[mobbaddict]

Hi, brand new here! Received these in the mail today, and I'm quite impressed with the combination of build and sound quality. Makes a nice pairing with my Elear (with elex pads). I'm very impressed with the treble as it feels very revealing for something that doesn't seem too harsh. actually in a lot of ways it seems comparable to my Elear setup, basically an Elex. What pads are you guys liking? I think the sheepskin are probably gonna be the mainstays for me.

Welcome to the club It took me a while to decide but these days I only use the velour pads which suit more my tastes: more mid centric and focused on sheer transparency. I also like the intimate soundstage they provide. To me the leather try to provide a bigger sound à la Audeze which can also be seducing in its own way. But I feel like the velour pads are more honest with the sound.

 

[archsam]

I have been reading a lot about the ERA-1 and the Audeze LCD-2C, and I'm trying to decide if either of them are good compliments to my Focal Clear?

I read someone mentioned the sound signature of the ERA-1 is similar to the Clear, if that's the case it might not be worthwhile for me to get them?

I have auditioned the LCD-2 against the Clear over a year ago, and decided to get the Clear. I was driving both cans with my Sony ZX300 that day and I suspected it did not have enough power to do the LCD-2 justice (I did not turn the high gain on that afternoon).

I have also considered Hifiman but my impression is they have a similar character to the Clear and not necessarily better?

I still love my Focal Clear, but I got the itch to give a different flavour a taste, and I always wanted to try a pair of planer cans

Any suggestions?

 

[coletrain104]

if you want something different other than just planar vs. dynamic sound, then LCD may be your best bet. I personally like a lot of Hifimans and LCD2C AND the Quad. The Quads are decently similar to my Elex, and the way that the quad differs is that it has better treble extension with the sheepskin, but the tonal balance of the Focal may be a bit better balanced. I'd say you get bigger bass from most Hifimans and Audeze than the ERA-1. As for which Hifimans you'd like, it depends on your tastes and budget.

 

[Uebelkraehe]

if you want something different other than just planar vs. dynamic sound, then LCD may be your best bet.

+1, the LCD-2c is probably the most different from Focal Clears of the mentioned headphones. Although i like the ERA-1 quite a bit more, the LCD-2C are too muddy for my taste.

 

[archsam]

Thanks for the tips!

It does sounds like the Quad might just be a bit too similar to the Focal to justify the purchase?

My go-to headphones for the moment are the Focal Clear and Etymotic ER4-XR, so it's telling that I am big on clarity and a detail sound. For this reason I am a bit reluctant to go with the LCD-2C now since I read that the fazor LCD-2 offers better treble and detail, not to mention the famous bass performance. I might look into giving the LCD-2 a try then.

Don't think I can afford anything else beyond the £1000 price range anyway.....

 

[mobbaddict]

Thanks for the tips!

It does sounds like the Quad might just be a bit too similar to the Focal to justify the purchase?

My go-to headphones for the moment are the Focal Clear and Etymotic ER4-XR, so it's telling that I am big on clarity and a detail sound. For this reason I am a bit reluctant to go with the LCD-2C now since I read that the fazor LCD-2 offers better treble and detail, not to mention the famous bass performance. I might look into giving the LCD-2 a try then.

Don't think I can afford anything else beyond the £1000 price range anyway.....

I haven't heard the LCD2C but the fazor version is very decent for detail retrieval. For me the biggest shift you will experience versus a Focal is the tonality which will be darker. I personally really liked it when I auditioned, I think it's very realistic. Not sure how it compares with the Quad since that was a few years ago. But it all depends on your expectations and what you don't like about the Focal.

On a sidenote, the Quad is typically the kind of headphone I would recommend to someone being addicted to the fast sound of balanced armature IEMs. Just in case you really like the Etymotics

 

[47anLoken]

New owner of Quad Era-1! Couldn't resist the price here in sweden ($400) so I sold my Fostex TH-X00 Mahogany (Lawton driver modded) and bought the Quads. Still have a pair of TR-X00 Purplehearts (also Lawton driver mod). Used to own Sennheiser HD 6XX but always felt that they were to thin in the lower regions which was sad because everything else was pretty damn good.

So far very pleased with the Quads, the tonality is in my opinion very much the same as with the Sennheisers but better all across the board. I definitely prefer the sheepskin pads, clarity and soundstage is much better than with the hybrid pads.

I definitely will keep my Fostex, they are so much fun and also a clearer sounding headphone with harder hitting bass.

Been pairing the Quads with both my Ifi hip dac and my Massdrop CTH (with LPS, NOS Siemens e88cc and Heed abacus dac).

Still have many hours to go burning them in (if that helps?). Guess I'll be back with more impressions later.

 

[47anLoken]

I've got 30 days try-before-you-buy and wonder how you guys/gals think they compares to the following headphones.

-Sennheiser HD 660s
-Sennheiser HD 800s
-Hifiman Sundara (especially the silent revision)
-Hifiman Ananda
-Focal Elear/Elex/Clear
-Fostex TH900

All of the above is more expensive than the Quads, except the Sundaras which cost just as much.

I've got family in the US so I was close getting the Elex, but got a little anxious when there seems to be some quality control issues with drivers dying quickly.

 

[Chris Kaoss]

A very welcome to the club.

I've compared them with the Clears only, head to head at a hifi shop in Munich.
The Clears sounded great too, but for my musical enjoyment they don't fit the bill.
It's hard to recall from memories bc it's 1 year ago, so i can't step very deep.
Maybe i've to go for a new audition to make a fair comparison again.

For more critical listening, i've the Monitor 5 on my hand, which is, imo, the best closed back headphone for this purpose.
While i love to listen to them, i'm glad to switch to the Quads to dive into the music.

In fact, i'm dedicated to their sonic signature the most.

Will heading for the Empyrian in the near future bc i was overwhelmed by the sound presention and overall comfort once.
Time will tell what will happen with the Quads next.

 

[47anLoken]

A very welcome to the club.

I've compared them with the Clears only, head to head at a hifi shop in Munich.
The Clears sounded great too, but for my musical enjoyment they don't fit the bill.
It's hard to recall from memories bc it's 1 year ago, so i can't step very deep.
Maybe i've to go for a new audition to make a fair comparison again.

For more critical listening, i've the Monitor 5 on my hand, which is, imo, the best closed back headphone for this purpose.
While i love to listen to them, i'm glad to switch to the Quads to dive into the music.

In fact, i'm dedicated to their sonic signature the most.

Will heading for the Empyrian in the near future bc i was overwhelmed by the sound presention and overall comfort once.
Time will tell what will happen with the Quads next.

Alot of people really seems to love the Clears, never heard them myself. Still kinda crazy that you among others feels that the Quads can keep up or even be more enjoyable than those. The Clears are four time more expensive than the Quads here in Sweden.

I would love to hear the Empyrians.

Cheers

 

[mobbaddict]

I've got 30 days try-before-you-buy and wonder how you guys/gals think they compares to the following headphones.

-Sennheiser HD 660s
-Sennheiser HD 800s
-Hifiman Sundara (especially the silent revision)
-Hifiman Ananda
-Focal Elear/Elex/Clear
-Fostex TH900

All of the above is more expensive than the Quads, except the Sundaras which cost just as much.

I've got family in the US so I was close getting the Elex, but got a little anxious when there seems to be some quality control issues with drivers dying quickly.

Among those I would say the Quad is less bright than both the HD800 and the Focals (didn't hear the Clear but even the Utopia stroke me as a bright headphone). You can go full volume on the Quad with the brightest songs, it will never sound aggressive. One thing to note is that Quad will probably sound more closed in and intimate than dynamic headphones, especially the HD800 which sounds super open and wide.

The other one I heard in the list is the TH900, I would expect the Quad to sound much livelier in the mid-range. I found the Fostex super bland to be honest (but that was the day I heard the Abyss so...). I don't understand how people can spend almost 2 grants on this. But that's just my opinion.

 

[47anLoken]

Among those I would say the Quad is less bright than both the HD800 and the Focals (didn't hear the Clear but even the Utopia stroke me as a bright headphone). You can go full volume on the Quad with the brightest songs, it will never sound aggressive. One thing to note is that Quad will probably sound more closed in and intimate than dynamic headphones, especially the HD800 which sounds super open and wide.

The other one I heard in the list is the TH900, I would expect the Quad to sound much livelier in the mid-range. I found the Fostex super bland to be honest (but that was the day I heard the Abyss so...). I don't understand how people can spend almost 2 grants on this. But that's just my opinion.

I guess the lack of brightness is both positive and negative. My purplehearts are definitely brighter (and bassier) and alternating these two makes the Quads sound a little less clear. Although in the long run I would prefer the sweet, lush and non-fatigueing sound of the Quads. They're are still very detailed and revealing which I want headphones to be. The TH900 seems to be headphones you either love or hate and since I really enjoy my Purplehearts I'd love to try them out. They're also really beautiful...

 

[coletrain104]

I guess the lack of brightness is both positive and negative. My purplehearts are definitely brighter (and bassier) and alternating these two makes the Quads sound a little less clear. Although in the long run I would prefer the sweet, lush and non-fatigueing sound of the Quads. They're are still very detailed and revealing which I want headphones to be. The TH900 seems to be headphones you either love or hate and since I really enjoy my Purplehearts I'd love to try them out. They're also really beautiful...

Don't be fooled, the quad is not particularly dark or lush. it just doesn't get that raspy/airy midrange quality that dynamic drivers have. To my ears, with the sheepskin pads it is brighter than the Elex, with velour they sound shockingly similar, but the quad is ever so slightly smoother. The Quads with sheepskin have really excellent treble detail and extension. Probably only HD800 on that list has widespread extension like that. I prefer the staging on the Focals (more intimate and enveloping), as the Quads image VERY distinctly to my ears. I'd say in my collection of headphones, the Elex and Quad compete for being the most technically adept. I have an Edition X V2 as well, and while their staging is huge and midrange is clear, it lacks treble extension and doesn't have enough bite to avoid sounding too soft/polite. Maybe Ananda have solved this with their better treble extension. If so they would be a true force of nature for the price. Quad with velour and Clear both have very isolated treble peaks, which has a tendency to emphasize the same frequencies in all recordings, in general. I have the Elex (really an Elear with Elex pads) and they carry a bit of this too.

I'm wondering, what are you looking to add to your collection? Personally having heard all but the Ananda and Clear, I'd probably give HD800/Ananda/Quad a go. An unexpected fun thing about the quads is included, easily swappable pads that make an impact on the sound. They are smaller and IMO less comfy than the other listed headphones.

 

[47anLoken]

Don't be fooled, the quad is not particularly dark or lush. it just doesn't get that raspy/airy midrange quality that dynamic drivers have. To my ears, with the sheepskin pads it is brighter than the Elex, with velour they sound shockingly similar, but the quad is ever so slightly smoother. The Quads with sheepskin have really excellent treble detail and extension. Probably only HD800 on that list has widespread extension like that. I prefer the staging on the Focals (more intimate and enveloping), as the Quads image VERY distinctly to my ears. I'd say in my collection of headphones, the Elex and Quad compete for being the most technically adept. I have an Edition X V2 as well, and while their staging is huge and midrange is clear, it lacks treble extension and doesn't have enough bite to avoid sounding too soft/polite. Maybe Ananda have solved this with their better treble extension. If so they would be a true force of nature for the price. Quad with velour and Clear both have very isolated treble peaks, which has a tendency to emphasize the same frequencies in all recordings, in general. I have the Elex (really an Elear with Elex pads) and they carry a bit of this too.

I'm wondering, what are you looking to add to your collection? Personally having heard all but the Ananda and Clear, I'd probably give HD800/Ananda/Quad a go. An unexpected fun thing about the quads is included, easily swappable pads that make an impact on the sound. They are smaller and IMO less comfy than the other listed headphones.

From what I read about the Quads they seemed to be pretty much what I was looking for. Something that could fill the gap after I sold my Sennheiser HD6XX. I wasn't thrilled about them and mostly cause I felt they were not extended enough in the lower regions. Loved the midrange and how I could listen to them for hours without feeling any fatigue at all. If the Quads are brighter than the Elex I'm glad I picked the Quads cause I have no problem at all with the brightness of the Quads with sheepskin pads. Since I can't audition many of the headphones I listed here in my hometown I have to take a chance buying stuff. Reading reviews and forums is my way of making decisions and so far it's been going well . But buying stuff always make me ask the question, did I make the best decision? From what I hear listening to them and what you guys saying I think the Quads maybe is the best choice for now. Thank you!

 

[coletrain104]

From what I read about the Quads they seemed to be pretty much what I was looking for. Something that could fill the gap after I sold my Sennheiser HD6XX. I wasn't thrilled about them and mostly cause I felt they were not extended enough in the lower regions. Loved the midrange and how I could listen to them for hours without feeling any fatigue at all. If the Quads are brighter than the Elex I'm glad I picked the Quads cause I have no problem at all with the brightness of the Quads with sheepskin pads. Since I can't audition many of the headphones I listed here in my hometown I have to take a chance buying stuff. Reading reviews and forums is my way of making decisions and so far it's been going well . But buying stuff always make me ask the question, did I make the best decision? From what I hear listening to them and what you guys saying I think the Quads maybe is the best choice for now. Thank you!

Haha no prob. I actually misunderstood and thought you were thinking of buying the quads against those you listed. Also FWIW you're not missing much with the TH900. I've heard few headphones as offensive in the treble, and many of them were more revealing. The bass is impactful and actually super clean, but its so forward in the mix, I was hearing the bass guitar as the most forefront instrument. This is all IMO based on headphone meet impressions, but I think it needs tuning/modding to reach proper quality for the price. It is certainly a 'flavored' sound. There is a reason Lawton lives, and presumably, thrives. People buy expensive headphone because it is beautiful then realize it needs a lot of help with its tuning.