fuller bass. Your room decides. |
| Cabinet |
depends |
Ported vs Passive Radiator. |
| Expandability |
A |
Focal Chora 826-D: Atmos drivers. |
| Price |
B |
GoldenEar Triton Seven is cheaper - $1,798 against $2,998, about 40% less; arguably a different class. |
A Focal Chora 826-D
B GoldenEar Triton Seven
depends neither is better in the abstract - it turns on your room, placement or how you will use them.
Only specs published for both speakers are judged; anything missing on either side is left out rather than guessed.
Which should you choose?
Focal Chora 826-D is ahead, but only on 1 of the measured areas, and it costs about 40% more. That is a lot of money for a narrow margin on paper - GoldenEar Triton Seven looks like the sensible buy unless something else about the Focal Chora 826-D appeals to you. If a subwoofer is in your plans, the bass gap largely stops mattering - you would be crossing over above 48Hz anyway, so judge these on the other rows instead. If your amplifier is modest, vintage or valve-based, Focal Chora 826-D is the safer partner - the other will want more current or more watts to sound its best.
And remember what a spec sheet cannot show: how each looks in your room and whether the finish suits it, what dealer support and warranty are like where you live, and how they actually sound to you. If you can hear them first - ideally with your own music - that will tell you more than any number above.