[mattesser]

For those who want to EQ the Celestee, Oratory has measured them and here are the recommended settings: https://www.dropbox.com/s/fo91u5wo3p3vwh6/Focal Celestee.pdf?dl=0

He also specifies how to tweak the settings if you want to change bass/treble/air with respect to the Harman target, which is a particularly nice feature.

Thanks JelStly! I had previously been in the camp of "No EQ" primarily so I can have a uniform listening experience across devices...but honestly after tossing these into Equalizer APO on Windows and Blackhole/AUNBandEQ on Mac, it has removed some of the brightness that was a little forward and made these headphones less "clinical" of a listen and even more enjoyable.

Thank you for sharing!

 

[AudioDuck]

I just received the Radiance a few days ago and you will be very happy with the bass. The mid-bass is fantastic and the earpads seal so well you get a great sense of impact. To me these are my endgame closed backs

Hi all,

I’ve spent a few hours with the Focal Radiances now, and while they might still be breaking in (they should have about 40-50 hours on them), they sound really good, so I will let it be and just enjoy. In case it’s helpful to fellow closed-back enthusiasts:

My physical impressions:
- Build is excellent, similar to the Elears, with higher-quality headband and pads, of course.
- Pads are the most comfortable I’ve felt, and clamp force is about right for me.

Sound impressions:
- Impressive, textured bass/sub-bass. Not as deep as the LCD-XCs, but very good and plentiful for genres that need it (trip-hop, pop, rap). More than a “neutral” set of cans would have, and I’m fine with that. No bass overhang or plodding nature- this is fast, precise bass for dynamic drivers!
- Less crystalline highs than the LCD-XCs or Elears, but this is preferred for me as I’m treble-sensitive, and there is still a fair amount of treble detail. Well-recorded chimes and cymbals shimmer nicely.
- Punchy, speedy dynamic sound, a commonality with the Elears (and part of what I love about them). I’m a PRaT (pace/rhythm/timing) fan- hence a Naim amp in my two-channel setup- and the dynamics help this a great deal. Huge “jump factor” when you couple this level of dynamics and detail- some recordings with in-studio noises (doors closing, chairs/stools shifting) literally had me looking over my shoulder
- Very clear, organic midrange. Is able to keep less well-recorded tracks from sounding piercing and hard on my ears.
- Intimate, yet clearly delineated soundstage. In this there seems to be a strong similarity to the LCD-XCs, which is really nice.

So all in all these are winners for me- I was looking for “Closed Elears with deeper bass” and these seem close enough to that goal to be keepers, and with glove-like, elegant finishes to top it off.

 

[JelStIy]

Hi all,

I’ve spent a few hours with the Focal Radiances now, and while they might still be breaking in (they should have about 40-50 hours on them), they sound really good, so I will let it be and just enjoy. In case it’s helpful to fellow closed-back enthusiasts:

My physical impressions:
- Build is excellent, similar to the Elears, with higher-quality headband and pads, of course.
- Pads are the most comfortable I’ve felt, and clamp force is about right for me.

Sound impressions:
- Impressive, textured bass/sub-bass. Not as deep as the LCD-XCs, but very good and plentiful for genres that need it (trip-hop, pop, rap). More than a “neutral” set of cans would have, and I’m fine with that. No bass overhang or plodding nature- this is fast, precise bass for dynamic drivers!
- Less crystalline highs than the LCD-XCs or Elears, but this is preferred for me as I’m treble-sensitive, and there is still a fair amount of treble detail. Well-recorded chimes and cymbals shimmer nicely.
- Punchy, speedy dynamic sound, a commonality with the Elears (and part of what I love about them). I’m a PRaT (pace/rhythm/timing) fan- hence a Naim amp in my two-channel setup- and the dynamics help this a great deal. Huge “jump factor” when you couple this level of dynamics and detail- some recordings with in-studio noises (doors closing, chairs/stools shifting) literally had me looking over my shoulder
- Very clear, organic midrange. Is able to keep less well-recorded tracks from sounding piercing and hard on my ears.
- Intimate, yet clearly delineated soundstage. In this there seems to be a strong similarity to the LCD-XCs, which is really nice.

So all in all these are winners for me- I was looking for “Closed Elears with deeper bass” and these seem close enough to that goal to be keepers, and with glove-like, elegant finishes to top it off.

Nice write-up! I wonder how much of the Radiance/Celestee sound signature is due to the pads and what would happen if you swapped them, or tried Stellia’s pads. Unlikely that someone would have all of these to try out though...

 

[JelStIy]

Thanks JelStly! I had previously been in the camp of "No EQ" primarily so I can have a uniform listening experience across devices...but honestly after tossing these into Equalizer APO on Windows and Blackhole/AUNBandEQ on Mac, it has removed some of the brightness that was a little forward and made these headphones less "clinical" of a listen and even more enjoyable.

Thank you for sharing!

Glad I could help!

 

[AudioDuck]

Nice write-up! I wonder how much of the Radiance/Celestee sound signature is due to the pads and what would happen if you swapped them, or tried Stellia’s pads. Unlikely that someone would have all of these to try it though...

Thank you! The closest I’ve seen to this was Taron at Headphones.com bringing it up on his review video- his conclusion was that the original pads work best on the Radiance as they are pretty different from others.

That said, he may not have touched on all those scenarios- and with all due respect to him and their site, Headphones.com is a retailer and not an unbiased (or at least less biased) press outlet.

 

[TaronL]

Thank you! The closest I’ve seen to this was Taron at Headphones.com bringing it up on his review video- his conclusion was that the original pads work best on the Radiance as they are pretty different from others.

That said, he may not have touched on all those scenarios- and with all due respect to him and their site, Headphones.com is a retailer and not an unbiased (or at least less biased) press outlet.

Thanks for the shoutout but unfortunately I don't do the reviews. You might be thinking of @Resolve though .

As far as biases go, here's a response that @lissimore wrote recently when this subject came up on another forum and I think it handles any questions pretty well.

"I completely understand where you're coming from because I don't think many companies (or reviewers) have given anyone a reason to think otherwise.

People reflexively don’t trust information from a company that also sells the stuff, and for good reason - the short-term incentives aren’t right. It’s a good rule of thumb to take a look at how someone is paid or who they work for and then look at their work through that lens.

However, I’d encourage you to take a look at the body of work on our channel and the reviews published on Headphones.com. You’ll notice that whether we give a positive or negative review isn’t dictated by whether we sell the product or not. We take this so seriously that we’ve lost brands over negative reviews.

We think there's more value in generating long-term trust than a short-term sale.

I’m hoping over time we can change people's default reaction to a store that also provides information, but I know that can only happen by consistently creating honest and transparent work over the long term."

 

[JelStIy]

Thanks for the shoutout but unfortunately I don't do the reviews. You might be thinking of @Resolve though .

As far as biases go, here's a response that @lissimore wrote recently when this subject came up on another forum and I think it handles any questions pretty well.

"I completely understand where you're coming from because I don't think many companies (or reviewers) have given anyone a reason to think otherwise.

People reflexively don’t trust information from a company that also sells the stuff, and for good reason - the short-term incentives aren’t right. It’s a good rule of thumb to take a look at how someone is paid or who they work for and then look at their work through that lens.

However, I’d encourage you to take a look at the body of work on our channel and the reviews published on Headphones.com. You’ll notice that whether we give a positive or negative review isn’t dictated by whether we sell the product or not. We take this so seriously that we’ve lost brands over negative reviews.

We think there's more value in generating long-term trust than a short-term sale.

I’m hoping over time we can change people's default reaction to a store that also provides information, but I know that can only happen by consistently creating honest and transparent work over the long term."

I’d agree with this — I think your site is unique in this respect and the reviews you publish are some of the very best on the web. I really appreciate the attention to detail and the consistent format even across different reviewers.

 

[AudioDuck]

Thanks for the shoutout but unfortunately I don't do the reviews. You might be thinking of @Resolve though .

As far as biases go, here's a response that @lissimore wrote recently when this subject came up on another forum and I think it handles any questions pretty well.

"I completely understand where you're coming from because I don't think many companies (or reviewers) have given anyone a reason to think otherwise.

People reflexively don’t trust information from a company that also sells the stuff, and for good reason - the short-term incentives aren’t right. It’s a good rule of thumb to take a look at how someone is paid or who they work for and then look at their work through that lens.

However, I’d encourage you to take a look at the body of work on our channel and the reviews published on Headphones.com. You’ll notice that whether we give a positive or negative review isn’t dictated by whether we sell the product or not. We take this so seriously that we’ve lost brands over negative reviews.

We think there's more value in generating long-term trust than a short-term sale.

I’m hoping over time we can change people's default reaction to a store that also provides information, but I know that can only happen by consistently creating honest and transparent work over the long term."

Hi @TaronL ,

Thank you for sharing that context, and ironically not only do I agree, but I used @Resolve ’s review as a reference several times before buying Radiances that came from your shop.

And apologies for the mix-up on the source- I’d watched videos created by both of you- and clearly I got it wrong.

The context for my (in this case misplaced) bias against supplier-sourced reviews: I am a product marketing professional, but have a journalism background originally. Hence I tend to be careful with reviews that may have a bias- and made a “YMMV” type comment in case others’ experience differed from mine above.

I’m grateful to hear that the Headphones.com team has strong integrity around product information, and I know you have a lot of happy customers on this site.

Keep up the good work, and thanks for setting the record straight!

 

[TaronL]

And apologies for the mix-up on the source- I’d watched videos created by both of you- and clearly I got it wrong.

Haha all good! For some reason we get mixed up more often than not even though I don't have the capabilities of growing the same magical beard.

For reference, I haven't done any review videos myself but I did do a couple of these embarrassingly edited unboxing videos on the old Headphones.com channel like this one.



Glad to hear you're liking the Radiance! I've had one on my desk for the last month. I was using it with the Feliks Audio Euforia, swapped to the Ampsandsound Kenzie OG and am now using our own collaboration Ampsandsound tube amp with them. Really like them for office listening.

We get the sentiment towards supplier-sourced reviews as it has been that way for a long time. Hopefully we are the first of many to buck that trend!

 

[AudioDuck]

Haha all good! For some reason we get mixed up more often than not even though I don't have the capabilities of growing the same magical beard.

For reference, I haven't done any review videos myself but I did do a couple of these embarrassingly edited unboxing videos on the old Headphones.com channel like this one.



Glad to hear you're liking the Radiance! I've had one on my desk for the last month. I was using it with the Feliks Audio Euforia, swapped to the Ampsandsound Kenzie OG and am now using our own collaboration Ampsandsound tube amp with them. Really like them for office listening.

We get the sentiment towards supplier-sourced reviews as it has been that way for a long time. Hopefully we are the first of many to buck that trend!

Yes, I’ve got the Radiance powered by a Feliks Echo (mk I). The Focals like tubes!

(That said, they’re not picky headphones- they do well with high-quality solid-state like Burson, SPL, or Violectric as well, in my experience)

 

[Sebastien Chiu]

Took some shots of my Celestee for an iFi related project!

 

[MatW]

Took some shots of my Celestee for an iFi related project!

Very nice picture. Always interested in new projects.. But surely the iematch 4.4 is top of the list right... ?

 

[iFi audio]

Took some shots of my Celestee for an iFi related project!

Hah, now I know who is going to ship me his Celeste for a week or two

 

[No Deal]

Traveling this weekend. Brought the Zen Can along to do some burning in on the new headphones. My strictly non-technical view of this headphone is that it is a pleasure to listen to. I love smooth jazz with touches of R&B and these are great for the genre.

 

[iFi audio]

Traveling this weekend. Brought the Zen Can along to do some burning in on the new headphones. My strictly non-technical view of this headphone is that it is a pleasure to listen to. I love smooth jazz with touches of R&B and these are great for the genre.

That's a lovely setup you have in there! Also, thanks for giving our ZEN a chance and please enjoy the heck out of it