[ubs28]

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.

Perhaps try the Focal Clear. When i brought my Focal Clears to a full Sony setup (the $3500 Sony DAP + amp), the Focal Clear had no problem beating the Z1R.

 

[Tobes]

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!

I know this is only a guesstimate as to Utopia failures - still as an owner I find it to be worrisomely high and unacceptable in a premium product.
I acknowledge that other HP manufacturers have had their issues with premium/exotic models, but that hardly makes it ok.
I'm approaching 18 months ownership and have had no issues. Still with only a 2yr warranty provided (purchased from Australian dealership) this doesn't provide much peace of mind.
I'm baffled as to the mechanism of reported failures. A dead driver in a dynamic headphone would indicate voice coil/wiring failure - something that shouldn't happen outside of outright abuse (which is possible in some cases I suppose, but not all).

I don't want to sound too negative or to be rehashing reliability issues out of proportion because I've had no issues with mine (and I think the Utopia is a wonderful sounding headphone), but when I read these reports it makes me uneasy.

 

[TSAVJason]

I know this is only a guesstimate as to Utopia failures - still as an owner I find it to be worrisomely high and unacceptable in a premium product.
I acknowledge that other HP manufacturers have had their issues with premium/exotic models, but that hardly makes it ok.
I'm approaching 18 months ownership and have had no issues. Still with only a 2yr warranty provided (purchased from Australian dealership) this doesn't provide much peace of mind.
I'm baffled as to the mechanism of reported failures. A dead driver in a dynamic headphone would indicate voice coil/wiring failure - something that shouldn't happen outside of outright abuse (which is possible in some cases I suppose, but not all).

I don't want to sound too negative or to be rehashing reliability issues out of proportion because I've had no issues with mine (and I think the Utopia is a wonderful sounding headphone), but when I read these reports it makes me uneasy.

You’ll be pleased to know that Focal had the issues well sorted by the time Australia Distribution were sent any.

 

[Tobes]

You’ll be pleased to know that Focal had the issues well sorted by the time Australia Distribution were sent any.

Thanks for the info Jason! - that certainly relieves the anxiety I was feeling around this issue.
I'm always careful with my Utopias anyway - as befits any product costing this much $.

 

[Allanmarcus]

I know this is only a guesstimate as to Utopia failures - still as an owner I find it to be worrisomely high and unacceptable in a premium product.
I acknowledge that other HP manufacturers have had their issues with premium/exotic models, but that hardly makes it ok.
I'm approaching 18 months ownership and have had no issues. Still with only a 2yr warranty provided (purchased from Australian dealership) this doesn't provide much peace of mind.
I'm baffled as to the mechanism of reported failures. A dead driver in a dynamic headphone would indicate voice coil/wiring failure - something that shouldn't happen outside of outright abuse (which is possible in some cases I suppose, but not all).

I don't want to sound too negative or to be rehashing reliability issues out of proportion because I've had no issues with mine (and I think the Utopia is a wonderful sounding headphone), but when I read these reports it makes me uneasy.

Do not put your headphones on a Roo. The hopping around might dislodge the wires.

 

[TSAVJason]

Hello Utopia/Elear/Clear lovers and potential Utopia/Elear/Clear lovers. I’ve received an extra ordinary amount of PM’s, emails and calls about certain online sales claiming warranty is included. Let me take a moment to tell exactly what is and isn’t.

Audiogon = not allowed no warranty
eBay = not allowed no warranty
Or any selling platform of this type is definitely not allowed.
Online on amazon that shows a discount, not allowed unless during a factory authorized sale

If any of the previous types of purchases are made, FocalNA has the right to deny warranty service. It is considered used immediately even if the box is factory sealed.

Allowed is easier to get. An authorized dealer is allowed to sell online ONLY on the dealers own website or on Amazon with the approval/permission of Focal. FocalNA does not allow online discount price advertising of any kind unless it’s a factory authorized sale.

I put this out in the hope that you all have a good purchase and to clear my days answering this question so often lately.

Edit: this is not a warranty discussion as much as it is a warning that these sellers are not authorized and could cause you to go through some serious heartache at their profit and your expense.

 

[kvn864]

Online on amazon that shows a discount

not necessarily true. I bought my pair at Amazon, there was a discount, and I registered the cans with Focal with its serial number for 2 years. though I am not worrying they will fail, I listen to them mostly on low volumes.

 

[jlbrach]

foolish policy...shortsighted to say the least...Audeze and PS Audio to name 2 have the opposite policy and are a pleasure to deal with ......who needs such hassle

 

[TSAVJason]

not necessarily true. I bought my pair at Amazon, there was a discount, and I registered the cans with Focal with its serial number for 2 years. though I am not worrying they will fail, I listen to them mostly on low volumes.

It is Focal policy and it true. If they catch the dealer doing it, they terminate the dealer. Maybe you’ve noticed a large number of Focal dealers are now Ex-Focal dealers? You should’nt worry about them breaking but are you aware that you lost 3 years of warranty by purchasing that way?

Where you guys buy is absolutely your choice. How you buy, again is your decision to make. I just give you the facts. HeadFi likes to see you get the correct information too. Go look in the market place and notice there is a seller missing as a result of making a statement that we’ll call “incorrect” about his Focal offer.

 

[TSAVJason]

foolish policy...shortsighted to say the least...Audeze and PS Audio to name 2 have the opposite policy and are a pleasure to deal with ......who needs such hassle

Hahaha shouldn’t you say in there somewhere IMO? But seriously a good portion of these terms of warranty are in many cases the manufactures attempt at protecting you from a misrepresented deal or dealer. Focal is not the only company with these policies.

 

[DivaFonda]

foolish policy...shortsighted to say the least...Audeze and PS Audio to name 2 have the opposite policy and are a pleasure to deal with ......who needs such hassle

Speaking of Audeze, I got warranty service on an Amazon pair of Sines that wasn't even bought through them(Audeze sells on Amazon now). I thought I was going to be out of luck but all Audeze wanted was the digital receipt. Maybe because it was a cheap warranty claim, not a driver failure. I just needed a new cipher, old one broke within a week out of the box. But I was pleasantly surprised.

 

[jlbrach]

ok,let me correct...IMO Audeze or PS Audio happily taking care of their products as long as they are within the warranty period is far better for the customer

 

[DivaFonda]

It is Focal policy and it true. If they catch the dealer doing it, they terminate the dealer. Maybe you’ve noticed a large number of Focal dealers are now Ex-Focal dealers? You should’nt worry about them breaking but are you aware that you lost 3 years of warranty by purchasing that way?

Where you guys buy is absolutely your choice. How you buy, again is your decision to make. I just give you the facts. HeadFi likes to see you get the correct information too. Go look in the market place and notice there is a seller missing as a result of making a statement that we’ll call “incorrect” about his Focal offer.

Please be aware that not everyone can walk into an actual store to get the 5 year warranty.

 

[DivaFonda]

Hahaha shouldn’t you say in there somewhere IMO? But seriously a good portion of these terms of warranty are in many cases the manufactures attempt at protecting you from a misrepresented deal or dealer. Focal is not the only company with these policies.

Many manufacturers protect from nothing and restrictive warranties benefit them and them only. This is speaking of warranties in general.

Focal doesn't seem consistent since they have serviced used or unauthorized dealer buys, at least if you believe some posters here.

 

[nvfan]

Here is an interesting chat for driver material nerds. It's from page 134 here: http://www.gotomylis.com/

I if the "Figure Of Merit" does have merit, Beryllium is a superior driver material to CVD. It also makes me very curious to hear GrapheneQ in the future.

Beryllium is not self-damped so it still rings, that's why CVD diamond is a superior material.

To me beryllium is competitive with ceramic, as ceramic drivers have lower speed of sound but higher dampening. Whereas diamond has higher speed of sound AND higher dampening, to me it's better in most metrics.