Focal Elear Measurements

Discussion in 'Headphone Measurements' started by purr1n, Aug 12, 2016.

  1. Halaudio

    Halaudio New

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    Tricky headphone, I see. I am currently evaluating if buying a pair to mod it would be worth it or if I'd be better off waiting for something like HD820s. I already have Brainwavz angled pads and HD600's pads (and HD600s too). Looking for an upgrade over HD600s. Damn, this hobby..
     
  2. dontfeedphils

    dontfeedphils New

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    Joined just to say thanks to @Hands for all the groundwork that's been done on mods for the Elear. Picked up a pair a couple weeks ago after auditioning them and loving the energy and bass of the headphone, but started to notice the recessed area in the mids as well as a bit of strangnish in the treble. So far I've got the HM5 angled pleather pads on and it's improved the mids, subdued the bass a bit and seems to have added some air to the sound. Sound preference wise, the treble doesn't bother me too much, but after a long listening session yesterday my ears are a bit fatigued, so I've got some 1/4" foam on the way to try out in front of the driver.

    Thanks again to everyone in this thread!
     
  3. dontfeedphils

    dontfeedphils New

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    Not sure if anyone involved in this thread still has a set of these, but for anyone interested in experimenting with different pads, I'm having my first revision of an aftermarket pad adapter I mocked up printed this week. Only worried about post/hole alignment at this point.

    [​IMG]
     
  4. dontfeedphils

    dontfeedphils New

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    So, I'm somewhat new to headphones and high-end audio in general, and even more so with the forums related to this hobby, so I wasn't privy to the SBAF/HF beef. After posting this same thing on the Elear thread over there I received this PM:

    "Hello dontfeedphils,

    For myriad reasons (some of which you may or may not be familiar), we do not allow links or reference to superbestaudiofriends from Head-Fi. As a result, your post was edited; but, for the record, we have included the full, unedited text of your post below.

    I hope you understand, even if you don't agree.

    Best Regards,
    Joe"

    Found some time to read through a couple of threads on here last night, especially the thread covering the whole Sony measurement BS. I try not to be an us vs them kind of person, but I also don't like to deal with known twats. Think I'll end up spending more of my time here rather than HF where posts are subject to dear leaders approval.
     
  5. neogeosnk

    neogeosnk Friend

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    I'd buy a pair or get them printed. I enjoy my elears for gaming. 5k suckout doesn't really matter when you're moving a payload in overwatch. Think a few of us here still have them despite the general meh consensus.
     
    Last edited: Sep 7, 2017
  6. FallingObjects

    FallingObjects Pay It Forward

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    Also, they're worth trying with the Sonar works Tru-fi stuff. There's profiles for the Elears, and I'm really enjoying A/B (albeit out of a tube amp, and with HM5 pads, which both affect the sound signature).
     
  7. dontfeedphils

    dontfeedphils New

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    First revision of the HM5 pad adapters. Made from cheap ABS since I knew I'd have to make changes (hence the broken tabs). Made a couple of small tweaks, preferential changes mostly. Ready to have a couple made up with SLS Nylon.

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    Below is a link to the file in igs, stp, and obj formats. For those unfamiliar with 3D printing, I'd avoid ABS for these, finish looks like hell and the tabs didn't last long. My next set will be SLS Nylon.

    https://goo.gl/haK4Uj
     
  8. dontfeedphils

    dontfeedphils New

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    Last update on the pad adapters. Received the latest revision, made some tolerance/fitment adjustments and had them printed using SLS/Nylon rather than FDM/ABS. Turned out pretty good!

    [​IMG]
     
  9. munch

    munch Friend

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    hi - bumping a bit. is the goo.gl link the latest version? really tempted to try this out :)

    thank you for sharing!
     
  10. dontfeedphils

    dontfeedphils New

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    Yep, that link is still good.
     
  11. Jinxy245

    Jinxy245 Vegan Puss

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    Thanks for the specs and whatnot, much appreciated!

    IDK if anyone has tried these or not, but I had a set 3d printed (about $20 with a coupon, not bad). Anyway IDK if it was their mistake or if it's the specs, but I found the 'lip' to be very small to fit the pads in. Did you change the depth from the black set? the pic does look a bit different.

    I also had a couple of the pins break off already while attempting to put them on. Maybe the company isn't that great ( https://www.3dhubs.com/ )or I might be a klutz.

    I'll have to see if I can salvage these...thanks in advance if anyone has any input/suggestions.
     
  12. dontfeedphils

    dontfeedphils New

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    The gap is pretty tight, did that to save some space and so it would hold the pads better. I used a plastic "spudger" tool to work the pad into place.

    What material did you have them made from? If ABS then they'll definitely be fragile, if Nylon then I'm surprised you're having issues. My last set were nylon and I could bend them quite a bit without worry.
     
  13. Jinxy245

    Jinxy245 Vegan Puss

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    Thanks for the reply...I was able to get the pads in...used a thin enough screwdriver. The trick fro me was to put the pads all the way over the adapter & work the ends into it from there. The gap was indeed pretty tight though.

    It was made from DuraForm PA, but they were a bit brittle I guess. I'm going to contact them and see if they can do anything.
     
  14. allegro

    allegro Friend

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    First to clarify my likes, I am not a fan of the Elears. When I first got back in to high end head fi I had not yet found SBAF and made some bad decisions based on sites like InnerFidelity and the Elears were one ... the other was buying a Brooklyn DAC+ which I intend to replace with a Yggdrasil A2 later this year. But I digress.

    The Elears are heavy and uncomfortable for long listening sessions. I can wear my HD800S all day no problem. At first listen the dynamics of the Elears are fun but the fun wears off. I use a Kenzie amp and have spent time tube rolling until I found what I think are the best tubes when listening to the Senns on the 300 Ohm phone jack: a matched pair of Tung Sol 1626 and a 1960's vintage Telefunken ECC801S input tube using an adaptor. The Telefunken takes the Kenzie up several notches in resolution and imaging compared to the stock 12SL7GT the amp ships with. Can't recommend the Telefunken enough if you own a Kenzie or Encore and don't mind the $220 tab.

    I keep my Elears as spares and occasionally go back to them plugged in to the 32 Ohm output jack on my Kenzie. They are a decent set of phones with more punchy bass than the HD800S but the soundstage collapses compared to the Senns and the Elears are deficient in imaging, clarity and ability to hear inner details. The Senns totally outclass the Elears midrange and treble. I can listen to the Elears for about an hour before I go back to the HD800S for relief:)
     
  15. Ti_Leo

    Ti_Leo Almost "Made"

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    Sorry for bumping, and sorry I'm not professional and I don't have any measuring tools. But do any of you have ZMF Eikon pads on hand? I think you can give them a go on Elear, these pads make female vocal oily, so oily that I got melted!

    Actually today is the first day I got my Elear, and thanks to @Hands instruction, I changed the earpads right away and Elear sounded good with my (can-be-fake) HM5 angled pads. But because I'm too lazy, I didn't use foam disk on Elear, so the sound is still a bit hard. To me it's really good for EDM, but female vocal is a bit fatiguing.

    Then I got bored and saw my TH-X00 with Eikon pads, I stripped them off for the pads, and after putting the pads loosely on Elear, I was shocked by the vocal: so smooth.

    There are many downsides using Eikon pads: 1. noticeably smaller soundstage, 2. less details, 3. could be overdamped, 4. sub-bass seems lighter. So the sound is not good for EDM now, but it's so vocal-centered! The vocal is intimate and smooth, like a "bigger HD650" I guess?

    Normally when I got something new, I listened to those female vocal tracks to see how much I missed my HD6XX K. This time not so much, barely.

    But what's the point to tune down all Elear's advantages to make them HD650-like? I don't know... But pads swaping on Elear using double sided taps is like 10 seconds? Easy, just give the pads a try if you have a pair.

    Sorry, forgot to mention that I left one layer of my favourite electrostatic paper in Eikon pads, and when I tried to take the paper off, it was not as good. Since the headphones can be overdamped already, just use more damping!

    Edit: Using Eikon pads makes the headphones more comfortable to me. Using HM5 pads always gives me some painful areas on top of my head, big fat Eikon pads are much better, YMMV.

    And Eikon pads do look weird on Elear...
     

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