[RatFarm]

I think the crackle is more prominent on setups that can deliver more subsonic energy meaning a combo of hires tracks and wide bandwidth amps. It was no problem reproducing the issue at home and at my local dealer via a Niam setup.

 

[x RELIC x]

So I just got my pair. I came from the HD650 and currently use both with a non-speedball Crack. The bass extension of the Elear is insane! The dynamic is better than the HD650 as well, but not mind blowing like I thought it would be. The high is... I don't know, lacking compared to the HD650, in terms of quantity. Is it because of the bass that distract me from the high? Or maybe this is a bad amp pairing?

Likely the Crack is a bad pairing as it's meant to feed high impedance loads, unlike the Elear. I can easily see a FR shift happening from the OTL amp with the Elear, but haven't personally seen any measurements of the pairing. Might want to try them with a different amp before making any decisions about the FR.

 

[tuan2195]

I tested my Elears out yesterday to see at what point I got the breakup crackle. I had to push them past comfort volume levels to get there, and like @tuan2195, only experienced it in the right cup.

More interesting was that if I applied more pressure to the can against my head so the clamp force increased, the crackle/breakup disappeared, suggesting that the increased back pressure stopped the issue without any noticeable effect - i.e. it sounded great.

Unfortunately, it was more clamp force than I'd want if I was wearing them for more than 10 mins, but it did suggest to me that people with different size heads might experience the effect at different levels, depending on the clamp force that the Elears applied - i.e. a bigger head will result in more clamp force, and potentially less breakup?

I'm curious if anyone else gets the same result if anyone cares to try.

I've just tried it and applying pressure to the earcup does mitigate the issue a bit. But if I turn it too loud then it will still be there.

Probably will listen to mine for a few days and wait for the Magni 2 to come, I want to try it with a solid state amp. I'm still on the fence whether to keep it or not due to the crackle issue.

 

[tuan2195]

Likely the Crack is a bad pairing as it's meant to feed high impedance loads, unlike the Elear. I can easily see a FR shift happening from the OTL amp with the Elear, but haven't personally seen any measurements of the pairing. Might want to try them with a different amp before making any decisions about the FR.

That's what I think as well, the Crack is an OTL amp with a 120ohm output impedance after all and the Elear is only 80ohm. Shame I don't have any high-end solid state amp to try the Elear with, but I've ordered a Magni 2. I'll wait for it before deciding, but so far even with the Crack I really like how the Elear sound.

 

[makne]

Correct, the Elear should not be a good pairing with OTL amps. I suspect that the pairing is messing up the FR. I've owned the HD650 before, and there's no way I can say that the HD650's had more treble, either in quality nor quantity.
But if you do want more treble extension, and also far better bass extension, again to check out sonarworks reference 4!! Can't stress this enough, I love this program. My ears can still quickly adjust to the stock sound which I still love and enjoy, but IMO woth sonarworks it is a definite upgrade.

 

[makne]

I think the crackle is more prominent on setups that can deliver more subsonic energy meaning a combo of hires tracks and wide bandwidth amps. It was no problem reproducing the issue at home and at my local dealer via a Niam setup.

I've heard the Elear on a Hugo, HA-1, totl Schiit etc. All with flac/master from Tidal. No crackling.
Also, with the Hugo I'm now using Sonarworks which brings out immense subbass from the Elear, to the point where I can feel it vibrating down my neck and in my chest, and it's almost nauseating at times. Still, no crackling. I even tried this at levels that are uncomfortable for me (probably not much louder than "normal" people's listening level though) with the bass-heavy soundtrack mentioned a couple of pages back.
I think it has more to do with variations on the Elears, rather than the setup. If not, shouldn't I've gotten crackling on some of the setups I've tried.
Not bashing your theory, it may well be true, just want to provide additional info from my experience

 

[ZenGentleman]

Correct, the Elear should not be a good pairing with OTL amps. I suspect that the pairing is messing up the FR. I've owned the HD650 before, and there's no way I can say that the HD650's had more treble, either in quality nor quantity.
But if you do want more treble extension, and also far better bass extension, again to check out sonarworks reference 4!! Can't stress this enough, I love this program. My ears can still quickly adjust to the stock sound which I still love and enjoy, but IMO woth sonarworks it is a definite upgrade.

Whereas I can't unequivocally state my Elear/Valhalla 2 OTL amp is an ideal pairing, as I have yet to experiment with any other amps (especially solid state), I don't have any major criticisms of its sound and certainly no crackling in either ear cup has developed (so far). I could live with the sound, as is, quite happily. If I'm going to nitpick, would I like to improve sound stage and imaging? Yes. But as I have previously stated, I've been spoiled by my Sennheiser HD700's and nothing I could do with ancillary gear would turn the Elear into those sound stage and imaging champs. Would I like to open up the top end a bit more? Absolutely. I think a new silver, or silver clad copper, leash will open up the sound in the top end a bit more from what I've read from others in this forum who have gone that route. It will also be interesting to ultimately see what a SS amp will do for overall performance. However, all of those tweaks/changes are going to have to wait because I just spent a chunk of cash on these new Elears and I'll need some time to replenish the bank account to be able to afford any future changes to my Schiit Audio/Focal Elear setup.

Overall, my experience with the Elear cans 2 weeks in has been overwhelmingly positive. Best headphones I've ever owned, to-date. Yes, I suffer from update-itus, like I'm sure many of us in here do, and I am curious about the new Clear headphones, but I'll be content just lurking in the Clear thread reading about early adopter impressions and the inevitable comparisons that will be made with the Elear and Utopia lines. Anecdotal stories of real problems notwithstanding, if anyone out there is seriously interested in upgrading their headphones to the Elear, I would do so without hesitation.

 

[makne]

Tbh I think changing to an amp with lower output impedance (lower than 10ohm preferably), will change the sound more than any cable ever can.

 

[ZenGentleman]

Tbh I think changing to an amp with lower output impedance (lower than 10ohm preferably), will change the sound more than any cable ever can.

I don't dispute that at all but different changes affect different areas of performance. By the way, according to the Schiit Audio website, the Valhalla 2 OTL amp has an output impedance of 14 ohms in "Hi Gain" mode and only 3.5 ohms in "Lo Gain" (the mode I run my Valhalla 2 in). Now, the Schiit Audio Lyr 2 is 0.3 ohms in Lo Gain mode, so that might be a better match for the Elear at a somewhat comparable price-point. I wonder if anyone out there is running the Elears with a Lyr 2 and what their overall impressions are? Anyone?

 

[dontfeedphils]

I don't dispute that at all but different changes affect different areas of performance. By the way, according to the Schiit Audio website, the Valhalla 2 OTL amp has an output impedance of 14 ohms in "Hi Gain" mode and only 3.5 ohms in "Lo Gain" (the mode I run my Valhalla 2 in). Now, the Schiit Audio Lyr 2 is 0.3 ohms in Lo Gain mode, so that might be a better match for the Elear at a somewhat comparable price-point. I wonder if anyone out there is running the Elears with a Lyr 2 and what their overall impressions are? Anyone?

I think a low Z output with enough power to handle the large impedance swing in the lower band is the best pairing, luckily that should be pretty easily found in many amps.

Never had a problem with my Asgard 2.

 

[gardibolt]

I tested my Elears out yesterday to see at what point I got the breakup crackle. I had to push them past comfort volume levels to get there, and like @tuan2195, only experienced it in the right cup.

More interesting was that if I applied more pressure to the can against my head so the clamp force increased, the crackle/breakup disappeared, suggesting that the increased back pressure stopped the issue without any noticeable effect - i.e. it sounded great.

Unfortunately, it was more clamp force than I'd want if I was wearing them for more than 10 mins, but it did suggest to me that people with different size heads might experience the effect at different levels, depending on the clamp force that the Elears applied - i.e. a bigger head will result in more clamp force, and potentially less breakup?

I'm curious if anyone else gets the same result if anyone cares to try.

Interesting theory. I get no crackle and I have a huge head with a close fit on the Elears.

 

[waveSounds]

Elear + Mojo (minus El) = EarMojo. Literally.

The hand-over-the-cup observation has made me think; I hope Focal have a closed variant of the C/Elear in their product pipeline...

 

[BunnyNamedCraig]

Elear + Mojo (minus El) = EarMojo. Literally.

The hand-over-the-cup observation has made me think; I hope Focal have a closed variant of the C/Elear in their product pipeline...

I was thinking about this same thing the other day and came to the mental conclusion that a closed Elear or Clear would make the most sense.

The necessity of closed Utopia doesn’t make much sense since most people are listening to them at home. But at the price point of the Elear and possibly the Clear, to have a closed version for people at work could be a smart offering. Not to mention I would love a closed Clear for gaming!!

 

[styks]

That’s better folks, yea!
My new Elears arrived this afternoon, quite a difference, I’m chuffed. 

First popped on L.P Into the Wild, Quite strong bass as the drummer would hope you’d hear it I’m sure. Her Voice a little recessed, could do with coming forward just a tad, improved a fraction with an increase in volume. No complaints, nowt to really bother me.

Steely Dan .. Gaslight Abbie. Strong crisp snare, vocal a little back to my ears, just a tad. It seems to me there’s a slight peak up top somewhere? Possibly pushes it back a tad. But nice no complaints

Burial .. Truant Something a little different here, heavish bass with static and tinkly chimes running through it. Good no problem it does well with this track, better by a good margin than the HD650. Again vocal a tad back in comparison, very good however.

Steve Earle .. Copperhead road. Rock in out a bit more here. Loved it, plenty of exciting “slam” when it come in. The bass could do with a slight bit more control I thought listening to this track. Earles' vocal is about where it should be to my ears, I feel the lower frequency male vocal is reproduced better, more prominent. Higher frequency female vocals I feel are a little recessed in comparison. Possibly due to that slight peak up top, maybe?

Robert Len .. Amoureuse Muted trumpet presented well, triangle nice and clear and where it should be IMO. Overall nicely balanced to my ears. Lovely.

London Grammar.. Hey Now Her Voice is deeper, nice no problem happy where that is. Elear handled the strong bass well when it came in. Nice liking it so far, my brains getting used to it now!

Fatoumata .. Kanou Her vocal just a tad back again, very nicely balanced here, Elear is doing great on this track.

Murray Perahia .. Goldberg variations BMV:988 ARIA. Now some piano, ..... ermm no quite so sure here, I think I’m so used to the HD650 being a bit warmer, it’s sounding natural but that peak? I don’t know.... Maybe just my brain complaining about the change, I might bother EQ’ing a bit with piano, don’t know yet.

Endless .. Melancholia Nice, Im just enjoying the music now, so nowt much to say.

Now to get brave 

Tom Raybold .. Bad Dreams OH YES! ..... That’s good, I be a happy chappie!

Max Richter .. War Anthem ditto, ditto, ditto that’s made me a HAPPY Elear owner now! I can get it to crack but NOW at a level that I very rarely go to. .... It will clip when the HD650 will not but I’ll take the more powerful much better presented and extended bass over the HD650 any day!

These are my first impressions, that is literally all I’ve listened to so far and I’m impressed. (I thought i would be) There is a very good chance, as long as all continues positively over the next couple of weeks, that I’ll be selling my HD650's. At the moment I feel I would keep them for piano, unfortunately I can’t afford to though. It could well be I have to get used to the Elear's a bit more, or EQ.

Soundstage is a little narrower than the HD650 to my ears but. that doesn’t bother me, I like intimacy. You are sort of in the middle somewhere, that’s fine for me.

I can now say with ABSOLUTE CERTAINTY that there ARE some driver inconsistency issues. TAKE NOTE PLEASE FOCAL. .... It may be slight but obviously enough to show! .... IF YOU WANT TO BE SURE YOU HAVE A GOOD ONE TRY “MAX RICHTER.. WAR ANTHEM” IT WILL SHOW IT UP. Especially if your DAC/amp is warm'ish. ....

Focal have done a great job here in my personal opinion. I hear, agree and like their approach, Dynamic ability over SPL every time. Tighten production/QC tolerances a tad and bang, you got it right!

The War Anthem track has some killer low frequency bass, the very low frequencies are not to be taken lightly. Bass at those frequencies can do you some damage without you knowing it! And this new/correctly functioning example of the Elear can get to that level I feel, just, before clipping and letting you know, certainly to a level that I would not personally listen at. The HD650 IMO cannot produce it, so actually less dangerous! Ha ha ha. ..... The Elear should have a health warning attached ! 

Having waffled on for a while now. Source was PC, Qobuz, CD quality, apart from London Grammar 24/192. Into Regen through to Marantz PM7005 DAC. It may be that this DAC is heavy on bass, (warmer than my Mojo,) which could be turning the killer War Anthem track into a real Elear killer!
I’ll be plugging into my Mojo soon, I’ll let you know how that goes. But don’t worry that post will not be so drawn out!

Thank you all, I’m glad I was persuaded to try again, cheers!

After that very quick listen to the first example, (before hearing the clipping at a much too low level)
I knew I’d like it if the replacement was good, and it is! .... ...... Lighter cable now and that’s my lot.

 

[tuan2195]

I just tested again this morning and I'd like to retract my comment that the Elear has less high than the HD650. It must have been the bass that was drawing me in and made me think this headphone is way darker than it actually is. That or burning in helped a bit. Listening to the two headphones again this morning and focusing on the treble and there seems to be little difference (in term of quantity at least) between them. I'll wait for a solid-state amp to come in but it seems like the Crack is not ideal, but adequate so far.

So far I much prefer the sound of the Elear, even when paired with the Crack, despite the Elear being heavier on the head but I think I'll get used to it. It's a shame that my pair has the crackle issue though. It's not like I ever listen at that level and my go-to music doesn't have crazy subbass, but it does bug me a bit knowing that I have a less-than-ideal pair. I wonder if Adorama/Focal will exchange a non-defective pair for me, maybe I'll give it a shot later.