[dfiled]

Lol probably

 

[GREGGO1545]

I think that we audiophiles greatly overstate these differences in levels of detail retrieval.

Yore one of my favorite reviewers on YouTube! Love your comparisons and reviews. How do you feel the Atrium and Utopia work as complements? Or would the Stellia be a better option? I heard the Stellia recently and just did not care for it on a Burson Conductor. Too warm sounding. Cleaner on a Astell Kern set up but didn’t get a chance to listen for long.

 

[Sajid Amit]

Yore one of my favorite reviewers on YouTube! Love your comparisons and reviews. How do you feel the Atrium and Utopia work as complements? Or would the Stellia be a better option? I heard the Stellia recently and just did not care for it on a Burson Conductor. Too warm sounding. Cleaner on a Astell Kern set up but didn’t get a chance to listen for long.

So I am told the Atrium is a good complement to the Utopia. Can’t wait to hear it. Mine has been shipped but yet to reach me.

I understand where you are coming from w.r.t the Stellia.

And thank you for your kind words.

 

[GREGGO1545]

So I am told the Atrium is a good complement to the Utopia. Can’t wait to hear it. Mine has been shipped but yet to reach me.

I understand where you are coming from w.r.t the Stellia.

And thank you for your kind words.

I thought you reviewed the atrium but I just realized it was the VC. Can’t wait to hear your thoughts on it.

 

[JBOOGIE86]

Just checking in to see if any one can chime in on my situation..

A couple of weeks ago I aquired a Utopia 2020 from an authorized dealer and it was one of the best headphones I had the pleasure of hearing. Despite the limited soundstaging, it's imaging was something else. Personal circumstances forced my hand to sell them with the intention of re-purchasing them again and so I did. This time it was from a different authorized dealer. Right off the bat, I noticed the outer brown box packaging a little smaller which I thought was odd since both Utopias were the 2020 edition. Upon first listen I noticed straight away just how different this one sounded. The bass was much more pronounced & it was much warmer then the 1st Utopia which is the one I felt in love with. This 2nd one imaging is not on par with the 1st one I tried. It's not as "clear" or perhaps that's my perception given the fact that the 1st one was brighter (which I like ) then the 2nd one.

Don't know what to make of this? I can confirm both were 2020 edition from authorized dealers & serial numbers checked out. Perhaps a silent revision? Doubt it though as these differences would not be so "silent". I should also mention, my chain was EXACTLY the same. Nothing altered. Also, it was only a few weeks between having both so not enough time went by for me to "forget" the sound of the 1st one.

Like I said, not sure what to make of this but thought I should share to see if anyone else experienced this.

 

[dfiled]

I sold my utopias a while back and I’d been toying with the idea of buying them again (used). This discussion certainly has given me pause.

 

[LCMusicLover]

I sold my utopias a while back and I’d been toying with the idea of buying them again (used). This discussion certainly has given me pause.

My Utopia are 5 years old this week. Just checked — still no pad goop

I get that it’s a big investment, and a bit of a gamble given the failures that have been reported. I but I have to say, if mine failed tomorrow (which I hope they won’t obviously) I would feel like I got my money’s worth out of them. Of course I only paid 2300 for them new, so that’s different than what you’d probably end up paying.

But the whole OG vs Utopia 2020 thing is muddled. This reviewer:

https://www.theaudiophileworld.net/2021/08/focal-utopia-2020-short-take-review.html

prefers the new iteration, and calls out several differences.

And there are many anecdotal reports of differences both 2020 vs OG and also after driver replacements.

Hope you can figure it out.

 

[LCMusicLover]

On an unrelated note, I’ve been listening toUtopia out of

mScaler/TT2

using stock firehose. And I’m actually perfectly happy with the sound from that — still hating the ergonomics, but no longer willing to criticize it for sound quality.

Obviously can’t compare from DSHA-3F, but vs Lavricables Grand (4-pin XLR & adapter to 1/4 in) out of mTT2 front jacks, difference is barely noticeable, and not detrimental. Maybe a little brighter, w/ slightly more air in headstage from Lavricable, with slightly more warmth in lower mids from stock.

But really, barely noticeable.

 

[enragedlemon]

Hi all. I am seriously considering buying the Utopias as an upgrade to my HD800 (with SDR mod). The nearest store where I can demo them is a 3 hour drive each way so thought it would be best to get a sense check before getting in the car. I've also never seen them secondhand here so I would be paying full retail price. They would be used with a Hugo2 and am not looking at an upgrade to that. I have a few questions:

• Has anyone done a direct comparison between HD800+SDR and Utopia? I would be really interested to hear from people who like the HD800 (with or without mod). Most of the comparisons I have found have been with the HD800S and often from people not a fan of the HD800 series.
• There seems to be quite a difference of opinion on the pairing between Hugo2 and Utopia on this thread. It sounds like some feel the combination is too clinical? Given people often consider the HD800 to be too clinical this may not be an issue for me. I have never really liked coloured sounding amps. Not really a question but perhaps people have further thoughts.
• I know this will vary hugely between retailers but is asking for a discount or freebees (like the headphone stand perhaps) likely to bear any fruit? I can afford the headphones at the price but like to feel I have gotten the best value from my purchase.
• With the HD800 I find that I can only really use them sitting in a chair as they are simply too big to lie down with and get pushed forward uncomfortably. I love listening to music lying down, but won't get an opportunity to test this in a showroom. How are they to lie down with (obviously on your back not your side)? A bit of a silly question but I am curious.
• I have heard about driver failure issues. Some say these were just first batch issues but some have reported them with later batches. Does this seem to be something particularly affecting the Utopias or is it a bit of selection bias given every product has a failure rate?

 

[Arnold Schwartz]

@enragedlemon I was and still am a huge fan of the HD800, having owned them for years never modded, I never found them to be bright but I did feel they sounded a bit thin which I attributed to having a huge soundstage - I loved the soundstage but it's really all I miss. I swore I would never sell them, but as soon as I got the 2020 Utopia's it was very apparent they are next level. It didn't make sense to keep both anymore unless one wishes to be reminded of technological progress.

The Utopia has a much better tonality and balanced frequency response lending to greater realism, more accurate imaging, punch and separation. I realized the large soundstage of the HD800 was mostly a trick due to it's diffuse sound; the Utopia's narrower soundstage often a criticism is due to its accuracy. After a couple sessions comparing them back to back on familiar music it was actually a pretty easy decision to let them go and the difference in soundstage objectively speaking was not as different as we make it out to be and tracks recorded to sound grand still do. Comfort wise, the HD800 wins there too, but the Utopia are comfortable and I never found my LCD3 uncomfortable albeit you could feel their heft when moving your head. The fact the Utopias are simple to drive and do so many things well make them a great all rounder and really the only headphone you need.

 

[Arnold Schwartz]

Just to clarify, I think the HD800 has less macro contrast and therefore sound more distant lending to a larger stage and thinner sound. The Utopia (like LCD5) have more macro contrast, more punch and slam but that makes the stage more intimate sounding.

 

[LCMusicLover]

… There seems to be quite a difference of opinion on the pairing between Hugo2 and Utopia on this thread. It sounds like some feel the combination is too clinical? Given people often consider the HD800 to be too clinical this may not be an issue for me. I have never really liked coloured sounding amps. Not really a question but perhaps people have further thoughts…

Agree with all you say here. I’m sitting in the ‘too clinical’ camp. When I listen to my Hugo 2 & Utopia it’s

Cowon Plenue II ==> (optical) Hugo 2 ==> Romi Audio BX2+ ==> Utopia

But I enjoy warmth and can find Utopia ‘sharp’ with some chains. My favorite headphones are my ZMF Auteur which, while being the most neutral of ZMF cans, are still on the warm/musical side of things.

And I didn’t enjoy HD-800S when I owned them — too thin/bright/analytical. I get that I could have ‘improved’ them (to my ears) through changes to other parts of my system, but already did that to ‘fix’ Utopia.

So, bottom line, I suspect that what I needed to ‘fix’ about H2 ==> Utopia might be right up your alley.

If you don’t mind my asking, where in Northland? I took my family to NZ for 3 weeks back in 2000. Flew into AKL, out of CHC, but never north of AKL. Coromandel, Taupo, Wellington, Nelson, Abel Tasman, Golden Bay, down west coast, over Arthur’s, CHC. Loved your country, would love to go back and see some of what I missed.

 

[enragedlemon]

@enragedlemon I was and still am a huge fan of the HD800, having owned them for years never modded, I never found them to be bright but I did feel they sounded a bit thin which I attributed to having a huge soundstage - I loved the soundstage but it's really all I miss. I swore I would never sell them, but as soon as I got the 2020 Utopia's it was very apparent they are next level. It didn't make sense to keep both anymore unless one wishes to be reminded of technological progress.

Thank you for your response! This actually answers the other concern I had about sense of space. It sounds like your comments reflect what a lot of people feel about the HD800; that it has a wider soundstage as a result of tuning and this is a tradeoff for other things. My best friend and I trade audio gear between ourselves - he currently has the HD820 and has been longing to return to an SDR modded HD800. Sounds like we'll trade and flick the HD820 off, provided I can be convinced by my listening session with the Utopia

 

[enragedlemon]

Agree with all you say here. I’m sitting in the ‘too clinical’ camp. When I listen to my Hugo 2 & Utopia it’s

Cowon Plenue II ==> (optical) Hugo 2 ==> Romi Audio BX2+ ==> Utopia

But I enjoy warmth and can find Utopia ‘sharp’ with some chains. My favorite headphones are my ZMF Auteur which, while being the most neutral of ZMF cans, are still on the warm/musical side of things.

And I didn’t enjoy HD-800S when I owned them — too thin/bright/analytical. I get that I could have ‘improved’ them (to my ears) through changes to other parts of my system, but already did that to ‘fix’ Utopia.

So, bottom line, I suspect that what I needed to ‘fix’ about H2 ==> Utopia might be right up your alley.

If you don’t mind my asking, where in Northland? I took my family to NZ for 3 weeks back in 2000. Flew into AKL, out of CHC, but never north of AKL. Coromandel, Taupo, Wellington, Nelson, Abel Tasman, Golden Bay, down west coast, over Arthur’s, CHC. Loved your country, would love to go back and see some of what I missed.

Ah thank you! I had actually been using a lot of your comments as reference points so it's very useful to hear you found the HD800S too analytical. I actually could never 'upgrade' to them as I found them too coloured versus the original HD800, so it sounds like I shouldn't have too much issue with the sound of the Utopia on the Hugo2. In any case I will be taking my Hugo2 with me to trial with so it should give me a good idea.

I live in Whāngarei. It's certainly not a tourist destination on its own. However I would recommend giving the Bay of Islands a look in when you next visit. We are quite blessed with our environment here but likely to be heavily impacted by climate change so would not recommend leaving it too long :/

 

[Gavin C4]

Look into the Diana TC’s. They are like a light comfortable version of the 1266 with a bit less bass. Nice punch, far better detail retrieval than the utopia.

@Sajid Amit Chaising for the final few percent means a lot for enthusiast.

Under the lights of Suavara and 1266tc the Utopia is still worth its spot on the totl category. Very dynamic, very punchy, very detailed and very good tonality. Very balanced and equal sound stage and depth.

Althogh these high end plannar may surpass the Utopia in resolution and detail. Those who are chaising for the final few percent may prefer plannars but there are always some trade offs if you look back at what the Utopia can do.

Last but not least with the financial aspect in mind, getting the Susvara or maybe 1266tc to performs at top level above the Utopia definity requires a lot of dedication in time, testing different combo and financial support. Especially with the Susvara, simply purchasing the headphone and serve it with a lack luster amp may yield unsatisfiable results, if not worst.

While the Utopia can get you 95% of the way with a simplier setup.