Comments on Profile Post by dncnexus

  1. ductrung3993
    ductrung3993
    I liked it much more than the Elear and Clear. What was the setup?
    Jul 26, 2020
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  2. dncnexus
    dncnexus
    @ductrung3993 it was out of a Chord Qutest into the McIntosh MHA150. I tried the Clear and didn't really like them. Thought maybe the Utopias would be better but lot of the stuff such as timbre and brightness I didn't like on the Clear wasn't better on the Utopia for me.
    Jul 26, 2020
  3. E_Schaaf
    E_Schaaf
    Despite being slightly more microdynamic and resolving, Utopias have all the same weaknesses as the cheaper Focal phones with the metallic timbre and near-mono staging. OTLs or other tube amps can help with these things but they're just not as smooth as the Senns or ZMFs. I felt like Elex slammed the hardest of the bunch.
    Jul 26, 2020
  4. ductrung3993
    ductrung3993
    Staging is similar yes but imo the Utopia has a much better timbre than the cheaper Focal. I cant stand the Elear and while the Clear is better, its timbre is still quite unbearable imo. If i have to buy one, it would be an Elex. That and a HD650 should be enough to cover most needs i believe.
    Jul 26, 2020
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  5. ChaChaRealSmooth
    ChaChaRealSmooth
    Focal isn't for everyone; I think more for the left brain than the right. Although I do think that chain did the Focals no favors.
    Jul 26, 2020
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  6. Melvillian
    Melvillian
    What helps is a high end vinyl setup paired with a higher and headphone amp from DNA or ECP.
    Jul 26, 2020
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  7. dncnexus
    dncnexus
    @Melvillian maybe once my Starlett comes in I can try and get a demo unit for the Utopia in to see if that changes my opinions on it.
    Jul 26, 2020
  8. Melvillian
    Melvillian
    I personally like them with the right setup, but overall I don’t want super aggressive headphones so close to my ears. My preference in headphones is different from my preference in speakers.
    Jul 26, 2020
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  9. dubharmonic
    dubharmonic
    As an owner of both the Utopia and MHA150, I don't think it's a great pairing.
    Jul 26, 2020
  10. ChaChaRealSmooth
    ChaChaRealSmooth
    @dubharmonic as an owner of an Utopia, I'm thoroughly enjoying it right now out of my Starlett :P
    Jul 26, 2020
  11. Elmer Danilovich
    Elmer Danilovich
    Yea Utopia is the most tolerable of the Focals for me, but like your self... I'm not a Focal Fan. Good that your able to hear it and come to that conclusion for your self
    Jul 26, 2020
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  12. dubharmonic
    dubharmonic
    @ChaChaRealSmooth I'm next up in the Starlett queue, I should be joining you soon! I still dream about the Utopia through the Feliks Euphoria.
    Jul 27, 2020
  13. lcmusiclover
    lcmusiclover
    Appreciated your Utopia impressions. They matched mine -- I call the sound 'sharp'. Even a tube-hybrid helped a lot for me. Surprised to hear Mac build issues.
    Jul 27, 2020
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  14. Hammy
    Hammy
    The Focal headphone sound isn’t for me either. My issue with Focal headphones, including Utopia, is their imaging and layering. Imaging and layering are not a strength of the Utopia.
    Jul 27, 2020
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  15. Hammy
    Hammy
    I got to listen to the Utopia with a Dave and M-Scaler. Dave is the best DAC I’ve heard for making absolute polarity audible. Best DAC for allowing you to hear which violinist shuffled their feet. Listening to the Utopia from Dave I didn’t hear that. I flipped absolute polarity and barely heard a change.
    Jul 27, 2020
  16. Melvillian
    Melvillian
    The Utopia even with great tube amps felt very claustrophobic. Part of the reason why I stuck with the clears even though they’re technically not as good is that they’re the only focal headphones that have that sphere effect around your head.

    Vinyl helps with the Utopia because the image is more natural and sits further back. It just compliments the Utopia better.
    Jul 27, 2020
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  17. Hammy
    Hammy
    Plugged my LCD-2 Classic into Dave and flipped absolute phase. Easy to hear the change even though the LCD-2 Classic is underdriven by Dave. By that measure the LCD-2 Classic is better than Utopia. And that is a measure I value. For imaging and layering I prefer the LCD-2 Classic to Utopia.
    Jul 27, 2020
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  18. Hammy
    Hammy
    After hearing Dave with the Utopia and other Focal headphones I now understand why I’ve always been somewhat unimpressed by Focal headphones. They sound fine, but don’t do the style of imaging I’m after.
    Jul 27, 2020
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  19. Hammy
    Hammy
    I also got to hear a Carbon CC and Stax SR-009S with that Dave setup. OMG! The imaging and layering. Flip the absolute polarity and it was so easy to hear. Could count the number of violins in an orchestra. OMG. The Utopia and SR-009S are not the same.
    Jul 27, 2020
  20. dncnexus
    dncnexus
    @Hammy making me want a SR009S haha
    Jul 27, 2020
  21. Hammy
    Hammy
    The SR009S, Carbon CC, and Dave combo is awesome until you listen to Daft Punk RAM. While listening to RAM I realized I spent the entire time listening to the hyper layering and separation and lack of bass impact rather than the music.
    Jul 27, 2020
  22. Hammy
    Hammy
    The guy with the Dave + Utopia and I did a mini-meet together. Discovered he’s more frequency domain and I’m more time domain. He describes what he hears in terms of frequency and treble smoothness. I describe what I hear in terms of imaging and layering and soundstage. That explains why we’ve each taken different paths in gear choices and preference.
    Jul 27, 2020
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  23. Elmer Danilovich
    Elmer Danilovich
    Yea I certainly value time domain stuff myself, hence why I own an SR 009 [non s] and not a Utopia, but I run 009 on tubes so there's that and even then I don't feel 009 lacks impact but it's a bit toooo lean or fast sometimes... still better for my tastes than utopia
    Jul 28, 2020
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  24. Hammy
    Hammy
    The issue with Daft Punk and the SR009S was Dave. Dave separates and layers so much. Bass notes and the effects on those notes get separated from each other. The SR009S presents that separation. It’s a weird analytical way to listen to Daft Punk. With a normal DAC like a ADI-2 the SR009 will play Daft Punk more normally without that excess separation and the music holds together better.
    Jul 28, 2020
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