[Shane D]

I have indeed tried the fenestrated sheepskins, they were more V-shaped than their 'Stellia' style of earpad. I modded them by increasing the size of the fenestrations with a torx screwdriver which helped a little bit, but they still didn't have the detail retrieval of the stock pads, especially in the bass which was boomy and unrefined. The diffusion pad in all stock Focal earpads and the Dekoni Stellia earpad help to wick away that excess low end and retains the detailed sound from the drivers.
Whether it was a bad batch or not, the fenestrated earpads were made of very thin, cheap feeling leather that became uncomfortable after a few months of use. I spent a year or two trying everything; conditioning the leather, cleaning and letting the leather dry out for a few months and then reapplying conditioner, it was just bad quality leather.
The Dekoni Stellia is much higher quality in all regards.

Interesting.

 

[Shane D]

Well today is 14 straight days with the Clear's, with one day off in the middle for jazz hunting.

I have to say that these are SOME headphones! For a guy that lives in entry level to mid-fi world, these are end game.

I always wondered how my Elex's would compare to these. Today was mostly spent rotating the two. The first couple of days they seemed pretty similar. No so today. The Clear's are a pretty different headphone. To start with, they are Much bassier. I can see why, in the first year or two, many people complained about the overwhelming bass. If you are say, a Sennheiser fanboy, these headphones are a long way from neutral and I can see you not liking them at all.
I however, like warm amps and fun headphones so I am loving these. However, going back and forth today, sometimes the bass seemed too much (but not in the last 13 days of running only the Clear's?). Also some of my favourite vocal songs I actually preferred on the Elex's. In this short little taste test it seems like I might be giving up a little mids and above with moving the Elex's out. Of course that is where my Grado GH2's really excel at so, if it is true, it is not really a problem. And I really only noticed this when A-B'ing the two Focals.

For the last two weeks, (before today) I have never felt they lacked anything with any song or piece of music in any genre. They have close on 100 hundred hours of use now and I am one very happy camper. Really glad about the price drop as I was never going to buy them at retail ($1,999.00, plus 15% tax in Canada).
I might do one more day of comparisons and then switch to something different.

To be very CLEAR, I love my Clear and Radiance headphones. I am now a full on Focal fanboy, in case that wasn't obvious before.

 

[YtseJamer]

I wanted to reply with an update.

First off, I have to admit that I thought you were just being a dick with your original post. It turned out that I was VERY wrong about that!

I did indeed get a partial refund today and it was bigger than the difference between the two prices.

Thanks a lot for jumping into my situation and helping out!

PS: They changed the price on headphones.ca up to $1,149.00.

Very good news Shane, I'm glad I was able to help a fellow Canadian Head-Fi'er

 

[Musiccc]

Hi , my Clear OG will arrive at early January. I'm so excited.

Can you recommend me a cheap pad replacements?

Is The one on AliExpress clear pads will sounds much different than the original? The buyer review says it sounds almost the same / same to the original. But, I want to hear a review from this thread ^^

Thank you!


Also, I want to color the pads into blue and red for the replacement pads.

I'd say just give them a try. You don't have much to lose. I just bought a pair but haven't try them yet. The dimension is almost (almost) the same. 1mm thinner, the foam feels (to me) a bit firmer, the inner ring perforation is different. Look closely at the pictures. The 5 plastic posts are a bit sharp and I would file/sand a little to smooth them out.

 

[pbarach]

I however, like warm amps and fun headphones so I am loving these. However, going back and forth today, sometimes the bass seemed too much (but not in the last 13 days of running only the Clear's?).

Is it possible that the recordings you're using have excessive bass that other headphones attenuated? Or is there something about your amp that may be a factor. I am wondering about the amp because I found that my Clears had excessive sub-bass when used with a Burson HA-160 but not with either of my solid state amps; other headphones used with the Burson sounded fine.

 

[Shane D]

Is it possible that the recordings you're using have excessive bass that other headphones attenuated? Or is there something about your amp that may be a factor. I am wondering about the amp because I found that my Clears had excessive sub-bass when used with a Burson HA-160 but not with either of my solid state amps; other headphones used with the Burson sounded fine.

Definitely certain songs bring it out more. And my Violectric is a very warm, soft amp.
It was not even that obvious for the previous 13 days, but head to head with the Elex's it was much more apparent. I used the V220 because you can plug in two headphones at once.
It would likely be less noticeble with my iFi (minus bass boost) and much less with the Rebel amp.

I do love 'em though.

 

[jriems]

Another option for replacement pads to try are the Drop Focal Elex pads. They're currently sold through, but might do another batch at some point. Very similar to the original Clear OG pads, and $60.

The best part is they are dark in color, so all that discoloration worry goes right out the window.

I've had them on mine for a few months now non-stop, and I'm just enjoying the music. I also have the original Clear pads, a second pair of those same pads from headphones.com, and the Dekoni Stellia pads. It's nice to have options, but I'd be satisfied with the Drop Elex if they were my only pads.

 

[Shane D]

0

Another option for replacement pads to try are the Drop Focal Elex pads. They're currently sold through, but might do another batch at some point. Very similar to the original Clear OG pads, and $60.

The best part is they are dark in color, so all that discoloration worry goes right out the window.

I've had them on mine for a few months now non-stop, and I'm just enjoying the music. I also have the original Clear pads, a second pair of those same pads from headphones.com, and the Dekoni Stellia pads. It's nice to have options, but I'd be satisfied with the Drop Elex if they were my only pads.

I have a pair of the Elex pads still in the plastic wrapping. I bought them as back-ups for my Elex's. My original pads are looking pretty worn as the Elex's are more than two years old.

 

[Musiccc]

"Discoloration" Translation; Dirty Pads.

 

[atatata]

I'd say just give them a try. You don't have much to lose. I just bought a pair but haven't try them yet. The dimension is almost (almost) the same. 1mm thinner, the foam feels (to me) a bit firmer, the inner ring perforation is different. Look closely at the pictures. The 5 plastic posts are a bit sharp and I would file/sand a little to smooth them out.

Still haven't buy it because my Clear will arrive at January

If you can write the review of your pair , it would be very helpful ^^

Btw , is the one you buy from AliExpress?

 

[mainguy]

God these sound amazing with Mojo2. Might be one of the best audio setups I've ever heard, and I've heard some crazy stacks lol.

 

[yrstruly]

God these sound amazing with Mojo2. Might be one of the best audio setups I've ever heard, and I've heard some crazy stacks lol.

Yep magical pairing right there

 

[Luckyleo]

I have the Clear Mg and an iFi Gryphon and use that combo for travelling (which I don't do as much any more). I DO recommend replacing the stock cable with one from a 3rd party manufacturer. Depending on your budget, you can get one from Audiophile Ninja fairly inexpensively. Great cables, custom lengths, fantastic build quality, and very affordable! The 4.4mm balanced (for the Gryphon) in a 5' length is $69. If you want more cable, go for whatever length you want, it's cheap. 8' adds $9 to the total....

There are other companies out there (Hart, Forza, etc.). Any of them are good. But the stock cable that comes with the Clear should go right into the garbage. My $.02 worth.

@ColSaulTigh

Took your advice and received the Audiophile Ninja cable today. Great recommendation. Can't say that I hear any sonic differences. If there are any, I can't hear them. BUT, ergonomically, there is no comparison. Much better listening experience when I don't need to keep fiddling with the stock cable.

Thanks very much!!!

Leo

 

[polymathic]

I also took @ColSaulTigh advice and got the Ninja Cables. They are a nice upgrade over stock in feel and quality, and reasonably priced. Not sure about sonic differences, though, and can't really compare as the stock are 3.5 and the Ninjas 4.4.

 

[ColSaulTigh]

@ColSaulTigh

Took your advice and received the Audiophile Ninja cable today. Great recommendation. Can't say that I hear any sonic differences. If there are any, I can't hear them. BUT, ergonomically, there is no comparison. Much better listening experience when I don't need to keep fiddling with the stock cable.

Thanks very much!!!

Leo

I also took @ColSaulTigh advice and got the Ninja Cables. They are a nice upgrade overstock in feel and quality, and reasonably priced. Not sure about sonic differences, though, and can't really compare as the stock are 3.5 and the Ninjas 4.4.

I'm humbled and grateful you decided to shop with a small business here in the USA! @NinjaJeremy makes great stuff, and I personally think his cables sound better than stock. I've bought quite a few from him, and will continue to do so as the collection grows!