[sperandeo]

I currently own a pair of Focal Elear and I absolutly adore them. I love them so much that I have been thinking of upgrading to the Utopia's. I have been writing Focal a few times in regards to Beryllium being toxic and should there be any concern about having this strapped around your head for hours at a time.
I first wrote to them about a month ago about my concern. They did write back to me letting me know they would get back to me shortly regarding my concern, they never did.
I have now written to them several times and have not heard back.

Does anyone know for certain if there should be any concern about having Beryllium in a headphone?

 

[bfreedma]

I currently own a pair of Focal Elear and I absolutly adore them. I love them so much that I have been thinking of upgrading to the Utopia's. I have been writing Focal a few times in regards to Beryllium being toxic and should there be any concern about having this strapped around your head for hours at a time.
I first wrote to them about a month ago about my concern. They did write back to me letting me know they would get back to me shortly regarding my concern, they never did.
I have now written to them several times and have not heard back.

Does anyone know for certain if there should be any concern about having Beryllium in a headphone?

Beryllium is typically only a toxicity risk during the manufacturing process as the damage is through inhalation of Be in powder form. Once in solid form, there is no risk unless you severely damage the drivers but it's hard to imagine how that would happen by accident.

Focal has been using Beryllium in their speaker tweeters for decades, so they have a lot of experience creating safe drivers with Be.

I would have no reservations.

 

[Muinarc]

If you can refrain from eating your headphones you'll be fine.

 

[wazzupi]

If you can refrain from eating your headphones you'll be fine.

Thats not possible I want the power of focal utopias !!

 

[involuntarysoul]

If you can refrain from eating your headphones you'll be fine.

that's a lot to ask for us audiophiles driven by impulse and lack of self control

 

[ubs28]

It’s only dangerous when manufacturing the Be drivers. So the employees of Focal are at risk. Which is also an other reason why I find $4000 for the Focal Utopia not too bad since people are putting their health and lives at risk manufacturing this headphone.

I guess the only danger a user has is if he tries to modify the Utopia or when the driver disintegrates by some strange reason.

 

[up late]

if only i'd known of this earlier

 

[wazzupi]

if only i'd known of this earlier

Are you dying ?

 

[rthomas]

This thought has crossed my mind before as well. It would be nice to have an official response from Focal about the precautions they have taken to protect headphone users in particular as the driver is right next to the face.

Is there an impermeable screen between the beryllium dome and the environment? What happens if a driver fails due to excess gain or something similar?

In the case of Be driver failures in speakers there are specific instructions about covering the driver with a sticker which is provided in case of damage.

Obviously this would not be necessary if there was no danger at all.

If they have already spoken about this concern with regard to the Utopia headphones can somebody please link to the statement? It could be buried in a 500 page thread somewhere I guess.

 

[up late]

Are you dying ?

aren't we all? thank you for your concern.

 

[sperandeo]

I also own Focal Solo6 Be Studio monitors, they also have a Beryllium tweeter. I was aware of the possible dangers of the Beryllium on the monitors but wasn't too concerned because they are not being handled at all. The Utopia on the other hand is being constantly handled and could drop and the Beryllium could get damaged without your knowledge as you continue to use the product strapped around your head.

I wasn't very concerned when I first wrote to Focal 3-4 weeks ago, but not getting a reply from them when they have confirmed receipt of my email has me somewhat concerned.

 

[up late]

This thought has crossed my mind before as well. It would be nice to have an official response from Focal about the precautions they have taken to protect headphone users in particular as the driver is right next to the face.

Is there an impermeable screen between the beryllium dome and the environment? What happens if a driver fails due to excess gain or something similar?

In the case of Be driver failures in speakers there are specific instructions about covering the driver with a sticker which is provided in case of damage.

Obviously this would not be necessary if there was no danger at all.

If they have already spoken about this concern with regard to the Utopia headphones can somebody please link to the statement? It could be buried in a 500 page thread somewhere I guess.

i'm not concerned in the slightest about my safety when wearing the utopia. now if i were to poke at the beryllium driver with a sharp object or wear the utopia while texting as i cross against a red light on a busy road, then i might have real cause for concern.

 

[involuntarysoul]

i'm not concerned in the slightest about my safety when wearing the utopia. now if i were to poke at the beryllium driver with a sharp object or wear the utopia while texting as i cross against a red light on a busy road, then i might have real cause for concern.

you forgot about eating them

 

[up late]

too risky

 

[Svatopluk]

I wonder if scrolling up and down on my tablet could put me at risk of developing some kind of horrible thumb disease.