What about portability with Elegia? I'm worried it might look a bit outlandish using it in public as a commute headphone. And there are scarce examples of review videos out and about with it. Its hard to gauge if the profile of it is slightly OTT for some on commute.
fair warning... Europe doesn't get a 299dollar deal . That's become a real burn for me this morning. Ive known that my availability for them is a reputable outlet here (richer sounds) but its 650 Euros like you know...And if I would eventually just HAVE to get the pad swap ,, AND get a better cable,, Im looking at 800EU+,,, The WP900s, or the possibility of actually being able to demo a pair of Denon 7200 , and buy from a local shop so ill also get the personable service. ,, means the Elegia are priced out here. knowing they are 299 bucks vs 650euro(plus the rest) really burns me.. Thanks for your advice about the sound taste acquirement for them,, I dont think I would mind that so much but that price discrepancy, the modifications, the better after sales for the Denon,, or just the out of the box signature (and all around great sound) and much more portability (weight, size) of the Audio Technicas really make them less of an option for me where I am. Also I will just stress the portability factor, the headphones will be my everyday commute. Is that even practical with the Elegias? Thanks
Look at it this way. These do not sound like typical closed headphones (they never were intended to). They are much more akin to open back headphones but with passive noise isolation. If you look at them that way, you will be better informed as to what to expect. But, if you are expecting something like a typical closed back, then you will NOT like them. Those that have talked about upgrading pads, or EQing them bought them with the expectation of a typical closed back. These just aren't those. With the stock pads, the bass is of a lesser quantity than the typical closed back, unless the music calls for it (in which case it can be pretty big). it is plenty enough to keep from being boring even on songs that don't really call for it.
For me, these have the biggest soundstage of any closed back I have heard. It is larger than the Sennheiser HD6XX line for sure (and those are indeed open back). They have the typical (top of the line) dynamics that Focal is known for. There have not been THAT many that say they hear a metallic tone but those that have either have much better hearing than most of us do or are parroting what they have heard from somewhere else (IMO).
These were an experiment by Focal in making a closed headphone sound like an open back (it was their first high end closed back), and they succeeded very well with these. These are also not ultra portable (though I use them that way myself). They are big and heavy (though certainly not uncomfortable at all). I use mine with either iBasso DX160, or DX300 while out and about, and to be honest, I get questioned about them all the time regarding how beautiful they are (if that might be a concern for you).
As for price, it IS a bitter pill to swallow when others can have them for so much cheaper; I get it. But, these ARE high end quality and sound all the way, and I would have paid full price ($900) for them and thought them to be worth it. Of course YMMV and that is my thoughts on them. Having said that, I think anything under $700 is well worth the effort for these. The difference in cost between the Adorama deal is that you will get factory support. Those that buy them from Adorama will not (other than possibly through Adorama themselves). They are not only NOT an authorized dealer, but they are frowned upon by Focal for selling them so cheaply.
It is actually Adorama that has kept these phones alive all this time. While Focal never actually discontinued these, they (quietly) took them off their page, and just never talk about them. They DID, however change the cable to a better one at some point while everyone thought they were discontinued. So, you won't get the black and white striped (atrocious) cable, but an all black one that is of better make (though still way too stiff). It might be the Celestee cable?!
They can be driven from a lowly smart phone, and don't sound bad, but like any high-end head gear, they scale with better sources. That isn't to say that you need to spend thousands of dollars on a desktop setup to get great sound quality from them. I personally don't find they sound great with tube amp but do sound fantastic with a great SS DAP or DAC/amp.
The bottom line is that if you temper your expectations and still purchase them, you will enjoy them. If you buy them with expectations of what they are NOT, then you will sell them off like others that have done the same. They are truly an amazing set of headphones IMHO!
