[SCBob]

Hi All,

A little off topic here.
I am wondering if any member of this forum or Utopia owners know of a good dedicated DAC " for the money " around 3k to 5k usd.

I have Studio-Six tube amp, Esoteric k05 cd/sacd/dac, Utopia or another way as
MBP/PC later to a dedicated DAC, Studio Six.

I will want to use this dedicated DAC for the 2 channel setup as well.

Music will be cd quality, hi rez, dsd.

Thank you and appreciate for your feedback.

Chord Qutest and pocket the savings or think large and go DAVE, less large with some trading to offset the cost.

 

[jwbrent]

Chord Qutest and pocket the savings or think large and go DAVE, less large with some trading to offset the cost.

Or he can wait for the updated Hugo TT 2 which should be out later this year ... right at the mentioned budget.

 

[jwbrent]

I have a question about the overall reliability of the Utopia. I’ve read here on Head-Fi that many have had problems with theirs, and I wonder if this is because when the Utopia was first released, there were some design issues that needed to be sorted out by Focal. Having worked in the high end audio biz for 26 years, it wasn’t uncommon for this occurring with brand new models of electronics, even from brands such as Krell and Levinson. With transducers, not so much. Since the Utopia has been out now for, what, two years, I’m wondering if the above is the case, if recently manufactured versions have proven to be more reliable.

I bought my Utopia brand new late last year, so I’m hoping the above is the case. Of all the high end headphones I’ve owned, the Utopia is the only one that consistently brings a smile to my face every time I use them, so I envision them as my end game headphone, and I would like to think that with proper care, they will perform trouble free for many years to come.

Thanks in advance for any comments ...

Any thoughts about my supposition? Especially from @TSAVJason?

 

[Arnaldo]

Hi All,

A little off topic here.
I am wondering if any member of this forum or Utopia owners know of a good dedicated DAC " for the money " around 3k to 5k usd.

I have Studio-Six tube amp, Esoteric k05 cd/sacd/dac, Utopia or another way as
MBP/PC later to a dedicated DAC, Studio Six.

I will want to use this dedicated DAC for the 2 channel setup as well.

Music will be cd quality, hi rez, dsd.

Thank you and appreciate for your feedback.

The Esoteric K-05 has coaxial, optical and USB inputs which could be used to feed its superb 32-bit dual mono D/A converter. IMHO, you might be able to save a few pennies by using it both as a player and a separate DAC, feeding one system from the XLRs and another from the RCAs.

The Abyss 1266 do take a good 5 minutes to get fitted properly, but when they're on right, the sound they put out is absolutely worth the extra work. Also, they are extremely comfortable, don't let the design fool you. There is zero clamping on your ears, so it doesn't even feel like you're wearing headphones. I'm enjoying both the Utopias and the Abyss this week, they are totally different headphones.

The JPS Labs Abyss should fit significantly better if you refrain from breathing, blinking and thinking during the 5-minute setup. Additionally, sound quality will improve exponentially if you don't look at yourself in a mirror or take selfies while wearing them.

 

[T Bone]

If anyone is interested I'm selling a 4 Pin mini-XLR to Lemo adapter.
I wanted to use my Moon Silver Dragon headphone cables terminated in mini-XLR (for Audeze) with my Utopia's. This adapter did the trick.
I'm going to finally bite the bullet and buy a custom cable for my Utopias and don't need the adapter any more.
Classified Link

 

[TSAVJason]

Any thoughts about my supposition? Especially from @TSAVJason?

There was a bit of a snafu during the launch. Then for a few months after there were a few that were defective and quite a few over driven to the extent of driver failure. We haven’t seen any of the Utopia failures since about 6 months after launch. That’s a long time ago ....more than time than you’ve had yours. Like December 2015 I think in that range anyway. I’ve heard of and read of some failures. From what I can determine from factory to consumer, even with a snafu start it’s still surprising low in failures. My best estimate and it’s got no science, it’s just my impression from here and other forums, dealer friends and the factory I’d say it’s under or about 3% of total manufactured. They sold a lot and it’s a surprising big A LOT of Utopia!

 

[Allanmarcus]

Hi All,

A little off topic here.
I am wondering if any member of this forum or Utopia owners know of a good dedicated DAC " for the money " around 3k to 5k usd.

I have Studio-Six tube amp, Esoteric k05 cd/sacd/dac, Utopia or another way as
MBP/PC later to a dedicated DAC, Studio Six.

I will want to use this dedicated DAC for the 2 channel setup as well.

Music will be cd quality, hi rez, dsd.

Thank you and appreciate for your feedback.

Correct, off topic. Please post on the advice thread or start a new thread.

 

[Allanmarcus]

Any thoughts about my supposition? Especially from @TSAVJason?

Pure conjecture. Jason won't respond directly. He's said all he's likely to say on the topic. You can contact Focal directly, but I doubt they will respond. We can sit here and come up with any theory we want.

You could visit his store and he might talk more freely, but he's a respected focal dealer, and is not going to say anything confidential.

 

[mulveling]

Maybe it's my optimism, but after owning the Utopia for some months now (had TWO at one point), and having witnessed the amazing quality of Focal's big premium speakers, I expect they got any issues sorted out a while ago. I was a real skeptic of them a year ago, but they've really turned me around.

 

[music_man]

It always amazes me when this happens. People over drive them during break in and then all of the sudden they have a production problem. Remember Grado PS1K? I personally do not blow out expensive headphones lol.

That being said, these are really nice but I am totally stuck on the Z1R with fancy cable and now Pass amp from DAVE. Don't get me wrong the Utopia are stealer headphones but It is just my personal preference with the Sony now. After FOTM I will probably listen to the Utopia's. You all should feel sorry for me because I have more gear than I can use HAHA. I am not being a jerk just joking.

Yes, they make great speakers. I prefer them and Sonus Faber even though Focal is detail and Sonus is liquid,PRAT. I do not like the Sopra bookshelf. Go back to the Grand Utopia BE bookshelf was much better. I guess they could not sell a bookshelf for that price. Although the BW 805D3 has a Diamond tweeter VS BE. Even stiffer and costs $$$. The speakers are not too unreasonable for what they are but figure in a few grand for a sub on ones that small. The big Utopia is outstanding. Obviously much better than the headphones but we do not need to get into that here.

 

[mulveling]

It always amazes me when this happens. People over drive them during break in and then all of the sudden they have a production problem. Remember Grado PS1K? I personally do not blow out expensive headphones lol.

That being said, these are really nice but I am totally stuck on the Z1R with fancy cable and now Pass amp from DAVE. Don't get me wrong the Utopia are stealer headphones but It is just my personal preference with the Sony now. After FOTM I will probably listen to the Utopia's. You all should feel sorry for me because I have more gear than I can use HAHA. I am not being a jerk just joking.

Purk tells me the Z1R improves a LOT with a silver cable; that seems to be a theme with their post-Qualia run of dark sounding closed headphones. I heard his Z1R in less than ideal conditions, with stock cable straight out of that fancy gold digital Walkman thingy, and it seemed too dark for me, but that was the same session I first heard Utopia - sonic opposites there. I think the Z1R could be really good in the right system (e.g. very fast, transparent electronics). Speaking of burn-in, I honestly felt that my brand-new 0-hour Utopias sounded JUST as good as the used 400-hours pair. No burn-in required, so I didn't; just music listening since hour 0. I was using an old well burned-in Silver Dragon cable with both, though

 

[jwbrent]

There was a bit of a snafu during the launch. Then for a few months after there were a few that were defective and quite a few over driven to the extent of driver failure. We haven’t seen any of the Utopia failures since about 6 months after launch. That’s a long time ago ....more than time than you’ve had yours. Like December 2015 I think in that range anyway. I’ve heard of and read of some failures. From what I can determine from factory to consumer, even with a snafu start it’s still surprising low in failures. My best estimate and it’s got no science, it’s just my impression from here and other forums, dealer friends and the factory I’d say it’s under or about 3% of total manufactured. They sold a lot and it’s a surprising big A LOT of Utopia!

Thank you for your reply, Jason. OK, I’ve dealt with things like this before as a dealer. I’m really glad to hear the fault rate has come way down. As I mentioned before, I couldn’t be happier with my Utopia, from a performance point of view as well as an aesthetic and build point of view.

I’ll come see you sometime soon ... I have my eye on a Hugo 2.

 

[TSAVJason]

Thank you for your reply, Jason. OK, I’ve dealt with things like this before as a dealer. I’m really glad to hear the fault rate has come way down. As I mentioned before, I couldn’t be happier with my Utopia, from a performance point of view as well as an aesthetic and build point of view.

I’ll come see you sometime soon ... I have my eye on a Hugo 2.

You’re welcome anytime!

 

[Clevor1]

Update: I originally purchased my Utopia from Crutchfield, and their customer support is beyond belief. They usually ship USPS to Hawaii (free freight), but on the Utopia and a pair of Klipsch speakers, I requested UPS or FEDEX and they shipped it no extra charge (was not cheap on the speakers). However their warrantee on the Utopia is only one year. Since it had lapsed by only 23 days, they shipped me a new Utopia. I didn't even have to ask . I heard horror stories about warrantee service from Focal and did not want a $4,000 headphone repaired after only a year of limited use.

I am a lurker here because the headphone wasn't used much. I think I used it maybe 20 times in the last year, and it was not overdriven. It is pretty humid here and I have no A/C so I was thinking maybe that might have been the problem. Although I wouldn't think a beryllium driver or the mechanical parts would be affected by mold. And beryllium does not rust.

I don't want to start a can of worms, but the replacement seems to have better soundstage and bass, but it may be my imagination. My old headphone I received in March 2017. The new one was shipped to the U.S. dealer in Jan. 2018. Seems like the build quality on the faux leather storage box went down: box was a bit warped and surface of the cardboard insert had a few bubbles under the paper surface. Focal made the headphone cable a bit smaller in diameter. Just to be safe, I now store the headphone in a sealed 5-gallon plastic container with a desiccant pouch. I change the pouch out regularly to keep humidity in the 30-50% range all year round. I use this storage setup on my more expensive tools and equipment to keep rust and mildew off it.

 

[AlterAnthony]

The new one was shipped to the U.S. dealer in Jan. 2018.

Just out of curiosity, what's the serial number of your new pair?