Focal Elear and Utopia

Okay, I think I can see where you're coming from. All LCD's sound more authoritative and meaty than pretty much any dynamic headphone. Btw, imo LCD2F had the most natural frequency response of the lineup, but also had a strident quality throughout the whole audio band that was quite unpleasant and fatiguing.

 

I currently own the LCD-3F, and I've grown to prefer it over the LCD-2.
Edit: when I listen to the HD 650 and switch over to the LCD-3 , It sounds like a clearer more extended version of a 650, albeit with a slight lower treble emphasis

 

I get it. Studio monitors with integrated amps are rarely capable of good audio quality. They're usually properly tuned though. Going DIY if fun, but the rabbit hole is pretty deep

Absolutely, Utopia is definitely the better overall performer. As for cables, the gain in audio quality is fairly modest, value for money is poor. It only makes sense to put money into wires (phones/speakers, interconnects, power cables) after the whole audio chain (source, D/A converter and amp) are above a certain level. Otherwise it's pretty much a waste of money imo.

 

From memory the LCD3F was definitely much more transparent/cleaner sounding compared to the LCD2F. My gripe with it was the quite subdued upper midrange/lower treble. And in contrast to that the upper treble almost always came across as an explosion of hisses. Also, the bass was a bit lose compared to the LCD-X, but I actually liked that. However, I just might have had a bad LCD-3 unit, I really can't say. From what I've read it seems there is a huge variation between different units.

I'd differ to you about the 650. When connected to a good rig, from 1Khz up the 650 is hard to beat in absolute terms. The treble is even, liquid and detailed.

 

I have a pretty good rig with a Gungnir Multibit, and Ampsandsound Kenzie encore. The 650 is a good classic standard, but in absolute terms I think the LCD-3 bests it in almost every regard. I know many others feel differently.

 

Multibit FTW! I've got two mono PCM58's in my dac

I wasn't really clear in my previous post. LCD3 is clearly better than the 650 in every regard, apart from the upper midrange & treble.

 

Problem with the Audeze's must be the consistency then.
Sound quality wise I'd put them so: 2F<3F<<<regular 2.2<<<<<<HD650. All through top rig (Yggdrasil + Eddie current 2A3/Stratus/Ehha).
Honestly, I'd take K701 before the Fazors if gun was aimed at me. It's possible both the Fazors were lemons.

edited out a brainfart

 

Am i reading this right... 2F better than 3F and so on, or the other way around?

I still keep my K712Pro )

 

This is fact as far as I am concerned.... Here's the deal for people on the fence. I bought the Elears, then got a great deal on the 650s, I bought those and sold the Elears for a $200 loss. I don't have the words that others here do, but it was a joke to have $1000 headphones, that IMHO, were blown away by a $315 pair.

Done....


JT

 

Doh! You are right. My notation could be read as arrows, though haha

I managed to contain my rant in time, but perhaps I was in line after OJ and Psalm to the banhammer for playnar hate speak. There really have been 2 that I don't dislike, LFF Slants and HE-6, original LCD-2.2 is on the edge.

 

Ah, sorry I forgot to reply to this. Now, as for the settings, I tried everything from a +3db boost from 60hz on down, all the way up to a +12db boost from 80hz and 100hz on down. I can't say I settled on a particular setting, as it was just an audition in a shop, not my own headphones at home. I likely would settle somewhere in between those two extremes. A big boost from 100hz on down made it a bit bloomy and muddy, so I would likely settle around 70-80hz in terms of where the boost would start. EQ is such a personal thing, and there are so many variables (different Q values) etc. I'd just recommend experimenting with it! Its not destructive, easy to turn off and on, and find what works for you best. Is it the "way of the audiophile" and the most transparent and true to the recording way you can go? Of course not, but I enjoy it, so I do it. At the end of the day, enjoying the music is what it is all about, in my opinion anyhow.

There are a couple different programs I like using, but lately I have been using DMG Audio's EQuilibrium. They have free trials on their website for all of their plug ins, so give it a go if you want to try it out. The iZotope Ozone 7 series is also good, and some of Fab Filters plugs are good as well. DMG audio has a couple simpler and less expensive EQ plug in's, if you don't need all the features of EQuilibrium. For a simple bass boost, "EQuick" might be all you need. Hope that helps.

 

I've already been notified via PM. Point taken.

 

In general, the HM5 pad swap did more for the Elears than I'd have imagined. Seems like the HD700 situation where the pads just bunged up everything. I don't think it's fair to judge the Elears on their stock sound, when it's almost universally agreed that you have to mod the HD800's before they reach their true potential.

If you have a pair that works with it, sonarworks has a free trial thingy out right now. No grey-area 'acquiring' of software necessary. Works with the Elears, and I've been using it with mine for the last few days, really liking the changes, but I'm not sure how much the HM5 pads are changing the sound signature ontop of the EQ. No idea if the Utopias are gonna be supported on it any time soon though.

https://www.sonarworks.com/truefi

 

I agree. Elear's I think are really only for those who are willing and able to EQ/DSP. They should probably print this on the box. With EQ they are now my favorite HP (so far this year anyways ) and I find them the equal to and different from (perhaps not "better" in every category) than all the usual $2k$ planar offerings.

 

I don't think anyone would argue against the Elear's innate technical capabilities. The disagreement probably comes from their tuning, which is rather hit or miss, and can be widely affected by the genres of music you listen to.

 

Elear or HD800S, folks?

 

Depends- Tomato, or lawnmower? They're really different animals entirely.

We're gonna need a bit more info for any kind of meaningful recommendation, and it's been discussed in this thread extensively.

 

Classical musik, how much Elear sound worse than HD800? I vote for Elear but I also listen classical which is the top job of HD800

 

For classical, you might consider a Koss ESP950 or low end Stax. I can certainly see how the HD800 is good for classical.
I think the Elear will sound muddy for orchestral pieces.
The utopia is great for classical, but the transparency of the electrostats is fantastic for classical.