[PRL18]

A whole lot of this is going to depend on what type of music files you are listening to. If you want to obtain the full potential of what any particular headphone can do, you should consider upgrading your source. Doesn't have to be expensive, but needs to be capable.

Thanks!

 

[Mhog55]

My top vote would go to the Ibasso SR2. While marketed as semi open, it hardly leaks any sound at all. Less so than something like the Fostex tr-x00 series. The SR2 compares in sound quality to many 1000 dollar headphones I've heard. Massive bang for the buck, plus it's about as comfortable as they come. I like it better than the tr-x00 Ebony I've owned, as well as the E-mu Teak, Focal Radiance, and Denon ah-d7200.

 

[PRL18]

My top vote would go to the Ibasso SR2. While marketed as semi open, it hardly leaks any sound at all. Less so than something like the Fostex tr-x00 series. The SR2 compares in sound quality to many 1000 dollar headphones I've heard. Massive bang for the buck, plus it's about as comfortable as they come. I like it better than the tr-x00 Ebony I've owned, as well as the E-mu Teak, Focal Radiance, and Denon ah-d7200.

Thank you! I decided to test the Focal Elegia first. I have not experienced any other good headphones so I don't have much of a reference. Elegias coming tomorrow

 

[PRL18]

Earmen Sparrow DAC/Amp Dongle (https://earmen-shop.com/products/sparrow)

Ddhifi Mfi06 Lightning to USB-C Cable (https://audio46.com/products/dd-ddhifi-mfi06-lightning-to-typec-data-cable)

Focal Elegia with Dekoni Elite Sheepskin Pads (https://www.adorama.com/fofelegia.html?bc_pid=Rk9GRUxFR0lB&utm_source=bluecore&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=backinstock&emailprice=t&obem=hedb_EdSDiGWzUiUgIX-AhiWQfnYejW_eO3wc7q9U8o=&bc_lcid=t5703501738450944lw5659749032435712&utm_source=bluecore) and (https://audio46.com/products/dekoni-audio-elite-sheepskin-replacement-ear-pads-for-focal-headphones)

All-in this is around $700-800 depending on tax and ship.

You can't plug any wired headphones direct into an iPhone so you will need some form of DAC, Amp, DAC/Amp combo or mobile dongle, which I included above recommendation along with the necessary cable for it to work with an iPhone.

There's unfortunately never any indisputable winners in the audiophile world, it's all quite subjective. I recommended the Focal Elegia w/ Dekoni Elite Sheepskin Pads because it fulfills some of your requests; a) comfort, b) some bass but not at the sacrifice of detail, c) good isolation.

Hi again,

What is that the DAC/amp does to the Elegia (or any other headphone)? Does it improve the sound or just allows more volume? What am I loosing without it?

And are the Dekoni Elite Sheepskin Pads for comfort, improves sound, base, all of the above?

Thanks

 

[552609]

The Focal Celestee is pretty good and the JM Audio XTC-C is really good for the price you can use both from the Apple dongle I believe.

 

[552609]

Hi again,

What is that the DAC/amp does to the Elegia (or any other headphone)? Does it improve the sound or just allows more volume? What am I loosing without it?

And are the Dekoni Elite Sheepskin Pads for comfort, improves sound, base, all of the above?

Thanks

More power, mostly needed if you phone is not making music loud enough for your to hear/enjoy. A good one will add quality through the DAC in addition to power, but that's mostly semantics at this level.

 

[ScornDefeat]

Hi again,

What is that the DAC/amp does to the Elegia (or any other headphone)? Does it improve the sound or just allows more volume? What am I loosing without it?

And are the Dekoni Elite Sheepskin Pads for comfort, improves sound, base, all of the above?

Thanks

Objectively, it'll just be more power/volume, essentially.

Subjectively, many people report hearing differences/improvements between various DACs and amplifiers.

Dekoni Elite Sheepskin pads have a readily notable change of the sound signature versus the stock pads, one in which I find to be a large improvement. The area most clearly impacted positively from the Elite Sheepskin Pads is bass, both bass depth as well as overall presence. The Elegia + Dekoni Elite pads get the headphone more similar to the Focal Celestee but for half the price.

 

[PRL18]

Thanks everybody again for the help!

So I’ve been using the Elegias for a few weeks. They are a bit tight (I’m on the large head side), and the head band is a bit uncomfortable for me. Although I can wear them for a while, I’m not sure I could for several hours. Excellent sound isolation, though.

I listened to Spotify on my iPhone (so no good quality files) and old CDs I downloaded into my computer. The achieved volume was adequate for me.

The only pair of “decent” earphones I own and could compare to are my 1MORE Quads. I enjoyed the wider soundstage, better details and clarity. It feels like a filter is being removed. I can better locate the instruments and notice sounds that didn’t before. Unfortunately I find it a bit bass light for my taste.

So I wanted to ask a couple of questions if anybody is still around

Regarding bass:
• Can using EQ to add bass achieve the same sound quality than listening to a headphone that has better bass by default? Or it’s not possible because the headphone was not originally designed for that?
• Some recommend the Dekoni Elite Sheepskin Pads. Do you get the same result by using EQ?
• Do you change EQ for each song, per genre, or use always the same?
• Is there a EQ setup that most people use specifically for the Elegias?

Although I enjoyed the sound, I wasn’t blown away. I guess I had extremely high expectations. It’s possible because my ears are not trained for high quality sound, but made me wonder how much better a pair of $4,000 cans can be (i.e. Focal Utopia) compared to the Elegias. Is it an incredible difference or is it just incremental sound quality that could only be picked up by trained ears?

 

[cantcacheme]

Thanks everybody again for the help!

So I’ve been using the Elegias for a few weeks. They are a bit tight (I’m on the large head side), and the head band is a bit uncomfortable for me. Although I can wear them for a while, I’m not sure I could for several hours. Excellent sound isolation, though.

I listened to Spotify on my iPhone (so no good quality files) and old CDs I downloaded into my computer. The achieved volume was adequate for me.

The only pair of “decent” earphones I own and could compare to are my 1MORE Quads. I enjoyed the wider soundstage, better details and clarity. It feels like a filter is being removed. I can better locate the instruments and notice sounds that didn’t before. Unfortunately I find it a bit bass light for my taste.

So I wanted to ask a couple of questions if anybody is still around

Regarding bass:
• Can using EQ to add bass achieve the same sound quality than listening to a headphone that has better bass by default? Or it’s not possible because the headphone was not originally designed for that?
• Some recommend the Dekoni Elite Sheepskin Pads. Do you get the same result by using EQ?
• Do you change EQ for each song, per genre, or use always the same?
• Is there a EQ setup that most people use specifically for the Elegias?

Although I enjoyed the sound, I wasn’t blown away. I guess I had extremely high expectations. It’s possible because my ears are not trained for high quality sound, but made me wonder how much better a pair of $4,000 cans can be (i.e. Focal Utopia) compared to the Elegias. Is it an incredible difference or is it just incremental sound quality that could only be picked up by trained ears?

I never heard the Elegia, so can't really speak about its performance, but generally EQ can work to some extent for all headphones, some more than others. Using EQ to add bass could work, but pushing it too hard will just make it sound muddy and distorted. Since EQ is free, however, it is certainly worth trying out at the very least, then you can gauge its effectiveness by ear. As for pads, they will definitely change the sound, and it looks like the Dekoni ones you mentioned would indeed increase the bass, but they are very pricey so I'd recommend using EQ and seeing if that works before pulling the trigger on replacement pads.

As for Utopia, and high-end headphones in general, they all suffer from severe diminishing returns; yes, the Utopia is a better headphone, but it is certainly not 10x better by any metric. In this specific comparison, the Utopias would offer more resolution and detail, and a different (not necessarily better) tuning which you may or may not prefer. Soundstage is actually quite small, especially for an open-back headphone; I don't know how it compares to Elegia, but it is widely regarded as having a narrow soundstage for any price, let alone at the TOTL tier. It does have excellent bass quality and dynamics, but in terms of quantity, it might not even be enough for your taste.

 

[PRL18]

I never heard the Elegia, so can't really speak about its performance, but generally EQ can work to some extent for all headphones, some more than others. Using EQ to add bass could work, but pushing it too hard will just make it sound muddy and distorted. Since EQ is free, however, it is certainly worth trying out at the very least, then you can gauge its effectiveness by ear. As for pads, they will definitely change the sound, and it looks like the Dekoni ones you mentioned would indeed increase the bass, but they are very pricey so I'd recommend using EQ and seeing if that works before pulling the trigger on replacement pads.

As for Utopia, and high-end headphones in general, they all suffer from severe diminishing returns; yes, the Utopia is a better headphone, but it is certainly not 10x better by any metric. In this specific comparison, the Utopias would offer more resolution and detail, and a different (not necessarily better) tuning which you may or may not prefer. Soundstage is actually quite small, especially for an open-back headphone; I don't know how it compares to Elegia, but it is widely regarded as having a narrow soundstage for any price, let alone at the TOTL tier. It does have excellent bass quality and dynamics, but in terms of quantity, it might not even be enough for your taste.

Thanks a lot for your replay. I'll play a bit more with the EQ. The Elegias did become a bit distorted when I pushed the bass too much.

 

[PRL18]

Curious to know what are your go to songs to test headphones. I like to listen to "Take Five" by Dave Brubeck Quartet and one of the Vivaldi's Four Season's pieces.

 

[PRL18]

Sad that I returned the Elegias. Although I found them a bit light on the bass, I really enjoyed the overall sound, wide soundstage and details, and the fact that I could directly connect them to my phone and were ready to go. But it felt it a bit too tight on my ears and the headband a bit uncomfortable

So there I go again.

I believe the Celestee are built exactly as the Elegia, correct? If so I wouldn’t go for them.

I was able to test a few Audeze that I liked. LCD-2C (I thought they were a bit bassier that I'd prefer), LCD-XC (enjoyed the sound). However it was in a crowded store with people talking so I may need to retest. Although heavy, I found them comfortable. Any thoughts between these two? And compared to the Elegias?

I also tried the LCD-X open back. I thought it sounded pretty good but definitely could hear everybody talking, and my wife may not appreciate the leaking sound.

I may be able to try the Aeon Closed X & Aeon 2 Noire soon. I’d like to try the Austrian Audio HI-X60 but I need to find a store for that. Somebody had also mentioned Monoprice M1570c.

It's getting more expensive that I originally wanted.

 

[DigitalJust]

Sad that I returned the Elegias. Although I found them a bit light on the bass, I really enjoyed the overall sound, wide soundstage and details, and the fact that I could directly connect them to my phone and were ready to go. But it felt it a bit too tight on my ears and the headband a bit uncomfortable

So there I go again.

I believe the Celestee are built exactly as the Elegia, correct? If so I wouldn’t go for them.

I was able to test a few Audeze that I liked. LCD-2C (I thought they were a bit bassier that I'd prefer), LCD-XC (enjoyed the sound). However it was in a crowded store with people talking so I may need to retest. Although heavy, I found them comfortable. Any thoughts between these two? And compared to the Elegias?

I also tried the LCD-X open back. I thought it sounded pretty good but definitely could hear everybody talking, and my wife may not appreciate the leaking sound.

I may be able to try the Aeon Closed X & Aeon 2 Noire soon. I’d like to try the Austrian Audio HI-X60 but I need to find a store for that. Somebody had also mentioned Monoprice M1570c.

It's getting more expensive that I originally wanted.

I like my aeon closed x a lot. It's the headphone i go to when i want to not mess with eq or anything. It's also very light, so it's pleasant to wear for hours.

 

[ApaucalyptiK]

For the headphones i would recommend a used Denon AH-D5200 for around $300, the sq/price/build quality ratio is excellent and the Denon sound is fun yet precise.
They should sound fine with your phone but you can also add a good DAC/AMP dongle and still be under the $500 mark.

 

[PRL18]

For the headphones i would recommend a used Denon AH-D5200 for around $300, the sq/price/build quality ratio is excellent and the Denon sound is fun yet precise.
They should sound fine with your phone but you can also add a good DAC/AMP dongle and still be under the $500 mark.

Thanks. I see if I can test them.