[adydula]

Yes it does.....and it may be, need a schematic or a reply from FOCAL to really understand what they are doing...I havent looked at the impedances of all the Focal cans but I think they are"

Utopia - 80 ohms
Stellia - 35 ohms
Clear MG - 55 ohms
Celestee - 35 ohms
Radiance - 35 ohms

And the sensitivity of them all are over 100db/mw so easy to drive.

Impedance matching = maximum power transfer and least distortion/SWR etc...

I havent see a bunch of Arche reviews or end user comments comparing it with their "presets" against other amps etc...

Good info though + thanks
Alex

Note: https://www.headfonia.com/focal-arche-review/4/

Take a read and see if a $2500 dac/amp is worth it for you. They even compared it with a Schiit Asgard 3 for $199.
This is indeed a crazy hobby!

 

[adydula]

Simple amps that work "very, very" well with the Focal Clear MG's...

Top Amp is a really powerful SS amp designed by AGDR, its a desktop version of what an improved O2 amplifier possible could have been with 3x
the current capability, 4 gain settings, Clipping circuit and indicator, preamp outs and +/- LED power rail indicators. DIY. Unobtanium.

The middle is a NEVE RHNP amp $499. Excellent "precision headphone amp". Simple. Elegant and it just works and very well.

The bottom amp is a Passlabs, Wayne Colburn design, he uses for his listening....op amps. Easy DIY project.

All are Class A.

Alex

 

[dougq]

I would imagine any amp would work. It sounds great out of my M1 macbook. No audible difference from my RME adi-2

 

[adydula]

Hey Doug....Yes often the differences are only slight and hard to discern..makes you wonder doesnt it....
Many folks will tell you ur missing out on stuff....

You can try and external dac and amp and compare.

But in the end its your ears that makes the decision if its worth it etc..

Enjoy the music!

Alex

 

[dougq]

I really like the features of my RME. On default settings it sounds no difference, but adjustments with Loudness really bring up the energy when I listen to not loud volume levels compared to my laptop / phone. Or if I want some on demand bass or treble I just play with the knobs and adjust eq on the go.

 

[adydula]

Great!

I love amps and their designs and have built many, many DIY amps to test against the higher dollar retail products.
No need to spend mega bucks for great sound.

That said I appreciate well built stuff as well and love to to twist knobs!!

LOL

 

[DivineCurrent]

The odd thing here is you have a world re-known company like Focal that makes one of the best dynamic headphones in the world and then you spend more bucks for software to "fix" them according to other experts that are making money off this...always amazes me.

Listening to the Clears as is, no matter what version you get to hear what the designer produced and wants you to hear....

I haven't heard from any headphone company state " Here pay me $1500 for my excellent headphone, but they are not perfect you have to buy someone elses EQ software of plug in to really make them perfect!!" Nope the only folks that have a plug in of sorts is Audeze.

Part of taking advantage of the market place and its a great way to make a living...so many add on choices to get you to audio nirvana. LOL.

That said if you like software eq, thats great...the Clears are just fine as is here for me...YMMV

Alex

I do understand your point of view here. However, from an engineering perspective, it is difficult to get the frequency response of any analog device, (whether it be headphones or speakers), to be exactly where the designers want it. They can get very close, but that is where EQ comes in, in my opinion. Since we all have different ear shapes, we will all hear different peaks, resonances, dips in the frequency response of a headphone. As a result, something that I find too bright or too warm may sound perfectly fine to you, and vice versa. I also think that EQ can actually bring out a headphone's strengths. A highly technically capable headphone like the Clear can conform to your preferred EQ very well, while still retaining the qualities that are not necessarily measurable like detail, dynamics, imaging, speed, etc. And on top of that, it will not suffer from any distortion or artifacts you may get with other lower end headphones after EQ.

By the way, Equalizer APO is completely free, and it is one of the most versatile systemwide EQ software out there.

 

[adydula]

Agree, especially about your comments about all ear shapes differing etc...I often state "we all hear differently...

That said, Using a software eq program with a set of cans that they developed based on their measurements would be good for one person and based on
their ear structure may not be good for another and so a needed adjustment might be needed.

And then there is the "does it really matter" that much at all...

So many changing variables in the listening equation....just give me a knob to twist!! LOL

Enjoy the music!

 

[adydula]

One thing that keeps coming out with the MG Clears after using 10 different amps is the ease of driving and the excellent resolution capabilities. I was having a discussion with a friend that also has these. I was mentioning that the micro details are discernable even with a very busy complex song. They are not hidden at all by other things going on in the song. Excellent attribute.

Also playing a really bright tune with trumpets for instance it cane at times be very "ear" bleeding much like it is in real life if your too close to the instrument. High pitched female voice can be sibilant at times...the tuning on these newer Clears are wonderful in that the slight changes here make this type of music very enjoyable for me.

The other noticeable attribute is the "decay' that you can hear in a live performance from a persons voice, they sing a note, pause and you can hear the wonderful decay and reverberation in the room or hall.....delicate but adds to the overall enjoyment and realism listening to delicate music.

Simply superb.

 

[tachen77]

The other noticeable attribute is the "decay' that you can hear in a live performance from a persons voice, they sing a note, pause and you can hear the wonderful decay and reverberation in the room or hall.....delicate but adds to the overall enjoyment and realism listening to delicate music.

Agreed about the decay, live performances have never sounded better to me than on the Clear MG! One of the "drawbacks" about this though, when I listen to certain songs with electronic drums, if they lack decay/reverb it can make them stick out, in my mind, as a little more "artificial".

Being able to hear the detailed decay of string instruments also gives it another factor of realism, in my opinion.

 

[adydula]

This decay / realism for me makes the new MG Clears a step above the OG Clears....

 

[cglin222]

This decay / realism for me makes the new MG Clears a step above the OG Clears....

I just got Clear MG today, honestly, it was just blind buy due to the colorway and reading the OG Clear reviews...
But without hearing the OG Clear, I can't compare, but first listen I'll have to agree witht he decay / realism on the MG Clears..

 

[Ifalna]

The odd thing here is you have a world re-known company like Focal that makes one of the best dynamic headphones in the world and then you spend more bucks for software to "fix" them according to other experts that are making money off this...always amazes me.

Listening to the Clears as is, no matter what version you get to hear what the designer produced and wants you to hear....

I haven't heard from any headphone company state " Here pay me $1500 for my excellent headphone, but they are not perfect you have to buy someone elses EQ software of plug in to really make them perfect!!" Nope the only folks that have a plug in of sorts is Audeze.

Part of taking advantage of the market place and its a great way to make a living...so many add on choices to get you to audio nirvana. LOL.

That said if you like software eq, thats great...the Clears are just fine as is here for me...YMMV

Alex

Focal does not know my ears frequency response nor my gear.

Simple as that.

When you buy a car, do you adjust the seat, mirrors, internal decorum, radio settings or do you leave everything "as is" in order to preserve the "intent of the designer".

BTW: people that scoff EQ but then drone on about amp matching (hint: what you really do is EQ via impedance matching) amuse me.

 

[roskodan]

Plus, hi-fi PEQ software is available for free too, as well as presets (AutoEQ, oratory1990) and measurements. So no added cost really. I use EQ APO + PEACE for PEQ on Windows, AutoEQ for presets. If you like it, you can donate, or not.

Said that, the Clear are the only headphones beside HD650 that really don't need EQ to my ears. Well, a little bass boost for movies and EDM perhaps.

 

[loopfreak]

After reading the impressions think that main confusions/polarity comes from Focal persistency to build sales based on OG Clear popularity. If they just named the 'phone completely different it would all be ok, but they've chose confusion and sales boost to take advantage of this highly subjective hobby. At least they're keeping the OG Clear live for a little bit so people can pick their flavor.