[jmills8]

Yeah I don't know. Obviously everything is subjective. But to my ear, there are a few headphones, that just miss the mark. Many of the original Fostex designs are among them. Some people find them "fun" and that's alright. To me, they are just annoyingly distorted.

The system can obviously alter the sound, but IMO those changes are quite marginal, compared to the differences in sound signature between headphones. Maybe a bold statement, but I think unless you use heavy EQ, no system in the world will make a neutral sounding headphone out of the TH900.

Ok but music is not neutral , and the neutral headphones are not real music. How you know what the engineer intended the music to sound ? Ill say that live music and music in a studio is teal music and how they sound the th900 is able to duplicate it. Maybe you just hear too much treble but if you knew what you like you would not be asking for information.Your want dull neutral go for the Utopia sound very neutral and flat.

 

[gb21011971]

Ok but music is not neutral , and the neutral headphones are not real music. How you know what the engineer intended the music to sound ? Ill say that live music and music in a studio is teal music and how they sound the th900 is able to duplicate it. Maybe you just hear too much treble but if you knew what you like you would not be asking for information.Your want dull neutral go for the Utopia sound very neutral and flat.

Well this can be an never-ending discussion and the thread is about the 9200, but let's just say that I just don't like the TH900. For ME it does exaggerate lows and highs and is far from neutral, i.e. replicating "real" music like acoustic music in a way that is close to the original. Taste's are different, nothing wrong with either. And yes, the Utopia is a brilliant headphone, I dare say that not many people find it boring. If I can get one for a good price at some point, I certainly will.

 

[jmills8]

Well this can be an never-ending discussion and the thread is about the 9200, but let's just say that I just don't like the TH900. For ME it does exaggerate lows and highs and is far from neutral, i.e. replicating "real" music like acoustic music in a way that is close to the original. Taste's are different, nothing wrong with either. And yes, the Utopia is a brilliant headphone, I dare say that not many people find it boring. If I can get one for a good price at some point, I certainly will.

Had it. Good luck

 

[Napilopez]

Hi Napilopez, I would be thrilled to hear more on the direct comparison between the 9200 and the Elegia once you spent a bit more time with them. On my eternal search for a the perfect closed back headphone (*sigh*), these two are on my shortlist for my next purchase, next to the Ether C Flow.

I am a fan of a rather neutral sound signature, but don't mind a bit of lower bass punch, if well defined. Z1R has too much for me, HD820 not enough. I loved the 7200, but missed clarity in the treble region, hence I sold it. Hoping that the 9200 improves on the 7200 in terms of definition and clarity.

The Clear is my main headphone right now, so if the Elegia is a more or less like a closed Clear (wishful thinking, I know) then I'd pull the trigger on it. But the Denon might actually be better, judging from some early impressions of other people.

Choices....

So I'm still letting the Elegia burn in, but I pulled out the Clear today to compare. It sounds just like I remember it and so I don't expect the sound to change much with burn-in.

Out of the box, its very apparent the Clear have stronger bass than the Elegia. I have no idea what sort of psychoacoustic trickery is happening here given how similarly the headphones measure in that region (and the Elegia should theoretically have more bass!), but the Clear has noticeably more impact in that area.

Among the headphones I have discussed, played out of an iFi iDSD Micro BL - which I consider a slightly warm source - overall bass quantity goes like this:

Denon D9200> Focal Clear>= Utopia>HD820=Elegia

The utopia and clear overall sound similar in terms of bass quantity and measure similarly there, but the utopia has sharper treble, which I think perceptually makes it seem like the bass is slightly lighter. On the other hand, it has better dynamics which makes impact seem a little more powerful. Really depends on the music, and volume matching by ear makes it hard to make exact comparisons. Point is that they're very close.

The Elegia is most similar in bass quantity to the HD820 so far. It depends on the track too - on some it actually seems rather close to the clear, but overall it might be the brightest of the bunch to my ears. It clamps the hardest out of the box too, and I doubled checked the pads are firmly clicked in, so I really doubt it's a seal issue.

Since you've heard the Clear and HD820, hopefully that gives you a picture of what the D9200 and Elegia sound like. The D9200 definitely is closer in bass quantity to the Clear. It's actually kind of like a more U-shaped Clear, with a bit more bass and treble, and mids pushed just slightly back. I don't think you'll find it to be too much, especially as I see the Sony 1000X in your roster.

Somewhat ironically given usual bass correlations, the Elegia has the best isolation of the bunch. The D9200 does isolate a bit, but I don't know how it compares to the prior Denons and Fostex models discussed.

I have to say, the Utopia may be a detail microscope, but I think the Clear might be the best of the Focal bunch I've heard in terms of tuning and overall presentation.

 

[Serge Bernamej]

Mark, stop reading this thread, you won’t be getting the 9200 unless you sell Jacob to the Saudis !

Sorry for being out of line here.

 

[alota]

@Napilopez really thanks for your write

 

[gb21011971]

So I'm still letting the Elegia burn in, but I pulled out the Clear today to compare. It sounds just like I remember it and so I don't expect the sound to change much with burn-in.

Out of the box, its very apparent the Clear have stronger bass than the Elegia. I have no idea what sort of psychoacoustic trickery is happening here given how similarly the headphones measure in that region (and the Elegia should theoretically have more bass!), but the Clear has noticeably more impact in that area.

Among the headphones I have discussed, played out of an iFi iDSD Micro BL - which I consider a slightly warm source - overall bass quantity goes like this:

Denon D9200> Focal Clear>= Utopia>HD820=Elegia

The utopia and clear overall sound similar in terms of bass quantity and measure similarly there, but the utopia has sharper treble, which I think perceptually makes it seem like the bass is slightly lighter. On the other hand, it has better dynamics which makes impact seem a little more powerful. Really depends on the music, and volume matching by ear makes it hard to make exact comparisons. Point is that they're very close.

The Elegia is most similar in bass quantity to the HD820 so far. It depends on the track too - on some it actually seems rather close to the clear, but overall it might be the brightest of the bunch to my ears. It clamps the hardest out of the box too, and I doubled checked the pads are firmly clicked in, so I really doubt it's a seal issue.

Since you've heard the Clear and HD820, hopefully that gives you a picture of what the D9200 and Elegia sound like. The D9200 definitely is closer in bass quantity to the Clear. It's actually kind of like a more U-shaped Clear, with a bit more bass and treble, and mids pushed just slightly back. I don't think you'll find it to be too much, especially as I see the Sony 1000X in your roster.

Somewhat ironically given usual bass correlations, the Elegia has the best isolation of the bunch. The D9200 does isolate a bit, but I don't know how it compares to the prior Denons and Fostex models discussed.

I have to say, the Utopia may be a detail microscope, but I think the Clear might be the best of the Focal bunch I've heard in terms of tuning and overall presentation.

Many thanks!

 

[Napilopez]

Now that it's been a couple of weeks, I still like the D9200, perhaps even more than before. The drivers seem to be presenting more detail, sounding slightly less splashy in the treble region - more definition to cymbals than I've heard before.

I do think that treble spike around could be problematic for people sensitive to highs, but otherwise they really are amazing headphones. A little EQ between 4Khz and 8khz on my Radsone ES100 makes them pretty much perfect.

On the other hand, that spike makes them really detailed at low volumes, but I tend to listen fairly loud.

Hoping to do a review by next week.

 

[zolkis]

Any D9200 owners would be willing to take off the pads and post a picture about the drivers?

An easy way to take off the pads (if it goes like with the D7200):
- put the thumb e.g. to 8 o'clock position to the outer edge of the pad (where one of the pad mounting holes is situated, the rest are at about 10, 2, 4 o'clock), and put the pointing finger inside the pads, on the opposite edge of the pad (actually the plastic mounting ring) from the inner side of the pads. You can pinch/lift the pads base now.
- pull the pointing finger to lift the pads from the inside edge, while pressing the thumb towards the cups for counter-pressure on the outside edge. The pads should just snap out easily in one go. It takes me this one single move and 2 seconds to take off the pads from the D7200.
For assembling, just mount the pads in one of the mounting holes, and click in the other side, then the 2 remaining flaps.

I have noticed with the D7200 that it sounds better with the D5200 pads, maybe it's similar with the D9200.
Anyway, the tuning of my D7200 pads is now finished (near-linear slightly downward FR slope, perfect for a closed headphone) and I fine-tuned 2 other pads if I wanted fun signature (V shape or big sound stage with more treble). It is waiting the D9200 for a comparison, which in my region will be available only in the beginning of December. Until then I wonder how do the D9200 drivers look like .

 

[Napilopez]

Any D9200 owners would be willing to take off the pads and post a picture about the drivers?

An easy way to take off the pads (if it goes like with the D7200):
- put the thumb e.g. to 8 o'clock position to the outer edge of the pad (where one of the pad mounting holes is situated, the rest are at about 10, 2, 4 o'clock), and put the pointing finger inside the pads, on the opposite edge of the pad (actually the plastic mounting ring) from the inner side of the pads. You can pinch/lift the pads base now.
- pull the pointing finger to lift the pads from the inside edge, while pressing the thumb towards the cups for counter-pressure on the outside edge. The pads should just snap out easily in one go. It takes me this one single move and 2 seconds to take off the pads from the D7200.
For assembling, just mount the pads in one of the mounting holes, and click in the other side, then the 2 remaining flaps.

I have noticed with the D7200 that it sounds better with the D5200 pads, maybe it's similar with the D9200.
Anyway, the tuning of my D7200 pads is now finished (near-linear slightly downward FR slope, perfect for a closed headphone) and I fine-tuned 2 other pads if I wanted fun signature (V shape or big sound stage with more treble). It is waiting the D9200 for a comparison, which in my region will be available only in the beginning of December. Until then I wonder how do the D9200 drivers look like .

Not home right now, but earlier in this thread there were a couple of videos showigs off the drivers in action. It basically looks the same but with a finer grain.

 

[VT Skier]

Does anyone know whether the detachable cables on the 9200 use the same type of detachable connectors as the Focal Clear? I think it's a 3.5 mm plug on the Clear.

I'm hoping to buy one after-market cable that I could use with both my Clear and the 9200 when I get a pair.

Thank you

 

[Myskyisme]

Not home right now, but earlier in this thread there were a couple of videos showigs off the drivers in action. It basically looks the same but with a finer grain.

I checked this with Denon when I was deciding to purchase it. D9200 uses a new driver refined based on 7200's. They are not the same.

 

[Napilopez]

I checked this with Denon when I was deciding to purchase it. D9200 uses a new driver refined based on 7200's. They are not the same.

Yep that's what I meant, - aesthetically the similar, but its actually aanew driver with a much finer grain.

 

[Halimj7]

Bismillah

Can anyone say if they would consider the 9200’s a warm headphone, especially compared to the 7100 & 7200’s? Thanks.

 

[vlach]

D2000 wasn't V

You're kidding right?