[JMAX2016]

For me, Lazuli Reference cable + 'the right tubes' in my Liquid Platinum really helped. Much more cost effective than toilet paper, since even sturdy tissue eventually wears out

Seriously, a second alternative is pad swapping. I found the Elex pads got me close to the sound I was looking for, and I was pretty happy. They did nudge the sound a bit further towards warmer/less sharp/less detailed than I really wanted though. I only had SS amps at the time and, when I got the Laz Ref cable, I was in a bit of a quandary. Pairing that cable with the Elex pads definitely took the sound too far. Then the LP showed up and, with Siemens NOS CCa and E188CC tubes, the sound got pretty close to 'just right' with the stock pads. The Elex pads have been sitting in a box ever since.

BTW, I tried the Dekoni fenestrated sheepskin pads but did not like them at all -- too much lost detail, and bloomy bass.

All my ears/my gear, of course.

I will check if there’s a place around me that I may be able to do that. I think Gramaphone in Maryland may have some options. Maybe let me swap some pads to try.

 

[jwbrent]

Unfortunately, I only have a Mac. Do you know of anything that is Mac compatible?

Audirvana. A great music player for a Mac and both graphic and parametric EQs.

 

[up late]

I said no one “should” like the Utopia’s at stock frequencies. The reality is there’s always a number of people who will. Each to his or her own.

The fact of the matter is not all flat frequencies sound good and not all naturally aspirated frequencies sound fun.

The Idea i’m bringing up in the topic of equalization is that most people aren’t using it properly. There are some people out there who tries to hear what frequencies are peaking or dipping out of his/her headphones and make an attempt to fix it themselves using certain parametric’s only to find out at the end they preferred the natural sound all along. This result is often due to having poorly implemented equalization. ‘playing it by ear’ isn’t good enough. Increasing or decreasing a frequency a couple Hz away from where you were suppose to can turn a good thing bad and a bad thing somewhat decent. The result? Not as good as the original.

Proper EQ requires special testing equipment. Often times a molded head with a microphone attached within the ear canal to measure pink noise. Because of this complex setup, certain individual headphone calibrations provided from various companies can be better than one another. It has a lot to do with their methodology and software.

At the end of the day I have no problem with people liking the natural sound of their headphones. To be honest I can really care less. What I do care however is that we have love for the Focal Utopia’s and there is someone out there who might prefer theirs equalized. If it was presented to them properly. If they better understood it.

perhaps you could have expressed that better. "no one should" comes off as prescriptive and adding "to each his or her own" seems contradictory

 

[GreenBow]

About the recent talk of Utopia being a bit bright. I am not here to fuel that debate. I gave the Utopia a lot of consideration in terms of potentially buying some. I would have bought the Moon Audio Black Dragon V2 Utopia cable for them though. That was a given in my thinking.

However the point I wanted to make was something I think about. It might not be true so it's only my idea, about bright headphones. (Again I am not including the Utopia in that. I am just responding with an idea to what has been discussed.)

When we have even slightly bass heavy headphones:
When the bass is full on a track, the headphones can punch a bit hard. We turn down the headphones to prevent hearing damage.

When we have slightly treble hot headphones:
When the treble is high on a track, it doesn't punch out ears. It can be a bit bright or sibilant, but it doesn't punch. I wonder if that can lead to hearing damage in the upper registers of our hearing. Out inner ear hairs that pick up sound are under pressure when sounds are loud. However we don't seem to perceive treble as loud in the same way we do bass.

Or at least that is something I was thinking about recently. I might be totally wrong of course. Maybe we do turn off when stuff gets too bright. I know, because I used some lower end Grados for a while, and didn't think them too bright. However I do find them bright now, and I have no idea how I listened to them.

 

[JMAX2016]

Audirvana. A great music player for a Mac and both graphic and parametric EQs.

Thanks JW. I actually have Audirvana and I love it. I was unaware that it had an EQ.

 

[jwbrent]

Thanks JW. I actually have Audirvana and I love it. I was unaware that it had an EQ.

It’s not readily apparent. You have to go to audio preferences and I believe the EQs are in Audio Units as well as a bunch of other options that I have no idea about.

 

[Energy]

Had some free time one afternoon.








à votre santé

 

[LCMusicLover]

Had some free time one afternoon...

Silly question but, did you just rewire the lemolo jacks (with silver?) or get rid of them and wire your cables directly to the drivers? Couldn't tell from the pics.

Thanks!

 

[Energy]

Silly question but, did you just rewire the lemolo jacks (with silver?) or get rid of them and wire your cables directly to the drivers? Couldn't tell from the pics.

The stock 24 gauge wire tinned plated copper wire in PVC insulation goes from the drivers to the LEMO connectors where it is then soldered and encased in a dab of epoxy to prevent decay from moisture, oxidation, and vibration. The same process was done with another wire, in this case a Neotech 24 gauge OCC silver in PE insulation. Twice the amount of wire to match the low impedance of the 8-wire headphone cable.

It's not hardwired. That would probably (subjective) be the best for sound quality although would put strain on the joint unless a lot of glue was used. A drawback from that would be the increased weight of the headphone.

If anyone wants some Mundorf MSolder Supreme or UP-OCC wires to try it out themselves send me a message.
I have all different kinds. From Copper, Silver-Plated Copper, Silver, to Silver + 1% Gold.

 

[LCMusicLover]

The stock 24 gauge wire tinned plated copper wire in PVC insulation goes from the drivers to the LEMO connectors where it is then soldered and encased in a dab of epoxy to prevent decay from moisture, oxidation, and vibration. The same process was done with another wire, in this case a Neotech 24 gauge OCC silver in PE insulation. Twice the amount of wire to match the low impedance of the 8-wire headphone cable.

It's not hardwired. That would probably (subjective) be the best for sound quality although would put strain on the joint unless a lot of glue was used and even then that would increase the weight of the headphone...

Thanks for the info.

...Do you want photos of the entire process? I have them.

No thank you.

...If anyone wants some Mundorf MSolder Supreme or UP-OCC wires to try it out themselves send me a message.
I have all different kinds. From Copper, Silver-Plated Copper, Silver, to Silver + 1% Gold.

I appreciate the detailed follow-up. I really wondered what you were up to there.

I on the other hand, am not handy with a soldering iron -- certainly not going to practice on my Utopia

 

[Ojisan]

Had some free time one afternoon.








à votre santé

Nice! Looks like there's lot's of room and a nice pad to make soldering easy. Would love to try Norne silver wire all the way...

 

[Energy]

It took me around 2 years of hesitation before I decided to open up these headphones. At the time I knew there were other areas of the audio chain to focus on and that improving two small wires then might not have been the smartest idea. Unlike other headphones, there isn't any internal photos of the Utopia. Meaning no one before me has been "smart" enough to try. To my surprise with simple removal of the screws it just comes out.

Normally it's a sensitive topic especially for those who doesn't find upgraded cables to improve the sound quality, but I would say the improvements were a little more than subtle.
I don't normally write or explain how sounds sound like but here's my best take on it. Please take everything with a grain of salt.

Treble: A bit more detail in the higher frequencies but now a pretty big difference in overall clarity/transparency. Perhaps there is something with tin plated wires making that range sound muffled. It's not brighter, but the details that normally go in-between the lower, mid, and higher frequencies now sound more present. The details also expands past those borders into the sub-bass and upper frequencies giving it this fuller sound. Because of this, there is a better overall sense of the music that further attributes to the resolution and resolve of the headphone. The transients of certain sounds especially the computer generated ones in electronic music sounds like it stays longer, making listening more enjoyable as it feels more in the moment. To make it more understandable, it doesn't last longer in the means of time domain. Simply it's easier to listen to due to added clarity so the imaging or positioning of those transients are now better perceived thus they feel like they stay longer due to the added focus.

Mid-range: It's now easier to track the voices of singers and the sounds of instruments. The timbre and decay is easily noticed as it transitions from start to finish. Each sound is smoother yet denser at the same time. I could hear a little more rasp in certain voices like Norah Jones. Forward sounding yet not overpowered. There is a better sense of space/air and the music seems to extend towards the boarders of the sound stage and vanish a lot better giving this perception that the stage is now wider and deeper. Something I felt the Utopia lacks when comparing to headphones like the HD800S. The imaging of the Utopia has always been top class but this takes it a little further.

Bass: There is a bit more more impact in the bass region. The bass was never loose before but now the low end zaps in a little harder which is nice. If I was using a copper wire maybe there would be a little more bass with an added warmth over it like with using tubes. Warmth, but not fuzzy warmth like with some tubes. Having that said, I do like the sound of bass that copper makes but I prefer all the sonic features silver presents and usually just EQ if I felt I wanted more bass. But again, EQ may give more bass but it won't offer the warmth that certain parts or components do (like copper for example).

Do note that I have listened to this same setup for over a year before changing the Utopia's wiring. It has had proper burn in. During the process I did one side initially just so I could use them simultaneously side by side to see if I could spot of any differences in overall tonality. I listened for about an hour and when I had a good idea of how it sounded I conducted the second side. That was where I noticed the improvements from the first driver now sounding the same for the second driver.

 

[ubs28]

Nice, I was always wondering myself how much of an impact the actual wiring inside of a headphone can have.

But for me it is not worth ruining my warranty for these types of experiments

 

[jwbrent]

Nice, I was always wondering myself how much of an impact the actual wiring inside of a headphone can have.

But for me it is not worth ruining my warranty for these types of experiments

Given the troubles the Utopia had when released (even though the cause has been addressed by Focal), I agree. I want 5 years of coverage and modding my Utopia negates the warranty.

 

[Energy]

That's why you keep the original wires. hehe.