[XeNoNF50]

After auditioning a lot of closed backs today I now have a lovely shiny new pair of Stellia to look at!

Came with a faulty cable, so can't listen to them.

Not a helpful comment from me but don't they come with two cables?

 

[Barndoor]

Yes, two cables, but the second is a 4 pin balanced, which I don't have a device that uses.

 

[walakalulu]

Sounds good through a Euphoria but will try a Manley Absolute when it comes in stock - should be interesting....

 

[Bobdonut123]

Alot of people in the Sony z1r thread have been bashing on the stellias. Am I the only that thinks that these are a step above?

 

[noplsestar]

Alot of people in the Sony z1r thread have been bashing on the stellias. Am I the only that thinks that these are a step above?

I guess most of us don't read the Sony Z1R thread ... maybe we just don't care if someone bashes the Stellia

 

[boxster233]

I guess most of us don't read the Sony Z1R thread ... maybe we just don't care if someone bashes the Stellia

That’s generally the way head fi threads go. The one you’re in will bash the competition. The worst is when they decided to go into the competition thread and bash.

 

[Bobdonut123]

That’s generally the way head fi threads go. The one you’re in will bash the competition. The worst is when they decided to go into the competition thread and bash.

Opinions are opinions at the end of the day!

 

[XeNoNF50]

Alot of people in the Sony z1r thread have been bashing on the stellias. Am I the only that thinks that these are a step above?

Never tried them but I love my choices with no regrets. Sometimes I prefer Stellia to my Utopia sometimes vice versa. Thats one of the things that make me think that something is not better than anything else 100% of the time, I suppose.

 

[Barndoor]

I auditioned the Sony yesterday as well as the Stellia.
I liked them, they had a smooth cohesiveness to them that was very engaging, but they had a treble spike that sounded off to me. (Sorry I'm not very good at articulating what I hear)

 

[up late]

Alot of people in the Sony z1r thread have been bashing on the stellias. Am I the only that thinks that these are a step above?

they're a parochial lot

 

[NeoDiNardo]

I see what you guys were saying about the Stellia’s leather. It kind of wears in darker. However, I thought that’s what leather naturally does. It creates a unique pattern of wear. Although, the stainless steel grid isn’t helping matters any.

I used to love Sony as a teenager. I had a Sony CD player, cassette deck, and Mini-Disc recorder. Along Walkmans, Discmans, and DVD players. And I’ve owned Sony’s $300 (USD) MDR-1A headphones in silver and brown leather. They had an energetic sound but it was slightly veiled and uneven as a result. I eventually sold them off as they developed a bothersome creek in the adjustment mechanism. When Sony’s flagship MDR-Z1 headphones came out the reviews read like a super charged MDR-1A to me. Whereas by then I was seeking excitement and detail retrieval mated with more natural cohesiveness and effortlessness.

 

[NeoDiNardo]

What adjustment notch are your Focal Stellia headphones set to? I must have a small head as I’m all the way locked in on both sides and I’m a 6 foot Italian-American male. And I could shake them off if I tried without a huge effort. Otherwise I find they are comfortable as can be and mostly stay put. It’s that considered a good fit? It’s still a smidgen loose though. It’s there a way to tighten it up? Can I slightly bend the headband or anything? Or would that damage the headband?

 

[Barndoor]

I got my Stellia yesterday, but wasn't able to listen due to a faulty cable. Had a brainwave over night that I might have a cheap audio 3.5mm to dual mono splitter cable and indeed I do. Have managed to listen for a few hours today.

Despite the rubbish cable the detail on these things is amazing.it is going to take me a little while for my brain to burn in so that I start enjoying the music rather than analysing them, but that is normal for me.

i definitely had a few wow moments but also a few times I've reached for the volume to turn them down a bit to calm a perceived brightness of particular tracks. Bearing in mind I'm using a junk cable I'm not overly concerned at the moment as I'm sure I'm not getting the best out of them. Additional!y, one of the wows was listening to Damien Rice's "O" which has a lot of acoustic guitar and strings And this album sounded absolutely stunning.

I wouldn't class myself as having a particularly large head, however I have to fully extend them and then push back 2 or 3 clicks each side. I find the ear pad opening could do with being slightly bigger as they don't fully encapsulate my ears, which I don't class as being particularly large either (maybe I'm kidding myself). I find that after a while I am adjusting the position for comfort. I don't find the clamping to be too much.

 

[up late]

What adjustment notch are your Focal Stellia headphones set to? I must have a small head as I’m all the way locked in on both sides and I’m a 6 foot Italian-American male. And I could shake them off if I tried without a huge effort. Otherwise I find they are comfortable as can be and mostly stay put. It’s that considered a good fit? It’s still a smidgen loose though. It’s there a way to tighten it up? Can I slightly bend the headband or anything? Or would that damage the headband?

i would advise against trying to bend the headband

 

[Barndoor]

Btw, I also own the MDR1a. The Z1 is a lot more refined. I actually really really liked the Z1. I auditioned a lot of closed backs yesterday and the Z1 was the only headphones that made me forget that I was meant to be critically listening rather than just enjoying the music. I wasn't wowed by their technical abilities like I was the Stellia and had it not been for a strange treble spike on the Z1 I might have chosen them. The fact the Stellia was on offer at the same price tipped the balance.