Focal Bathys

So after seeing a bunch of Profile Posts about this headphone (some positive, others less so), I just realized we don't have a thread here. Possibly because this is one of those ANC/BT mass-market type headphones, not something oriented toward audiophiles, idk.

I've had a pair for about six months now. I got them when we were doing our hybrid "return to office", because my previous work headphones (Aeon Flow Closed driven by a Modi/Magni stack) were fine when I had a fixed desk that I was in every day, but wouldn't work for the irregular/hoteling arrangement of the new hybrid world. I needed something portable (and also with a microphone for the inevitable Zoom meetings at my desk, sigh), and I can't stand wearing IEMs for long.

The short version, having lived with them, is that they're the first headphones of this type that I think are worth a damn -- the Sony, Bose, etc ones that I'd tried before all just had that trashy mass-market sound, and I could never really tolerate them. This is a lot better.

I compared them to my existing headphones that I had on hand -- through a now-ancient Schiit Lyr 2/Bifrost Multibit stack, with Qobuz/Roon lossless, for the wired headphones; and just using Qobuz on the phone for the Bathys. I tested them in both USB mode (where the headphones plug in with USB-C and act like a regular ol' USB DAC) and Bluetooth mode (they support aptX, but not LDAC); the differences between the modes were smaller than I thought they'd be, but not non-existent. My notes were doing wired comparisons, but the conclusion doesn't meaningfully change wireless. (The Bathys also has a 3.5mm jack, but I didn't bother to test it, because it just does an ADC and then goes through the same chain as the USB, so seems pointless unless it's your only option.)

ZMF Verite Closed: The first two tracks I listened to (a Loreena McKennitt vocal piece, and a Right Hand Man from Hamilton) had my eyebrows raised because... okay, you can tell a difference between these headphones, but it was slight, and while I think the ZMF had a little more detail, and a sense of air and openness that the Bathys lacked, it wasn't a slam-dunk case. But moving on to other tracks, Get Lucky exposed the bass on the Bathys a bit -- it's not bloated, exactly, but it's not as tight as the bass on the Verite. And while the Bathys had been clearly lacking some fine, low-level detail on everything I played on it, that smoothed-out feeling wasn't a negative on a lot of tracks... but on Take Five, it was. Cymbal hits were just missing their percussive edge, piano sounded less piano-y.

Depending on what I was listening to, I either felt that the difference was small and that upgrading to Verite level was maybe not worth it; or that the difference was significant and the upgrade was definitely worth it. But either way, this is an unfair fight against much higher-end headphones, and so the part where it was even sometimes close is a huge win.

Dan Clark Audio Aeon Flow Closed: So this is more of a fair fight; these headphones went for something like $700 when I bought them, and their successor models range from $500-800, so we're costwise in the range of the Bathys (especially once you factor in the amp that these wouldn't work without). And it felt like more of a fair fight in the listening, too. The AFC is a little light on the midbass, which makes it sound kind of dead in rock recordings, and so Get Lucky definitely sounded better on the Bathys, bloomy bass notwithstaning. On Take Five, I think I'd take the AFC, as their greater detail wins out over the tonality of the Bathys. On other tracks... I found myself kinda going back and forth, depending. I can see someone preferring the Bathys to the Aeon or vice versa, but my takeaway is that they're in the same basic class.

Which means that these are amazing as work headphones, because they have roughly the sound quality that I used to have to bring an amp and wired headphones into the office for, and all I need is just the headphones themselves, which makes me look 30% less like an eccentric weirdo. I haven't gone into the office much in practice, it turns out, but they're great for the purpose when I do, and I find myself wearing them a lot while I'm wandering around the house (something I couldn't really do with wired headphones). If you're looking for a Bluetooth wireless headphone for music, I think they're an easy recommend, because the alternatives are all terrible, and these are genuinely very good.

Compared to good wired headphones, though... it's clear that you are giving something up compared to the high-end possibilities out there. For any normal person not reading this site, what you're giving up is completely irrelevant, and these are going to be the best sound you've ever heard by a mile; but I think that a lot of people here, who are used to more TOTL stuff, would think of these as headphones where you're making unacceptable trade-offs and giving things up that they'd prefer not to. But honestly, I think that even considered as wired headphones, they're broadly competitive with other offerings in their price range, which is pretty remarkable, considering.

Quick hits on other aspects:

1. Comfort is great. I can put them on and leave them on for hours without even noticing it or remembering that I have them on.

2. ANC is meh. They're over-the-ear sealed headphones, so if you put them in ANC mode, you get that automatic isolation, and then the ANC does add something on top of that. In a normal environment, it gives you plenty of isolation, particularly if you're listening to something. But if your absolute #1 goal were ANC, probably get a Bose instead, even though the sound will suck in comparison.

3. Passthrough is good, but not superb. With the best passthrough/ambient headphones, you sometimes forget that you're not just listening to the world around you; with these, I never did. But they let you hear stuff clearly if you want to, so suitable for walking around or talking or whatever. As with ANC, the headphones that focus on this stuff are better at it, but they're so much worse at the music stuff that kinda who cares? This is plenty good enough unless you plan to spend most of your day in passthrough without listening to music.

4. Controls are solid. There's no capacitative touch stuff, thank goodness: all physical buttons. Left side just has one button for passthrough/noise-cancelling/"neutral". Right side has a volume rocker, a power switch (with three settings: DAC, Bluetooth, off), and then another button for Google Assistant (or the assistant of your choice; it also supports Alexa on Android, and presumably Siri on iOS), which also controls phone calls. HOWEVER: This is where I have my one big criticism: The volume control is just not granular enough. I have, many many times, pushed volume up because it was too quiet, and then very quickly pushed volume down because it's too loud. I really want them to tweak the volume curve -- if you can't give more steps, maybe make them smaller in the middle and bigger on the edges? But ideally, give it more steps. Not a deal-breaker for me, but a genuine annoyance.

5. Construction is solid but not as premium as you'd maybe think it should be relative to other headphones of its type. There's a bit of metal (magnesium, I believe), and the pads are a nice (real) leather with memory foam. But most of the rest of the cup is plastic, and the headband has a microfiber surface rather than leather. There are also LED lights on the side, which definitely are attention-getting if you leave them on bright (I turned them off immediately).

6. The app is minimalist, but does what you'd need. It shows info about the headphones (battery status, what codec you're using), lets you turn the LED on/off, has a five-band equalizer (I never really messed with it, just leaving it in the "Home" setting that they say is their intended reference setting), and lets you adjust the ANC. Interestingly, the app only works over Bluetooth, but whatever settings you set will apply to all modes, so make sure you like your EQ before plugging in via USB, because there's no way to change it without going back to Bluetooth mode.

7. Bluetooth connectivity is solid. I don't think I've had it flake out on me (which is more than I can say for my Pixel Buds, which are super flaky), and it does a good job handling multiple devices (it can connect to two, but only play sound from one at a time; as soon as you start playing sound on one of them, it'll automatically switch over to it, which is mostly what you want, but a little annoying if you're listening to music on your phone, and then start a game with sound on your tablet).

Overall, just very competently executed on all those aspects. A lot of times, audiophile companies go into consumer spaces and completely f**k up, with hot mess apps and unreliable connectivity and whatever other weird flakiness. There's no problems at all here (except maybe that volume interval thing). It feels as baseline reliable and competent as any well-established brand in this Bluetooth headphone space.

 

I have mine since yesterday.

First impressions:
At first, I was a bit underwhelmed by resolution in DAC mode, everything sounded a bit smeared, not much better than via BT. Feeling: “Sounds good, but something is missing.”

Fortunately, that changed after about 8h of use (not only music, but also online meetings), when I became totally engaged and thought “This a headphone I could live with as my only headphone”. I’ll have to compare it to my cabled headphones again now that at least some break in seems to have happened.

The “something is missing” feeling is still there in Bluetooth mode, but that’s to be expected, I guess. It’s a feeling I always had with cabled headphones on dongles, too, btw—Bathys in DAC mode is better than that.

It seems. This is honeymoon phase, of course. I’ll come back to this thread with a more thorough review in a few weeks.


@mkozlows Do you use it at your computer in DAC mode? I’m asking because when I tried yesterday, my work MacBook detected the mic, too, but it was extremely low volume, and the mic volume couldn’t be changed like with other mic inputs.

 

Yeah, I use it with a work Macbook. Haven't had any volume trouble with the mic that I know of (though maybe the people on the other end were just too polite to say anything)...

 

In DAC mode or with Bluetooth? I don’t have any problems with BT, either, only in DAC mode.

 

DAC, I never try to make Bluetooth work with desktop audio.

 

Ok, good to know, thanks.

 

Could someone who has a Bathys test the new Mimi feature (“personalized sound” or similar, translated from German) in DAC mode?

With my Bathys, it works perfectly in Bluetooth mode, but in DAC mode with Mimi switched on, the Bathys either plays no sound at all or without the tonal correction that Mimi should bring.

I like what it does, btw. It boosts treble, but in a pleasant way. With that amount of treble in a headphone, I usually can’t listen for more than a few minutes because the treble starts to hurt quickly. This is not the case with Mimi turned on, even very sibilant or treble-heavily mastered material sounds good and doesn’t inflict pain. Or, hm, as I’m writing this, I’m hearing the first song that, if not painful, is at least is strongly fatiguing with Mimi activated.

Anyway, I’d like to try Mimi in DAC mode, too, and I’d like to know if others see the same problems with Mimi in DAC mode.

 

Ok, it's finally time to write my Bathys review now.

I have my Bathys since the beginning of July, and it's been in active use for different use cases ever since.

TL;DR

The Bathys is an extremely versatile device that is not only good for listening to music at home, but also for traveling/commuting, listening to podcasts, or as a headset for phone calls and video conferences.

For audiophile listening, it is good enough in the best sense of the word: I could live with it as my only headphone.

In the box

The Bathys comes with a practical and sturdy transport box that is perfect for traveling, and for storing the headphone. A USB-C cable (1.2m/4ft) is also included, as well as a 3.5 mm cable (same length) for analog connections.

Practical aspects/comfort/build quality

The cups can turned by more than 90° so that the Bathys can be laid down flat. This is the way it is stored in the transport box, too. Strangely, it is in the wrong way around then, though, i.e. the cups can only be turned by 90° in one direction, and when it lies flat, the left cup is on the right side, so that the headphone has to be turned around when you want to put it on. Not really a problem, but I wonder why Focal chose to do it this way?

While it is smaller than, say, a Clear Mg, the Bathys is still a full size headphone, of course. So using it while commuting, e.g., requires a certain willingness to lug around large stuff. And of course, the usual Focal bling bling might be a bit too much for many who just want to blend in on public transport−especially if you didn't switch of the LEDs that illuminate the Focal logo on the cups by default.

The clamp force is rather strong, at the upper end of what is still comfortable for me, personally. At the beginning, it even went into slightly uncomfortable territory for me, until I noticed that it helps to turn the cups a bit so that the force isn't unevenly distributed.

At 350g (0.77 lb), it is not extremely heavy, but still much heavier than, say, a Bose or Sony BT headphone.

You can connect your source using Bluetooth (codecs: SBC, AAX, aptX, aptX Adaptive), USB (USB-C on the side of the headphone, and the cable that comes with the headphone has USB-C on the source side, too), or analog (3.5 mm TRS on the headphone side, and also on the source side of the supplied cable).

The build quality is sturdy, suitable for use outside of the home. The headband is made of aluminum with real leather padding, the yokes are made of magnesium. The cups are plastic, though. The only thing that could feel a bit more rigid is the switch/slider used to switch the Bathys off/on and to choose DAC or BT mode. I don't think it will ever fail on me, but it just feels a bit cheap, IMHO.

Functions

The Bathys can be used as Bluetooth headphone/headset, with a digital USB connection, or with an analog connection. In all three cases, a charged headphone battery is required, i.e. the Bathys can neither be powered by USB in DAC mode when it's empty, nor can it be used completely passively, bypassing the built-in DSP.

According to Focal, the battery lasts 42h in DAC mode, 35h with an analog connection, and 30h in Bluetooth mode. I never actually tested that, but I guess it could be realistic, maybe a little exaggerated. Leaving it on in BT mode during a whole work day maybe takes 30-40% of charge, though that's hard to estimate because the level shown on the phone goes down in 10% steps.

It can be charged while listening in Bluetooth mode, but it makes faint tapping noises then that are very audible when no music is playing. To me, this feels as if a vertebra in the neck was crackling; I can't stand it at all.

There are three levels of noise cancellation: Soft ANC, Silent ANC, Transparency (more on their sound further down). On the left cup, there's a button that will switch between ANC and Transparency with a short press and between Soft and Silent ANC with a long press. These modes can also be controlled using the app.

On the right cup, there is the slider for BT/DAC/Off (DAC mode without connecting a device can be used to just attenuate the surroundings), a button for Alexa/Google/Siri (which thankfully can be left unconfigured), and buttons for volume up/down with a start/stop/forward skip (2x)/backward skip (3x)/Bluetooth pairing (long press) button in between. They are easy to find without looking.

The volume steps could be a bit smaller, but they're not annoyingly huge.

Using the Focal/Naim app, not only the aforementioned ANC levels can be chosen, but also a simple 5-band EQ can be configured with two pre-configured presets on top of "no change", as well as a "Dynamic" setting that doesn't use the EQ levels and is supposed to bring the headphone closer to the Harman curve. User defined settings can be saved under own names. The EQ allows changes of up to +/- 6dB at 62 Hz, 250 Hz, 1 kHz, 4 kHz, and 16 kHz.

The app also allows you to conduct a hearing test and then have the headphone automatically correct for hearing loss (Mimi, see https://mimi.io/ ). The EQ is independent of that feature and can be added additionally.

Both EQ and Mimi work regardless of Bluetooth, DAC, or analog mode, but like all other app settings, they can only be configured in Bluetooth mode: It is not possible to use the app when the headphone is connected in DAC mode via USB (at least not on iOS, but it will probably be the same on Android).

Also, the LEDs in the cups can be made less bright or switched off completely (which I did, listening in bed with shining LEDs is a nuisance not only for the partner), an auto standby function (after 10m if I'm not mistaken) can be switched on and off, and there's a setting called "Eigenecho" in German (sth like own echo) that doesn't seem to do much.

Firmware updates can be done using the app, too, and there actually have been a few since I own the Bathys, one of them adding the Mimi feature.

When connected to a computer using DAC mode, I couldn't use the microphone sensibly, because it is much too quiet. On my work MacBook Pro, no volume slider for the mic is shown (contrary to other USB devices with a mic like my webcam), and on my Linux home PC, I can change mic volume, but it never becomes loud enough. In Bluetooth mode, everything works fine. This is not a problem for me as I don't listen to music while I'm working, and BT is perfectly good enough for video conferences. Plus, @mkozlows wrote above that he doesn't have these problems. This is something you should test, though, if you want to use the Bathys at work for music and as a headset, connected by USB.

I never had problems with the BT connection, in our house it reaches over two stories without dropouts.

Sound

Finally, the most important category.

Well, to say it bluntly, it sounds great.

It has a slight V, but it's not overdone at all, very well done. It features the usual Focal slam, maybe even more so than my Clear Mg, as the V adds to it.

The sound signature is dark, but not as much as that of the Clear Mg, it has more treble than that. While the Clear Mg has more sparkle in the high treble, the Bathys is more pronounced in the mid and lower treble. But still, nowhere near a Hifiman sound signature or something like that−very much to my liking, I'm treble sensitive, and many hifi headphone signatures sound very unnatural to my ears due to too much treble around 6-8k. The Bathys is great in that regard.

All in all, it sounds like a Focal. Great slam, not too much mid-forwardness, very satisfying amount of bass (but not overdone).

The bass, though, is also the weakest point of the Bathys, as it is the least resolving part of the frequency spectrum. Especially in sub bass regions, it can become a little murky. Not annoyingly so, but this is the only real criticism I have about the sound.

At first, I was a bit disappointed of resolution and detail in general, but that became much better after a few days of use. Of course, even in DAC mode, the resolution doesn't reach the levels of my main rig (Roon -> HQPlayer -> Zen Stream -> Meier Daccord FF -> Meier Jazz FF -> Clear Mg). Microdetail and plankton are quite a few steps away. But while it isn't spectacular, the resolution is good. Good enough for me to be satisfied, not to miss anything.

And there is great musicality, too. Not exactly tube bloom, of course, no romantic sound, but not at all insipid or boring, either. It's so good that, during honeymoon phase, I actually preferred the Bathys over my main rig: I felt that while it wasn't as refined, it provided more emotion and fun. That was also the reason why I revisited HQPlayer filters later and found one for my main rig that provides a better synergy, especially in terms of sounding less insipid.

The soundstage I'd describe as "good", typical Focal: Nothing outstanding, not as good layering and separation as with the Clear Mg, but a good stage with a feeling of space around.

The Mimi feature is fun, but after trying it out, I didn't use it anymore. It does add further detail by adding treble and manages to do so without becoming too fatiguing even to my treble shy ears. But still, I prefer listening to a normal FR. This might be a great feature for those whose hearing is in the process of more severe degradation, though.

If you make a Mimi account, you can upload your test results to that account and then view them in the Mimi app. Only then, a kind of score is attached to the test result, which told me that my hearing is "Excellent". "For my age", possibly, but that's not explicitly stated.

As you can see in the posts above, I had some problems at first in that, with Mimi active, I didn't get sound in DAC mode. After taking another hearing test in quiet surroundings (which scored me that "Excellent" that I hadn't reached before), this problem vanished. I'm not sure if that was just a strange hiccup or maybe is a general problem with certain Mimi test results and the resulting correction curves. If it is, it might have been fixed with firmware updates. Anyway, I didn't experience it again.

In Bluetooth mode (AAC from iOS devices), the Bathys isn't quite as satisfying to my ears as in DAC mode. The resolution isn't as good, and something is missing that I can't really put a finger on. It is better by very far than the Bose QuietComfort 35 II that I had for ANC BT duty before, which in comparison sounds dull, murky, boring, foggy, like a blurry rendition of what the Bathys is able to do even in BT mode. The difference is really striking, not just a step up, but a completely different class. But still, Bluetooth keeps me yearning for more, it's not really enough for my taste.

This might be better with Android devices that are capable of aptX Adaptive, but I had no chance to test this yet.

There's one aspect, though, where the Bose is better than the Focal: ANC. Bose manages to block out quite a bit more noise, but at the cost of sound quality. But still, to me, the Bathys is good enough. I've used it in trains and with my wife watching TV with loud sound next to me. When no music is playing, I can still hear background sounds, but as soon as even quiet parts of music start to play, these fade into nothing.

Interestingly, there are things I don't like doing with the headphones on that are different for the Bose and the Focal: With the Bose, it is completely impossible to eat with the headphones on, as the chewing noises become so loud that it just isn't fun anymore to listen to anything. It isn't as bad by far with the Focal.

The Focal, OTOH, makes steps while walking very audible. Not as loud as the Bose's chewing sounds, but it somehow sounds uncomfortable to me. I don't like walking while listening with the Bathys.

There is a faint hiss in all ANC modes (much less than with the Bose), but in silent/soft mode, it is only audible when no music is playing. In transparency mode, the hiss is very pronounced, though, I wouldn't use this mode for listening to music. It can be nice, though, when using the Bathys as a headset, as I can hear my own voice better, as well as other stuff that is going on in the office. Sound quality isn't better in Soft ANC mode, might even be a small step worse. I don't see why anything but Silent ANC should ever be used when listening to music.

All in all, while it isn't perfect and I've heard better, at least in DAC mode the Bathys is good enough that I can just enjoy music, not thinking about when I can finally get back to my main rig. If I had only the possibility to spend € 1000,– on my whole rig, I'd buy a Bathys and call it a day. Personally, I don't think that higher levels of quality are attainable in that price range (at least without buying used), given that it is a DAC and an amp and a headphone in one box. (And before somebody asks, yes, at least from memory I think that in DAC mode, it is quite a step up from the HD650 + Jot 2 with ESS card I had.)

I could be perfectly happy with this as my only headphone.

EQ presets

Regarding EQ presets, I mostly listen with no EQ applied.

I don't like the "Dynamic" (Harman) setting at all. Mid bass is often boomy, and especially, the headphone loses all of its wonderful slam while gaining nothing. Well, maybe a little bit of clarity, thereby sacrificing that Focal "sitting in a concert hall" sound. Just boring.

Focal recommends the "Home" setting for listening in quieter surroundings. It takes away some bass and mid-/lower treble, thus getting closer to the sound signature of the Clear Mg. Consequently, the mids are coming forward a bit more, the V is less pronounced, and I like that especially for classical music that can sometimes sound a bit thin due to missing mids with the default preset.

The "Loudness" setting creates a strong V and is unlistenable to me.

Comparisons

Bose QC 35 II, as mentioned above:

• Completely different world, the Bathys is much, much better in every regard except ...
• ... ANC, where the Bose attenuates outside noise better.

ETA Mini Closed (from my notes from the summer, have sold it since):

• Bathys has more treble, considerably less dark than the Mini C in general
• Regarding bass, the Mini C mostly had more, but in some songs it seemed as if the Bathys had more. I was never 100% sure why, but I thought that the Bathys had more sub, but less mid bass.
• Similar resolution with maybe small advantages for the Bathys, except in the bass, which is better controlled in the Mini C.
  
• The Mini C sounds much more even, no parts if the frequency spectrum stand out, which is different with the Bathys' slight V. This makes the Mini C much more laid back.
• The Mini C is much more closed in, far smaller stage than the Bathys has.
• If asked for a spontaneous description of the difference, I'd have said that the Bathys sounds "more real", which is probably due to the stage and the less blunted sound (more treble).

Clear Mg:

• The Clear Mg has much better resolution, especially regarding microdetail/plankton. There isn't much plankton to be had at all with the Bathys, but that doesn't mean that instruments sound unrealistic. Less hyperrealistic, maybe, than the Clear Mg on my rig.
• The Clear Mg has better staging and instrument separation.
• The Clear Mg has more sparkle in the upper treble and thus sounds more refined and "classy".
• The Bathys has more lower/mid-treble and thus sounds livelier and less dark, but also more fatiguing to my treble sensitive ears (not strongly so, I can listen for hours without problems).
• The Bathys has a bit more sub bass, but much less controlled than the Clear Mg.
• I think the Bathys has a very short decay, shorter than the Clear Mg. This might be what makes it sound very clear, sometimes clearer than the Clear Mg.

Closing thoughts and bottom line

To me, the Bathys is a real allrounder device that replaced quite a number of devices I used before:

• Closed-back headphone. I sold my ETA Mini C that I had used for this purpose before. The Bathys blocks off outside noise better, and, to my ears, sounds better, too. It's the only closed-back I'll ever need.
• Wireless headphone, for listening to podcasts, or to music while doing stuff around the house. My Bose is now used by my son.
• ANC headphone, for listening while being in loud surroundings like on a train or on a plane.
• Headset for video conferences and phone calls when I'm in the office (not home office). I had a shitty USB headset before that I don't miss at all.
  
• Mobile setup, for taking with me on vacations. I sold several dongles I had before that never really satisfied me because I never found a suitable synergy with a headphone. The sound was always ok, but never really good enough, I was always thinking "Yeah, not bad, but still, I miss my home rig!" This isn't the case anymore with the Bathys. Sure, on vacation, I'm still looking forward to experiencing the refinement of my home rig again, but I'm happy, I don't miss anything.

Given that my home rig cost about € 2500,– altogether (although the Clear Mg was B stock), the € 600,– I paid for my B stock Bathys is shockingly few money to come as close to that quality as it does. Yes, there is a gap between the two, of course, but the question if it is worth nearly € 2000,– is well deserved. And that doesn't even count in all the extra use cases the Bathys has−selling the stuff I didn't need anymore nearly paid for the Bathys.

To me, the Bathys provides great sound at a spectacular price/perfomance ratio, at least if you count in that you don't need a DAC/amp anymore. Highly recommended!