[SilverEars]

I like a warm sound signature - e.g. I preferred the Sundara over the HE 560 which had too much treble for my taste. I am really enjoying the sound of the Elex and do not consider them too bright at all. While I feel that the Elex is brighter than than my HD 6XX, I agree with the post above, in that it feels like clarity (and sparkle) has been added to the HD 6XX. The soundstage is also a lot wider on the Elex.

You commented in the Sundara and Cascade threads, do you still have them? I haven't A/B'd against them yet, but I'm linking the sound of the Elex more at the moment and have been listening to them exclusively since I received them. I feel the Elex has a richer sound than the Sundara because of a slightly elevated treble, increased and deeper bass, and more mid-range presence (...don't hold me to the mid-range comment because I need to A/B).

Increased midrange over Sundara sounds good to me as long as it's not too rich. I don't find Sundara warmer compared to HE560, just the HE560 has that 7k treble peak I think that cause a bit of a brightness at times(for certain tracks). If that 7k wasn't so lifted, I think the HE560 would be warmer than the Sundara. I think the treble response varies between the two, the Sundara doesn't sound like it has elevated lower treble.

 

[Currawong]

There are two things here to consider: Most headphones have a peak in the treble between 6-10 kHz. Everyone has a null in their hearing between about 8-10 kHz (I might have that range wrong, I need to double-check) so that if you have a pair of headphones the treble peak of which matches your hearing null, it wont sound as bright to other people.

Secondly, the music is critically important. On the one hand, if you listen to music that is so compressed that you can make out clear distortion, these are NOT going to be fun headphones to listen with IMO. If you like acoustic music (as I do) they will probably be great. If you like bass elevated from neutral, these might be a bit light-sounding to be idea. I'll do a comparison with the Sundara soon, which arrived a few days ago.

 

[Raphael DeLaGhetto]

I never said his wasn't or he was making it up, but you seem to be on the band wagon of disliking the elex based off the negative reviews, my point was one person experiencing issues doesn't mean its a wide spread common issue, could be just his particular pair degraded overtime,

I'm on a bandwagon huh? Do yourself a favor & read the thread...

 

[alvarg]

I'm on a bandwagon huh? Do yourself a favor & read the thread...

I already have, can't remember all of the post you wrote though, summarize then what is your opinion on the focal elex

 

[Raphael DeLaGhetto]

I already have, can't remember all of the post you wrote though, summarize then what is your opinion on the focal elex

I owned two different pairs both with varying spl tolerances which forced me to return them. I thoroughly enjoyed them when they weren't crackling or popping, so instead of calling me a hater you should consider context next time.

 

[alvarg]

I owned two different pairs both with varying spl tolerances which forced me to return them. I thoroughly enjoyed them when they weren't crackling or popping, so instead of calling me a hater you should consider context next time.

again, forget who has had issue and who hasn't, the elex for me seems to have a volume headroom well above what i'd listen at so its perfectly fine for me, sorry you didn't have as much luck.

 

[LoryWiv]

i've heard both, lcd2 is like the hd650 as well with more extension, but even less treble so its even more relaxed, and its dynamics come across softer than the elex, i'll also add elex doesn't seem to like the massdrop CTH much, it sounds much more natural and normal on my O2 sdac, tighter bass, less air, more mids etc

Thanks, alvarg. Which has better soundstage / imaging?

 

[alvarg]

Thanks, alvarg. Which has better soundstage / imaging?

Depends what better soundstage means to you, if you mean wider then lcd2, imaging elex, the feeling like your sitting in front of two speaker towers elex.


Its apples n oranges ones slightly energetic sounding elex, while the other is extremely chill to the point where you might fall asleep wearing them lcd2

 

[Anaz]

There are two things here to consider: Most headphones have a peak in the treble between 6-10 kHz. Everyone has a null in their hearing between about 8-10 kHz (I might have that range wrong, I need to double-check) so that if you have a pair of headphones the treble peak of which matches your hearing null, it wont sound as bright to other people.

Secondly, the music is critically important. On the one hand, if you listen to music that is so compressed that you can make out clear distortion, these are NOT going to be fun headphones to listen with IMO. If you like acoustic music (as I do) they will probably be great. If you like bass elevated from neutral, these might be a bit light-sounding to be idea. I'll do a comparison with the Sundara soon, which arrived a few days ago.

Love your reviews - they are comprehensive and you are very clear in conveying your thoughts and opinions. When you do your Sundara review and comparison could you give your impressions of the headphones powered by a Mojo or a sub $1,000 chain as well as your high-end amps (mucho respect!!!) please? I'd like your opinion using a mid-tier DAC and amp if possible.
Thanks

 

[LoryWiv]

Depends what better soundstage means to you, if you mean wider then lcd2, imaging elex, the feeling like your sitting in front of two speaker towers elex.


Its apples n oranges ones slightly energetic sounding elex, while the other is extremely chill to the point where you might fall asleep wearing them lcd2

Woe to wallet, sounds like I need 'em both! -->

 

[Currawong]

Love your reviews - they are comprehensive and you are very clear in conveying your thoughts and opinions. When you do your Sundara review and comparison could you give your impressions of the headphones powered by a Mojo or a sub $1,000 chain as well as your high-end amps (mucho respect!!!) please? I'd like your opinion using a mid-tier DAC and amp if possible.
Thanks

Will do. I have the FiiO Q5 here as well, along with the very inexpensive Bluewave Get. I usually try headphones with a few devices so I can get an idea how well they scale before more expensive gear stops being a significant benefit. It's probably more so that good-quality sources are becoming very cheap.

 

[jsmiller58]

if why so serious at 3:30 is the only song you've heard clipping on i wouldn't stress, nor if it happens on any music with a lot of bass below 50hz, call it a design flaw or a ingenious decision by focal but to the dismay of people who read that the elex goes down allegedly to 5hz, these are not bass cans and aren't mean to play music with extreme amounts of bass, as i've said before think of these more like a speaker with stupidly great extension, honestly don't know why they pushed it so low most subs don't even reach down to 5hz.

Yay! Sanity!

 

[shinimi]

try using a different amp, i found them to be a little gear picky, funnily enough even though i didn't at first think they sounded much better than my hd650s trying to go back to hd650s now its like wow these sounds so dull and lifeless now What.

Great, I'll try them on another amp when I get the chance. Currently, I just have Magni 3 with me. I do agree they sound better compare to the HD600 and HD650, much lively.

 

[Cloud6]

I received my Elex a couple of days ago. I agree with some other users that it seems a little bright off of the cth. Has an amazing sense of realism and cohesion imo though. Definitely has that little bit more detail than my he500. Soundstage is similar but imaging is significantly better.

I will say the he500 still has something special in regards to the midrange.

One thing I was worried about was the subbass rattle others have reported - I listen to a lot of rap/hip hop with very deep and loud bass.

Thankfully for me, I haven’t heard any yet, even when I put the Elex way past the volume I would ever even consider listening at (about 12 - 1 o’ clock). Didn’t hear any rattling even with very deep and powerful bass.

Bass goes real deep tho. Similar extension to the he500, doesn’t hit as hard though - a little thinner and dryer overall to me.

I’ve only been able to listen to it for a few hours though - so only first impressions really.

Oh yeah, it really looks the part though.
Definitely the best looking headphone I have seen before.

 

[jsmiller58]

I received my Elex a couple of days ago. I agree with some other users that it seems a little bright off of the cth. Has an amazing sense of realism and cohesion imo though. Definitely has that little bit more detail than my he500. Soundstage is similar but imaging is significantly better.

I will say the he500 still has something special in regards to the midrange.

One thing I was worried about was the subbass rattle others have reported - I listen to a lot of rap/hip hop with very deep and loud bass.

Thankfully for me, I haven’t heard any yet, even when I put the Elex way past the volume I would ever even consider listening at (about 12 - 1 o’ clock). Didn’t hear any rattling even with very deep and powerful bass.

Bass goes real deep tho. Similar extension to the he500, doesn’t hit as hard though - a little thinner and dryer overall to me.

I’ve only been able to listen to it for a few hours though - so only first impressions really.

Oh yeah, it really looks the part though.
Definitely the best looking headphone I have seen before.

Love my Elex cans as well, and I hope they continue to give you great enjoyment.

If I can offer some unsolicited advice regarding the clipping. Don’t go looking for it. Enjoy your music. If you never hit the clipping, effectively it is not there.

If you start looking for the clipping you may fall into the obsessive compulsive behavior of a few others I have observed on this thread. Like teens before a big date, they live in constant fear that they are developing a zit. They look, and look harder. They change the lights, they change the angle that they look from. Every blemish drives them nuts... And this thread fills with more panic over this one issue than any serious discussion about the actual merits versus other cans, best amp and music genre pairings, etc...

If your pair has a problem hopefully you hear it in the course of listening and return them or find someone for whom it will not be a problem and sell to them. But if you never hear the clipping - even if there are theoretical conditions under which they might display this - then count yourself fortunate. These are nice you should be able to enjoy them forever.

Before the haters start to hate... this is not to diminish the value of your concerns. You spent lots of money. I have too. We all deserve to be happy with our purchase. But I am observing disturbing group behavior where the piling on effect is just getting overdone. My generation would have said “take a chill pill”... that, and let’s discuss more than just the clipping. If you have complaints focus more of the energy on Focal and Massdrop. If you think that you are doing others a service by warning them with your posts, well, Mission Accomplished. Let’s have some more varied discussion. Sorry my $0.02.