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Focal Celestee Review (Headphone)

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amirm

amirm

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Naive question:
Would that be a lot of additional work to also check freq response with EQ ?

(Not for this one, obviously, but in the future)
Yes, it is a more difficult thing to test since my analyzer can't control the Roon player that is doing the EQ. I have configured the test so it can be done but it is fair bit of hassle. :)
 

dfuller

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Other reviewers have noted channel imbalances in the Focal clear MG as well. So its not like Amir's results are in a vacuum or unusual.
That tells me they're having some issues with drivers right now. Focal is usually good about this, but it's a new driver so I wonder if volume manufacturing is causing issues?
 

phoenixsong

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Interested to see how the Empyrean would perform relative to other expensive headphones, given its hybrid design
 

phoenixsong

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The measurement unit is flawed at high frequencies. Read his 'explaining headphone measurements' for details.

I think Amir's site is more powerful than most of us appreciate. Schiit has seen a huge increase in sales, several times if I understand correctly. I have no doubt that Amir's first articles and the Schiit storm that ensued is responsible for 2x Schiit's sales from what they were before (other factors have had as big an impact).

When you have that big a potential market impact (won't happen here, Focal will ignore it as they're already a big fish), you should do the right thing and make certain that something that is OUTSIDE THE NORM of expected results would be checked.

I trust Focal not to be stupid enough to release such a headphone with such a channel imbalance.
Even if Amir went out of his way to secure a second set for you and it measured well, it still would not be enough to restore customer confidence in the brand/line of headphones. This is up to the manufacturer to decide if they care enough to do something about, and rack their brains to see what they can do. It is not Amir's product- I fail to see how it is his responsibility to secure a large sample pool of an individual product to conduct a research finding out exactly what the mismatch rate is for it. He'd probably be dead coughing up blood by the time he's gone through maybe three headphones if he were to go through this nightmarish, resource-costly and useless process lol, which would also be outdated by the time he publishes his results

(And yeah, you said Focal would ignore this as they are a big fish, implying that they do not care; yet you finished off saying that you trust Focal will not be foolish enough to release a headphone with such channel imbalance. Why would they not, if they really do not care as you have suggested? And if they care enough, wouldn't they proactively do something about it on their own accord? I see neither your points made nor the validity of your concerns- it seems like you are contradicting yourself)
 
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don'ttrustauthority

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(And yeah, you said Focal would ignore this as they are a big fish, implying that they do not care; yet you finished off saying that you trust Focal will not be foolish enough to release a headphone with such channel imbalance. Why would they not, if they really do not care as you have suggested? And if they care enough, wouldn't they proactively do something about it on their own accord? I see neither your points made nor the validity of your concerns- it seems like you are contradicting yourself)
I meant to say that they wouldn't care about one review if it was aberrant because their advertizing would quickly fight off anything that would happen here. They have a lot more money that Schiit, not to mention message discipline.

I believe it would be foolish to, and they wouldn't release headphones with such a wide channel imbalance if it was part of the design. Mistakes happen. Even if you don't think Amir owes to Focal to double check an aberrant result, if he claims to be doing science he owes it to his reader.
 

don'ttrustauthority

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Other reviewers have noted channel imbalances in the Focal clear MG as well. So its not like Amir's results are in a vacuum or unusual.
Then I have seriously overestimated the company's care for it's rep. I just didn't think Focal would sell a product that is so obviously flawed by design. I figured it had to be an aberration. Wow am I an idiot!
 

Tachyon88

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Then I have seriously overestimated the company's care for it's rep. I just didn't think Focal would sell a product that is so obviously flawed by design. I figured it had to be an aberration. Wow am I an idiot!

Keep your powder dry, because it might not be a flaw, but a "feature"...

/s
 

richard12511

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Thanks for the review!



Haem... The Harman Target, maybe?View attachment 121087

This is one the closest match I've seen since HF are measured. Or perhaps I'm missing something...

Sure, channel mismatch below 80Hz is barely acceptable at this price point. Still:
I beg to differ: K371 mismatch post-5Khz will be much more significant and audible.


430g.

Yeah this is definitely the best headphone we've seen measured to date in terms of matching the Harman target. Better than the K371.
Channel mismatch is a huge problem, though, and shouldn't be here for $1,000. I wonder how much better they would sound with better balance. If I was the owner, I'd likely contact Focal and ask for a replacement.
 

Maiky76

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Can you optimize for a 5 band PEQ (RME)?

Thanks.

Hi,

There you go:
Focal Celestee EQ Redux Dashboard.png
 

Attachments

  • Focal Celestee APO EQ Redux 96000Hz.txt
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richard12511

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I'm saying to allow the corporation to dictate what Amir can publish.

This is a horrible idea imo. If the manufacturers dictate what reviews Amir can publish, then we'd never see negative reviews. This is of course how most reviewers do it, but it's also the reason why ASR reviews are infinitely more useful than those others.
 

phoenixsong

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This is a horrible idea imo. If the manufacturers dictate what reviews Amir can publish, then we'd never see negative reviews. This is of course how most reviewers do it, but it's also the reason why ASR reviews are infinitely more useful than those others.
My thoughts exactly- that would defeat the whole purpose of having this site to begin with
 

ShiZo

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fMaybe not. In the first instance, I'm repeating what the authority said about his own gear.

in the second, I'm saying to allow the corporation to dictate what Amir can publish.

how is that questioning authority?
Why do you think the manufacturer should dictate what Amir could publish? That seems like a conflict of interest.
 

solderdude

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Signing an NDA so info about a new product that isn't launched yet, to me, is something very different than a manufacturer reviewing an upcoming review by Amir and telling Amir what he can and cannot publish is another thing and IMO not acceptable.
Also when Amir has gotten a device in for measuring or comments under the conditions Amir can not publish anything and only report to the manufacturer (I assume getting paid for such service) also is another thing.
When Amir finds it to be a health hazard and the manufacturer makes no attempt to improve on the device I think that part should be published for general safety concerns.
 

don'ttrustauthority

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Why do you think the manufacturer should dictate what Amir could publish? That seems like a conflict of interest.
I don't know. But apparently, I do. I should question how much I don't trust authority.
 

Robbo99999

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I don't know. But apparently, I do. I should question how much I don't trust authority.
You just got a problem with authority, instead just gain an impression & reality from each situation/person based on your judgement....independant of the authority factor. (You are the authority)
 
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don'ttrustauthority

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Keep your powder dry, because it might not be a flaw, but a "feature"...

/s
That's what I am saying. I never thought in a million years it'd be feature, I assumed it was damaged in transit since I assume Focal would not release a headphone with such an obvious problem. But the data is telling people that they have!

So much for don'ttrustauthority, looks like I lick clean Authoritie's jizum.
 
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