2 years here. The first set doesn't look pretty anymore but is sonically sound. Foam is still good, red cloth is a little frayed and discolored after a few washes. Spare pair is still slumbering peacefully in the box.

Clear definitely has a little bit more "bite" in the high end than my DT-880 with the Oratory EQ. I quite like it and deliberately left it untouched. Why do some people hear it and others not? Simple: Our ears have different frequency responses. Send 2 people to get a bode plot of their...

Even with daily showering, the fabric doesn't stand a chance, if you wear the Clear for any extended periods on a daily basis. It may look super cool when new but frankly spoken: the material isn't up to the job. The foam inside the pads is great. Even after multiple washes and 2 years it shows...

It is quite normal, especially at extreme frequencies like 15Hz. Yes, Hans Zimmer's music can contain a crapton of subbass and little else, tempting one to crank it till there's no tomorrow. (talking to you, Bladerunner 2049 OST!) Usually the driver only reaches Xmax at ... well, lets call it...

This. I can clearly (no pun intended) hear it when my Clear's cable hits some object or when I touch it. I also have that problem with my DT-880s replacement cable but never had it with the original one. A bit lame for a product of this price but thankfully, once in operation, the transmitted...

That's because there is no such thing as "upgrade a cable" in terms of sound. However, the stock cable is fairly stiff and annoyingly microphonic to boot (at least the short one from my Pro). These are definitely qualities you can improve upon.

Late reply but: Online? Freely accessible? Probably nowhere. Even on Tidal you do not have any guarantee that you aren't listening to "upscaled" .mp3. >.< Though I wouldn't fret too much, modern Codecs are pretty good and you need pretty freaky samples / volumes to reliably tell them apart...

These are some scary looking sound systems. :D Keep in mind, that you are listening to a lossy codec (Opus) at a merely 152Kbits. Depending on whether your ears are trained or not, you might hear the compression artifacts. Cool recordings though.

I know the feeling and share the sentiment. Focal's Aria speakers did the same for me in the speaker domain. At this point, unless something breaks, my audiophile journey is completed and I turn my attention towards the content and finding time to actually use the gear I have.

Yes, that's why engineers measure and design speakers and electronic components according to the science behind it and the results that their measurements gave them. I know people love to mystify all things audio but barring transducer designs, it is a completely solved problem in the...

a) My Clear clips upwards of 110dB, way to loud for comfort. So there is plenty of headroom. Hitting Xmax has nothing to do with a drivers "speed" a.k.a. conformity to a rectangular signal unless the driver is absurdly underdamped and overshoots / rings like crazy. b) the Utopia has the same...

Well lets be fair: we would need to compare one metal against another metal. So the inherent differences would be much smaller to begin with. As you said in your next paragraph, they have a lot of tools to tune the headphone's signature, dome material is just one of them. I'd argue that the...

I've read and seen measurements that the pads actually alter the frequency response of the Focals quite a bit. I researched that topic because I was contemplating to snag a Utopia leather pad set for my Clear but people in this forum advised against it. So in all honesty: that's not a fair...

Well it's understandable. a) they invest a lot in the hobby. And I mean A LOT. Not just money but also time. b) they actually hear differences. That is the crux of the whole issue. If you let me test 2 amplifiers sighted, even when I know their measurements are identical I will be able to hear...

Probably referring to this topic: https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/audio-blind-testing-you-are-doing-it-wrong-video.26809/

Argh. Thanks. I'm too long out of the loop regarding Focals products, since I am happy with my Clears. :D Though it's typically used in reference to THD and other distortion products, the masking effects of the human ear still apply to anything unwanted the driver may do. Keep in mind: you...

delete please

To a measurement rig they won't. Absolutely correct. You make the assumption though, that the difference in behavior can actually be picked up by the human ear while it is tortured by noises ~60-80dB louder. Psychoacoustics and anatomy tell us that that is very unlikely to happen. We've seen...

Depending on the EQ capability of your device and your access to measurement gear, that might have been the financially sensible thing to do. If you don't have either, you can only take what the manufacturers throw at you. Keep in mind, that I never said that they sound alike if left untouched.

I will do that when I talk about actually audible differences, sure. Not when talking about theoretical stuff. E.g.: when I say that differences in cabling are inaudible, that's a scientifically proven fact, no need for "imo" and if s/o claims otherwise you know said person is making things...

Probably not, my ears aren't trained and also not that good. :D Though going back to actual real life scenarios: In my experience, once you have gear like the Clear, it's actually the recordings themselves that are the limiting factor. So much good music out there is recorded with horrible...

Not similar. The same. With a <0.1 dB margin. Obviously one would need very expensive professional equipment for that, so the exercise would be academic in nature, not to mention that DBT is very difficult to achieve with cans at all, given different weight and pad materials. As humans, we...

Focal's designs are so similar in nature and all of them have such good technical parameters, that FR is the only identifiable criteria that is left. If you take that out of the equation in combination with the limited hearing ability of human beings... Then again, people here argue that they...

Utopia vs Clear is just a slight difference in frequency response. If you EQ them to the same target, you won't be able to tell them apart in double blind tests. What you hear is a strongly elevated treble response that gives the illusion of "more detail". It WoW's you in the beginning but can...

I don't hit the excursion limit of my Clear Pro... at least not with a volume that my ears can withstand. In fact I find the bass to be painfully loud, not to mention the Ney (?) flute. I have encountered the excursion limit during movies on a high output impedance amp though. As others have...