Indeed, we have made a clear design choice on Elear (and by consequence Elex) and Utopia. Our headphones have been designed to favor the respect of the dynamic contained within the audio signal versus dynamic compression that would offer a higher SPL capability but less respect of the original audio signal. To cut a long story short, the choice was audio quality oriented rather than SPL oriented. This allows our products to work with full performances until the mechanical clipping is activated. This means that you jump directly from a very low distortion to a sound which could be heard as rattling / cracking noise. On very special tracks with only very low frequencies at very high level, you can thus hear some noises - as you will do on classic loudspeakers.
If we change your pair of headphones, the new one will be designed similarly and it will also have a kind of cracking sound when you will be listening to music with high volume and a fair amount of bass.
The only solution we can recommend you is therefore to listen to your headphones at a lower volume.
One of the best things about the Utopia is the SOTA sound quality (no need to eq!) combined with high sensitivity. And I don’t listen very loud so Focal’s design choice(s) make total sense to me
Utopia will perform "fine" out of virtually any source with a reasonable amount of power - it is not hard to drive. But Utopia scales incredibly well, and incredibly obviously, with higher quality and/or more powerful amps. Sort of like how you can eat a microwaved chicken finger and it's "fine", but a chicken finger that is properly deep fried and dipped in honey mustard sauce is on the "next level". That's sort of how Utopia works.
What after market XLR cable are a good match for the 2022 Utopia ?
I’m just running in a brand new one, have 30 hours on it now. It sounds amazing already over the OG Utopia that I sold for this.
The stock cable is different too, not sure if it’s better or not than the OG version. I had a Susvara in a previous life and got the Cardas Clear as an upgrade. Wasn’t that lit up by the change for the money either, but Susvara are picky to any Amp/cable/DAC changes anyway, so I kinda get it.
The dealer that I trust said the Cardas Clear Reflection will be a great cable upgrade. He stocks Cardas and Moon Audio Dragon Series as pretty much his only HP Cables.
What after market XLR cable are a good match for the 2022 Utopia ?
I’m just running in a brand new one, have 30 hours on it now. It sounds amazing already over the OG Utopia that I sold for this.
The stock cable is different too, not sure if it’s better or not than the OG version. I had a Susvara in a previous life and got the Cardas Clear as an upgrade. Wasn’t that lit up by the change for the money either, but Susvara are picky to any Amp/cable/DAC changes anyway, so I kinda get it.
The dealer that I trust said the Cardas Clear Reflection will be a great cable upgrade. He stocks Cardas and Moon Audio Dragon Series as pretty much his only HP Cables.
Luzuli Nirvana here on original Focal Utopia. Hated paying the money for a cable but now that that pain has faded I would not have the utopias fed by anything else. Sublime!
PS. I was allowed to audition the cable for a few weeks even being so far away from USA. Anyway, history says it was all worth it in the end.
If you go with the Dragon Cable go with the Black Dragon Cable. The silver would be too much. But if you can go with a hybrid cable like the Danacables suggested above. You will not be disappointed. You can always by cables used. I also use adapters to use with different headphones. So really only need to invest once.
My suggestion is for the Atom HE. It’s one of those rare audio devices that functions perfectly and sounds amazing. Every headphone I’ve thrown at it sounds it’s best. The Utopia and the Naim have great synergy.
My suggestion is for the Atom HE. It’s one of those rare audio devices that functions perfectly and sounds amazing. Every headphone I’ve thrown at it sounds it’s best. The Utopia and the Naim have great synergy.
Will second the Atom. A cable upgrade on the Utopia can also be worthwhile. But the Atom is really a jack of all trades. Unless you're stretching for Chord TT2 and above level of DAC clarity ... you'd be pretty happy with it.
Hello can you please advice on good eq for some bass.. i am using original utopia with fiio m17 dap. and mostly listing songs from neturon app.. i tried from autoeq and oratory but missing something.. i am not technical on explaining it so please excuse me
Hello can you please advice on good eq for some bass.. i am using original utopia with fiio m17 dap. and mostly listing songs from neturon app.. i tried from autoeq and oratory but missing something.. i am not technical on explaining it so please excuse me
I also use Neutron app on my IBasso player. Here you can create a PEQ preset (Playback/Equalizer Presets) with two bands for bass and treble. Use the following parameters:
Bass: Low shelf / Freq: 85 Hz/ Q: 0.8 / Gain: up to you or 0[dB] to turn it off ( you can modify this also on the fly later on the EQ view)
Treble: High shelf / Freq: 6500 Hz / Q: 0.7 / Gain: Up to you or 0[dB] to turn it off.
These can be used in combination with the AutoEQ preset (oratory) (Playback/DSP Effect/Frequency Response Correction)
Which should I go for? Fiio Q7 or Chord Hugo 2? I'd like an all in one combo that I can plug into a PC. I travel every month, so I like having a setup that's to use with the Utopia.
Chord Hugo 2 is fantastic with the Utopia 22. It has Bluetooth to connect to phone or tablet also so ease of use. In fact I’m currently listen to the setup on the Patio watching the game right now.
I did not consider buying Utopia with 5000€ price but this week I got a deal that I could not resist anymore. 2022 model that has been sitting in glass cabinet. No wear marks, full warranty etc. 2490€
This site uses cookies to help personalise content, tailor your experience and to keep you logged in if you register.
By continuing to use this site, you are consenting to our use of cookies.
