[iamoneagain]

FWIW I demoed the Utopia out of a Naim Atom (which has a dac and a streamer)... it was not very good.

Well could be why Focal worked with Micromega on their headphone amp instead. But I’d imagine if Naim tuned their setup for Focal headphones, you’d have different results. But for now, the new headphone amp is just a rumor and it could still be Micromega designing it.

 

[xand]

Well could be why Focal worked with Micromega on their headphone amp instead. But I’d imagine if Naim tuned their setup for Focal headphones, you’d have different results. But for now, the new headphone amp is just a rumor and it could still be Micromega designing it.

As a matter of interest, the dac/amp shown in the Utopia manual is a Naim DAC-V1 - which I happen to have. It's similar to the Atom. lol.

 

[lovethatsound]

Anyone using Cardas cable with their Utopia? All the reviews are very old. (that said, how much to cable tech change?)
I'm using Norne Draug 3 - which i enjoy, but it is to short. I have a internet friend that offered me a 3m Cardas cable for pretty cheap. He isn't local so i can't test it. $200 isn't bank breaking.. but not something i want to waste if worse than the Draug 3.

Cardas clear cables look costly, but that doesn't mean they are good.

I'm using the Cardas clear with my utopia at the moment I've also got the Norne Draug 3,plus a few other cables as well.ive tried many different after market cables,including the big names,that many people go on about on here,but the stock cable as always sounded better to me,until I tried the Cardas Clear,if you can get it for that price,go for it.

 

[LarsMan]

Chord Dave would be fun to try no doubt, but I'm thoroughly enjoying my Utopia with the RME ADI 2 Dac and gsx mini Headamp. I guess you could call that a "mid line" setup, but I really like it. I did update some cables, a power cable and xlr from Audio Art Cable that have made a really nice improvement. I'm also using the Moon Black Dragon 4 pin xlr. It sounded so good last night I ended up listening far later than planned!

RME ADI 2 is a great sounding DAC!!

 

[LarsMan]

Well, I have heard the Utopia out of few other setups and sounded quite bad. It can sound really bright and harsh with the wrong setup. So if it will sound like this with the iFi he is going to buy, don’t say I did not warn him.

Very true; When I was using Utopia with a Lyr 3 amp, I was getting ready to sell it because it was coming through too bright and harsh - I couldn't understand what the fuss was about with Utopia, but when I replaced the Lyr with the Quicksilver, it was like a different pair of headphones, and they are keepers!

 

[LarsMan]

I felt it was too technical and slightly bright with the Chord Hugo 2. Greatly improved with the Chord Dave. But that’s why surprised sounds great out of Focal Arche as well but then that amp was tuned for Focal, so makes sense.

But yeah, the Utopia’s are really transparent and show off your gear for better or worse. I had the ifi micro dsd with a different headphone and felt that amp leaned more toward a brighter sound and was definitely harsher than Hugo 2. The ifi pro is in another league so I’m guessing it won’t be harsh but heard it’s not that warm either.

I did as well. Personally, I liked the sound of the RME better than the Hugo 2 as a DAC, even though it's only about half the price...

 

[murphythecat]

I'm using the Cardas clear with my utopia at the moment I've also got the Norne Draug 3,plus a few other cables as well.ive tried many different after market cables,including the big names,that many people go on about on here,but the stock cable as always sounded better to me,until I tried the Cardas Clear,if you can get it for that price,go for it.

ime and imo, Cardas cable offer consistent quality no matter their price point and are always the top choice in their respective price.
AudioQuest are good as well but extremely prone to destroy itself

 

[Dynamo5561]

Hey there,
got my Focal Utopia this week and wanted to share some inital impressions. I find the stock tuning pretty neutral and somehow boring. I didn't also find it very very detailed, you can hear the Utopia is capable but doesn't really show it off. Also the bass roll off is pretty noticable. But the sound itself is very full, not light. So I played around a bit with eqing and added some bass shelf to my liking, unfortunately it will not reach Fostex bass quality but gets quite ok. Then I also added some treble energey and holy all the details and the resolution capabilites of the Utopia came to light. It's like day and night difference. I am wondering if there are similar experiences of other Utopia owners? Here is the eq I applied, it is very simple just to test around. Of course tonality is a preference thing, but I was surprised that the detail retrieval capabilites are pretty hidden with the stock tuning.

 

[LarsMan]

Hey there,
got my Focal Utopia this week and wanted to share some inital impressions. I find the stock tuning pretty neutral and somehow boring. I didn't also find it very very detailed, you can hear the Utopia is capable but doesn't really show it off. Also the bass roll off is pretty noticable. But the sound itself is very full, not light. So I played around a bit with eqing and added some bass shelf to my liking, unfortunately it will not reach Fostex bass quality but gets quite ok. Then I also added some treble energey and holy all the details and the resolution capabilites of the Utopia came to light. It's like day and night difference. I am wondering if there are similar experiences of other Utopia owners? Here is the eq I applied, it is very simple just to test around. Of course tonality is a preference thing, but I was surprised that the detail retrieval capabilites are pretty hidden with the stock tuning.

Did you do your sound processing on your RME DAC?

 

[jlbrach]

Hey there,
got my Focal Utopia this week and wanted to share some inital impressions. I find the stock tuning pretty neutral and somehow boring. I didn't also find it very very detailed, you can hear the Utopia is capable but doesn't really show it off. Also the bass roll off is pretty noticable. But the sound itself is very full, not light. So I played around a bit with eqing and added some bass shelf to my liking, unfortunately it will not reach Fostex bass quality but gets quite ok. Then I also added some treble energey and holy all the details and the resolution capabilites of the Utopia came to light. It's like day and night difference. I am wondering if there are similar experiences of other Utopia owners? Here is the eq I applied, it is very simple just to test around. Of course tonality is a preference thing, but I was surprised that the detail retrieval capabilites are pretty hidden with the stock tuning.

there are lots of criticisms that can be leveled against the utopia..slamm soundstage, bright, lack of bass etc...lack of detail aint one of them so if that is what you are finding there is likely something wrong with your source

 

[Dynamo5561]

Did you do your sound processing on your RME DAC?

No, I used apo eq on my pc.

there are lots of criticisms that can be leveled against the utopia..slamm soundstage, bright, lack of bass etc...lack of detail aint one of them so if that is what you are finding there is likely something wrong with your source

I didn't mean it lacks details, but I didn't find the detail retrieval that outstanding. But it gets on another level with adding some treble. My source is fine.

 

[Roasty]

This is just about near perfect for me.
I say near perfect, because it would be perfect if I didn't have my kids running around screaming in the background.

 

[Zurv]

I'm using the Cardas clear with my utopia at the moment I've also got the Norne Draug 3,plus a few other cables as well.ive tried many different after market cables,including the big names,that many people go on about on here,but the stock cable as always sounded better to me,until I tried the Cardas Clear,if you can get it for that price,go for it.

Thanks for the input. I took the deal already and connected them to my HP today. I really don't think cable burn in is a thing, but i'll let them burn in for a few days. $200 for a 7.5ft quality cable is a win. (it was never used before. My friend bought it and jsut left it in the bag He went for some crazy $$$ silver stuff. )

 

[jlbrach]

This is just about near perfect for me.
I say near perfect, because it would be perfect if I didn't have my kids running around screaming in the background.

wait 15 yrs or so

 

[Zurv]

This is just about near perfect for me.
I say near perfect, because it would be perfect if I didn't have my kids running around screaming in the background.

wait.. you have kids? the only way i afford this this crazy audio stuff is by NOT having the little mosnters ... er.. joys.