After spending yesterday with the entire Focal line-up (driven by Chord Hugo and when I wanted to, Ayon HA-3) I wrote this in the FB-group, thought some of you’d want to read it
The Focal house sound is dynamic AF, with the downside being a soundstage that is a little on the small side. This, the dynamic capabilities and soundstage size, is pretty much unchanged throughout the range if you ask me.
Now for the differences:
Elear:
These hit the hype train hard when released, and for good reason IMO. They definitely do have their weaknesses however; A midbass/low-mid boost that gives the sound thickness, but can also be perceived as flabby or muddy. A massive 4kHz dip that removes some bite and edge to the music, which at times can be frustrating, and can make the elear come across as honky and blurs center-image. And at last a small zing at around 10kHz, which I personally was never bothered about.
Still, the Elear has for a long time been my favourite headphone in the 1k$-range because of their Focal trademark dynamics, great layering and above average resolution.
Now on to the Clear:
Compared to the stock elear sound, it’s like lifting a veil (cliché I know). Just take away all the excess flabbyness of the Elear, tighten it up, bring back the 4kHz-edge/bite, and you’ve got Clear. This headphone does not have weaknesses! Sure you can find a wider soundstage, sharper imaging, deeper bass or more airy treble, but usually at a much higher price or at the cost of other qualities in sound. The Clear is damn near a perfect all-rounder.
Is it worth a 500$ upgrade? Yes, I actually think so, unless....
I’m personally an Elear owner, and with the use of Sonarworks reference 4 I even/smooth out the FR to make it sound more balanced. How does it stack up against Clear?
They’re f*cking IDENTICAL. I honestly don’t think I could tell them apart in a blind test.
So if you want the cheapest solution, go for Elear and a sonarworks subscription. This does however demand that you use a pc/mac as listening source.
If you have the cash though, you can get the Clear which sounds perfect right out of the box, and comes with much nicer accessories. If I had been making my purchase today, I would’ve picked the Clear I think. But when I’m able to use sonarworks, upgrading from elear is not worth it for me.
Now Utopia:
Compared to the Clear, the Utopia is a little lean in the bass and unrelentless in the treble for me, when driven by the Chord Hugo. Adding the Ayon HA-3 in the mix fixes this, but also doubles the price...
so, why would one even consider buying a headphone more than twice the price of the Clear, and which requires an equally expensive amp?
Well, the Utopia does something better than anything else I’ve heard.
PRECISION.
At resolution, detail retrieval, texture, Utopia can hang with any e-stat (and the susvara). At imaging, layering and tight punchiness, the Utopia bests them all. I have never before heard the different layers of music so clearly, like 3D. Imaging is the tightest I’ve heard (makes even the susvara sound slightly blurry by comparison). And nothing can compete with the Focal line-up’s dynamic impact.
Bottom line: Elear was a great start. Clear is definitely an upgrade objectively seen, and (dsp aside) the best buy of the three. I don’t really see much reason to go past this, unless you feel the need to hear the vibration of every molecule in Clapton’s guitar, through the beryllium drivers of the Utopia.