[AnakChan]

Anak, comparing 1Z balance driving the Utopia to 1Z--WA8--Utopia, what are the differences? Thanks.

 
Originally Posted by AnakChan /img/forum/go_quote.gif


Let me get back to you later today. Bear in mind though won't be just different Amp/source driving the Utopias but different cables too. I don't have a 4.4mm - 3.5/6.3 made up yet.

 
Sorry for the lateness of this comparison. I've been tied up a bit. So as per above, the comparison is :-
 
NW-WM1Z v1.20 -> Brise Audio UPG001 -> Utopia
vs
iPhone 7 (Onkyo HD Player) -> WA8 -> Utopia std cable -> Utopia
 
Sample track: Selena Jones "You Don't Bring Me Flowers"
 
Firstly both are excellent and without a side-by-side comparison I would be happy with either setup. However in doing a side-by-side, the WM1Z has a wider staging and a lighter overall tonal balance to the Utopia signature. There is a kind of "freshness" to Salena Jones' voice and the trebles have a little more shimmer. The bass is deep and somewhat tighter.
 
In contrast, the WA8 has a more intimate presentation but yet big sound. It feels like Salena Jones is singing to me, but yet the sound presentation is big; probably more a front row-like presentation. The warmth, thick yet smooth reverberation is typically tube-ish and very captivating as it's distinctive. The trebles are more rounded but yet extended. If anyone finds the Utopia's trebles strident, I'd recommend them trying it with the WA8 to have a somewhat more smoothed out trebles.
 
If weight and cumbersomeness aren't issues, I'd have a preference of the WA8/Utopia combo (with a shorter SE cable). However the NW-WM1Z/Utopia is also ultimate portable combo.

 

[up late]

If your modded HE-6s have more sub-bass, then you've modded them to have more than what is strictly "neutral". More in-line with the TH-900s/Fostex tuning. That is not a better thing to my ears as I want a more natural sound. But if this floats your boat, then great...

you made this point in "they might be kings" thread yet you enjoy the mdr-z1r, which has more bass presence than you would consider "strictly neutral". i'm wondering how you reconcile your criticism of the modded he-6 and the th900 for having more bass quantity than you would consider "natural" with the z1r, particularly when fr measurements indicate that it has more (than the th900)?

having compared the z1r and the th900 directly, i would describe both as having pronounced bass that extends well into the sub-bass region. they both have more bass presence than the utopia to my ears and the measurements indicate that as well. and this isn't a knock on the utopia which i think is a fabulous can.

you can find @thatonenoob's measurements for both the z1r and th900 here: http://www.head-fi.org/products/sony-mdr-z1r/reviews/17324

and this review of the z1r in a french online publication also contains measurements: http://www.lesnumeriques.com/casque-audio/sony-mdr-z1r-p34825/test.html

 

[buzzlulu]

AnakChan

Have you had the chance to hear the WM1A fronting the Utopia? Or just the Z

 

[JohnnyCakes]

My Impressions of Focal Utopia w/ Elear pads
 
 
thanks to hapnermw for selling me his Elear pads at a great price.  he tried them and didn't prefer them.  i am owner #2 of these pads. 
 
 
the first thing that i noticed when i put these on is that it did make the soundstage bigger, which has been noted.  i was surprised that pads could do this, honestly, but it really was my first impression.  this begets a more in depth discussion of the Utopia's soundstage, however, because everyone lists its "small" soundstage as the one and only negative of the Utopia.  whereas me, i definitely noticed it was a little cozy at first but then came to love it.  it feels like you're on stage with the musicians, standing right next to them!  and while the Elear pads made the soundstage bigger, it made them sound more distant and hollow.  as if the musicians moved further away from me but i was now listening to them thru a cardboard tube.  
 
overall, the Elear pads took away a considerable amount of the sparkle the Utopia provides.  and that is the very magic of the Utopia!  was the bass better?  not appreciably.  instead, it sounded like someone covered the mids and highs with a brown paper bag and therefore the bass was more noticeable because of that.  it deadened the sound.  
 
one track this was very apparent on was "Down to Ride" by Gary Clark Jr off his new live album.  i listened thru an MQA-enabled DAC via Tidal Masters.  with the Elear pads, it sounded like i was sitting about 10 rows from the stage.  with the stock Utopia pads, i was standing ON the stage!
 
but it's more than that..... the visceral realism of the Utopia was not there.  i love listening to pluckable string instruments (guitar, upright bass, banjo) on the Utopia because i swear you can hear the friction of an artist's fingerprints against the grain of the strings.  it's THAT exacting.  you can feel that initial air movement off the sting and feel the decay as it ages.  that is the magic of the Utopia.  and the Elear pads took that down about 75%.  with the Elear pads on this Gary Clark live track, the cymbals didn't sparkle like they did with the Utopia, and the electric guitar was not as hot.  it actually made me sad.  
 
 
again, i'm most surprised that ear pads can make this much of a difference!  i saw the freq graphs done by Jude and Tyll, but those don't do justice to the way the sound signature is changed, the EMOTION of the music.  and i'm always extra-vigilant about the powers of my own mind, placebo effects and all.... but to me, the Elear pads took away what makes me smile everytime i use my Utopia's.  
 
 
it was a fun experiment though, and one i'd like to continue on.  so if you'd like to try the Elear pads at a TWICE-reduced price now, shoot me a PM and we'll work it out.
 
 

 

[MacedonianHero]

you made this point in "they might be kings" thread yet you enjoy the mdr-z1r, which has more bass presence than you would consider "strictly neutral". i'm wondering how you reconcile your criticism of the modded he-6 and the th900 for having more bass quantity than you would consider "natural" with the z1r, particularly when fr measurements indicate that it has more (than the th900)?

having compared the z1r and the th900 directly, i would describe both as having pronounced bass that extends well into the sub-bass region. they both have more bass presence than the utopia to my ears and the measurements indicate that as well. and this isn't a knock on the utopia which i think is a fabulous can.

you can find @thatonenoob's measurements for both the z1r and th900 here: http://www.head-fi.org/products/sony-mdr-z1r/reviews/17324

and this review of the z1r in a french online publication also contains measurements: http://www.lesnumeriques.com/casque-audio/sony-mdr-z1r-p34825/test.html

 
Simply because the Utopia and HE-6s are not meant to be closed fun sounding headphones. I can definitely enjoy that particluar sound signature, but this is not what we are talking about. Take a deep breath and read my comments slowly...no one was "critiquing" anything. I commented that the stock HE-6s (as voiced by Fang) were to be "neutral" headphones with appropriate levels of bass and sub-bass...and the Utopias are very much in line with that (although an improvement). Any more bass would no longer be that! Please stop reading things into my posts that are not there and take anything I say as a criticism to your particular favourite headphones.

 I did say IF his modded HE-6's have bass in line with your beloved TH-900s, then "whatever floats his boat"; meaning whatever he prefers is just fine for him. But I personally would not pay $4000 for an open backed pair of TOTL headphones with that sound signature. I (like pretty much most Utopia owners) want a more balanced and neutral sound at this level. 

 

[paul2qute]

Simply because the Utopia and HE-6s are not meant to be closed fun sounding headphones. I can definitely enjoy that particluar sound signature, but this is not what we are talking about. Take a deep breath and read my comments slowly...no one was "critiquing" anything. I commented that the stock HE-6s (as voiced by Fang) were to be "neutral" headphones with appropriate levels of bass and sub-bass...and the Utopias are very much in line with that (although an improvement). Any more bass would no longer be that! Please stop reading things into my posts that are not there and take anything I say as a criticism to your particular favourite headphones.  I did say IF his modded HE-6's have bass in line with your beloved TH-900s, then "whatever floats his boat"; meaning whatever he prefers is just fine for him. But I personally would not pay $4000 for an open backed pair of TOTL headphones with that sound signature. I (like pretty much most Utopia owners) want a more balanced and neutral sound at this level. 

Tyll mentions he likes the Focal utopia with more bass so what piece of kit does he use to get this extra bass and does it affect the purity of the sound?

 

[Imusicman]

Guys, I was luck enough to audition the Dave with my Utopias yesterday. What was also a stroke of luck for me was they had a pair of LCD 4's hooked up to the Dave for demo. I was really looking forward to hearing the LCD 4's after the recent Mr Katz article. My Utopias blow me away so after reading such a favourable shinning endorsement of the LCD 4 from Mr Katz and guests I knew I had to try them and they quickly added this to my "to do" list.
A couple of things hit me straight away when comparing the two out of the Dave using the same songs/material.
The first thing that hit me when switching from the LCD 4 and plugging in the Utopia the first thing I had to do was turn down the volume and by quite some way. It was a clear and instant reminder once again how easy the Utopia is to drive and highlighting that the LCD 4's by comparison will require a lot more power to shine. 
The second thing that hit me was after switching back from the Utopia to the LCD 4 was suddenly how "dull or subdued" the music sounded by comparison. Now I don't imagine for a second the LCD 4's are actually "dull" but that was the immediate thought I had when switching. Listening to the LCD 4 for a few tracks on it's own I didn't have this impression at all. 
I did like the LCD 4 but not enough to want to buy it. It's fair to say I was excited when I seen them hooked up to the Dave and it's also probably fair to say my expectations were high based on the aforementioned review but for me overall they were a "very good but not great" I would probably choose the Mr Speakers ECF over these if I was going to be adding a TOTL planner magnetic headphone to my collection anytime soon. ( I do have the Aeons on order so here's hoping Dan the man and his team have worked their magic)
The Utopia/Dave pairing was to my ears was amazing, simply wonderful. Sometimes it's hard to find the right words to describe what you are hearing and why it works for you but this was one of those times/experiences where you find yourself just sitting back, grinning like a fool and enjoying the music while it transports you into your happy place.
 
Needless to say I didn't leave the store without signing the necessary adoption papers for a Dave.
I am now officially the legal guardian of a Dave and can't wait until he comes to live with me in a few weeks time

 

 

[eantala]

  Guys, I was luck enough to audition the Dave with my Utopias yesterday. What was also a stroke of luck for me was they had a pair of LCD 4's hooked up to the Dave for demo. I was really looking forward to hearing the LCD 4's after the recent Mr Katz article. My Utopias blow me away so after reading such a favourable shinning endorsement of the LCD 4 from Mr Katz and guests I knew I had to try them and they quickly added this to my "to do" list.
A couple of things hit me straight away when comparing the two out of the Dave using the same songs/material.
The first thing that hit me when switching from the LCD 4 and plugging in the Utopia the first thing I had to do was turn down the volume and by quite some way. It was a clear and instant reminder once again how easy the Utopia is to drive and highlighting that the LCD 4's by comparison will require a lot more power to shine. 
The second thing that hit me was after switching back from the Utopia to the LCD 4 was suddenly how "dull or subdued" the music sounded by comparison. Now I don't imagine for a second the LCD 4's are actually "dull" but that was the immediate thought I had when switching. Listening to the LCD 4 for a few tracks on it's own I didn't have this impression at all. 
I did like the LCD 4 but not enough to want to buy it. It's fair to say I was excited when I seen them hooked up to the Dave and it's also probably fair to say my expectations were high based on the aforementioned review but for me overall they were a "very good but not great" I would probably choose the Mr Speakers ECF over these if I was going to be adding a TOTL planner magnetic headphone to my collection anytime soon. ( I do have the Aeons on order so here's hoping Dan the man and his team have worked their magic)
The Utopia/Dave pairing was to my ears was amazing, simply wonderful. Sometimes it's hard to find the right words to describe what you are hearing and why it works for you but this was one of those times/experiences where you find yourself just sitting back, grinning like a fool and enjoying the music while it transports you into your happy place.
 
Needless to say I didn't leave the store without signing the necessary adoption papers for a Dave.
I am now officially the legal guardian of a Dave and can't wait until he comes to live with me in a few weeks time

 

man, so you ended up buying a Dave?   man I wish I could afford one..
but yea what you said about Amping requirements for any other TOTL headphones cannot be emphasized , enough its a huge, huge advantage of the Utopia.

 

[TSAVJason]

man, so you ended up buying a Dave?   man I wish I could afford one..
but yea what you said about Amping requirements for any other TOTL headphones cannot be emphasized , enough its a huge, huge advantage of the Utopia.

I think the reason the Utopia scales do nicely is because it's very friendly to all sorts of amps and DACs

 

[JohnnyCakes]

  but yea what you said about Amping requirements for any other TOTL headphones cannot be emphasized , enough its a huge, huge advantage of the Utopia.

 
 
not disagreeing with you, but at this level - if someone is laying down $4k for headphones, they are not likely going to then skimp on an amp.  
 
i found that at the Deckard/OppoHA-1 level, the Utopia can be driven by them, but the LCD-4 can not.  my HA-1 at full volume only made medium-high sound on my LCD-4.
 
but at the $4k amp level (such as a Cavalli, King, PassLabs, or Moon Neo), the LCD-4 is driven fine and sounds great, but the Utopia's sound quality gets much better.  in other words, just because the Utopia CAN be driven by less powerful amps doesn't mean it SHOULD be.  

 

[Allanmarcus]

 

  but yea what you said about Amping requirements for any other TOTL headphones cannot be emphasized , enough its a huge, huge advantage of the Utopia.

 
 
not disagreeing with you, but at this level - if someone is laying down $4k for headphones, they are not likely going to then skimp on an amp.  
 
i found that at the Deckard/OppoHA-1 level, the Utopia can be driven by them, but the LCD-4 can not.  my HA-1 at full volume only made medium-high sound on my LCD-4.
 
but at the $4k amp level (such as a Cavalli, King, PassLabs, or Moon Neo), the LCD-4 is driven fine and sounds great, but the Utopia's sound quality gets much better.  in other words, just because the Utopia CAN be driven by less powerful amps doesn't mean it SHOULD be.  

I wasn't all that impressed with the HA-1 either. It had trouble driving my beyer T1
 
so you turn it all the way up with the LCD-4, even on high gain?
 
I would imagine the HA-1 would sound a little shrill with the Utopia. The HA-1 DAC is a bit lean/bright. 

 

[JohnnyCakes]

  so you turn it all the way up with the LCD-4, even on high gain?
 
I would imagine the HA-1 would sound a little shrill with the Utopia. The HA-1 DAC is a bit lean/bright. 

 
yup, high gain.
 
and yes, a "little shrill" is exactly how it sounded.  also lacked dynamism and attack.  

 

[TSAVJason]

I wasn't all that impressed with the HA-1 either. It had trouble driving my beyer T1

so you turn it all the way up with the LCD-4, even on high gain?

I would imagine the HA-1 would sound a little shrill with the Utopia. The HA-1 DAC is a bit lean/bright. 

Yep it's a little power light and dry as a bone in general. I think the shrill sound you're commenting on is the DAC implementation.

 

[FLTWS]

Yep it's a little power light and dry as a bone in general. I think the shrill sound you're commenting on is the DAC implementation.

 
Same here. Dry and bright with HA-1 DAC in play.  The amp by itself is a better sound.

 

[EdmontonCanuck]

My Impressions of Focal Utopia w/ Elear pads


thanks to hapnermw for selling me his Elear pads at a great price.  he tried them and didn't prefer them.  i am owner #2 of these pads. 


the first thing that i noticed when i put these on is that it did make the soundstage bigger, which has been noted.  i was surprised that pads could do this, honestly, but it really was my first impression.  this begets a more in depth discussion of the Utopia's soundstage, however, because everyone lists its "small" soundstage as the one and only negative of the Utopia.  whereas me, i definitely noticed it was a little cozy at first but then came to love it.  it feels like you're on stage with the musicians, standing right next to them!  and while the Elear pads made the soundstage bigger, it made them sound more distant and hollow.  as if the musicians moved further away from me but i was now listening to them thru a cardboard tube.  

overall, the Elear pads took away a considerable amount of the sparkle the Utopia provides.  and that is the very magic of the Utopia!  was the bass better?  not appreciably.  instead, it sounded like someone covered the mids and highs with a brown paper bag and therefore the bass was more noticeable because of that.  it deadened the sound.  

one track this was very apparent on was "Down to Ride" by Gary Clark Jr off his new live album.  i listened thru an MQA-enabled DAC via Tidal Masters.  with the Elear pads, it sounded like i was sitting about 10 rows from the stage.  with the stock Utopia pads, i was standing ON the stage!

but it's more than that..... the visceral realism of the Utopia was not there.  i love listening to pluckable string instruments (guitar, upright bass, banjo) on the Utopia because i swear you can hear the friction of an artist's fingerprints against the grain of the strings.  it's THAT exacting.  you can feel that initial air movement off the sting and feel the decay as it ages.  that is the magic of the Utopia.  and the Elear pads took that down about 75%.  with the Elear pads on this Gary Clark live track, the cymbals didn't sparkle like they did with the Utopia, and the electric guitar was not as hot.  it actually made me sad.  


again, i'm most surprised that ear pads can make this much of a difference!  i saw the freq graphs done by Jude and Tyll, but those don't do justice to the way the sound signature is changed, the EMOTION of the music.  and i'm always extra-vigilant about the powers of my own mind, placebo effects and all.... but to me, the Elear pads took away what makes me smile everytime i use my Utopia's.  


it was a fun experiment though, and one i'd like to continue on.  so if you'd like to try the Elear pads at a TWICE-reduced price now, shoot me a PM and we'll work it out.

I don't get why people don't trust Focal to have put the best pads on for their Utopia's. I would think that after spending years developing it they would put the best pads on for their flagship. Not quite understanding why people want to second-guess their decision. I'm quite certain that having also developed the Elear, they would have tried swapping them and rejected them because they didn't do as good a job.

People are just tinkerers, I guess.