[snk8699]

   
The "claustrophobic" feel one gets when first trying the Utopia is something people hear after getting used to the HD800's really wide soundstage (IMO). After you adjust to it (and after a fresh Utopia breaks in properly), the Utopia soundstage sounds a lot more natural than the HD800 (IMO). 

 
I couldn't agree more with this statement.  I immediately noticed the compressed soundstage when I took the Utopia out of the box and straight to my ears after using the HD800S for 7 months as my primary headphone. I decided there was no reason not to let the Utopia break in for 200 hours over the first week to see if it would have any sonic benefit.  I didn't listen to the Utopia at all during the break-in period and therefore didn't give my brain a chance to adapt to the sound signature.  Afterwards, I listened to the same baseline songs that I put all my headphones through and I actually enjoyed the slightly more intimate soundstage and cohesive sound signature the Utopia offers.  I love the soundstage of the HD800S as it's unsurpassed by every other headphone out there, but I've had so many moments with the Utopia where the headphone simply disappears and I'm just enveloped in the music.  It's a euphoric experience to say the least.

 

[rgs9200m]

For once "euphoric" was used for it's real meaning. (Not meaning "euphonic").

 

[The Walrus]

Don't let people tell you the Benchmark is bad. I let people talk me out of mine and it was a mistake. It was the best DAC I have owned.

I have the Elears (now given to the wife) and I think they suck. The Mids are colored (upper hole) and when combined with the ripe bass with soft rough treble they end up being super dull and unnatural sounding.

Last week I compared the Elear to the LCD-X, LCD-3, HD800S, GS1000e, PS500e (Also mine), GH-1, and a few others all on the same sources. The Elear was my LEAST favorite. The Elears have no stand out good point and is all around average.. The other headphones also had issues but they also had a stong point of some kind.

I dislike the Elear enough that I have lost interest in the Utopia.

Agreed. I'm done fiddling with the EQ to tame Elear. I'm waiting for the Utopia pads. I hope they will save Elear. ...and kudos to Focal for their most successful marketing campaign. 

 

[james6333]

Agreed. I'm done fiddling with the EQ to tame Elear. I'm waiting for the Utopia pads. I hope they will save Elear. ...and kudos to Focal for their most successful marketing campaign. 

Same here on the pads.

 

[goldendarko]

Here's my review of the Utopia guys, hope you enjoy!.
 
http://www.head-fi.org/products/focal-utopia/reviews/17027
 
FOCAL UTOPIA REVIEW:
 

 
 
Intro:  First I just wanted to start by saying thanks to Todd over @ TTVJ for letting me demo the Focal Utopia's. I had meant to post this review sooner, but my wife has had some medical issues and we ended up spending the better part of last week in the hospital so this review went on the back burner. Fortunately she is doing better now and I've had a chance to reflect on my week with the Utopia's. My review will include comparisons of the headphones I tested them against (HE1000, LCD-3F, TH-900 & Ether C) and the gear I used was an Auralic Mini feeding hi-res music into a Schiit Yggdrasil DAC and my amp was the Studio Six. I will say having the Studio Six really made my job easier as I made good use of the 4 headphone outputs, switching between headphones very easily in mid-song to help make better comparisons.
 
 
Design:  For the first part of this review, I want to say a few words about the design of the headphone, because it really is it the best designed headphone I've ever experienced in almost all aspects. First, it's a stunner. Hands down, best looking headphone I've ever seen in person. Pictures don't really do it justice, but everything about it feels premium, including the carbon fiber headband. And that's good because it's what you would expect for a $4000 headphone. That being said, it's not always the case, as my HE1000 feels anything but uber premium despite costing a slightly less, but still very expensive $3000. Besides just looking and feeling the part, the headphone is also very comfortable. It fit my head perfectly and there was no looseness like there can be with my HE1000, and no extreme weight and hot ears that comes with the LCD-3. The only knock I would have on the Utopia's design is the 13 foot long cable. For my listening room this was just way more cable than I needed but after reading someone's comments about how well this headphone does with movies I kind of wish I thought to try it in my living room. Maybe that's what Focal was thinking as most people sit around 9 feet or so from the TV, it would have been great to try it late at night when I'm watching TV and my wife is asleep. But since I didn't think to try it I can only guess and say I think it would work splendidly with movies and TV also.
 

 
Sound Impressions:  So this is no doubt the part you've scrolled down to while eyeing the pictures along the way, right? It's always difficult trying to put into words how a headphone sounds, but for me the things that stood out with the Utopia were how Dynamic it was, how much Resolution into the music it offered and how Balanced it's sound signature was. It is quite simply the best imaging headphone I've ever heard, and honestly after hearing the details it was picking out of the music, my HE1000 and LCD-3 in particular sounded muddy by comparison. Despite reading some impressions stating that it was a bright headphone, I have to state that I disagree. Perhaps with a brighter source, but with a tube amp like the Studio Six and an analog sounding DAC, like the Yggy, it didn't give me any brightness issues like I've had with other headphones (namely the HD-800). I actually kind of thought it was similar to the HE1000 in terms of balance, but offered a slightly more closed in sound or smaller soundstage while improving on the bass and attack that the HE1000 needs. In terms of soundstage, it's not huge but it offers a different experience that's more akin to speakers in that the imaging is so excellent you can really hear every aspect of the music. A cymbal crash stands out from piano being pounded where on other headphones (even TOTL ones) similar sounds like those may often blur together. And the dynamics really are spectacular too, you're able to really feel the force the musician puts into their playing aside from just being able to separate out the individual instruments. Let's move on to some comparisons now:
 

 
Utopia vs. TH-900:  Really not a fair comparison. Two totally different headphones and the Utopia is eminently better than the TH-900 across almost all genres, except Electronica/EDM where the TH-900 still reigns supreme. The V-shaped sound signature just lends itself better to music that needs bass/treble but lacks the midrange. I also like a more closed-in sounding headphone for EDM to give it the "club music" appeal and the TH-900 also has that so I will still hang on to them for those genres but otherwise the Utopia pretty much outclasses the TH-900 in every way, as it should for the price.
 
Utopia vs. Ether C:  Again, these two headphones are in a different league so this also isn't really a fair comparison. I will say the Ether C actually has a somewhat similar flavor to the Utopia as it's a very balanced sounding headphones (with some tuning to boost the bass anyway) but that's about where the similarities end. The imaging, dynamics and clarity are a mile aboveon the Utopia. I will say that if you're a fan of the Ether C, chances are you'll like the Utopia's flavor. Balanced sound is on offer with both. 
 
Utopia vs. LCD-3F:  These two on the other hand couldn't be more different. Chances are you all know the Audeze "House Sound" by now if you're reading a review for a $4000 dollar headphone so I'll just say this headphone goes in the opposite direction. Audeze has that boosted midrange and bass that creates that lovely warm sound signature of theirs but it pays the price in having rolled off treble and a more closed in and less resolute headphone. Switching from the Utopia to the LCD-3 in mid song was actually a bit shocking and kind of sounded like someone dropped the headphones in mud. I finally get that "lifting the veil" cliche audiophiles are always using, this was exactly that. The Utopia were a much more well rounded headphone and so again the Utopia is the winner here, but I still love the LCD-3's also for when you want that kind of sound signature that they do so well so they won't be going anywhere. 
 
Utopia vs. HE1000: Lastly I will compare them with my current favorite headphone, the HE1000. For me, until now, the HE1000 were the most well balanced headphones I'd ever heard. They have good bass, good midrange, good treble, wide soundstage and are very dynamic and have great resolution. The Utopia takes all of that and improves the bass, dynamics and resolution while sacrificing only a bit in the soundstage department. They don't blow the HE1000 out of the water, but they are definately the new standard for TOTL headphones IMO. 
 

 
 
Conclusion:  So to conclude I think Focal has just moved the yardstick a little bit further and have produced a new TOTL headphone that takes the cake as best headphone I've currently heard to date. Granted I haven't heard some big ones yet (SR-009, Abyss, LCD-4, Orpheus) but all of those have things that turn me off from them based on what I've read about them, Abyss is too bass heavy, SR-009 is probably too bright for my tastes, LCD-4 still has the nice, but ultimately unbalanced "Audeze House Sound" and the Orpheus is just way too expensive, just to name a few. The HE1000 was my favorite because I felt it offered a very balanced sound which is usually what I lean towards, or slightly warmer than neutral. I will say that whoever thought it was bright should try some different gear because if anything it leaned to the warmer side on my setup. The only complaints I would lodge are the cable is a bit long (though maybe it would work in the living room for movies), that it can reveal poor sources (but any good headphone will really) and for me, the big one is the price. I think the headphone industry seems to be going the way of the speaker industry in that every new darling of the moment feels the need to raise the price. Not that long ago people were upset that the HE1000 cost $3000, and here already it's gone up to $4000 for a new TOTL headphone can. Because of that I won't be buying them at this time, despite how much I enjoyed them. For me it's just a personal decision because to sell my HE1000's and then buy these would probably mean sinking another $2000 into this hobby and honestly they are not $2000 dollars better. So I will stick with my HE1000's as my go-to can for now, but no doubt I will covet the Utopia until one day we can meet again. Anyway, sorry if I rambled too much, hope you enjoyed the review, feel free so shoot me any questions if you want. Also, thanks again to Todd for making the demo available to me, it was a pleasure getting to listen to these wonderful headphones!
 
TL;DR
 
PROS:
-Beautiful Looking
-Premium Construction
-Very Well Balanced Headphone
-Excellent Dynamics
-Reference Quality Imaging
-Best Overall Headphone I've Heard to Date
 
CONS:
-PRICE!
-Super Long Cable
-Reveals Poor Sources for what they are!

 

[FLTWS]

Nicely done.

 

[up late]

x2 and thanks for posting

 

[SurFi]

Thank you, goldendarko 
 
Excellent and helpful!

 

[jlbrach]

initially I thought i enjoyed the 800's larger soundstage but in time i came to find it unnatural and I moved away from it to various different cans.....ultimately i came to believe the soundstage on the LCD-4's to be the most natural and lifelike.....I have no issue with the Utopia's soundstage which is a bit narrower than the LCD-4's but certainly enjoyable....

 

[snk8699]

Thanks for the great review goldendarko! You forgot to mention how great the Utopia looks while plugged into the black Studio Six. Serious audio eye candy!

 

[goldendarko]

Thanks for the great review goldendarko! You forgot to mention how great the Utopia looks while plugged into the black Studio Six. Serious audio eye candy!

Thanks, the sound pairing is as good as they look paired together too!

 

[CalvinW]

What tube amps would you guys recommend for the Utopia?

 

[pervysage]

  What tube amps would you guys recommend for the Utopia?

 
If you start saving today... the upcoming Cavalli and Woo Audio releases 

 
But I'm sure those will be much later on in 2017.
 
I am keen to hear impressions of the Utopia paired with these two prototypes starting this Friday at RMAF.

 

[x RELIC x]

If you start saving today... the upcoming Cavalli and Woo Audio releases 

But I'm sure those will be much later on in 2017.

I am keen to hear impressions of the Utopia paired with these two prototypes starting this Friday at RMAF.

The Liquid Tungsten is high on my list to pair with the Utopia.

 

[HeadHigh]

I just Bought used Focal Utopia for 1850$ used in very good condition . there is another one too if someone want to order them for the same price .