[Nomax]

I have the Dave also never understood, too sterile, too garish
But maybe this one was not really meant for headphone playback but rather for loudspeaker playback...who knows
(The TT2 was already more my case which I have also had in the past)

NOMAX

PS.with the Utopia many years ago just horrible,how this behaves with the NUTOPIA I can not say

 

[TheMiddleSky]

You know the Craftmanahip from the Foxtex TH900 or the Denons?.....and for how much?(both below 2.000)
And that was how many years ago?

When a new manufacturer in the market tries many years later in the market...then this is the minimum standard...because he wants so much much more
(But this is only my personal view of things)

The only negative thing I have to criticize the Nutopia that they have not donated him a 4.4 mm Pentacon cable ..with the 6.3 mm jack operates these headphones anyway almost no one

NOMAX

PS.lol

Well yeah, fostex indeed has beautiful finish on the wood, however quality wise (as whole product) definitely not up there like ZMF Caldera or Utopia 2022. The fostex headband feels cheap, and the earpad is simply protein leather that may cause sweat, with horrible durability compared to ZMF leather.

Utopia OG also suffer from creaking sound that absolutely unacceptable for $4K headphone. Good thing Nutopia free of noise.

In my book every high end headphone companies should look how Meze create the Elite/Empyrean (in term of ergonomic and build quality as whole product).

 

[Nomax]

And what ist this headband?



Take a Fostex TH900 or Denon AH D92000 and next to it a .....then you know what is meant
(But you do not have to agree with me )


NOMAX



PS.at Minute 4.50

 

[meomap]

And what ist this headband?



Take a Fostex TH900 or Denon AH D92000 and next to it a .....then you know what is meant
(But you do not have to agree with me )


NOMAX



PS.at Minute 4.50

ZMF Caldera

 

[Ciggavelli]

And what ist this headband?



Take a Fostex TH900 or Denon AH D92000 and next to it a .....then you know what is meant
(But you do not have to agree with me )


NOMAX



PS.at Minute 4.50

It’s supposed to distribute the weight around your head better, like the Meze Elite

 

[TheR0v3r]

Hey guys, I just want to discuss the problem of amplifiers, back to the topic. I found a few amplifiers within an acceptable price range, if anyone who uses DAVE has also used these amplifiers, I hope you can share your experience. (preferably solid state, but does not exclude electronic tubes)
1.Ferrum Audio OOR
2.Holo Bliss
3.DSHA-3FN (this is rarely seen from users)

Hi

I have the Ferrum OOR + Hypsos (with Utopia OG). The Ferrum stack pairs best with planars rather than dynamic driver headphones.

You should spend $3k on something else IF your intent is to optimise for Utopia.

IMHO.

Edit: Changed to “… pairs best” instead of “better” because it’s still good .

 

[TheR0v3r]

Hey guys, I just want to discuss the problem of amplifiers, back to the topic. I found a few amplifiers within an acceptable price range, if anyone who uses DAVE has also used these amplifiers, I hope you can share your experience. (preferably solid state, but does not exclude electronic tubes)
1.Ferrum Audio OOR
2.Holo Bliss
3.DSHA-3FN (this is rarely seen from users)

BUT if you enjoy your Utopias directly from the Dave and just want to add a touch of warmth without sacrificing other qualities…

The Ferrum stack is an excellent choice for a solid state amp

 

[shaylin3]

BUT if you enjoy your Utopias directly from the Dave and just want to add a touch of warmth without sacrificing other qualities…

The Ferrum stack is an excellent choice for a solid state amp

Wow, just placed an order OOR..

 

[TheR0v3r]

Wow, just placed an order OOR..

Congrats, you’ll be very pleased

From my experience it benefits ALOT from being used together with the Hypsos. It takes the OOR from being very good at it’s price point to excellent regardless of price. Also you should switch out the stock power cord to something better. DONE.

 

[ardilla]

Did focal change the bass tuning in comparison to OG Utopia?
Graphs don't show that.
Even though I haven't heard 'new' utopias Im pretty sure that their bass is just like the OG ones.
There is some mid bass but lower bass registers are just shy, period.

The graph from the comparison on Headphones.Com actually show the OG has slightly MORE sub bass ... and a little less upper treble energy. Swapping pads will make more difference than that. Probably the only significant difference is the fabric on the pads,

https://headphones.com/blogs/reviews/focal-2022-utopia-how-does-it-compare-to-original

 

[Benno1988]

Has anyone seen a big wide comfy headband for the Focal line? All I can find is the basic thin wrap around neoprene/cloth ones, and the one suspension strap setup.

 

[TheMiddleSky]

The graph from the comparison on Headphones.Com actually show the OG has slightly MORE sub bass ... and a little less upper treble energy. Swapping pads will make more difference than that. Probably the only significant difference is the fabric on the pads,

https://headphones.com/blogs/reviews/focal-2022-utopia-how-does-it-compare-to-original

Another prove that we shouldn't judge the headphone sound character based on frequency response. Even when comparison is about between two different headphones with same brand, same level (flagship) and still use same name.

 

[TDinCali]

Just picked up a Nutopia and I really like what I hear. It’s still early (under 10 hours) but I really like some of the characteristics. Speed, imaging, sensitivity, energy, detail, comfort and design. Can’t wait for it to play at its full potential.

 

[TDinCali]

It is funny to say this in this setting, but really, you can't trust your ears. Well you could, if they were the only part of yourself that was truly involved in this type of decision, but as I am pretty confident you already know, conditioning is at play. It is very hard to accept that the mega expensive box with all of the technical jargon and discussion about inaudible parameters isn't better than the much less expensive, perfectly adequate one. We fear that there is that ever so slight secret sauce that we are missing, then because in truth we want to purchase the exotic, probably more beautiful to look at and play with mega buck product, we start the process of filtering out what we don't want to hear, that we don't need to waste all that money for no audible benefit, a position clearly demonstrated by scientific evidence, and start focusing on what we want to hear because it confirms our true desire.

Once we are there and now filtering out the evidence that challenges our desire, we now can completely focus on the subjective evidence only. Before you know it, you plunk down the huge money, and what a surprise, you start to hear what everybody who did what you did hears. There is no reason in the realm of physics that the Utopia 2022 cannot be driven to absolute, and perfect audible transparency with many quite affordable amps paired with an equally affordable DAC in the chain. That is all I was saying. I am not saying there are not other reasons to buy mega buck products, there are, and everybody has to decide what they want for themselves, but along the way we shouldn't assume that the laws of physics have suddenly been rendered moot. It is ok to want what we want, just because we want it.

I’m sorry but all amps don’t sound the same. Can a $400 amp drive an efficient headphone well? Yes absolutely. But that’s not the same thing as saying all amps sound the same or a $400 amp will drive all headphones to their full potential. Maybe I’m reading too much into your post- I must admit I’m scanning the thread backwards so if I missed something I’m sorry.

 

[jamesjames]

I'd go further. In addition to differences between the performance of amps (which affects their sound), there are differences between the technical characteristics of headphones which, in turn, affects the performance of amps. In short, with headphones more than many other transducers, it's the combination of phones and amp that needs to be considered by the buyer. No amp is perfect. Some work better with high impedance phones. Some are better at delivering current. Some are great if they don't need to deliver high SPLs, but not otherwise. Whether a particular amp will perform well in a particular system is the real question. And that's a very sensible question for potential buyers - with real systems - to consider.

Beware the self-appointed expert.