My take on the
Focal Listen headphones (3 out of 5 stars)
They're okay but nothing special.
I found them uncomfortable to wear and therefore irritating even for short periods as the headband rubber is hard on the head and the clamping force is high.
The earpads are borderline on-ear/over-ear and I found that they squash the ears.
The sound is very average to me with decent mids but nothing special, bass and treble are rolled off and non distinct.
Overall, I found they lacked the dynamics, excitement, energy, attack and transparency in the music that I had hoped for.
I find it hard to say that much positive about these headphones but they appear to be built well with a very strong headband that is unlikely to break even though I gave it plenty of stick trying to reduce clamping pressure.
I paired them with a Chord Mojo as well as my Hidizs AP100 DAP and Fiio A5 and Fiio A12A Amps - in all possible combinations.
Overall, I find it hard to recommend these headphones and I don't understand some of the high praise they get - I found them a forgettable experience at best.
To sum it all up - I felt a bit like this (if I was her and not the dog!)