[DairyProduce]

Have you seen the photo of the french reviewer with the NADs?

 

[AustinValentine]

  Have you seen the photo of the french reviewer with the NADs?

 
But I have hair...don't look like Moby!

 

[M-13]

  "Oh. Wait. Is that a bandwagon? Let me jump on it."
 
Focal Spirit Professional ordered. Thank you, M-13 and Tyll. Now let's see what the hype is all about. 

  Let me jump on too!  Ordered them as well.

  Mine are en route too. I was informed by both my students and my wife that my NAD Viso HP50's don't look nearly as good on my head as I think they do.
 
;_; 

 

 

[dbdynsty25]

Hey M-13...how's the pairing with the X3?  The other headphones I've tried, like the M100, w/ the X3 have been just so so.  I haven't really found a good full sized headphone to match with it, outside of my GR07BE iems.  Hoping this one fits the bill (which it sounds like it does from your initial impressions).

 

[M-13]

  Hey M-13...how's the pairing with the X3?  The other headphones I've tried, like the M100, w/ the X3 have been just so so.  I haven't really found a good full sized headphone to match with it, outside of my GR07BE iems.  Hoping this one fits the bill (which it sounds like it does from your initial impressions).

Having not heard the M100 + X3, can't say if the Spirit Pro matches better. What did you not like about the pairing?
 
I personally think the pairing of the X3 + Spirit Pro is very awesome, but I do plan on getting the X5 when it comes out. All my positive impressions of the Focal were done with the X3 as the source + amp.

 

[dbdynsty25]

 
Having not heard the M100 + X3, can't say if the Spirit Pro matches better. What did you not like about the pairing?
 
I personally think the pairing of the X3 + Spirit Pro is very awesome, but I do plan on getting the X5 when it comes out. All my positive impressions of the Focal were done with the X3 as the source + amp.

 
It just seemed to accentuate the slightly recessed mids of the M100.  Sources like iPads and iPhones seem to mask it a bit better, which is why a lot of people seem to scoff at the claim that they are a bit recessed.  Hoping the Spirit Pro matches well, and it sounds like it does!
 
It's weird...I always thought I was a basshead and I can definitely enjoy some bass, but without turning the bass down to like -4 or -6 on my e07k DAC, the M100s just rattle my head too much.  I've tried the k545 and the H6 and love the bass on both of them (very deep and accurate), but I can't get a good seal on them to save my life w/ my glasses on.  They just don't clamp hard enough it seems.  From the reviews I've seen on the SPs, they appear to clamp pretty well so I've got high high hopes.

 

[M-13]

   
It just seemed to accentuate the slightly recessed mids of the M100.  Sources like iPads and iPhones seem to mask it a bit better, which is why a lot of people seem to scoff at the claim that they are a bit recessed.  Hoping the Spirit Pro matches well, and it sounds like it does!
 
It's weird...I always thought I was a basshead and I can definitely enjoy some bass, but without turning the bass down to like -4 or -6 on my e07k DAC, the M100s just rattle my head too much.  I've tried the k545 and the H6 and love the bass on both of them (very deep and accurate), but I can't get a good seal on them to save my life w/ my glasses on.  They just don't clamp hard enough it seems.  From the reviews I've seen on the SPs, they appear to clamp pretty well so I've got high high hopes.

Yeah the X3 is slightly dark with a little bit of mid-bass hump IMO, and the treble/upper-mids are slightly shelved. I do find the overall tonality quite close to neutral though, definitely within reference for me. I think it pairs up very well with flat studio monitor type of sounds because it gives a little bump in the bass and tones down the trebles a bit. I think the X3 colors them to be more "musical".
 
The reason I want to get the X5 is because it's even more neutral, and I don't really want the coloration. I would rather have a clearer window to my music without the fun.
 
And guys remember the Spirit Pro isn't exactly comfortable. You will need to break in the pads, headband for a few days because initially you will not be happy with the comfort. I would say about 10 days in, the comfort is much improved. You can massage the pads too if you want to speed up the pad break-in.
 
They're still amazing to me btw. Focal knocked it out of the park with this one, but I wish they had made the earpads a little bigger and added more padding to the headband, so I could recommend them to everyone without any caveats.

 

[andkoppel]

I just got a pair yesterday for a great price in the Canary Islands (175€).  
 
Some quick impression in poor english:
 
- They are really fast and hard hitting. In comparison the M-100 seem slow and lazy. 
 
- Tonally I am not sure that they are natural. Neutral yes, but they sound a little bit metallic. 
 
- Highs are precise and fast, but imho lack a little bit of air.
 
- Wonderful balance between detail,precision and musicality. 
 
- I am big headed and normal eared and they fit well. No pain, but I know they are there. 
 
- The industrial design is not great. If you think that the NAD look silly on your head, these are quite close with it's huge hinges with Focal's white logo floating off your head. The shiny paint job with drops reminds me of my rented apartment: the walls are painted in that fashion. 
 
- Best close cans I have heard so far. Others: M100- DT770PRO- SRH940-Momentum-HM5-T70P-Ultrasone HFI780 (and other models I've chosen to forget), etc. 
 
- Great value. 
 
- Please Focal put these drivers in open cans. 

 

[JohannLiebert]

These look stupid on your head? T_T 
I am kinda spoiled by my Audio Technica ESw11. Makes everyone look better^^

 

[dbdynsty25]

 
- They are really fast and hard hitting. In comparison the M-100 seem slow and lazy. 

 
Interesting...that's one of my complaints w/ the M100.  Just seems inaccurate on the bass side of things.  Not enough sub bass...too much mid bass.  Mine should arrive today, so I can't wait!  Hopefully I can get a good seal around my glasses.  The last few higher end headphones I've tried haven't worked at all (H6, K545) because they don't seal properly.

 

[Za Warudo]

How does this compare to the HP50 in soundstage/imaging? I don't think these look nearly as dorkish as the NAD.

 

[Goldlion973]

  So I got these today and WOW...

 
These are the most neutral / balanced headphones I've heard, surpassing the MDR-7520, HD600, and HE-500.
 
Surprisingly resolving of micro-details. Very transparent.
 
There is an amazing sense of coherence and sweet balance from top to botton with incredible extension on both ends.
 
I think these are a hidden gem and everyone should give them a try.
 
My guess is they will be SUPER popular soon, so I've gone ahead and created some space for us to have fun discussing them.
 
Here are some photos I took:
 








 
After 8 days, the pads have become a lot softer and more comfortable. My initial impressions still hold. Very neutral while retaining great body to the music. Bass is well extened and hits hard and clean, and thunders if the music calls for it. Top to down coherence is amazing. The treble is well extended and ths soundscape is airy and very open sounding. Imaging and soundstaging abilities are also off the charts.
 
One bad thing I noticed was that since they don't have any kind of a mid-bass hump, male voices and instruments located in the lower-mid, upper bass areas don't have that nice thick body that a lot of popular phones display (e.g. LCD-2). It sounds bit light and too clean. I guess it's neutral, but also not as enjoyable IMO. Female vocals and instruments located in the upper-mids sound awesome, sweet, extended airy and resolving.
 
*Also note, during burn-in, there was a weird point when the bass completely disappeared. I was worried, but it came back very strong and tight. After that, there was a period when the phones sounded veiled/sluggish. This also went away and now sound transparent, lively again. Whether this is mind burn-in or mechanical I do not know. But do not panic if this happens to you.

 
Thank you! Bought these a while ago and ended up giving a confused impression because of this, the male vocals just didn't come through for me especially where that deepening warmth is needed for certain artists, it was waaaaay too thin, female vocals were fine but still lacked that soulful gutteral heft THEN they started acting up coming in and out warm to cold etc.... in the end I went for the Focal Classic.... have just sent them back as they were open when I got them and grossly overpriced but I'm not sure if I can return to the Pro's.

 

[Goldlion973]

  I just got a pair yesterday for a great price in the Canary Islands (175€).  
 
Some quick impression in poor english:
 
- They are really fast and hard hitting. In comparison the M-100 seem slow and lazy. 
 
- Tonally I am not sure that they are natural. Neutral yes, but they sound a little bit metallic. 
 
- Highs are precise and fast, but imho lack a little bit of air.
 
- Wonderful balance between detail,precision and musicality. 
 
- I am big headed and normal eared and they fit well. No pain, but I know they are there. 
 
- The industrial design is not great. If you think that the NAD look silly on your head, these are quite close with it's huge hinges with Focal's white logo floating off your head. The shiny paint job with drops reminds me of my rented apartment: the walls are painted in that fashion. 
 
- Best close cans I have heard so far. Others: M100- DT770PRO- SRH940-Momentum-HM5-T70P-Ultrasone HFI780 (and other models I've chosen to forget), etc. 
 
- Great value. 
 
- Please Focal put these drivers in open cans. 

Metallic... well worded. Even with EQ I couldn't get the metallic sound out of them.

 

[imackler]

   
Thank you! Bought these a while ago and ended up giving a confused impression because of this, the male vocals just didn't come through for me especially where that deepening warmth is needed for certain artists, it was waaaaay too thin, female vocals were fine but still lacked that soulful gutteral heft THEN they started acting up coming in and out warm to cold etc.... in the end I went for the Focal Classic.... have just sent them back as they were open when I got them and grossly overpriced but I'm not sure if I can return to the Pro's.

 
 

 
Metallic... well worded. Even with EQ I couldn't get the metallic sound out of them.

 
Now I'm nervous.Thanks guys. Well, I guess I'll find out tomorrow. 

 

[M-13]

IMHO...
 
1. These are not metallic sounding. "Metallic" refers to the timbre, and the harmonics of principles notes as they propogate. If anything these are little woody sounding. I can see someone confusing this and calling it "plasticky", but saying metallic is just totally the opposite term of how these sound.
 
2. These are not "fast". If your music is fast they will sound very fast. If the music is slow they will sound slow. There is no set "PRaT" for these, which is very odd/weird/ and very cool because almost every headphone has a certain "speed" to it. Typically, "Fast" headphone have a elevated mid-bass and elevated upper-mids to give energy to those beats, and to every song, whether they have the energy in the original mix or not. Spirit Pro are SUPER FLAT in those areas, so these aren't "fast" in the typical sense. Something like the Amperior is "fast".
 
3. Focal Pro doesn't look as bad as the NAD HP50. I don't want to say these look awesome, but they look better than a lot of closed back headphones I've tried. NAD HP50s are the worst looking headphones ever IMO. LOL. They look fine off head, but when wearing them you look like you have giant handle on your head. I really want to stop bashing the looks of the NAD HP50, but people keep bringing it up. LOL

 
MY OPINION ONLY...