[Guidostrunk]

Loving Focal Clear so far
Much preferred to HD800S.
This whole soundstage is a bunch of crap, get speakers or spatial audio if u really want surround effect.

Felt the same way

 

[Ifalna]

"Microphonics," when referring to headphone cables, refers to mechanical noises as the cable is touched or rubs against something:

This.
I can clearly (no pun intended) hear it when my Clear's cable hits some object or when I touch it. I also have that problem with my DT-880s replacement cable but never had it with the original one.

A bit lame for a product of this price but thankfully, once in operation, the transmitted cable noises are too quiet to matter.

and folks are very knowledgeable and informed on head-fi.

Some folks are very knowledgeable, aye but this is also mostly a subjective audio forum, as such you will find all the usual "audiophile" claims of cables and other shenanigans that have no basis in science.

Personally, I trust science over my ears any day, because I know how easily human senses are deceived by external stimuli, poor memory (especially related to memory of auditive impressions) and our own expectations. If you are truly interested in making informed decisions instead of falling for some hype machine, there are a lot of sources on the web debunking the most common audiophile myths like "sonic improvement through cable changes" or "soundstage of DACs".

Loving Focal Clear so far
Much preferred to HD800S.
This whole soundstage in headphones idea is a bunch of crap, get speakers or spatial audio if u really want surround effect.

Aye, once you hear properly calibrated speakers or even surround systems, the notion of "soundstage" on a headphone sounds silly at best.

That being said: even with the Clears commonly associated "intimate" stage, I get "out of head" experiences when listening to binaural recordings. I think soundstage in that regard is far more dependent on the quality of the recording compared to the capabilities of the hardware.

 

[Voohoo]

Loving Focal Clear so far
Much preferred to HD800S.
This whole soundstage in headphones idea is a bunch of crap, get speakers or spatial audio if u really want surround effect.

Care to share more of your thoughts between the two? I recently just got the HD 8XX and have been having fun going back forth with it and my Clear.

So far the Clear have a more addictive and satiating sound. The delivery is more rich and impactful which suits contemporary music well for me. The 8XX on the other hand really is a pleasure to listen to with it's diffused soundstage. I can appreciate the engineering Sennheiser put in to create the 800's unique delivery. It makes the Clear feel somewhat antiquated with it's straightforward presentation. However, there's nothing wrong with Focal's more classic and tried and true approach and I can see why the 800's soundstage can just be a gimmick for some people. I think the diffused soundstage is what causes the 800 to lack the impact and fuller sound the Clear's have.

I'm going to A/B these headphones for a couple more weeks before I decide to return/sell one of them. I was really hoping for the 8XX to win me over but I find myself still craving the Clear.

 

[surfgeorge]

I stumbled upon this link and made an impulse buy of a pair of Dekoni Limited edition Stellia pads and a pair of Dekoni Velours pads.
Tested and compared them against my old, worn Clear Pro Pads and against the second, new Clear pads.

Both the Limited and Velours pads change the character of the Clears.
First impressions are that the Limited really has more and tighter bass, overall tighter and punchier sound and somehow more focus. They sound a little more forced though. Not as speaker-like maybe.
The original Clear pads sound a little more relaxed, they also sound a little quieter, like they have higher damping. The mids are also a bit more forward with the original pads, making them sound a little brighter.
The Velour pads are somewhere in between, but maybe closer to the Dekoni Limited than the original clear pads.

These are first, quick impressions only!
What I can definitely say is that they do change the character of the Clears somewhat. Which is not necessarily a bad thing.

Currently listening to the limited pads to become familiar with the sound and progress in understanding them and coming to a conclusion about them.

I have now been listening more to the Dekoni pads and have to say I like the Sheepskin Limited Stellia quite a bit.
It looks good, feels bit cooler with a smaller contact area and I expect that cleaning will no longer be an issue...
Soundwise it's really punchy and boosts the bass noticably. There's some spicyness in the upper frequencies which seems to increase the percaption of clarity.
It also changes the soundstage perception with better separation, more clearly defined elements. But I am not sure if there are not some reflexions in the pads that mess a little with the stage as well. One other clear difference is a significantly pronounced sub-bass.

However, this does not come without downsides.
Vocals are a little recessed compared to the original pads, which sound overall much smoother and clearly brighter.
There's some wonkiness in the mids with the Ltd pads that messes especially with vocals, making them at times sound a little nasal or muffled.
It's not huge, but the original pads are clearly more even.
Running a frequency sweep and comparing to the original pads, I hear a wide elevation at about 300-900...1000Hz, a noticable 2,8kHz bump a moderate peak at 6, maybe slightly more at 8 and lots of energy at 10, 12 and above kHz
The original pads sound perfectly linear to me below 1kHz, with a the emphasis at around 2,7kHz is smaller or the ramp is more gradual, but the peaks above actually seem a little hotter with the original pads, especially the 6kHz.

I'll keep the Ltd pads on, they add some new flavor to the Clears and I enjoy exploring my library and detecting new qualities. Maybe in the future I'll go back to the originals, and will enjoy their different presentation for a change.

 

[czuba]

Wow, George, that is a really neat stand. Would probably be a little overkill for just my little Mojo, though. I must say that I am super curious to know who offers such a product.

I came to this thread wishing to also alert folks to the thread in my signature: I'm considering purchasing of a pair of original Clears, and think I may have found a great deal, but am looking for some sound advice before moving forward.

edit: I've Googled around for five minutes and still can't find that stand, but I am really curious about it. Was that originally billed as an adjustable tablet stand?

 

[surfgeorge]

Wow, George, that is a really neat stand. Would probably be a little overkill for just my little Mojo, though. I must say that I am super curious to know who offers such a product.

I came to this thread wishing to also alert folks to the thread in my signature: I'm considering purchasing of a pair of original Clears, and think I may have found a great deal, but am looking for some sound advice before moving forward.

edit: I've Googled around for five minutes and still can't find that stand, but I am really curious about it. Was that originally billed as an adjustable tablet stand?

Yes, it‘s a decent stand that works great for me. I keep the Hugo 2 usually at my working desk connected to the charger with a magnetic micro-USB charging cable, and take it anywhere else when needed. The magnetic cable makes that easy.

The stand is from AliExpress:
https://a.aliexpress.com/_mPBiUq4

The clamp doesn’t close enough, so I designed and 3D printed the black brackets to hold the Hugo in place.



Below the Focal Clear headphones are my IEMs in their boxes and the Mojo stack in it‘s box:


This is also a DIY stack with Hiby R3 DAP, perfect for offline listening.

 

[jriems]

I wanted to follow up with the resolution to my "defective Clear badges" saga from up-thread. April at Headphones.com worked with Focal to get a pair of replacement badges into my hands, and I just got done swapping them out. I decided to completely remove the lettering on the defective pair, in case I ever want to go with a clean, "unbranded" look.

The new badges seem stable, as nothing rubs off with minor pressure. So I think I'm good to go, and I thank Headphones.com for helping me get this issue rectified.

 

[mainguy]

Guys how normal is clipping on the Clear? I've noticed it with a few tracks, and I did a bass sweep test and around 15hz with the volume high I notice obvious clipping, the left driver rattles a ton. But if I turn the volume to more normal levels its gone...It rarely happens in tracks, but some zimmer ones. Just a little worried about my clear.

 

[erics75]

Guys how normal is clipping on the Clear? I've noticed it with a few tracks, and I did a bass sweep test and around 15hz with the volume high I notice obvious clipping, the left driver rattles a ton. But if I turn the volume to more normal levels its gone...It rarely happens in tracks, but some zimmer ones. Just a little worried about my clear.

sorry to hear about the clipping/rattling. i've owned the clear twice. my first pair clipped semi-regularly at high volumes under heavy bass loads. i knew certain tracks to avoid. it was enough for me to send them back. my current set though don't seem to clip at all, even under duress. can you exchange them for a new pair, or send them in for a warranty claim?

 

[mainguy]

sorry to hear about the clipping/rattling. i've owned the clear twice. my first pair clipped semi-regularly at high volumes under heavy bass loads. i knew certain tracks to avoid. it was enough for me to send them back. my current set though don't seem to clip at all, even under duress. can you exchange them for a new pair, or send them in for a warranty claim?

I got them used on ebay a week ago for £620 so am reluctant to send them back, simply because its such a good price for what is a pristine set of Clears. I really love them, but am also concerned about the driver.

i'd like to add as this is the Focal Clear thread, I think these headphones are amazing. I have campfire Solaris iems, but these take it to a whole other level.

 

[dontfeedphils]

I got them used a week ago for £620 so am reluctant to send them back, simply because its such a good price for what is a pristine set of Clears. I really love them, but am also concerned about the driver.

Send em back, exercise the warranty. It's what it's there for.

 

[Ifalna]

Guys how normal is clipping on the Clear? I've noticed it with a few tracks, and I did a bass sweep test and around 15hz with the volume high I notice obvious clipping, the left driver rattles a ton. But if I turn the volume to more normal levels its gone...It rarely happens in tracks, but some zimmer ones. Just a little worried about my clear.

It is quite normal, especially at extreme frequencies like 15Hz.

Yes, Hans Zimmer's music can contain a crapton of subbass and little else, tempting one to crank it till there's no tomorrow. (talking to you, Bladerunner 2049 OST!)

Usually the driver only reaches Xmax at ... well, lets call it: "unsafe volumes", provided you want to be able to enjoy audiophile grade gear and music 20yrs from now.

As a rule of thumb: If you can't stand the volume you choose for the bass-only track on a track with lots of high frequency content, you're listening too loudly. Compared to speakers, headphones can be very deceptive when it comes to volume. Take care of your hearing, we can always exchange gear but once our ears are damaged, that's it. Game over.

 

[pattont]

So if you can find used Utopias for $2200 or so do you hold out over getting the Clears for $900?

 

[DenverW]

So if you can find used Utopias for $2200 or so do you hold out over getting the Clears for $900?

You can get used clears for less than that now. I believe the classifieds has a couple $800 or so.

 

[pattont]

You can get used clears for less than that now. I believe the classifieds has a couple $800 or so.

Yea I have had the Clear MGs in my cart for awhile on B&H. Would love to do a Clear vs Clear MG vs Utopia comparison . Wish I had somewhere even a few hours drive from me that I could test them all.