Most soundbars don’t make us stop and stare at the price tag. The Focal Mu-so Hekla does. At £3000 / $3600, this all-in-one system sits at the very top of the premium soundbar pile — and after days in the test room, it largely earns the position.
It’s a joint effort between Focal and its sister brand Naim Audio, two names with genuine pedigree, and it shows. The Hekla handles both Dolby Atmos and DTS:X, and ships with full streaming support including Tidal, Qobuz and Spotify. Here’s what stood out — and the one thing that gave us pause.
1. Sound that wraps around you
Whether it’s a tense action thriller or a delicate classical passage, the Hekla immerses you completely. The soundstage envelops the listening position, and effects are placed with startling accuracy. Watching Dune: Part Two, we could hear individual grains of sand falling with impressive exactness. Music fares just as well — vocals are natural and expressive, and the frequency balance stays composed.
We pitted it against one of its closest rivals, the Award-winning KEF XIO (£1999 / $2500). The XIO remains excellent, but the Hekla justifies its premium with superior dynamics, detail resolution and refinement.
2. Bass that hits without bullying
The low end is meaty yet agile. In Dune: Part Two, the thumper’s initial punch landed in the soles of our feet, and when the worm erupted, the roar of sand was forceful without swallowing Paul Atreides shouting over the chaos. It reaches the lowest we’ve heard from an all-in-one system, yet never loses its balance during busy scenes.
3. Engineering you can feel
The cabinet is anodised aluminium with sandblasted finishes — sturdy, smooth and worthy of the asking price. Inside sit 15 drivers: seven on the front (three woofers, two midrange, two tweeters), two full-range drivers on each side, and four upward-firing units on top. It comes only in all-black, designed to vanish in a dark room, and you can even kill the LED ring around the control dial. That dial doubles as a touchscreen — twist for volume, tap to switch inputs and power.
The one snag: it’s big, and the display is awkward
As elegant as the top-mounted dial looks, it makes navigation fiddly when the Hekla is used as a soundbar — the controls aren’t as instantly readable as, say, the Sennheiser Ambeo Soundbar Max. The dial’s light also reflected off the TV screen from certain angles (a non-issue if you’re using it as a standalone hi-fi).
Then there’s the sheer bulk. At 15.5kg, one metre long and almost 30cm deep, it demands a serious piece of furniture. Focal says the size is necessary to house all those drivers and acoustic tech — fair enough — but it’s worth measuring your space first.
Quirks aside, the Mu-so Hekla is a formidable performer that more than earns its lofty price.
