[roskodan]

But try to haggle down to 700-730 GBP, if they are in good shape, else even lower.

 

[Deaf Leopard]

Do you think an in-store display Clear a good value at £799?..

I would say that’s a cracking deal considering a paid more than that brand new. Where abouts are you getting them from?

 

[obsidyen]

Selfridges London. But I didn't buy it because the pads and the headband were a bit worn out. If that's not a problem for you, it's a good deal.

 

[ftlaudHP]

Been waiting for a deal and jumped on a labor day sale. Got them yesterday and have been non stop listening. Man I love these cans. I am on my second set of Clears. On the first round I was actually sad in a good way when I first listened to them. Do not have an audio shop local so bought off of reviews and my Elegia experience. I was sad because my journey to find the right headphone ended once I clicked play. Love the Focal sound signature. Unfortunately, I had cup rattle issues so the first pair got returned. Fast forward two months and saw a deal and jumped immediately. Amazing how fast you can forget the true sound. You are only left with your experience and what you think you heard/remember. The Clears are so balanced, just the right amount of bass, good detail, good imaging, acceptable soundstage, acceptable comfort, easy to drive, and great dynamics. The Focal's I own present the music like I am in a club in front of loud speakers. They also play great at low volumes. My planar's need to be at medium level to sound good. IMHO I believe the Clears could easily satisfy most in a one headphone collection. Fortunately, I get to enjoy these along with a bunch of other HP's in my collection. Life is great!! I am still slightly sad again since my HP purchasing days are now over for a while. Spent enough already, but have my eyes on the Empyrean's next. Best looking headphone out there right now. I am working on a HP display setup in my office. Should keep me busy for a couple weeks while I plan it out. Contemplating a DAC/AMP upgrade (RME), but my current cheap setup sounds great it's hard to justify the cost. For anyone on the fence - buy the Clears!! We all hear differently, but they are absolutely worth it if you can afford it.

 

[descloud]

My planar's need to be at medium level to sound good.

Great to hear you're liking the Focal Clear! I'm curious which planar headphones you have that you feel they need to be cranked louder than the Clear to meet your preference?

 

[ftlaudHP]

Great to hear you're liking the Focal Clear! I'm curious which planar headphones you have that you feel they need to be cranked louder than the Clear to meet your preference?

Currently own M570's (great budget planar), Aeon Flow Open
Owned/Tried: Sviga PII's, Sundara's, Arya's

To my ear all the planar's I have tried needed medium volume to sound full. This all depends on how much power your feeding them. Planar's actually got better the more power/volume you gave em. With most dynamic drivers you get a balanced sound at lower volume levels. On the opposite side, dynamic drivers seem to distort sooner. All this seems to depend on the sensitivity level and ohm's of the headphone. Makes sense since lower ohm's and higher sensitivity would allow the amp to push more power. Love both driver types so not being bias. Yet to try an electrostatic or AMT HP.

As for the Clears they are lower ohm's and higher sensitivity so only need 1/4 for a relax listening experience. Can crank em to 1/2 when I want it loud or for low volume tracks. Past 1/2 is very loud for my taste. Can only listen for like 15 seconds before I need to turn it back down on a normal track.

 

[Terriero]

Been waiting for a deal and jumped on a labor day sale. Got them yesterday and have been non stop listening. Man I love these cans. I am on my second set of Clears. On the first round I was actually sad in a good way when I first listened to them. Do not have an audio shop local so bought off of reviews and my Elegia experience. I was sad because my journey to find the right headphone ended once I clicked play. Love the Focal sound signature. Unfortunately, I had cup rattle issues so the first pair got returned. Fast forward two months and saw a deal and jumped immediately. Amazing how fast you can forget the true sound. You are only left with your experience and what you think you heard/remember. The Clears are so balanced, just the right amount of bass, good detail, good imaging, acceptable soundstage, acceptable comfort, easy to drive, and great dynamics. The Focal's I own present the music like I am in a club in front of loud speakers. They also play great at low volumes. My planar's need to be at medium level to sound good. IMHO I believe the Clears could easily satisfy most in a one headphone collection. Fortunately, I get to enjoy these along with a bunch of other HP's in my collection. Life is great!! I am still slightly sad again since my HP purchasing days are now over for a while. Spent enough already, but have my eyes on the Empyrean's next. Best looking headphone out there right now. I am working on a HP display setup in my office. Should keep me busy for a couple weeks while I plan it out. Contemplating a DAC/AMP upgrade (RME), but my current cheap setup sounds great it's hard to justify the cost. For anyone on the fence - buy the Clears!! We all hear differently, but they are absolutely worth it if you can afford it.

The things that throw me back to buy the Clears are that rattle in the cup and the issues wirh the earpads...

 

[PointyFox]

Mine seem to lose a lot of bass and treble unless I turn them up fairly loud (~76 dBA average).

 

[Guidostrunk]

That's my normal listening level with 85db peaks.

Mine seem to lose a lot of bass and treble unless I turn them up fairly loud (~76 dBA average).

 

[PointyFox]

That's my normal listening level with 85db peaks.

Yeah, mine peaks at about 85 dBA. I guess loud for me might not be so loud on average. What's nice about the ADI-2 DAC is that it has a "Loudness" feature that adjusts treble/bass for low-volume falloff if you listen at low levels.

 

[roskodan]

Mine definitely picks up the chain signature, must be it's neutral nature, reminds me of the HD800 in that regard (except the Clear actually have bass ). Really love the Clear out of the Schiit Mjolnir Mk1.

 

[semtexxl]

Is there anyone who can help with one little detail? I'm curious about the black torx t6 screws (6x) for the cosmetic ring for my Clear Pro. Original ones out of the box seems to be a bit damaged from overtightening some of them from factory (I had the same issue on my first pair of Elex)....Not a big deal from a functional point but I would like to give them a “perfect” clean look. Focal support is quite useless as usually as they don't even bother to respond to my inquiry in two weeks. (no surprise really, they have a habit of redirecting your messages to local distributors so you will never get any direct response from them). I've found some links to

Focal Utopia Small Screws Kit for Cosmetic Ring:

https://www.amazon.ca/Focal-UTOPIA-Small-Screws-Cosmetic/dp/B06Y274QMC

However, if you look at the picture the screws have no flat top like original Utopia model. I actually like the silver ones better than black. I think these are easily interchangable between all models. Do you think these are actually the real deal original part directly from Focal?! Description seems to say so even with ASIN part number... Any help is welcome...

 

[pbarach]

The things that throw me back to buy the Clears are that rattle in the cup and the issues wirh the earpads...

The first pair I bought soon developed a rattle in one earcup when I moved my head, as if something was loose inside. Dealer replaced the headphones, and they have been fine for the last year. As for the earpads, I don't care if they look a little off-colored now and then. I tried Dekoni Elite Velour pads, which I liked at first but found after a week that the sound became fatiguing due to excessve bass and muffled treble.

 

[roskodan]

From what I've read, Focal now offers 5 years warranty in NA, so whatever issue one may incur into, under warranty, shouldn't be a problem. Just make sure your reseller deals with Focal.

 

[Facta]

Would one recommend Empyrean to someone who owns and enjoys both Clear Pro and Stellia?