[Bibo]

It has been a while since I was last active on this forum. And that is because of my Clears as my search for the perfect headphones ended with them about 5 years ago. I bought them (and spent a ridiculous amount of money) because they where and still are the only headphones I listened to that are not coloured.
I am a metalhead and I am somewat old, I was in high school when Metallicas Black Album came out and I went to the shop days before the release date to ask if it maybe was released earlier. Long story short: The Clears are the only headphones I know that can make the loudness war victims sound good and does not tear your eardrums apart when listenig to Through The Never.
The earpads have to replaced at least once a year because they start to look disgusting quite soon. Original Earpads where and are still inacceptable expensive, 230 Euros in Germany a pair. So I went for Dekony perforated lambskin pads but I did not like them that much. For the second replacement I got Clear MG pads for half the price which looked ugly but did the job.
Nowadays you can get the pads on ebay from China for 12 Euros and I am pretty sure they are made in the same factory as the originals ones as they are flawless.
My Clears had some child and vacuum cleaner related accidents over the years which made them look beaten up and led to weird resonance problems with male voices on the left side. I fixed this completly reasembling the driver. Had to resolder the cables to the headphone jack also, because they went loose in the process.
I love my Clears and woul only replece them with another pair if necessary.

 

[Keegan360]

An update regarding the channel imbalance issue (for anyone else who may have this problem) The problem was resolved once I swapped the pads from left to right. I have no idea why, but… yeah. I’m honestly confounded.

 

[keithw]

It has been a while since I was last active on this forum. And that is because of my Clears as my search for the perfect headphones ended with them about 5 years ago. I bought them (and spent a ridiculous amount of money) because they where and still are the only headphones I listened to that are not coloured.
I am a metalhead and I am somewat old, I was in high school when Metallicas Black Album came out and I went to the shop days before the release date to ask if it maybe was released earlier. Long story short: The Clears are the only headphones I know that can make the loudness war victims sound good and does not tear your eardrums apart when listenig to Through The Never.
The earpads have to replaced at least once a year because they start to look disgusting quite soon. Original Earpads where and are still inacceptable expensive, 230 Euros in Germany a pair. So I went for Dekony perforated lambskin pads but I did not like them that much. For the second replacement I got Clear MG pads for half the price which looked ugly but did the job.
Nowadays you can get the pads on ebay from China for 12 Euros and I am pretty sure they are made in the same factory as the originals ones as they are flawless.
My Clears had some child and vacuum cleaner related accidents over the years which made them look beaten up and led to weird resonance problems with male voices on the left side. I fixed this completly reasembling the driver. Had to resolder the cables to the headphone jack also, because they went loose in the process.
I love my Clears and woul only replece them with another pair if necessary.

Link to the eBay pads you like? I’m looking for a replacement pair myself and headphones.com is out of the OEM ones.

 

[TaronL]

Link to the eBay pads you like? I’m looking for a replacement pair myself and headphones.com is out of the OEM ones.

Just a note for those looking for pads. We got word that are newest shipment of Clear pads (as well as Elex pads) should be coming in late January.

 

[Shane D]

Just a note for those looking for pads. We got word that are newest shipment of Clear pads (as well as Elex pads) should be coming in late January.

Seeing as how I will likely have these Clear's forever, I really should order a couple of pairs.

 

[Keegan360]

I ended up buying the ZMF crescent snap (without leather) along with their perforated suede pads.
The crescent snap fits fine, though was a little tighter than the knitted fabric geekria cover to get on. The headband is noticeably more comfy now, but if you're not having issues with comfort with the geekria cover already I don't know if I'd recommend it. Also note that due to its height, you need to add roughly 2-3 clicks to the headband adjustment, so if you're near the high end already it likely won't fit properly.
As for the pads, they're better than the dekoni ones imo. The sound difference from stock is pretty much indistinguishable to me (as also evidenced by the measurements zach took in his video), and I'm a fan of the extra space in the cups. The clamp is slightly higher, but it's not a deal breaker. Something else I didn't realize I'd appreciate also is the fact it has a thin fabric cover inside - for me the cups tend to accumulate a ton of dust and dead skin without this.

Spoiler: images

(the ridges in the fabric are actually molded into the foam, not slack in the material)

Just wanted to reply to this and also add some thoughts regarding the ZMF Crescent Snap (Poly) and the Perforated Suede pads (for Clear owners looking to get either of these).

I agree with netarg's comments on the Crescent Snap. Super comfy, but you will need to further extend the headband if you want the pads to sit nicely on your earphones. I have had to fully extend the headband so do be wary of this! Additionally, if you are going to be travelling with your Clears - you're going to have difficulty putting this in the carry case. I think it possible, but you'll have to stuff it in or opt to remove the cover.

As for the ear pads, they retain the overall sound signature very well with some minor tweaks.

The most obvious change - you can definitely hear the drop in the 1-2kHz range as seen in Zack's video. The 'honk' or 'metallic' sound that people would criticise the Clear for seems to have reduced. To be honest, it never bothered me before, but switching from the suede to the original pads made this a bit noticeable (still not enough to bother me, but it's there). Alongside this, I found vocals (for example in choirs) were less "separated". I say that in double quotation marks as I don't know if I should call is separation; the voices in a choir sounded a bit more distinct and sharper/more noticeable.

The Clear also sounds a tad bit warmer with the Suede pads, not because of substantially more bass but because of the treble being slightly less (to my ears). There was a bit of smoothness to the sound with suede pads.

Detail and resolution sound a bit blunted; it did not feel as "sharp". This is the 'observation' I'm very unsure about, and honestly, it's such a small change that unless I did an AB test, I would not notice it. Perhaps slightly recessed 1-2Khz and treble are what create this effect? I didn't get the change to swap the stock pads and the ZMF pads a lot because the ZMF pads are super difficult to remove and every time I did I was nervous something would break.

Overall - the sound is more balanced to my ears and the mids sounds more "correct" to me on the Suede pads even though clarity and "sharpness" (idk I'm struggling to be precise and accurate in my description). All the changes I mentioned are very minor and may as well be wrong or placebo for all I know. Except for the recess between 1-2kHz, that is something I can definitely hear no problem.

I'm unsure about how they compare to the Dekoni pads; maybe someone will test them out someday. Regardless, I would also recommend these.

 

[Storaxis]

Hello,

I don't know about hi-fi but I bought some secondhand Focal Clear Pro (yep, it's stupid)...I'm using them on my laptop with jack 3.5 and I would like to know if I miss a lot of the potential of the Clears like this ? I'm not an audiophile, I always listen at low volumes, I'm listening Youtube or compressed files so...On a scale of 1 to 100, at what potential do I use them ?

Should I buy a amp/dac ? Like a FiiO k7 for example ? Or is it money down the drain ? Thanks!!!

 

[Luckyleo]

Hello,

I don't know about hi-fi but I bought some secondhand Focal Clear Pro (yep, it's stupid)...I'm using them on my laptop with jack 3.5 and I would like to know if I miss a lot of the potential of the Clears like this ? I'm not an audiophile, I always listen at low volumes, I'm listening Youtube or compressed files so...On a scale of 1 to 100, at what potential do I use them ?

Should I buy a amp/dac ? Like a FiiO k7 for example ? Or is it money down the drain ? Thanks!!!

My advice is if you're happy, then don't spend any more money. Yes, the Clears would benefit from better a better audio chain. But again, would you value that improvement? I suggest you find a brick and mortar store and bring your headphones and try out amps/dacs. If you can't tell the difference, or you can hear the differences, but don't care, then go back to my advice.... Do nothing

Leo

 

[Storaxis]

My advice is if you're happy, then don't spend any more money. Yes, the Clears would benefit from better a better audio chain. But again, would you value that improvement? I suggest you find a brick and mortar store and bring your headphones and try out amps/dacs. If you can't tell the difference, or you can hear the differences, but don't care, then go back to my advice.... Do nothing

But if I've bought Focal Clear headphones and don't use them 'properly', that would be a bit of a shame; at the moment, I find the headphones really good (even though I don't know anything about hi-fi) although a bit 'disappointing' for the price. Of course, money won't buy me good ears, but it would bother me to use the headphones at only 50% of their capacity at low volume rather than 75 or 80%.

I know your words are wisdom by the way. I keep them safe.

 

[Zeppmeister]

But if I've bought Focal Clear headphones and don't use them 'properly', that would be a bit of a shame; at the moment, I find the headphones really good (even though I don't know anything about hi-fi) although a bit 'disappointing' for the price. Of course, money won't buy me good ears, but it would bother me to use the headphones at only 50% of their capacity at low volume rather than 75 or 80%.

I know your words are wisdom by the way. I keep them safe.

If you're feeling some disappointment, then I'm confident you're not getting all you can out of them. Without knowing your usage scenario, I'm not sure what would best help improve your listening enjoyment. Perhaps a DAP, perhaps a DAC/Amp combo ...

Good luck! The Clear are far too nice to not enjoy to their fullest.

 

[Luckyleo]

But if I've bought Focal Clear headphones and don't use them 'properly', that would be a bit of a shame; at the moment, I find the headphones really good (even though I don't know anything about hi-fi) although a bit 'disappointing' for the price. Of course, money won't buy me good ears, but it would bother me to use the headphones at only 50% of their capacity at low volume rather than 75 or 80%.

I know your words are wisdom by the way. I keep them safe.

Sounds good. If you want to move forward, find a brick and mortar store, or if not possible, read various comments here and try to discern what may be good for you. Then find an on-line retailer with a generous return policy and take advantage of that if needed.

Good luck! Let us know how your journey proceeds.

Leo

 

[pataburd]

Hello,

I don't know about hi-fi but I bought some secondhand Focal Clear Pro (yep, it's stupid)...I'm using them on my laptop with jack 3.5 and I would like to know if I miss a lot of the potential of the Clears like this ? I'm not an audiophile, I always listen at low volumes, I'm listening Youtube or compressed files so...On a scale of 1 to 100, at what potential do I use them ?

Should I buy a amp/dac ? Like a FiiO k7 for example ? Or is it money down the drain ? Thanks!!!

If you don't mind me asking:

(a) About how much did you spend for the Clear Pro?
(b) Were they the MG or "OG" version?
(c) What governed your impulse to purchase them in the first place?

Thank you--and ENJOY!

 

[Tano]

Hello,

I don't know about hi-fi but I bought some secondhand Focal Clear Pro (yep, it's stupid)...I'm using them on my laptop with jack 3.5 and I would like to know if I miss a lot of the potential of the Clears like this ? I'm not an audiophile, I always listen at low volumes, I'm listening Youtube or compressed files so...On a scale of 1 to 100, at what potential do I use them ?

Should I buy a amp/dac ? Like a FiiO k7 for example ? Or is it money down the drain ? Thanks!!!

The Clears are quite easy to drive. If you are enjoying them and you get enough volume, I don't think you are missing out.
However, you could start trying something like a dongle to try new things and be able to use it with your phone too if you want.
Id recommend something like the Qudelix 5k, which will give you a lot of features, including parametric EQ, which can improve the performance of you clears quite a bit.

 

[Storaxis]

Hi,

a) Like 700€.
b) OG.
c) I always had low-budget headphones, I wanted to try some open-back, quite "neutral" (keep in mind I'm really not an audiophile).

Good luck! The Clear are far too nice to not enjoy to their fullest.

Yes, I can feel I'm not using them very well ; I would like to understand why.

The Clears are quite easy to drive. If you are enjoying them and you get enough volume, I don't think you are missing out.

I listen at low volumes, always. I think they sound well this way but, I don't know if I miss some "soundstage", "dynamic" or things like that. I don't like "loud music" (it hurts actually) so I don't really push them at high levels.

 

[WorksUnit]

(it hurts actually) so I don't really push them at high levels.

Which bit of it hurts? Treble, mids or bass?