Bass is fantastic on all high end Focal headphones. So whoever said bass is over emphasized is either a Grado lover or doesn’t know what they are talking about.

Focals website will actually direct you to a local dealer - who will tell you the elear is discontinued. However you can buy them new on closeout from a lot of different places online at $500-600 (your target price). No “feedback” required! The Elegias are good headphones - but closed back -...

Congratulations on the Utopias : truly one of the very best headphones ever! The DAC / streamer built in to the Atom is actually pretty decent (although the Qutest will be better). You may want to start out with a headphone amp using the line out of the Atom first to get some listening time and...

I would suggest a pair of used / discontinued Focal Elear (there was also a Massdrop version called the Elex. Very transparent and dynamic headphone with good comfort, excellent build quality and in your price range. They are open back however. If you must have closed back - then some kind...

I have tried the Classics. They will not sound exactly the same if anything because of the walnut wood enclosures vs the plastic / leather (?) enclosures of the Neo. However I doubt you will be disappointed with either. There’s also the $180 classic 99 “Noir” version on Massdrop, though that...

I would second the Meze 99s and Neos. Very comfortable, beautifully made, easy to drive and have good bass with a warmer sounds that helps to tame some of the sibilance and thinness that you sometimes get for less than ideal metal recordings. Another good choice imho would be an old pair of Mr...

Probably most people’s hearing is compromised to some degree. Nonetheless it’s about maximizing the enjoyment of hearing in the range you CAN hear vs worrying about the range you can’t. In which case having high quality head gear etc will always be worthwhile!

Anyone out there who does IPod classic mods for you (vs DIY) ie maybe using yours as a donor? I have one and like it / but would be willing to pay a bit to hot rod it - particularly for even better sound quality.

Wireworld Eclipse - uses OCC copper and has a warm tone with very good midrange. Unfortunately Wireworld recently discontinued their headphone cables. But I do have a pair for Focal / Stellia if your interested.

Woah : didn't know I had walked into the hornets nest of the empiricist wing of audiophiledom! Look - neither I nor anyone else should be expected to wade through over 100 pages to this thread and "lurk" for however long for the "privilege" of responding to a thread title that makes the...

The title of this thread is "How do I CONVINCE people that audio cables DO NOT make a difference". So at least ONE person IS trying to convince someone. In fact many people are trying to convince people : i.e. that they have the "facts" or the scientifically accurate and rigid way to establish...

Even if someone's been "fooled", they mostly they have to figure that out for themselves. Trying to tell people they've been "fooled" I find is one of the less agreeable aspects of the audiophile community, especially when it comes from limited personal experience or expertise. There are so...

If you're looking for inexpensive power cables, I would suggest trying Wireworld ones instead of Pangea or Audioquest. I've tried some Pangea and AQ and found that I liked the WW ones better at similar or lower cost. Just had a more open and lively sound. The entry level ones are called...

For low cost I really like Wireworld Starlight. The new Micro B to A works really great with my Chord Mojo (super tight / secure connection) and sounds a lot better than the stock cable. Retail price I think is less than $100. For my other hifi gear Ive really liked the XLO Ultraplus USB...