LLAT: Focal Elear Review - Just Short of Greatness?
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- čas přidán 12. 09. 2024
- The Focal Elear does almost everything right. Keyword: almost.
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The squeaking is part of the audio experience.
*_That's what the salesperson kept telling me, but I'm not buying it. Cheers from beautiful Bangor, Maine where recreational marijuana is legal, home prices are still some of the lowest in the entire western world, auto insurance is the lowest in the USA and the scenery is absolute nirvana._*
(2:03) Didn't you put on the HPs the wrong way?
Felt like you've went into this with the intent to find a motivation to fail or pass it.
Haha well yes, I do go into most reviews with the intent of evaluating the product. If this had been a more comfortable headphone and the mids didn't have that dip, I would have sold my STAX and bought my own pair at the end of this. Now, if this headphone was more comfortable BUT had the same dip in the mids, my opinion would have been really quite torn.
Who knows - perhaps Elear II will fix that.
Fail or pass, as opposed to what....? I agree with Lachlan's review for the most part. Great headphone, but the hole in the upper-mids kinda ruins it for me, and I like the STAX SR-207 overall more for less money.
You should definitely review your STAX at some point. In a proper review ofc.
I agree with Andrei you sounded as you were trying so hard to justify yourself you just ruined the picture I had for you.
They fit better when you're not wearing them backwards. I do not own the Elear, but I do own the Elex, Elegia, Celestee, Radiance and Clear OG. Which are all the same design. There's nothing wrong with the fit.
Exactly what I wanted to say about Elear! Thank you for the honest review. I bought Elear for all the other fantastic reviews, only to return it after a week. The biggest shut down for me about this dip in 4-5khz is not female vocal, it is the violin. Elear completely sucked out the liveliness and fullness of a violin. I don't think a usd $999 headphone should have such a big weakness.
Agree with the dip in 4k making vocals sound too dull at times. A small 3dB boost on 4k with eq solves this though. Your theory about why people think the Elear is dynamic, is wrong though. It has nothing to do with how loud you turn them up, even at quieter volumes the Elear is incredibly dynamic. Even when eq'ing away the 4k dip.
No offense, but I don't feel like you did the Elears justice here. They can definitely compete with any headphone up to the level of Utopia, Susvara etc, and the 4k dip is not as big of an issue as you made it out to be. Especially the part where you discredited the Elears phenomenal dynamics as just a part of the 4k dip, that was just silly and actually offended me a bit.
With that said though, I do understand why you prefer the L300. Stax in general have an icredibly resolved, detailed yet effortless sound that no dynamic/planar can replicate. Only headphone I've heard with the same resolution is the Susvara, but the Susvara sounds more harsh and forced so to speak.
Will you be doing a best over-ear headphones of 2016? Please :)
I'll be trying before the end of the year!
Just curious...do you think the Bose QC35 will still make your list for this year too?
Great review! Agree with many of your opinions.
I had Elear for roughly one month, and liked them in terms of awesome bass response (one of the best subbass-midbass balances in my headphone experience). But unevenness in midrange consistently annoyed me, and ended up with returning it to the seller.
I highly recommend you to hear utopia someday. All the (sonic) problems and annoyances disappear there. Asking price is too stupid THO.
+VTory I've heard the Utopia! Only briefly though. I did like the sound but wonder if it could get a bit fatiguing. If the Elear was around $1000 AUD and the Utopia around $2000 AUD I would probably happily recommend both.
As you can see from my avatar I love the Elear, they are easily the best headphone I've had and one of the best I've heard. I like them more than the HD800 & HD800s as well as the LCD-2 & LCD-3. Hooked up to my Modi 2 Multibit the Elear sound nothing short of amazing for its price point. Build, fit and sound quality are all top notch for a $999 headphone.
TechLife11 Please tell me you aren't driving headphones directly off of a DAC.
@@JTCPingas why not?
Thank you so much for the review. Not that I was really thinking to buy them, but it was making me unsure to buy something cheaper like the Focal Listen or Fostex THX00. I kept hearing how great these were but hearing this review I believe because I have bought expensive electronics before and big let down.
"Really heavy at just over 400g" as I sit here and cackle with my 600g LCDX on my head
lmao same here. good thing i bought a headstrap from ebay and it made the lcdx more bearable.
110% agree with you, that's why I'll buy the Sonarworks EQed version, the extremely low distortion and technicalities of Elear makes it perfect for a custom Sonarworks EQ :)
I am able to be clear...
About what I like about the Elear...
I couldn't agree more with your conclusion, I sold mine after a month. I've also sold the HD800S and my HD650 hardly get any use now. The sennheiser IE800s have become my go to for home and portable use.
Did you ever give your thoughts on the SRH1540 ?
Ian, you're my most recent favorite reviewer. So glad I found this channel.
Thanks for the review , I also hate the midrange dip that effects vocals , that part is so important
Most honest review about the Elear ... thank you..
Hassab Saeed you just stupid
Hassab Saeed just watch innerfidelity review...loklan is idiot
i had the Elear for 3 months ,, i sold it before 2 weeks ,, overhyped overpriced headphone , not worth 300$
IF Tyll is not God
Hey Lachlan, any chance you'll be getting the Noble X from Massdrop too?
Just got the T1's and the mids and vocals are like you explained here also where you need the feel to turn up the volume to get the vocals to come up. In turn everything else gets too loud. Probably sell them.
the hair! BUT WHY?!
Have you tried the Mrspeakers Ether/Ether Flow yet? I'm sure you'll like it. It definitely will be my end game after I saved up enough to afford one ;)
Have never heard the Elears, so have no idea whether I agree with you. But brave of you to go against the flock. Made me subscribe now.
I had the same experience with some B&W headphones where the treble and bass were great and the mids slightly recessed, vocals had a nice tone but just a bit recessed when compared with the rest of the frequencies
How would you compare these to the HE-500? I know aornic has already done this but I'd love to hear your precious opinion lachlan!
"Doesn't have that visceral slam" O_o
Well, LCD-2 has more dynamic subbass and ability to produce really load subbass, but I hear some wind inside of them when listening test tones. And their trebles are worse. Staxes have better treble representation than Elear, but are nowhere near in bass region. Nothing is perfect :)
focal marketing department did an amazing job on the elears and utopia's
hey! nice video. have you reviewed the HD 600's? I'm thinking about getting some soon
I don't think you need this guy to review the 600's to know they're worth getting.
Just get it!! Review over. Purchase an amp like O2 along with it if you can, but not a 100% necessity if you cant spend much.
Lachlan did a review of its bigger brother, the hd650, which is a slightly differently tuned hd600.
i'm going to pair the 600's with the Schiit Magni 2 Uber
Matthew Gilbert go ahead. I only have a hd598, but I can guarantee you that Hd600 will be an ecstatic headphone. Majority of headphone subreddit is Hd600 appraisals and not without a reason. The amp is also a well recommended one.
oh great!
Great review mate you mentioned the shure 1540Have you tried their flagship 1840 open back as this set of cans gets overlooked and I feel this might be a better comparison to the ElearCheers
I've heard the 1840 is very... strange sounding.
lachlanlikesathing The 1840 has massive harmonic distortion in the bass and mids.
Nice review. Will you also review sony's new daps. The NW-A35. They look really good and i hope they also sound good.
I just bought one, will make some comments soon!
What about the open-back Shure 1840 ? It would be interesting it to compare it to the other headphones mentioned in this review.
damn that was cold but you are right if the hype is too great and the product does not stack up it usually gets a harsher report
i wonder are the Focal Elear better than the hd800 or hd800s ?
Lachan have u test Phonon SMB-02?
Have the same filling about the missing mids. The small image and its weight also bother me as well.
You should try the massdrop edition of the elear, heard those to be more neutral and cheaper. but they are not out yet...
do you think it will sound better than beyer t1 for gaming and movies
I think you'd love the Audioquest Nighthawk/Nightowl carbon based on your description of the type of sound you like.
Oddly enough, no I really didn’t like the Nighthawk or Nightowl!
Get new pads, boom, fixed.
a amazon link or something similar would be nice
do you feel it can replace beyer t1 ?
3.35 lmao!! Moment of silence for the guys using 0.6kg audeze helmets. Btw lachlan, are you going to review the mdr z1r anytime soon? Not something I could purchase but really wish to know your opinions! And maybe their new anc headphone as well. The sound of bose is so uninspiring. I am not a Sony guy (I even used to dislike you pushing Sony headphones lol, I'm sure they are great, just my anti fanboy attitude) but can't deny that they sure are knocking it out of the park with their cameras and headphones - the z1r, their new anc headphone, a7s ii, a7r ii, rx100 IV cameras..
Yo! I made a few comments on the 1000x before, you can actually hear them in the Thingcast I did recently. I might do a review before the end of the year. Sony is a very hit and miss company, but I think they have a few hits. Looking forward to trying the Z1R, though I haven't seen it for sale in Australia yet.
I do agree that Sony's products are unpredictable whether they become popular or not. But I think they are doing really great recently and are providing much needed competition across the spectrum. I have been watching your reviews for over a year and I think my taste in music and how I feel about products is very reminiscent of yours. But I think I have some very few objections in your videos.
1. Your mp3 128 vs 320 kbps test. Yeah it was way too long ago, but just wanted to share my opinions. I have nothing against the results and I myself don't feel much a difference either. But I use 320kbps as it's not really big. But the testing method wasn't really good imo. The place felt like a zoo (people were unable to use open headphones).
2. Tips for listening to headphones.. Listen to your own music. I kinda agree and disagree with that. Agree that manufacturers showcase the best case scenario of their products and you need to test it with something else to check its flaws. But we never know what we have been missing until we hear them out. My sound preferences have taken multiple u turns everytime I switched headphones and have no regrets for the old ones. They opened me up to experiences I have never experienced before. Like if I had been using a tfz series 3 for long then my music collection wouldn't have enough female vocals, and that would be enough to put me off vsonics and I wont get to experience its magical rendition of female vocals and electronica. My friend has a piston 2, and whenever I send him a female vocal song, he'd say it sucks. Then after hearing on my vsd3s, he'll be very impressed!!. I think our tastes is important but just as important is what could be our tastes provided the right gear.!
3. HD650.. I have nothing to back up this, but I have heard at a lot of places that they scale up with amps, above O2 level. O2's slew rate is kinda controversial. And I have seen some measurements that can confirm that they need a 7v voltage swing to prod through masterings with high dynamic range (to dig the lowest possible detail), I don't remember the article,.. I think the article is about the changes in tuning of hd650 over the years. And boy I was shocked when you told iPhone powered them at 50%. I have to prod through 80% on my ipad mini to get a nice listening experience on my HD598. But I think HD650 does have a high sensitivity inspite of high impedance, so I can trust you!.
Dozens of videos and I have only 3 corrections/objections! No wonder you are one of my most favourite reviewer. I am a college student so I can't spend my funds on the patreon program. But i'll join as soon as I finish my college. And I believe you made a surface pro video earlier. I currently have a surface book for a year and it's been awesome. Made my college life much better, especially it's stylus. I would recommend you to check it out if you can, would make an interesting video.
Great review!
What is you gears/DAC ?
Could you compare these to Audeze LCD-2?
get the lcd2f if you dont sweat from headphones or have a tiny neck.
Why? I have read that these are better than LCD-2s.
Matej Balogh These are overhyped.Buy hd 650 instead and you will have a better experience.
Chosen Undead who told you that ? Lol I've had both. Elear is a whole new level. Lachlan is wearing the headphones in the wrong way and they won't sound right !
do you know @ ~ 2:10 ! you did try 'em on in reverse ?! ;)
I have to point out that you're wearing the headphones backwards when talking about the comfort, although I'm sure you didn't listen to them that way (i hope).
+Dallas Marlow nah
my clear pro squeaking too a bit... but im the audio section all weaknesses of the elear got fix greatly!!!
Give the Focal Clear a try!
hearing them headphones squeak like that when moving them isn't a good thing.
Did you get to order Massdrop Sennheiser HD6XX?
He already reviewed the HD650. HD6xx is the same as HD650
I know but at nearly half the price Sennheiser is charging.
It's gonna be the same actually. Even non-audiophile reviewer like LTT says so.
so is the elear better than the HD800 or HD800s ?
TinBin - Craig With a 1000$ amp hd 800S is on an another level like the guy above me said
Any chance of us getting a review on the stax?
I will eventually! You can check some of my scattered commentary from the Hong Kong videos :3
Oh cool. Did you get it in Australia? I wanna get a pair, and I'm moving there, but I don't really know the "hotspots" for headphone buying
Nah, I got it in Hong Kong. You can find them for demo at Len Wallis in Sydney though!
Jezus! that effin creeking!!!
Wait till you hear the Stellia's you'll lose your mind
Hi what are ur headphone daily driver
hopefully you'll review the MEE Audio Pinnacle P1 soon
I wish a reviewer would try my modified Sennheiser HD530 on my modified Light (dark) voice amp, i bought the headphones for 30 euros and the amp for 130, with vintage tubes on it
Maybe the Focal Elear's were hyped up too much before their release. I was considering purchasing these but went for the Bowers & Wilkins H9 instead and I'm sure glad I did cos they're at the top of their game; build, comfort and sound quality are all top notch. Give the H9's a spin and you won't be disappointed.
but dam they are so ugly ;)
Is that a mod mic on the headphone?
Tyco2000 looks like it. weird that someone would spend a grand for headphones, but not a couple hundred bucks for a decent standalone mic.
You think this is worth getting for $699?
+David Joshua Hernandez doesn’t seem like a terrible price for it
you should review the hd800s
I think you'd love the DT1990's
I do like em!
Would be great to compare utopia vs hd800s😁
Those Shure 1540 headphones behind you suck in sound quality lol. Sound is congested. Can't believe they're $500.
More of a dip in the treble between 3 and 8 khz
I agree
Stop putting them the wrong way round!!
Pause and press 2 ;)
2:47 ... "wish that the earcups tilted back just a few degrees more" as you put them on backwards...in fact you put them on backwards 2 times in this video. If you are doing a youtube video talking about comfort it takes away from your credibility when you look at them and still put them on backwards.
I was referring to this particular aspect of this particular review, not his credibility in general. I agree very much with his HD650 review, and being a professional reviewer is not an unconditional statement. He put the headphones on backwards which corresponds directly to his criticism of the headphones...and he looked right at them and still put them on backwards...was just a little bit odd for a professional reviewer is all.
You look like asian Jack Nicholson in the thumbnail! :D
+Satfgk holy shit, I knew that picture reminded me of something and you are right. i.ytimg.com/vi/RjzKqFJ5CEI/maxresdefault.jpg
Nice to see you're enjoying your STAX, they are no joke. Got myself an SRS-4170 set a few years back which was then upgraded to an SR-007 mk1 w. high-power driver. Hours of beautiful music with zero fatigue.
i wonder how the ls-r700 sound =)
lex Tr3 probably similar to the SR-009 which is bad news imho. I like the Nova Signature best.
Sony z1r please!
Too many complaints, I'l keep my Grados PS1000e !
After Sony fan for ever I think he will not like anything which is in league of TOTL HP :)
Personally the Shure SRH1540 make me want to fall asleep...
I've seen Zeos call the SRH1540 boring.
superarmandbros Yep. Elear is much more interesting than the 1540's. I've heard the beyerdynamic DT1990 be called euphoric and after listening to both, the Elear is up there with the 1990's in its engagement
We have similar opinions on most head- and earphones
The moment he puts them on the wrong way. Cringe
He's just doing review while handling the headphone dude, relax
utopia ;)
never do that hairstyle ever again haha great review though!
do you actually LIKE anything????????????????????????????????????
woffle woffle woffle, he should change his channel to LachlanDoesntKnowAThing
Don't mean to be a jerk, but you're pronouncing it wrong. It's Fo-CAL, like the beginning of California.
Are you fucking kidding me?? I swear I've seen headfiers like you everywhere saying it like that and it makes me cringe. At least google how "Focal" is spelled, No it's not "FO-KAAAAL" it's focal, FOCAL!!! you don't hybrid or mix the word between the French and the English pronunciation and that doesn't exist. It's either pronounced"FOCUL" (English) or "FOO-KAL" (French) your pronunciation doesn't exist even in a parallel universe.
Communist twat I work in car audio, and I work very closely with Focal America, all of the reps pronounce it that way. If they catch you saying it any other way, they will correct you. Also: focal-america.com/history/ Scroll down to the FAQ, the first question teaches you to how to pronounce it properly.
At first I thought austins was engaging in an ad hominem attack with the "Communist twat" thing, but then I realized that was simply your user name, lol.
I do feel austins has a point, however. If the brand so chooses to have their name pronounced in that way, even if it might seem somewhat pretentious, then I feel they can be humoured, even if only so as to differentiate between common nouns and such. Take a look at Asus; I STILL can't get a consensus on how to say it properly, ARGH.
Cheers, all!
I don't care how manufacturers want you to spell their name especially if it's a foreign word because It's not a mistake if you mispronounced a word from a language that you never learned, I used to pronounce "Asus" like "AY-suh-ss" by following how the word is written until someone corrected me and said it is actually "Eh-sus" (Whaaaaat?) by providing the clue it turned out the later was correct because it was driven from pegasus, But a word that already exist in my dictionary?? fuck no, you can't change how that is pronounced.
What I believe is that the twats at Focal 'Murica decided to sound "French" so they decided to act smartass, Instead they became a bunch of dumbasses with a cult of clueless illiterate fuckwits following them. The result?? People correcting the original pronnounciation with a wrong one.
And by the way, how in hell "FOE-KAL" sounds pretensious?? So you're saying that "FOEEEEKAAAAAL Utopia" is more beautiful than "FOCUL utopia" or "Fookal utopia" (It even goes well people!)????
I know french people tend to stretch their mouth like the way Focal wants you to spell it but that's just an idiotic exaggerated stereotype.
*cough* I admit to perpetuating the use of "Eh-sus" :P
Oh no, that's not what I meant. I was merely referring to how some perceive adopting a different accent to pronounce a loanword "properly" as pretentious, as opposed to pronouncing the loanword as if it were part of their own native language.
With regard to Focal, I'd defer to Focal FR in the matter, as it is a French company after all. I'm inclined to go with "Fookal" since that's how a non-audio enthusiast friend of mine who knows the languages pronounced it (she isn't fluent, but her accent's worlds better than mine I'd say).
Thumbs down from Nick. lol
don't watch this crap, just watch innerfidelity review of elear