Focal Clear Professional Review

[Ken Tajalli]

I had one of these.
Didn't like them!
Build quality, cables, packaging , everything was very good, sound wasn't .
It was like getting a beautiful box from Tiffany's , only to find a 99c mug inside.
Was sold on eBay within weeks.

 

[KeithPhantom]

This track is a sure thing to make it happen:

On RME ADI-2 Pro, I recall the level being around -10 dB on the volume control. I got it to happen with and without EQ but it is far worse with the former.

Good track, I have one test song that even shows if your amplifier is weak by clipping it. I can easily clip my AirPods Pro’s internal amp at moderate volumes and can clip my DX3 Pro+ With my 560S if I use it in low gain. This is what made me not underestimate how much power headphones may need (especially after EQ).

 

[Garrincha]

Debateable maybe, I don't have the clear but really the Elex is quite close both in measured and AB listening comparison , and to me this is yes a night and day difference. Quite honestly, this "serie" to my knowledge was pretty much the first time we started to see some decent bass extension on a dynamic easy to drive open back set. No really it was like ohh... finally... some bottom.... And ahh... Yes, I can just plug that in my laptop 3.5 mm and it sounds sweet! And even in general clarity, It was pretty obvious to me a 650 sounded more muted and less dynamic, less engaging. Maybe just my perception and OK I admit I am talking Non-EQed, there are tons of cases where this is called for to not have a decent amp and EQ is not immediately convenient, relevent or even possible. No it's not a perfect tonality but really good enough often and giving the few parameter I enumerate... Hard to beat on some of those considerations. Yes some are better at 1 or 2 things, but as an all rounder?...Opinion here not hard facts... And well... It was 5-6 years ago, in this market it seams almost ancient... Now of course closed backs had the bass sorted out with much more impact, and Planar could have even better fidelity but with a big amp... you win some you lose some but this is very good stuff to me really.

I have not listend to the Clear, but.... from the frequency response alone, also using the oratory measurements, (https://www.dropbox.com/s/hqb9zjsvc2nu5zc/Focal Clear.pdf?dl=0, https://www.dropbox.com/s/zr5tqw0qojom9uh/Sennheiser HD650.pdf?dl=0) the HD 650 has a better tonality, a better midrange and a better compliance to the Harman target. Yes, the Clear has some more dB in the bass region, but both are well below the target and need EQ anyway to get a decent bass. So I hardly doubt the Clear is soundwise superior, I would rather expect the opposite. By the way, the HD650 came out 2003, and is still much more Harmanesque. And "more dynamic, more engaging" is so subjective and most probably plain wrong, if not meaningless, that it belongs more on head fi.org.

 

[Garrincha]

This track is a sure thing to make it happen:

On RME ADI-2 Pro, I recall the level being around -10 dB on the volume control. I got it to happen with and without EQ but it is far worse with the former.

I came to know Terje Isungset here through ASR, great music, another advantage of this phantastic forum. The track is really a nice sub bass test. My Sundara, with EQ from oratory, and even augmenting the suggested boost by a few dB in the bass and subbass region, plays it just fine.

 

[okok]

Are the Elear and Utopia clipping and crackling too?

 

[Ken Tajalli]

Are the Elear and Utopia clipping and crackling too?

I did not like the Clear (said so a few posts up), however, I did listen to Utopia and Stellia, at CanJam, and I did like them.
The sound was clear, distortion free, no clicking, no clipping.
Both sounded very good indeed, but still I don't think they are worth the money.
Build quality is almost in a league of its own! Very French with beautiful carry cases and the lot.
You will be paying towards the luxury side of the phones as well.

 

[Aerith Gainsborough]

Are the Elear and Utopia clipping and crackling too?

ALL focal cans do it, since it's a deliberate design decision they make.
The level at which they hit Xmax varies extremely though. On mine, they bottom out at levels I would never listen to but I have read from others that they got the problem waaay sooner, to the point that normal listening was impossible.

Such variations are clearly unacceptable for a 1500€ can.

 

[DonR]

ALL focal cans do it, since it's a deliberate design decision they make.
The level at which they hit Xmax varies extremely though. On mine, they bottom out at levels I would never listen to but I have read from others that they got the problem waaay sooner, to the point that normal listening was impossible.

Such variations are clearly unacceptable for a 1500€ can.

So it is not just an issue between various models but a manufacturing variation as well?

 

[Aerith Gainsborough]

This track is a sure thing to make it happen:

On RME ADI-2 Pro, I recall the level being around -10 dB on the volume control. I got it to happen with and without EQ but it is far worse with the former.

Low or high gain?
-10dB (low gain) is not a problem but I can tell that it is close to hitting Xmax. The treble of the bells is painfully loud to me though.
For reference, my usual listening volume is around -26dB. :'D

FYI: I run a G+3.5dB low shelf F 120 Q 0.7 EQ on my Clear. It was active during the test as well.

Tanks for the track. My Sub scared the rattling crap out of my glass door. *chuckles*

So it is not just an issue between various models but a manufacturing variation as well?

Seems that way. Quite a few peeps on head-fi have just RMA'd a couple until they got one that didn't "clip" early.

 

[DonR]

Seems that way. Quite a few peeps on head-fi have just RMA'd a couple until they got one that didn't "clip" early.

Thanks. The QC lottery I can play on a $150 headphone, not on a $1500 one.

 

[okok]

ALL focal cans do it, since it's a deliberate design decision they make.
The level at which they hit Xmax varies extremely though. On mine, they bottom out at levels I would never listen to but I have read from others that they got the problem waaay sooner, to the point that normal listening was impossible.

give the 1mv 104db sensitivity, anything over 9'clock is abusing the system, these little 40mm drivers can't be pushing too hard
imagine metal tweeter, just can't push too much air, it ain't 13" woofer

hd800s got 56mm big drivers, no metal

 

[Aerith Gainsborough]

give the 1mv 104db sensitivity, anything over 9'clock is abusing the system, these little 40mm drivers can't be pushing too hard
imagine metal tweeter, just can't push too much air, it ain't 13" woofer

hd800s got 56mm big drivers, no metal

My Clear can do bass to the point that my ears feel actual pain.

Ofc if you are insistent to blast 20Hz at 110dB+ into such a driver, yeah: you will be excursion limited.

I don't think the problem is the design itself. I get about the same usable volume out of my DT880 as I get out of my Clear, though the DT880 reaches it's limit in a more gradual / graceful manner. The problem is that some units seem to hit their excursion limits way earlier than others.

It would be cool if Amir could measure the exact dB level over frequency at which the Clear reaches Xmax but I can imagine that he probably does not want to punish such an expensive piece of hardware so harshly and risk permanent damage.

 

[okok]

I don't think the problem is the design itself.

there're tons of reports about early (pre-2019) Elear and Utopia became suddenly no sound, the reason is the tiny wire connected to the voice coil is broken due to some bursting dB

and the soldering is not too good, sometimes it's messy, weird tin balls

 

[Aerith Gainsborough]

there're tons of reports about early (pre-2019) Elear and Utopia became suddenly no sound, the reason is the tiny wire connected to the voice coil is broken due to some bursting dB

and the soldering is not too good, sometimes it's messy, weird tin balls

That has nothing to do with design and more with manufacturing experience. If the problem was inherent to the design, it would persist.

 

[reza]

I got a pair of OG Clears recently, refurbished by focal. I haven’t been able to get them to crackle. At extreme levels on bass heavy tracks, I get a very polite clicking noise, but nothing like what I have seen on YouTube clips. Either I got really lucky, which would be rarity, or they have changed something in the refurbished units.
For reference, I also have the K371, HD650, and the new MM500, all EQed to Harman target. The clears are my favorite.

 

[solderdude]

That has nothing to do with design and more with manufacturing experience. If the problem was inherent to the design, it would persist.

This has been solved indeed. The wires from the membrane to the chassis are made longer and do not 'snap' off even at max. excursions as happened with some of the earlier models.
The driver basically is a dome tweeter that has rubber surrounds and thus can make larger swings. The rubber surrounds also are responsible for the much lower resonance frequency than most other HP drivers. To prevent the driver shooting out of the airgap the solution used was hardlimiting maximum excursion (the loud clicking) which protects the driver. As long as one does not require very high listening levels nor boost bass a lot these sound fine (right out of the box) and 'clear' (because of the elevated 1-2kHz range).
The MG version is a less 'bright' sounding headphone which some people might like over the original (2-8kHz is lower than in original Clear).
Fortunately with EQ one can get these to sound equally good as well.

 

[Cougar]

I have to say I never experienced this with my Focal Elegia.
And I listen to (very) loud level, from time to time.

I have the Elear and also never had this issue.

 

[Cougar]

This is a review, detailed measurements and listening tests of Focal Clear Pro headphone. It is on kind loan from a member and costs US $1499.
View attachment 227912
As our British friends say, the Clear Pro "looks the part." It a unique and luxurious design. Comfort was very good although the cups are on the smaller size. The headband spring is quite progressive and gets stiff fast. So if you have a wider head, it may not be so easy to ear.

The standard cord supplied with it is rather thick, short and kind of stiff. Not a fan.

The measurements you are about to see are made using a standardized Gras 45C. Please note that headphone measurements are not very exact so variations exist between reviewers especially in higher frequencies.

Edit: I was told the headphone was the "MG" version. It is not. It is Clear Professional.

Focal Clear Pro Measurements
Let's start with our usual frequency response:
View attachment 227913
This is almost identical to Focal Clear I reviewed a while ago. Sadly this means shortfall in bass response and various deviations from 1 kHz up. There was also 2 to 3 dB channel level difference which I could not dial out no matter what I did. Hand pressure on the low output pad would fix this partially but I could not make it do so by itself.

Here is the deviation from the target to use to develop equalization:
View attachment 227914

Dynamic range and distortion are disappointing at higher output levels. I could easily hear the drivers crackling during 114 dBSPL -- a defect that I have only heard with Focal headphones:
View attachment 227915

View attachment 227916

Impedance is highly variable due to a very large low frequency peak:
View attachment 227917

So if you have a high impedance headphone amp, you are going to get different frequency response than what I measured.

Group delay is messy:
View attachment 227918

Sensitivity is about average:

View attachment 227919

Focal Clear Pro Listening Tests and Equalizations
Out of the box lack of bass was obvious and overall sound while not bad, wasn't exciting either. So out came the EQ tool:

View attachment 227920
It is non-trivial to develop an EQ above bass due to fair amount of variations. I used negative filtering to simplify equalization in the 4 to 6 kHz. The negative filter took down a resonance which improved clarity. And then I boosted the overall region with a more gentle filter. Once there, the sound was transformed substantially and was impressive at times.

The disappointment came from any attempt to push the headphone during bass heavy tracks. The drivers created nasty crackling sound forcing me to turn the volume down. In a sea of competition without this issue, I am so surprised that Focal continues with the same low excursion drivers even with this revision.

Conclusions
At low to medium volumes and with equalization the Clear Professional produces very good fidelity. Turn up the volume or defeat EQ and it becomes a headphone not worthy of the brand. Combine that with the nearly $1,500 price and the limitations become quite glaring.

I personally would not choose or recommend the Focal Clear Pro. But if you like it for some other reason, then be sure to use equalization and keep the volumes down for best performance.

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As always, questions, comments, recommendations, etc. are welcome.

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My Fostex T50RP with a few mods sounds better than the Focal Clear.

 

[mr.at]

I have the Elear and also never had this issue.

Is what I'm saying. Elex; never this issue. That's 3 variants now.
@Rja4000 the Elegia though - since it's closed, it may already limit such wild excursions.

 

[Cougar]

Wasn't the original Clear about $700 ? Which I think is already very expensive for what you get. And now basically the same headphone with a bit fancier accessories for the double? Well, I am not interested. Appears like rents in Paris. The address may be fancy, but the apartment tiny, old, shabby and ridiculously overpriced.

I'm going by memory but if correct the Clears went over $1000 easy.