MASSDROP X Focal ELEX Review (headphone)

[tsanguine]

True, and lucky you!

You pay shipping and I'll Drop you whatever you want.

 

[beefkabob]

Sennheiser 800 series

Anybody ever measure them at least as well as amirm has other headphones?

 

[YSC]

This looked nice! If I was not addicted to genelec and basically stored up my he-500 I would be tempted to buy this as next go to headphone! But btw, I remember seeing somewhere the cracklings sound was actually focal’s driver protection mechanism kicking in, so even it sounds horrible it won’t actually blow up the driver?

 

[phoenixsong]

Also guessing the lower price (and better channel matching) contributes to its higher recommendation relative to the Clear

 

[amirm]

Is it possible to see harmonics plotted on log scale?

Sure. Just added it to the review:

 

[zenmastering]

This...

Looks like Focal's design philosophy re: headphone drivers is "low distortion until you hit the absolute limit of the driver" vs Sennheiser's - which appears to be "soft onset of distortion, but higher overall" - and in fairness, 114dB is loud as balls even in the bass. I wouldn't even really consider listening past 90 for the sake of my auditory health.

Fletcher-Munson is your friend; 82-92dB SPL will keep your hearing going a long, long time as well as being the optimal SPL range for a 'flattish' response. 114dB SPL, not so much of either.

 

[solderdude]

This looked nice! If I was not addicted to genelec and basically stored up my he-500 I would be tempted to buy this as next go to headphone! But btw, I remember seeing somewhere the cracklings sound was actually focal’s driver protection mechanism kicking in, so even it sounds horrible it won’t actually blow up the driver?

I suspect the 'driver protection' isn't something really well defined and the reason why some 'click' and others do not.
The Focal drivers have a very low resonance frequency and the only damping they get is damping from the amp (very little) and its own driver suspension. This is evident from the enormous impedance peak. For the lowest frequencies the damping does not even come from the air 'cushion' inside the earpad because it basically is 'open' to the rear. One also doesn't use woofers designed for closed speakers on open baffles.
Most headphone drivers either have damping 'paper' and or small holes on the rear of the driver or damp the hole behind the driver. None of this is applied here (except for the closed versions).

Either the tick heard is the rubber edge ring that cannot be stretched further and 'stops' the membrane from traveling further (hitting excursion limit) or
the membrane/voice coil hits the magnet.

Blowing up the driver is unlikely (unless you really drive it way too loud). The pictures I have seen that have given up the ghost all had the tiny voicecoil wiring break at the same point. Most likely due to high excursions.
The voice coil wire, at some point, has to run from the voice coil (that moves) to the chassis which is stationary.
That wire is too short and excursions too high. They could (and probably already have) solved it by making the wire longer.

So the driver (at least in the past) could be destroyed by large excursions but not by too much power.
The main reason I do not own a Focal is because of these failures and the way it was handled in the past.

Not my picture b.t.w.

 

[phoenixsong]

I suspect the 'driver protection' isn't something really well defined.
The Focal drivers have a very low resonance frequency and the only damping they get is damping from the air trapped inside the earpad.
This is evident from the enormous impedance peak.

Either the tick heard is the rubber edge ring that cannot be stretched further and 'stops' the membrane from traveling further (hitting excursion limit) or
the membrane/voice coil hits the magnet.

Blowing up the driver is unlikely (unless you really drive it way too loud). The pictures I have seen that have given up the ghost all had the tiny voicecoil wiring break at the same point. Most likely due to high excursions.
The voice coil wire, at some point, has to run from the voice coil (that moves) to the chassis which is stationary.
That wire is too short and excursions too high. They could (and probably already have) solved it by making the wire longer.
View attachment 123108

So the driver (at least in the past) could be destroyed by large excursions but not by too much power.
The main reason I do not own a Focal is because of these failures and the way it was handled in the past.

Thanks for the insight! I've been contemplating getting an Elex for a long time (since the Utopia is beyond my budget), and this piece of information is decisive

 

[paolomo]

Very informative and enjoyable review @amirm A question for the knowledgeable headphone people here: it seems to me some manufacturers are privileging the “easy to drive” aspect over the “impressive levels with no distortion” one, around this price level. See the case of Ananda too. Are we going to see more of this pattern in the future?

 

[snowsurfer]

Anybody ever measure them at least as well as amirm has other headphones?

https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/sennheiser-hd800s-review-headphone.18424/

 

[Aerith Gainsborough]

One difference though: this time I did not have my own headphones on and listened to the sweeps. I was horrified to hear the drivers crackle at 114 dBSPL! The clear must have done this as well given that signature response in green:

Well that explains it. I always wondered, why you didn't notice the driver hitting Xmax when you swept the Clear, because 20Hz at 114dB is definitely well beyond what it can handle.

I agree with your assessment: the sound is fantastic at lower volumes. Also hilarious to see how similar the frequency responses are, I have read from some on Head-Fi that the Focal cans all sound so similar that it was tough to distinguish them.

 

[StuartC]

This...



Fletcher-Munson is your friend; 82-92dB SPL will keep your hearing going a long, long time as well as being the optimal SPL range for a 'flattish' response. 114dB SPL, not so much of either.

Do many people actually listen to music for extended periods at anything over 90db?

 

[Jimbob54]

Anybody ever measure them at least as well as amirm has other headphones?

Not sure I follow. The 800 and 800S have had loads of reviews, ymmv on the quality of those reviews. I'm taking it you've seen amir's review of the 800s? https://www.audiosciencereview.com/...ser-hd800s-review-headphone.18424/post-601305

For my money, a good second hand 800/S is a great investment. Not sure the price new is worth it.

 

[phoenixsong]

Do many people actually listen to music for extended periods at anything over 90db?

Not sure about "extended" periods of time, but I have been alarmed time and again at the levels at which people around me listen to their music, even if they live in peaceful neighbourhoods or remote country sides. Found out when I let them hear music through my set up- they always complain about it being too soft and crank it up from what I deem to be effective discerning levels

 

[Aerith Gainsborough]

Do many people actually listen to music for extended periods at anything over 90db?

With headphones, 90dB is my maximum level for extended listening. If I were to follow my impulses, I would probably raise it by 5-10 dB on a lot of tracks I really like. I generally refrain from doing so, in order to preserve my hearing, though sometimes I give in to temptation.

What I noticed though, if I venture beyond 90dB I lose a lot of detail. Not because of my hardware but due to my ears being stressed out, so cranking it is not good for critical listening.

 

[LearningToSmile]

One thing I'd really like to see when it comes to Focal measurements is trying Elear with Elex(or Clear) pads and seeing if it really is the same headphone. It seems likely - the Drop post about the tuning they did used such vague and roundabout wording that really seemed to point to the pads being the only difference. And some people claim it was confirmed by Focal. But I don't think anyone ever tested it - someone correct me if I'm wrong.

I recently ordered a pair of Elex pads for my Elear, in order to experiment a bit with EQ - I tried to EQ the Elear to Harman and it sounded awful, so maybe getting those pads and just bringing up the bass will get better results. That is if the pads are actually made properly this batch, unlike Drop's previous disaster.

 

[solderdude]

There is a substantial difference between peaks of 90dB SPL (very comfortable level of around 80dB) and 90dBA average levels which is quite loud.

people listening at comfortable loud levels which one can easily endure for 1 to 2 songs are secretly listening to peaks of 100 to 105dB SPL depending on the recording. Of course the numbers change a bit with very low DR recordings.

 

[StuartC]

This all fits in with my experiences. I find that I'm not comfortable with more than 80, and even then I find I feel slightly fatigued if I listen for an hour or so. Mild headache etc.

 

[McFly]

Why are headphones getting 114db sweeps??? that’s like, threshold of pain loud isn’t it?
I can’t even handle a 96db sweep on my speakers. I’m 31 though, something to do with it?
I dare you to put those phones on for that sweep. Not surprised the drivers crackled. Lol

 

[M83]

Lol why are headphones being tested at and reviews written about at 114db? Maybe Amir's hearing has been harmed by listening at these excessive unpleasant volumes.