Massdrop x Focal Elex Review and Measurements

Discussion in 'Headphone Measurements' started by purr1n, Dec 15, 2017.

  1. AllanMarcus

    AllanMarcus Friend

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    I was under the impression the Elex is basically an Elear with Clear pads.

    I know one guy that got a Utopia from an authorized dealer for $2700. $2600 would be a pretty darned good price. Just curious, do you know people can get it for $2600, or is that priced based on secondhand knowledge?
     
  2. I_want_all_the_tacos

    I_want_all_the_tacos Friend

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    I know directly of 2 people that got it out the door under $2700 within the last 2-3 months. One was picked up in person so he might have saved on shipping, but not sure what happened with tax. I mean we are splitting hairs on about 4% of the cost here, but yeah under $2700 shipped seems to be current street price.
     
  3. slankoe

    slankoe Tongue tastes of LH butthole

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    Thanks for that. Maybe I can badger my authorized dealer. Everything in Canada is just priced through the fuckin roof. The lowest offer I've ever had on a Utopia was 3999 CAD. Retail is 4999 CAD. Garbage.

    I guess 3999 isn't too bad, but it's still rape for my wallet. This baloney needs to stop.
     
  4. iFi audio

    iFi audio MOT iFi Audio

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    As long as there are people willing to spend that kind of money for a pair of headphones, it won't.
     
  5. slankoe

    slankoe Tongue tastes of LH butthole

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    We should be getting fresh impressions soon
     
  6. StefanAC

    StefanAC Acquaintance

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    I think about joining the Elex drop as that headphone seems to complement my LCD-2.2F. Unfortunately, I'm not sure if it will pair well with my Magni 3 or the MCTH + SDAC I have on order. Has anyone experience with the Elex and those amps? Or with those amps and the Elear or Clear?

    I currently use an EAD DSP-9000 Series III as the source and listen mainly to classic rock, rock, pop and some jazz. No classical music or EDM.
     
    Last edited: Feb 20, 2018
  7. Mithrandir41

    Mithrandir41 Friend

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    The clear has a slightly different driver, with a formerless voice coil. The Pads are slightly different as well, being of a higher quality material on the clears.
     
  8. AllanMarcus

    AllanMarcus Friend

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    Sorry, what?

    The clear has a different driver than the Elex? That is what I said. I was in the impression the Elex is an Elear (with Elear driver) and the same pads used on the clear, but a different color.
     
  9. Mithrandir41

    Mithrandir41 Friend

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    @AllanMarcus sorry about that! I misread it and got my wires crossed. But to reiterate, the clear pads are different from the ones on the Elex.
     
  10. Junki

    Junki Facebook Friend

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    Source please. You seem to have insider info that product managers at Massdrop don’t have access to. Will confirmed the Elex pads and the Clear pads are identical except for color.
     
  11. Mithrandir41

    Mithrandir41 Friend

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    That's strange. Having seen them and felt them this weekend, the clear pads seem a bit nicer.
     
  12. JonCharles

    JonCharles Friend

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    Marv said the same thing in his Clear impressions about them being slightly nicer. A few pages back, Will said that only the color was different between the two. I don't really care as long as they are comfortable, but it is a little confusing.
     
  13. Vtory

    Vtory Audiophile™

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    I felt strange, too.

    Having three hypotheses
    a. Same material, but with different newness or wear
    b. MD was mis-informed by Focal
    c. Elex handed to early reviewers (including Marv) was prototype (as opposed to final production ones) with cheaper ear pad material
     
  14. WNovizar

    WNovizar Facebook Friend

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    It wouldn't surprise me a little bit if this is what actually happening, just in case with Utopia
     
  15. StefanAC

    StefanAC Acquaintance

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    No one heard an Elex (or Elear or Clear) with a Magni 3 or MCTH? The window is closing and I would prefer to make an informed decision.
     
  16. JustAnotherRando

    JustAnotherRando My other bike is a Ferrari

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    Google search with site:superbestaudiofriends.org elex elear clear "magni 3" will turn up some results. Given that almost nobody has heard the MCTH I'm not sure you're going to find anything with that amp.

    (Is the Elex out yet?)
     
  17. slankoe

    slankoe Tongue tastes of LH butthole

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    I believe the first drop shipped earlier this week. That's from December.
     
  18. StefanAC

    StefanAC Acquaintance

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    @JustAnotherRando

    I did that Google search and a few others before posting - but the best I came up with was something like:

    "Clear was really good from the Af, my custom 45, and even modest Magni 3." - @Marvey

    "I’ve also tried the Clear from the Magni 3 and it still sounds very good." - @thegunner100

    And I have read the whole " Magni 3 released" and "Massdrop Cavalli Tube Hybrid Amp" thread. As far as I know, only @Marvey had both the MCTH and Elex in his possession. But maybe not at the same time.
     
  19. Taverius

    Taverius Smells like sausages

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    MCTH is a nice little thing - Marvey liked it and that's good enough for me when it comes to toob amps - several times the power needed, output impedance more than low enough.

    Bottom line, yeah it'll work fine out of both.

    Which one will you prefer hearing it from?

    Nobody but you can decide :)
     
  20. I_want_all_the_tacos

    I_want_all_the_tacos Friend

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    I have Elear and use it with Magni 3 and think it sounds great out of that. I've said this before but after owning Elear and also auditioning Clear (and Utopia) that the Elear/Clear just don't scale incredibly well, not like say HD650, HD800, and Utopia. I've heard the Clear out of my laptop, cell phone, Wa8, and CMA600i (balanced) and the differences were pretty minimal.

    I've been trying to make the argument that the Clear is like the iPhone of headphones in that it is great out of the box, it's polished, and just sounds good from any source with no hassle. It is ideal for people that don't want to spend tons of time/money hunting for source pairings. That's one of the main selling points for Clear. The HD800 on the other hand is like a Google Pixel of headphones in that it has raw potential stock, but if you don't do any customizations (mods, EQ, tube amps) you aren't getting the most out of it. You have to spend more time/money tweaking it to your preferences, but because it responds so well to these tweaks it can become amazing if you figure out what works for you.
     
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