Focal Clear Review (headphone)

[Jimbob54]

Thanks for the analysis, If I am reading it well, Clear is much easier to drive thus I find it amazing to listen to it that volume and setting amirm mentions.

Which volume and setting please? (it's too hard to track back through the thread)

 

[ezra_s]

Which volume and setting please? (it's too hard to track back through the thread)

amirm mentioned he was getting clear to clip at -17dBr with the rme setting to high-power in the Clear.

I don't have the clear so I can't comment but that surpised me because my crappy headphones are all low impedance and I usually play them at -40dbR low gain in the RME, and the most difficult I have (beyerndynamic dt800 600ohm) -15dbR with high-gain setting in the RME is quite loud and probably not suited for long periods of listening, so I wonder how that must be with the Clear with 55ohm and such sensititivy.

But I ask out of ignorance/curiosity, don't want to start a debate or anything.

Refered post about the song:
https://www.audiosciencereview.com/...ocal-clear-review-headphone.18585/post-608492

 

[Jimbob54]

amirm mentioned he was getting clear to clip at -17dBr with the rme setting to high-power in the Clear.

I don't have the clear so I can't comment but that surpised me because my crappy headphones are all low impedance and I usually play them at -40dbR low gain in the RME, and the most difficult I have (beyerndynamic dt800 600ohm) -15dbR with high-gain setting in the RME is quite loud and probably not suited for long periods of listening, so I wonder how that must be with the Clear with 55ohm and such sensititivy.

But I ask out of ignorance/curiosity, don't want to start a debate or anything.

Refered post about the song:
https://www.audiosciencereview.com/...ocal-clear-review-headphone.18585/post-608492

Yeah, don't have an RME, do have the Clear. The clipping requires high volume, louder than I play at, but mine do pop as described if pushed .

Amir tests up to high levels! Those frequencies and volumes are something of a torture test but (EDIT- the popping/ clipping) really shouldn't happen. If pushed high, I also find the Clear to get shouty too, even if EQd.

 

[ezra_s]

Yeah, don't have an RME, do have the Clear. The clipping requires high volume, louder than I play at, but mine do pop as described if pushed .

Amir tests up to high levels! Those frequencies and volumes are something of a torture test but really shouldn't happen. If pushed high, I also find the Clear to get shouty too, even if EQd.

I see, thank you very much for your feedback!

 

[JIW]

amirm mentioned he was getting clear to clip at -17dBr with the rme setting to high-power in the Clear.

I don't have the clear so I can't comment but that surpised me because my crappy headphones are all low impedance and I usually play them at -40dbR low gain in the RME, and the most difficult I have (beyerndynamic dt800 600ohm) -15dbR with high-gain setting in the RME is quite loud and probably not suited for long periods of listening, so I wonder how that must be with the Clear with 55ohm and such sensititivy.

But I ask out of ignorance/curiosity, don't want to start a debate or anything.

Refered post about the song:
https://www.audiosciencereview.com/...ocal-clear-review-headphone.18585/post-608492

With the volume of the RME set to -15 dBr, the DT880 will produce about 104 dB SPL for 0 dBFS peaks. For highly dynamic music such as big symphonies or some jazz, that is fine since the average level will likely be at or even below 80 dB SPL. For less dynamic music, average levels may well be above 90 dB SPL which is indeed quite loud.

The track referred to above is quite loud - RMS level for the whole track is -10.67 dBFS and -10.72 dBFS, for the left and right channel respectively, peak level is over digital maximum for both channels. For the above volume setting, that gives an average level of about 93 dB SPL and peak level of at least 104 dB SPL. Quite loud indeed and consistently so (see waveform below).

Also, the spectrograms show that the low tone at the end is at about 15 Hz as pointed out by @MZKM. No wonder it gives the Clear trouble.

 

[joseG86]

Hi there,

I've been playing around with my Clears Pro for 1 week, I got them for 999€ brand new in Spain.

Firstable thanks Amir and the people sharing all the knowledge and experience about this HP, I wasn't really aware about the clipping situation yet I clearly heared it in many songs attaching it to maybe the USB connection between the PC-D90 but it didn't never happen not even once with my Aryas.

I have 1 week to return it and get a full refund or try and use the warranty to get new ones from Focal or "repair" this issue. I don't find convenient paying such high price and being limited to use it at half its potential.

What would you suggest me to do in this regard?

Thank you so much, "happy" new year.

 

[Jimbob54]

Hi there,

I've been playing around with my Clears Pro for 1 week, I got them for 999€ brand new in Spain.

Firstable thanks Amir and the people sharing all the knowledge and experience about this HP, I wasn't really aware about the clipping situation yet I clearly heared it in many songs attaching it to maybe the USB connection between the PC-D90 but it didn't never happen not even once with my Aryas.

I have 1 week to return it and get a full refund or try and use the warranty to get new ones from Focal or "repair" this issue. I don't find convenient paying such high price and being limited to use it at half its potential.

What would you suggest me to do in this regard?

Thank you so much, "happy" new year.

If it makes the horrid crack /pop during anything like your normal listening level, return it. If you are cranking way above normal but love them at usual levels, keep.

If you don't get on with them at any volume, return!

The clipping Amir discusses should only be at extreme (arguably unlistenable) levels, not during regular sessions.

 

[amirm]

What would you suggest me to do in this regard?

I would definitely return it if it is happening in many songs. Even a few was too much for me. There are so many headphone choices out there that there is no reason to put up with a defect like this.

 

[joseG86]

I'd be probably returning them. Honestly, I can't find them better than my Arya and I'm very perfeccionist to keep something I know it's not working properly even if it's only at a very high volume.

Thank you so much, I really really like this forum and I've been an "audiophile" for just 1 month so far haha.

 

[Jimbob54]

I'd be probably returning them. Honestly, I can't find them better than my Arya and I'm very perfeccionist to keep something I know it's not working properly even if it's only at a very high volume.

Thank you so much, I really really like this forum and I've been an "audiophile" for just 1 month so far haha.

Good logic. Welcome!

 

[Aerith Gainsborough]

What would you suggest me to do in this regard?
Thank you so much, "happy" new year.

Simple: if they hit Xmax in your actual everyday use-case: return them immediately.
It makes 0 sense to keep hardware that isn't viable for what you want to do with it, especially at a price point like this.

Edit: well curiosity got the better of me.... after fighting off the nagging of my inner basshead for most of the day, I gave Senpai's EQ settings a shot:

This is as far as I can go w/o introducing digital clipping. Driver did not hit Xmax, though my gut tells me that I'm probably this |.| close to it.
Clear Turned into a bass cannon.
I admit that it is boatloads of fun in the short term but my ears fatigue quickly. The bass is too much, not to mention the volume.

Technically I do have too much bass according to the Harman target now, since I did not compensate for the boost introduced by the output impedance of my soundcard.

 

[joseG86]

I'll be playing and testing until next Monday, not really sure about returning them haha, this Focal Clear is no joke. With some EQ and some DSP like Dolby they're really something else paired with the D90/A90.

Damn, they sound really really really good

 

[Count Arthur]

My twopence worth.

I've had a pair of Focal Clear for about a year and I found them to be a nice improvement on the Sennheiser HD650 I had previously. I liked the HD650s very much, but I liked the Clears more; enough that I no longer listened to the HD650s. The main difference being added clarity - I guess the clue's in the name.

I've never noticed any problem with clipping even with some really bass heavy electronica. I've played around with some EQ settings I've found on the web, but I'm totally happy with them "straight out of the box" and don't feel that the EQ settings I've tried are essential. I can hear the difference, but i don't have a strong preference for the sound with or without.

 

[ezra_s]

With the volume of the RME set to -15 dBr, the DT880 will produce about 104 dB SPL for 0 dBFS peaks. For highly dynamic music such as big symphonies or some jazz, that is fine since the average level will likely be at or even below 80 dB SPL. For less dynamic music, average levels may well be above 90 dB SPL which is indeed quite loud.

The track referred to above is quite loud - RMS level for the whole track is -10.67 dBFS and -10.72 dBFS, for the left and right channel respectively, peak level is over digital maximum for both channels. For the above volume setting, that gives an average level of about 93 dB SPL and peak level of at least 104 dB SPL. Quite loud indeed and consistently so (see waveform below).
View attachment 102662

Also, the spectrograms show that the low tone at the end is at about 15 Hz as pointed out by @MZKM. No wonder it gives the Clear trouble.
View attachment 102666
View attachment 102664

Amazing Feedback! Thank you so much, that pretty much clears it.

 

[Kazusa]

Assuming that I cannot replicate the clicking issues even with eq at my listening volume, would this be a good choice compared to the HD800s’s?

 

[Jimbob54]

Assuming that I cannot replicate the clicking issues even with eq at my listening volume, would this be a good choice compared to the HD800s’s?

Different. At this price it really comes down to preference . I can wear 800s all day without really thinking. The Clear are heavier and you notice them. EQ them both and it comes down to ultimate detail (Clear) vs overall presentation of sound (HD800) and ultimate comfort (I dont have the S)

 

[rmsanger]

lol ASR hates every single one of my beloved hifi gear... I've listened to dozens of speakers and multiple dozens of headphones...

I can't praise my Maggie LRS + Hegel H160 + Holo Spring KTE chain setup enough... I also feed my headphones from Holo -> Phonitor E / Holo Mammoth KTE -> Focal clear, Klipsch HP-3, Audeze LCD-X chain and can't praise it enough as well. Are noticeable improvements made from EQ'ing of course but boy I think you guys get it wrong more than you get it right.

I got my Clears used for $500 off headfi so the value prop for me was perfect!

Adios

 

[Tachyon88]

lol ASR hates every single one of my beloved hifi gear... I've listened to dozens of speakers and multiple dozens of headphones...

I can't praise my Maggie LRS + Hegel H160 + Holo Spring KTE chain setup enough... I also feed my headphones from Holo -> Phonitor E / Holo Mammoth KTE -> Focal clear, Klipsch HP-3, Audeze LCD-X chain and can't praise it enough as well. Are noticeable improvements made from EQ'ing of course but boy I think you guys get it wrong more than you get it right.

I got my Clears used for $500 off headfi so the value prop for me was perfect!

Adios

What ? Pretty much everyone seems to like them and the people with reservations dont want to pay over a grand for something that is going to potentially clip even if at sometimes higher listening levels. All of that sounds reasonable to me.

 

[ezra_s]

lol ASR hates every single one of my beloved hifi gear... I've listened to dozens of speakers and multiple dozens of headphones...

I can't praise my Maggie LRS + Hegel H160 + Holo Spring KTE chain setup enough... I also feed my headphones from Holo -> Phonitor E / Holo Mammoth KTE -> Focal clear, Klipsch HP-3, Audeze LCD-X chain and can't praise it enough as well. Are noticeable improvements made from EQ'ing of course but boy I think you guys get it wrong more than you get it right.

I got my Clears used for $500 off headfi so the value prop for me was perfect!

Adios

I think you are missing the point completely. I don't think noone is telling you what to like or not either. Trying to read ASR like a bible or a creed one must follow literally...No no

 

[Rottmannash]

I think you are missing the point completely. I don't think noone is telling you what to like or not either. Trying to read ASR like a bible or a creed one must follow literally...No no

I can understand where he's coming from. So many audio products just don't measure that well and I own a few of them- bought some of them before I knew any better, and a few even after reading reviews and measurements here on ASR. It's rough to see some of your favorite gear trashed here. Makes one question one's ability to listen/ hear critically.