[swmtnbiker]

So I ended up returning my Clears mainly because of this issue - could not listen to low bass at anything over a modest medium volume without it breaking up and distorting. I also think I might have gotten a bad pair because I wasn't hearing what others were hearing out of them. They were really warm to me, too warm - even more than HD650s. I tried them on a few different amps and they sounded the same. Might have just ended up with a bad pair. I'd be willing to try them again to find out if that was the case or not.

The Clear is VERY different from the HD 650. Combined with the sub-bass distortion you describe, it definitely sounds like you got a defective headphone.

 

[TSAVJason]

So I ended up returning my Clears mainly because of this issue - could not listen to low bass at anything over a modest medium volume without it breaking up and distorting. I also think I might have gotten a bad pair because I wasn't hearing what others were hearing out of them. They were really warm to me, too warm - even more than HD650s. I tried them on a few different amps and they sounded the same. Might have just ended up with a bad pair. I'd be willing to try them again to find out if that was the case or not.

If you were our customer I’d probably suggest you seek a different headphone. If the Clear was not capable of doing the sub bass at a level beyond moderate levels you need a bass dominant headphone is my guess. In my opinion Focal headphones are built for accuracy not heavy coloration.

Note, I’m not calling you a bass head or anything of the kind. I’m simply suggesting you try headphones that go loud as hell in sub bass frequencies.

 

[SilverEars]

So I ended up returning my Clears mainly because of this issue - could not listen to low bass at anything over a modest medium volume without it breaking up and distorting. I also think I might have gotten a bad pair because I wasn't hearing what others were hearing out of them. They were really warm to me, too warm - even more than HD650s. I tried them on a few different amps and they sounded the same. Might have just ended up with a bad pair. I'd be willing to try them again to find out if that was the case or not.

I didn't find it to be warm. The response as a whole was really tight(one of the tightest I've heard sounding really damped), but this maybe mainly attributed to my high power solid-state amp. If by distortion, sounding loose, that wasn't the case for me. Sounded like the drivers were responding really quick for a dynamic.

Loose bass would be something like HD650 or for planar Ether flow open which the high bass would bleed over to the presence area or upper mids. Combine it with significant output impedance or particular tube amps, dynamics likely get looser in response.

Focals I've heard(Utopia and Clear) are really snappy in response for dynamics.

 

[doraymon]

Thanks Dom,

I use a Dell XPS Laptop, JRiver or on the go, my Galaxy S8+ with UAPP. I mostly do not use the stock headphone cable, but a Silver Dragon. I haven't really found a good USB cable for the Hugo, since that has a USB micro connection. I use the Audioquest Cinnamon right now.

So your Hugo 2 is connected directly to your PC right?
There are a few factors which may worsen the harshness and sibilance in your setup. We’re not talking about night and day difference but clearly audible:
- in my experience the “cleanliness” of the USB signal being fed to the DAC is of paramount importance to avoid jitter. Jitter is a plague, it kills detail and increases harshness and sibilance. It also reduces the bass punch. You may want to consider adding a USB decrapifier before the Hugo.
- headphone cables do matter to my ears. Your silver dragon is a great cable which enhances detail retrieval but will surely make sound brighter. I use a Norne Draug 3, a fantastic full copper cable that retains detail and somehow smoothens harshness. I never found a cable making such a dramatic improvement on my setup. You may want to experiment a similar good quality copper cable.
- your ears and brain may just be more sensitive than others to sibilance and harsh highs.

Find the setup that pleases you. It’s a long ride of trial and error, but that’s also the fun right?

 

[gb21011971]

So your Hugo 2 is connected directly to your PC right?
There are a few factors which may worsen the harshness and sibilance in your setup. We’re not talking about night and day difference but clearly audible:
- in my experience the “cleanliness” of the USB signal being fed to the DAC is of paramount importance to avoid jitter. Jitter is a plague, it kills detail and increases harshness and sibilance. It also reduces the bass punch. You may want to consider adding a USB decrapifier before the Hugo.
- headphone cables do matter to my ears. Your silver dragon is a great cable which enhances detail retrieval but will surely make sound brighter. I use a Norne Draug 3, a fantastic full copper cable that retains detail and somehow smoothens harshness. I never found a cable making such a dramatic improvement on my setup. You may want to experiment a similar good quality copper cable.
- your ears and brain may just be more sensitive than others to sibilance and harsh highs.

Find the setup that pleases you. It’s a long ride of trial and error, but that’s also the fun right?

I thought about getting a solution for jitter like the Audioquest Jitterbug, but then I read somewhere that Rob Watts from Chord said there is no problem with jitter and the Hugo, that it somehow takes care of it. I will look into that cable you recommended, thanks!

 

[Rowethren]

I didn't find it to be warm. The response as a whole was really tight(one of the tightest I've heard sounding really damped), but this maybe mainly attributed to my high power solid-state amp. If by distortion, sounding loose, that wasn't the case for me. Sounded like the drivers were responding really quick for a dynamic.

Loose bass would be something like HD650 or for planar Ether flow open which the high bass would bleed over to the presence area or upper mids. Combine it with significant output impedance or particular tube amps, dynamics likely get looser in response.

Focals I've heard(Utopia and Clear) are really snappy in response for dynamics.

Loose bass on the Ether Flows? Certainly has more than the Clear but no way is it loose. If you want high bass then you need something like the Z1R.

 

[SilverEars]

Loose bass on the Ether Flows? Certainly has more than the Clear but no way is it loose. If you want high bass then you need something like the Z1R.

Which Flow are you talking about? Closed or open? I heard both, and I'm referrring to the open. The bass isn't tight if you compare to the Clear, and that's what I'd call warm as it's significant enough that reduces upper mids coherency.

 

[Rowethren]

Which Flow are you talking about? Closed or open? I heard both, and I'm referrring to the open. The bass isn't tight if you compare to the Clear, and that's what I'd call warm as it's significant enough that reduces upper mids coherency.

It was open, I have owned them for over a year and I still wouldn't say that they have loose bass but I guess it is the age old adage of "personal preference"

 

[doraymon]

I thought about getting a solution for jitter like the Audioquest Jitterbug, but then I read somewhere that Rob Watts from Chord said there is no problem with jitter and the Hugo, that it somehow takes care of it.

I know what Rob Watts wrote more than once about his DACS but my suggestion is to try and judge with your ears.

 

[dontfeedphils]

I know what Rob Watts wrote more than once about his DACS but my suggestion is to try and judge with your ears.

I've experience rough treble and (for lack of a better term) very digital sounding music from both the Mojo and Hugo 2 using USB through my Utopia. I haven't been compelled enough to test, but I'm guessing a Schiit Eitr using coax into the Chord products would probably cure some of those problems.

 

[dcguy73]

I got the Clear earlier this week and I really like its sound so far (not fully burned in yet), but I can't wear it for extended periods of time. It's just too heavy.
I think my limit is 400g. My edition X v2 comes close to that but it does a much better job of distributing the weight than the Clear.
I'm going to have to return it. I'm sad but my wallet will be happy.

 

[Bibo]

I only demoed Clears but I definitely experienced painful sibilance from a CMA600i (balanced output) playing both the Hell Freezes Over live version of Hotel California (the chorus especially) and Rimsky-Korsakov's Scheherazade (4th movement, don't remember performer). The caveat was that there was definitely some background noise, so I turned up the volume a bit. In fact, I was side-by-side with the Utopias (and their higher treble peak), but didn't notice any sibilance whatsoever. The two headphones sounded the same volume, but the fact that the Clears are a little more sensitive and I didn't change the volume knob when switching between them belies that impression. If we look at the equal loudness contours, a ~6 kHz peak would not need to be as loud at higher volumes to sound louder than it would need to be at lower volumes, so this is certainly plausible. Maybe also try turning up the volume a little bit and seeing what happens versus what it sounds like at lower volumes.

I do not experience any painful sibilance on this song up to the highest volumes. (Redbook FLAC ripped from CD -> MediaMonkey WASAPI -> FiiO Q5 -> FiiO K5 -> Clear)

I have same problem with sub bass than other people . Can somebody try to hear this song and tell me if they have broken/distorted sound in the sub bass with this song ?



Time 00:27

Thank you

No distortion here either with my pair

 

[Paulo Abreu]

I got the Clear earlier this week and I really like its sound so far (not fully burned in yet), but I can't wear it for extended periods of time. It's just too heavy.
I think my limit is 400g. My edition X v2 comes close to that but it does a much better job of distributing the weight than the Clear.
I'm going to have to return it. I'm sad but my wallet will be happy.

Sorry to hear that, I think you should give it some more time to get used to.
Btw, my daily workout for Clear is resulting fine...

 

[dcguy73]

Sorry to hear that, I think you should give it some more time to get used to.
Btw, my daily workout for Clear is resulting fine...

Hehe, that's some workout.

I would like to give it more time, but I have an injured shoulder (rotator cuff tear), so I think further use of the Clear would make things worse. Once I'm all healed up, I'll just purchase it again.

 

[Paulo Abreu]

Hehe, that's some workout.

I would like to give it more time, but I have an injured shoulder (rotator cuff tear), so I think further use of the Clear would make things worse. Once I'm all healed up, I'll just purchase it again.

Fair enough, wish you a fast and good recovery!
Indeed Clear is not very light with all that metal and those heavy drivers but I think Focal did a good job with the pads and head cushion to soften it a bit .... Fortunately cables don't add much weight.

Regards