[Waddiewadkins]

The Elegia is easy to drive. But almost every headphone will benefit from extra power and a better DAC chip. But to be fair, the DAC in the $9 Apple dongle is shockingly good for the price.

You could run your Elegia with an Apple dongle and get solid performance. But the Elegia will sound even better with the hip-dac 2.

I'd like to make another dongle recommendation for you with the Elegia: Qudelix 5K. The Qudelix has more power and a better DAC than the Apple dongle. It has Bluetooth. It has single-ended and balanced output. It has a built-in, 10-band parametric EQ, which comes in clutch for the Elegia due to what I consider slightly wonky midrange tuning. That can easily be fixed with EQ.

Sure, the Qudelix 5K is $110, $100 more than the Apple dongle. But it's still one of the best values in audiophilia.

thank you for the Qudelix 5K reccomendation,,other cheaper ones mentioned were FiiO btr5 and theres a new iFi dongle that is really cheap and good. I will now take a look at the Qudelix

 

[Waddiewadkins]

thank you for the Qudelix 5K reccomendation,,other cheaper ones mentioned were FiiO btr5 and theres a new iFi dongle that is really cheap and good. I will now take a look at the Qudelix

I saw a guy on youtube use his ROON parametric EQ to do it... Maybe on the go Qudelix be good fo that so,, here is guy :

 

[regaet]

Anybody have some low-milage OEM pads they would like to sell?

 

[Bob Ley]

Anybody have some low-milage OEM pads they would like to sell?

I have a pair of Dekoni sheepskin if interested

 

[BBuzecky]

Anybody have some low-milage OEM pads they would like to sell?

I have 2 pairs of no-milage OEM pads, shoot me an offer if you'd like. I got a second Elegia on the $299 Adorama sale, and both use the Dekoni Stellia Special Edition Pads. I really love that for this relatively low price point you can get into the Focal sound.

 

[InvisibleInk]

I still use my Elegia most every night, and these constant sales haven't diminished my esteem for these phones, even though I spent over five Franklins for mine.

Every now and then I entertain the urge to buy a Celestee or Radiance, but then I form the car analogy that is like, why bother upgrading to a Lexus LS400, when the Toyota Camry still gets great mileage and is great condition?

 

[Heyyoudvd]

Now that the Elegia have been around for a few years, what’s the general consensus?

I’m in the market for a closed back, as nearly all my headphones are open back, and I want something with a bit of isolation that I can use when doing errands around my apartment.

Currently my only closed backs are an original Audio Technica A900 from 15+ years ago, but I was never a fan of those due to the echoey, resonant sound likely caused by the massive ear cups.

I also have an AirPods Max, which is what I currently use for errands. I love them for their features and they’re amazing for movie watching, but in terms of music, I merely like (not love) them.

So that brings me to the Elegia. I’m not one to pad swap or EQ, so are they worth it for me? I’d be listening stock and with an Apple dongle out of my iPhone. That $299 Adorama deal seems mighty enticing, and since I’ve never owned anything from Focal, I’m really considering these.

What do you think? Will these be an upgrade over the A900 and AirPods Max?

 

[Waddiewadkins]

Now that the Elegia have been around for a few years, what’s the general consensus?

I’m in the market for a closed back, as nearly all my headphones are open back, and I want something with a bit of isolation that I can use when doing errands around my apartment.

Currently my only closed backs are an original Audio Technica A900 from 15+ years ago, but I was never a fan of those due to the echoey, resonant sound likely caused by the massive ear cups.

I also have an AirPods Max, which is what I currently use for errands. I love them for their features and they’re amazing for movie watching, but in terms of music, I merely like (not love) them.

So that brings me to the Elegia. I’m not one to pad swap or EQ, so are they worth it for me? I’d be listening stock and with an Apple dongle out of my iPhone. That $299 Adorama deal seems mighty enticing, and since I’ve never owned anything from Focal, I’m really considering these.

What do you think? Will these be an upgrade over the A900 and AirPods Max?

I pitched this same Elegia idea to Headphones Auditions Amsterdam and je said ATH-WP900 is much better than Elegia.

 

[samandhi]

Now that the Elegia have been around for a few years, what’s the general consensus?

I’m in the market for a closed back, as nearly all my headphones are open back, and I want something with a bit of isolation that I can use when doing errands around my apartment.

Currently my only closed backs are an original Audio Technica A900 from 15+ years ago, but I was never a fan of those due to the echoey, resonant sound likely caused by the massive ear cups.

I also have an AirPods Max, which is what I currently use for errands. I love them for their features and they’re amazing for movie watching, but in terms of music, I merely like (not love) them.

So that brings me to the Elegia. I’m not one to pad swap or EQ, so are they worth it for me? I’d be listening stock and with an Apple dongle out of my iPhone. That $299 Adorama deal seems mighty enticing, and since I’ve never owned anything from Focal, I’m really considering these.

What do you think? Will these be an upgrade over the A900 and AirPods Max?

I pitched this same Elegia idea to Headphones Auditions Amsterdam and je said ATH-WP900 is much better than Elegia.

Not having heard either of the two that you mentioned, it is hard for me to recommend the Elegia or not. It is going to come down to your preference in signatures. These don't have much/any unwanted resonance that I can hear, but they also don't have the typical bass tuning that most closed backs afford either.

No, these aren't for everyone, but I think that simply saying the ATH are much better than the Elegia is misleading. What one person (subjectively) finds much better could be much worse to others. Personally, I find them to be the best closed backs that I have heard for the type of tuning that they achieved on these. They are more akin to an open back actually. The design gives them some width and depth that most closed backs simply can't attain (IMHO).

Your best bet is if you can get them from the Adorama site from Amazon and return them if you decide you DON'T like them (that is what I did, even though I never returned them). But as far as using a dongle to drive them, that would be fine because they don't take much at all to drive well. Most people that crave more boomy bass switch out pads or EQ them, but there are a lot of people on here (myself included) that really love the way they sound with the stock pads on them. I DID buy some Dekoni Stelia custom pads for these, and love them as well, but they make them sound so different (to my ears) that I switch back and forth depending on the mood I am in.

It is my opinion that you really can't go wrong with the current price tag. Even if you didn't get them from Amazon (where you can return them), you can sell them on here for instance, and get your money back. While they aren't going like hotcakes like they used to, they are still popular due to their price tag while remaining a high end set of phones. And make no mistake, these are high end in every way (IMO).

Just my $.02!

 

[Heyyoudvd]

I pitched this same Elegia idea to Headphones Auditions Amsterdam and je said ATH-WP900 is much better than Elegia.

I should clarify that I was referring to the A900, not the WP900.

I’ve never heard the WP900, so I don’t know how they sound, but it’s worth noting that they’re a $650 headphone, whereas the A900 (which I’m hoping the Elegia would be a big upgrade from) were a sub-$200 headphone.

 

[samandhi]

I should clarify that I was referring to the A900, not the WP900.

I’ve never heard the WP900, so I don’t know how they sound, but it’s worth noting that they’re a $650 headphone, whereas the A900 (which I’m hoping the Elegia would be a big upgrade from) were a sub-$200 headphone.

I would bet that for technicalities, the Elegia will indeed be an upgrade, if for no other reason than because it is much newer tech. As for tuning, that will come down to what tuning you like best as to whether you consider it an upgrade or not. To my ears, it has some really deep bass, but the quantity is very neutral.

This isn't to say it is missing (not at all). But if the song doesn't call for it, it is not boosted to give all songs a thumpy bass. Now, if the song calls for it, it CAN be fairly massive. There is nothing fatiguing about the whole curve (to my ears). They are a bit mid forward (though not in the pina gain region), and have a nice and clear tone (though accurate to my ears).

 

[Waddiewadkins]

I should clarify that I was referring to the A900, not the WP900.

I’ve never heard the WP900, so I don’t know how they sound, but it’s worth noting that they’re a $650 headphone, whereas the A900 (which I’m hoping the Elegia would be a big upgrade from) were a sub-$200 headphone.

Ok I knew about model difference , didn't know about their price sorry its a big difference. I was going by my Elegia research experience. Instead of getting those and putting in the little bit of work to get them pad modded which is another 100 euros and most likely a dac for around 100 (on the cheaper side!) And because I want it as a my new walking , bus, everyday commute, I was advised that the WP900 would be better for me (Headphone Auditions Amsterdam) . For real I had put in the research for Elegia it took a while. I had forgotten about the WP900. The Elegias I would get are 499 euros+dekoni sheepkin+qudelix 5k, so it probably makes sense to go WP900 instead. He says they are a headphone where I will have no regrets with their sound. Enjoy Elegia if you get ( I have a lot of ele-giance! for them in months research..I'm sure ineven dreamed about them!)

 

[Heyyoudvd]

I would bet that for technicalities, the Elegia will indeed be an upgrade, if for no other reason than because it is much newer tech. As for tuning, that will come down to what tuning you like best as to whether you consider it an upgrade or not. To my ears, it has some really deep bass, but the quantity is very neutral.

This isn't to say it is missing (not at all). But if the song doesn't call for it, it is not boosted to give all songs a thumpy bass. Now, if the song calls for it, it CAN be fairly massive. There is nothing fatiguing about the whole curve (to my ears). They are a bit mid forward (though not in the pina gain region), and have a nice and clear tone (though accurate to my ears).

Closed backs tend to have too much bass. I haven’t heard that many, but in my experience, the very nature of being closed creates a resonance that leads to boomy, muddy bass.

If the Elegia can manage to avoid that, then that’s a win in my view.

From what I’ve read, Focal built the Elegia with the express purpose of trying to reproduce the Clear OG’s sound in a closed back. I have no idea whether or not they succeeded, but if they can get even 85% of the way there, that would be a massive achievement.

 

[KPzypher]

I pitched this same Elegia idea to Headphones Auditions Amsterdam and je said ATH-WP900 is much better than Elegia.

WP900 is still the wonkiest sounding HP I've ever tried. I did love the look, comfort, and portability.

 

[samandhi]

Closed backs tend to have too much bass. I haven’t heard that many, but in my experience, the very nature of being closed creates a resonance that leads to boomy, muddy bass.

If the Elegia can manage to avoid that, then that’s a win in my view.

From what I’ve read, Focal built the Elegia with the express purpose of trying to reproduce the Clear OG’s sound in a closed back. I have no idea whether or not they succeeded, but if they can get even 85% of the way there, that would be a massive achievement.

I have not heard the Clear OG's, so I can't answer to that part (though I have read a lot of reviews that say it comes close), but I can answer to the muddy bass, and resonance. There is none! It is a fast and neutral bass. Many actually are turned off because of the bass on the Elegia. Those that are, are the ones that are expecting the huge (blow your head off) bass, and these aren't that.

If you look at the way they made the interior of these, you will see how genius it is in reducing any sort of resonance.