[musicman59]

Just arrived a few minutes ago....so far me like very much 
That amp should be a great pairing with the Utopia.

 

[Mortalcoil]

 

That amp should be a great pairing with the Utopia.
 

 
So far I'm really liking the mix.  While the 430HA is very musical IMO, the Nordost offers its share of speed and transparency (typical Nordost).  Seems like a sweet combo to these ears.

 

[inthere]

Dillon's review has me very worried. Others have said the Utopia sounds more dynamic than other headphones while Dillon said it sounded less dynamic.........I'm hoping it at least comes close to my LCD-4 because the 4 is just sooooo heavy. 

 

[Rob80b]

  I finally have all three in house.
 
Whatever your preference; this is a privilege. 
 

So you are having a meet this week in TO....I might be busy though......

 

[MacedonianHero]

Can you give us some brief impressions without spoiling your review?

 
Sure, they're really, really good! 

 
Review will be out by Halloween...so I guess they're scary good! 

 

[phase0]

  I finally have all three in house.
 
Whatever your preference; this is a privilege. 
 

 
I'm curious what are your thoughts about Utopia bass? Especially vs Abyss? I'm finding the Utopia bass-lite when I compare it to my other headphones. Yet something about the Utopia when I'm not comparing it seems like it has bass presence. I seem to enjoy most of what I have more with the bass turned up. I guess where I'm going is I'm a bit unhappy with the Utopia because at $4k as a top of the line headphone I'm just not in love with it. I'm trying to line up an audition with a Kimber cable which is supposed to help in the bass dept. Otherwise I'm wondering if I should try to return the Utopia or sell it and go for the Abyss or give up. I really enjoy my Denon D5000s I recently got. I think on a lot of technical aspects are not in the same league as Utopia but at the same time they're just so much more fun cause it's got the bass the Utopia is missing. Another thing about the Utopia it seems like it's friendly to EQ so I'm also wondering maybe I should get a quality AU like Equilibrium EQ as a possible solution. Utopia + mach3bass is great on my Cowon. For the little bit of audiophile music I have so far I also think the Utopia render it really beautifully.

 

[MacedonianHero]

   
I'm curious what are your thoughts about Utopia bass? Especially vs Abyss? I'm finding the Utopia bass-lite when I compare it to my other headphones. Yet something about the Utopia when I'm not comparing it seems like it has bass presence. I seem to enjoy most of what I have more with the bass turned up. I guess where I'm going is I'm a bit unhappy with the Utopia because at $4k as a top of the line headphone I'm just not in love with it. I'm trying to line up an audition with a Kimber cable which is supposed to help in the bass dept. Otherwise I'm wondering if I should try to return the Utopia or sell it and go for the Abyss or give up. I really enjoy my Denon D5000s I recently got. I think on a lot of technical aspects are not in the same league as Utopia but at the same time they're just so much more fun cause it's got the bass the Utopia is missing. Another thing about the Utopia it seems like it's friendly to EQ so I'm also wondering maybe I should get a quality AU like Equilibrium EQ as a possible solution. Utopia + mach3bass is great on my Cowon. For the little bit of audiophile music I have so far I also think the Utopia render it really beautifully.

 
To my ears, the Utopia's bass is spot on and anymore is beyond what I would say is "neutral". That's not to say a bit more bass can still sound natural and very enjoyable...I do have the LCD-4s here and love them to death.

 

[phase0]

   
To my ears, the Utopia's bass is spot on and anymore is beyond what I would say is "neutral". That's not to say a bit more bass can still sound natural and very enjoyable...I do have the LCD-4s here and love them to death.

 
I've come to the conclusion I like more than neutral bass. I think that's my dilemma with the Utopia. For so much money, and being in the top tier, I shouldn't be saying 'yeah but...' It should be an immediate I love these things. I really like my LCD-XC. That's another dilemma, I didn't want to end up with the wall of headphones but I also can't seem to let any of them go either.

 

[MacedonianHero]

   
I've come to the conclusion I like more than neutral bass. I think that's my dilemma with the Utopia. For so much money, and being in the top tier, I shouldn't be saying 'yeah but...' It should be an immediate I love these things. I really like my LCD-XC. That's another dilemma, I didn't want to end up with the wall of headphones but I also can't seem to let any of them go either.

 
I like both actually...and thus why I have both around. 

 

[TimeLord]

   
I've come to the conclusion I like more than neutral bass. I think that's my dilemma with the Utopia. For so much money, and being in the top tier, I shouldn't be saying 'yeah but...' It should be an immediate I love these things. I really like my LCD-XC. That's another dilemma, I didn't want to end up with the wall of headphones but I also can't seem to let any of them go either.

I definitely share your sickness. I can't seem to let them go either.
 

   
I like both actually...and thus why I have both around. 

Even after loving my Utopia, I still listen to my LCD-X and I still enjoy it. It stays!

 

[nvfan]

Asside from the obvious ergonomic issues of the Utopia (a 500g headphone with a 170g cable and a rigid fixed headband when cans this heavy really should have a suspension/strap design to avoid putting all the weight on a single pressure point on more pointy heads and the tiny earpads not being suitable for large ears), the main problem I felt with the Utopia is every time I listened to them I was reaching for the EQ'ed HD800S or HE1000. I got the claustrophobic feeling like I was listening to IEMs or closed cans. The soundstage is simply too small for a $4k flagship headphone (although this seems to be by design due to the small earpads). The Utopia was a great driver engineering feat for a new entrant like Focal but really feels like a first generation product ergonomic-wise. Now I'm hoping the itch will be cured with whatever Mr Speakers or Hifiman develop for their electrostatic headphones.

 

[Mortalcoil]

   Now I'm hoping the itch will be cured with whatever Mr Speakers or Hifiman develop for their electrostatic headphones.

 
That itch will never be scratched.
 
All you can really hope for is a headphone that ticks most of the boxes.

 

[figaro69]

   
That itch will never be scratched.
 
All you can really hope for is a headphone that ticks most of the boxes.

​with so many "ticks" around lately, no wonder out itch never gets adequately scratched.

 

[jjthorn]

I was considering purchasing the Ether Flow headphones and a Violectric V281 headphone amp to use with my Invicta Mirus Pro DAC.
 
I have been tempted to consider purchasing the Focal Utopia although this would really stretch my budget.
 
To get the best from the Focal Utopia could someone provide advice as to approximate cost of a suitable balanced cable and is the unbalanced cable supplied with the headphones of a high quality?
 
My general listening covers everything apart from heavy rock music.
 
I will not have an opportunity to listen to the headphones and amp with my DAC till the end of October or early November.
 

 

[darinf]

Burning in a new cable:
 
 
 
WyWires Platinum cable! Thanks to @alexsv at WyWires. Sounds great so far. I am told it needs at least 100 hours of burn-in.