[LCMusicLover]

Headphones.com has Clear pads for 1/2 price -- says next hour and 15 minutes only.

https://www.headphones.com/products/focal-clear-ear-pads?_pos=1&_sid=d16c998b5&_ss=r

<edit> apparently that timer was for 'same day shipping', not that the sale price is going to expire, as pointed out by @osanchez4808 </edit>

 

[NexusOne]

It is very hard to test the Susvara without ordering it, so I wanna ask you experts to help me . I am interested in Clear, Utopia, HE-1000 and Susvara. I need a comparison between Clear and Susvara.

• Is it true that materials and built quality from Focal is much better than from Hifiman?
• I would use it for rock, metal and movies (blurays). Could it be that the Clear is be better for these genres than the Utopia (because it is warmer, bit more punch, no peak) and better than the Susvara (because it is warmer, much more bass, punch, not so flat, dissecting, boring) or wouldn’t you generalize that? Could the “cheap” Clear be a better endgame in this area? Would you buy the Susvara only for classic, jazz and so on or is it also very good for rock, metal and movies? It would be very nice to read your answers.

I'll buy the Clear this year and maybe in future the Susvara. But it depends on your answers and a try before the buy .

 

[BassicScience]

It is very hard to test the Susvara without ordering it, so I wanna ask you experts to help me . I am interested in Clear, Utopia, HE-1000 and Susvara. I need a comparison between Clear and Susvara.

• Is it true that materials and built quality from Focal is much better than from Hifiman?
• I would use it for rock, metal and movies (blurays). Could it be that the Clear is be better for these genres than the Utopia (because it is warmer, bit more punch, no peak) and better than the Susvara (because it is warmer, much more bass, punch, not so flat, dissecting, boring) or wouldn’t you generalize that? Could the “cheap” Clear be a better endgame in this area? Would you buy the Susvara only for classic, jazz and so on or is it also very good for rock, metal and movies? It would be very nice to read your answers.

I'll buy the Clear this year and maybe in future the Susvara. But it depends on your answers and a try before the buy .

My opinions:

1) I would not say Focal materials are better than HFM after recently losing a channel on my Utopia due to the (prevalent) ear pad gunk issue, and having to send it back to Focal for service. Build quality is more robust in general on the Focal cans, but HFM beats them on comfort. YMMV.

2) IMO, the Clear is not better than the Utopia in any aspect or for any genre, but I rarely listen to metal anymore. YMMV.

3) For rock and (particularly) metal, you might prefer the Clear (or Utopia) to a Susvara, particularly for the cost difference. I don't really know your sonic preferences well enough.

In summary, I think the safest way forward would be the Utopia. They can be found used for around $2k these days. You'll get 85-90% of what a Susvara can do, and you'll have a world-class headphone that sounds great playing pretty much anything.

 

[Doug2507]

I'm using Clear MG right now, had them for 3 weeks and listen (nearly exclusively) to Rock plus use them for watching movies. I think they're absolutely fantastic for both. Superbly dynamic, slam, attack, weight on the guitars etc. Was listening to a couple of Billy Talent albums today which sound dull on most setups but sounded top notch with these (with dx300 max ss). Non fatiguing but loads of detail.

I like them that much, I've now got a pair of stellias to replace them as I need closed back for work and hoping they'll not stray to far from the Clears. If you go for clear og 1st, at least you won't paying a big chunk of change and they should be easier to move on if you want to move up the ladder.

1 thing for sure though, make sure any focal you try has had at least 100-150hrs on it, they change quite a bit with decent play time on them.

 

[Guidostrunk]

I'm using Clear MG right now, had them for 3 weeks and listen (nearly exclusively) to Rock plus use them for watching movies. I think they're absolutely fantastic for both. Superbly dynamic, slam, attack, weight on the guitars etc. Was listening to a couple of Billy Talent albums today which sound dull on most setups but sounded top notch with these (with dx300 max ss). Non fatiguing but loads of detail.

I like them that much, I've now got a pair of stellias to replace them as I need closed back for work and hoping they'll not stray to far from the Clears. If you go for clear og 1st, at least you won't paying a big chunk of change and they should be easier to move on if you want to move up the ladder.

1 thing for sure though, make sure any focal you try has had at least 100-150hrs on it, they change quite a bit with decent play time on them.

Yes, exactly what you said... The Clear OG and MG will change pretty drastically up to that particular hour count. Most notably for me was was the depth in the imaging and stage presence. They get extremely holographic and everything seems like it comes together as a whole.

 

[jriems]

My opinions:

1) I would not say Focal materials are better than HFM after recently losing a channel on my Utopia due to the (prevalent) ear pad gunk issue, and having to send it back to Focal for service. Build quality is more robust in general on the Focal cans, but HFM beats them on comfort. YMMV.

2) IMO, the Clear is not better than the Utopia in any aspect or for any genre, but I rarely listen to metal anymore. YMMV.

3) For rock and (particularly) metal, you might prefer the Clear (or Utopia) to a Susvara, particularly for the cost difference. I don't really know your sonic preferences well enough.

In summary, I think the safest way forward would be the Utopia. They can be found used for around $2k these days. You'll get 85-90% of what a Susvara can do, and you'll have a world-class headphone that sounds great playing pretty much anything.

What "(prevalent) ear pad gunk issue" are you referring to? First I've heard of such a thing.

 

[FinalAd]

What "(prevalent) ear pad gunk issue" are you referring to? First I've heard of such a thing.

Just bought myself a pair of Utopia pads and can confirm that it's a thing. Basically the older Utopia models (and therefore the older pads) could have a chemical reaction that disintegrated the inner plastic ring, resulting in gunk that, in the worst cases, could basically ruin the headphones. From what I've read, Focal seems to have fixed this with the newer ones.

 

[Forsaked]

My OG Clears are back after 1 month repair at Focal Naim, they say they changed both drivers.
Let's see if it fixed the imbalance problem.

 

[BassicScience]

What "(prevalent) ear pad gunk issue" are you referring to? First I've heard of such a thing.

This will get you started:

https://www.head-fi.org/search/6758543/?q=gunk&t=post&c[thread]=811273&o=date

 

[LoryWiv]

Just bought myself a pair of Utopia pads and can confirm that it's a thing. Basically the older Utopia models (and therefore the older pads) could have a chemical reaction that disintegrated the inner plastic ring, resulting in gunk that, in the worst cases, could basically ruin the headphones. From what I've read, Focal seems to have fixed this with the newer ones.

Dekoni fenestrated sheepskin pads are also excellent on Clear MG, at 1/2 the cost of replacing stock pads.

 

[FinalAd]

Dekoni fenestrated sheepskin pads are also excellent on Clear MG, at 1/2 the cost of replacing stock pads.

Oh I know that, I actually owned a pair of Fenestrated Sheepskin and sold them last week. They're excellent and I highly recommend them for Clear MG owners, but one thing that was bothering me is that for some reasons my right ear always felt uncomfortable with those on. The Utopia are comfier for sure, but my pair is showing signs of gunk and I'm also not a huge fan of how they sound with my MG.

 

[DenverW]

It is very hard to test the Susvara without ordering it, so I wanna ask you experts to help me . I am interested in Clear, Utopia, HE-1000 and Susvara. I need a comparison between Clear and Susvara.

• Is it true that materials and built quality from Focal is much better than from Hifiman?
• I would use it for rock, metal and movies (blurays). Could it be that the Clear is be better for these genres than the Utopia (because it is warmer, bit more punch, no peak) and better than the Susvara (because it is warmer, much more bass, punch, not so flat, dissecting, boring) or wouldn’t you generalize that? Could the “cheap” Clear be a better endgame in this area? Would you buy the Susvara only for classic, jazz and so on or is it also very good for rock, metal and movies? It would be very nice to read your answers.

I'll buy the Clear this year and maybe in future the Susvara. But it depends on your answers and a try before the buy .

To chime in regarding movies, the clears are going to be a different experience. If you like a speaker like presentation with a lot of soundstage for Blu-ray’s the clears will disappoint. I fluctuate between a pair of hd800 and clears for movies. The clears give a more impactful experience; the sound demands more attention. This is good and bad for media, it just depends on your preferences. Great bass and balance helps, along with great tone. I dont consider the clears an all a rounder for media, but it has a great niche. For example, fury road is very fun on the clears.

 

[Ifalna]

Don't be so naive with ASR, measurements simply just doesn't tell the whole story and there is no equipment to this day that would tell you how exactly speakers/headphones sound.

Yes, that's why engineers measure and design speakers and electronic components according to the science behind it and the results that their measurements gave them.

I know people love to mystify all things audio but barring transducer designs, it is a completely solved problem in the electrical and digital domain.

I do agree that some folks on ASR do have the tendency to put too much stock into the numbers well beyond what would be necessary for the actual application of audio in practical scenarios. Demanding instrumentation grade electronics in order to listen to music is complete overkill. Thankfully, most people on ASR know that and they are looking for engineering excellence in equipment, which can be a hobby on it's own. I certainly appreciate all the attention to detail and useful features that went into my ADI-2 DAC, along with the knowledge that this device will never interfere with my audio in any unwanted way.

Just bought myself a pair of Utopia pads and can confirm that it's a thing. Basically the older Utopia models (and therefore the older pads) could have a chemical reaction that disintegrated the inner plastic ring, resulting in gunk that, in the worst cases, could basically ruin the headphones. From what I've read, Focal seems to have fixed this with the newer ones.

Yikes! Nightmarish scenario!

 

[FinalAd]

Yikes! Nightmarish scenario!

Indeed. My pair is still at the early stages and thankfully hasn't damaged my headphones when testing them, but a quick Google search will show you how it looks like when most of it has already turned into gunk, and it ain't pretty. I'm currently trying to get in touch with Focal to see what can be done about it, their service in France is usually top notch so we'll see.

 

[Goldvein]

I have had no time for listening with my full equipment for a while, but the last few days I've had a few listening sessions.
My eyes started watering up when listening to the new James Blake album with my Clears.
Big love for these cans <3