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Focal owners: please help me

velasfloyd

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Hi everyone!

I am in the search of my new headphone. Currently I have Senn HD-650 and Beyer Amiron. I like HD-650 and I love Amiron.

In my country is difficult to find headphones, and import them is possible but add to the price a lot. Next week im going to San Francisco so it is my opportunity to grab a new one!! It is a short business travel so I will not have time to listen in a store.

After 2 millions hours of reading, these are the ones more interesting for me:

- Focal Elex
- Focal Elear
- Focal elegia
- Focal clear

Apart from that, I don't like to use real animal leather. In most of the products the pads or headbands says "leather", but oftentimes it's not real leather but pleather or some kind of synthetic. So this is the help I need from you Focal owners:

from the list I wrote: which one are free of animal leather?

and apart from that: which one would you recommend and which one not?

thanks in advace
 

solderdude

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which one are free of animal leather?

none, all of them have real leather headbands.
Elegia (better bass extension), Clear and Elex.

Am not a Focal owner nor will I likely become one.
 
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velasfloyd

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thanks @solderdude for your answer

I was reading the elex description and it says:
The Elear’s leather headband has been updated to more breathable perforated microfiber, and it still allows for length adjustment and ear cup rotation to provide long-wearing comfort for all head shapes and sizes.
So I was hoping it was animal leather free... :(
Also I had high hopes for elegia, you dont talk about it in your page.
why you say you wont likely become a focal owner?
 

solderdude

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Because of quality and warranty issues that I have seen reported and the hardclipping at louder volume levels.
I do like the sound of the Clear and most likely also the Stellia.
The Elear has a weirdness to it, The Elex I have never heard. it's a Elear with better pads I am told.

Have not measured, nor heard the Elegia nor Stellia yet... lack of time to do so.

AFAIK the microfiber material in the headband is only used in the contact area.
 

Tks

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These sorts of things I'd personally contact them and ask. They seem like folks that would be receptive to these basic questions.

Btw good on you for thinking about this (I'm vegan for I share a similar stance about the use of animal products, more so in luxury non-essential use cases).

I'm with solderdude on this one though, but not for the reasons he listed as to why he wouldn't use them. To me their ergonomics are questionable when I tried them. Not much articulation, and a headband design that is simply hot-spot prone like so many that use this antiquated design. Likewise with earcups that are round (ears aren't really round, people should take notes from what Sennhieser does, or some of HiFi-Man, or like the Meze Empyrean's).

There are so many products out there (not just in audio, but in almost every industry) that are really great performing products, but are just plagued with the most infantile stupidity one could imagine. It makes you believe there are some twisted mad-geniuses out there in the world, doing really amazing stuff on one front, and fumbling like idiots on another.
 

Lbstyling

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To be clear, the following is a subjective and thus probably pointless observation..

Neither
HiFIman are quite a bit better. (this is coming from a guy that has a $15k focal 5.1 setup in his living room!)

I hate the name of them, but OMG, those magneplaner drivers are good. Don't bother with the $6k ones, the $800 ones are just as good. They have 50% of the magic of the big magneplaner speakers that is just head and shoulders above alternatives, but without any of the drawbacks.

The synthesizer at the end of Travis Scott's 'Highest in the room' sent shivers down my spine.

I heard about 20 headphones back to back in a demo yesterday. Its was HiFi Man (various) or a close second for the Senn HD800s, nothing else came close for me.
 
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JohnYang1997

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In terms of sound, only focal headphones I like are Clear, ELEX(close enough to clear but I have not heard it), Stellia.
 

renaudrenaud

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thanks @solderdude for your answer

I was reading the elex description and it says:
So I was hoping it was animal leather free... :(
Also I had high hopes for elegia, you dont talk about it in your page.
why you say you wont likely become a focal owner?

SolderDude is the owner of this website where you will find invaluable information about headphones. I invite you to read and read again.

My feeling is you want to buy (something with the brand Focal on it). Maybe you can consider something else, ie listen to your Amiron and spend money on concert hall or buying records...

I am probably wrong but it seems to me you are sick because of the audiophile virus, torturing you searching in vain something unobtainable instead of enjoy life, your Senn and Beyer.
 

thewas

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I am an old HD600 fan and owner, but loved the Clear when I tried it and if I would listen more often to headphones instead of loudspeakers would buy it. The Elex is supposed to very close to it but haven't heard it, most Beyers need for my taste at least one PEQ to remove that so called Beyer-Peak at around 8 kHz.
 
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