Click to view our Accessibility Statement or contact us with accessibility-related questions
Showing 1 of 920 conversations about:
Will
8470
Chief Product Officer
Dec 15, 2017
bookmark_border
Will
8470
Chief Product Officer
Dec 15, 2017
bookmark_border
CrawresHey Crawres,
I'd love to ship everywhere we normally do, but this is a restriction from Focal.
I'd love to ship everywhere we normally do, but this is a restriction from Focal.
Will
8470
Chief Product Officer
Dec 15, 2017
bookmark_border
CrawresNah sorry. That's a process we run to accommodate partners who care more about the letter of their distribution agreements than the spirit. This is Focal's first time working with us, so maybe as time goes on we'll be able to open up more destinations.
All that said, there are freight forwarding services you can engage yourself. I don't have any to recommend, but I'd guess the cost is reasonable as a percentage of $800.
All that said, there are freight forwarding services you can engage yourself. I don't have any to recommend, but I'd guess the cost is reasonable as a percentage of $800.
TheOmegaCarrot
115
Dec 16, 2017
bookmark_border
WillAre y'all considering loaning out review units? I would love to get my hands on one of these!
bsastor
779
Dec 16, 2017
bookmark_border
WillReally love listening to the french speaking english. Makes everything more premium immediately. Here's my $800, please give me your wonderful headphones. Thank you. I would have said that if i have 800.
lossendae
31
Dec 16, 2017
bookmark_border
WillToo much bass ? Did you ever listen to any song on any good speaker ?
The fad of open back headphone with little to no bass sounds like an excuse to justify the audiophile price. And those certainly don't don't sound anywhere close to a good set of speakers.
darth415
13
Dec 16, 2017
bookmark_border
lossendaeIt still has +3db. Thats plenty of bass. Also the rule of thumb is that the bigger the speakers, the easier it is to make them sound good (generally), so of course speakers sound good.
You sound like you really enjoy Skullcandy and beats products?
You sound like you really enjoy Skullcandy and beats products?
lossendae
31
Dec 18, 2017
bookmark_border
darth415Ah, I was sure that Beats would come, and no, I don't like them. :)
But I do like dancing, which for some songs needs bass, and that make most open back cans neutrally no fun at all. This was not the case with the original Elear.
But I do like dancing, which for some songs needs bass, and that make most open back cans neutrally no fun at all. This was not the case with the original Elear.
Woot-Zee
61
Dec 18, 2017
bookmark_border
WillThen, Focal just lost me... it is just as easy. (Not too bad, I may be the only one) :D
jotry
47
Dec 18, 2017
bookmark_border
ShitThis is something I would specifically like to know more about is how the results were achieved to bring the bass down, and the midrange up. Is this solely from the earpad swap to the Clear style earpads, or was there some degree of tuning changes done to achieve this? Reports are indicating it is the earpad swap responsible for this, but some are saying the midrange has been decreased. Clarification from you Will woudl be greatly appreciated!
david.zamora
102
Dec 18, 2017
bookmark_border
WillIt's ridiculous how ear pads can completely alter the sound signature. You could have a $2k pair of cans and with the wrong ear pads and it wouldn't sound any different than a $200 pair of cans.
Will
8470
Chief Product Officer
Dec 18, 2017
bookmark_border
david.zamoraEar pads are to headphones as rooms are to speakers. That said, your statement is not entirely accurate.
While ear pads play a massive part in shaping the frequency response of a headphone, they do little to change things like transient response, driver dynamics, sound stage presentation, sensations of attack or decay, etc. These are things that relate more directly to the performance of the driver, and a $2000 headphone driver should always stand out in these areas compared to a $200 headphone driver.
The really tricky area is when ear pads change the measurements for some of those things. Does it change the actual performance of the driver? Generally no. Is it possible for them to cause a change in the way measurements look? Absolutely. This is where some inconsistencies between measured performance and subjective performance tend to reveal themselves.
As always, YMMV, but there's some context for you : )
While ear pads play a massive part in shaping the frequency response of a headphone, they do little to change things like transient response, driver dynamics, sound stage presentation, sensations of attack or decay, etc. These are things that relate more directly to the performance of the driver, and a $2000 headphone driver should always stand out in these areas compared to a $200 headphone driver.
The really tricky area is when ear pads change the measurements for some of those things. Does it change the actual performance of the driver? Generally no. Is it possible for them to cause a change in the way measurements look? Absolutely. This is where some inconsistencies between measured performance and subjective performance tend to reveal themselves.
As always, YMMV, but there's some context for you : )
Pundamilia
6
Dec 18, 2017
bookmark_border
WillWill the headphone connectors on the balanced cable fit into the jacks on a pair of Elears? Given the cost of balanced cables, including them enhances the value of the drop to anyone with HP amp with balanced outputs, particularly for someone like me who already has a pair of Elears.
Will
8470
Chief Product Officer
Dec 18, 2017
bookmark_border
PundamiliaYes, the Elex cables are fully compatible with the Elear.
bigshel
263
Dec 21, 2017
bookmark_border
WillAny chance you can convince Focal to let you sell the cables as a drop? Would love to have those for the Elears
DenonFanboy
825
Dec 21, 2017
bookmark_border
bigshelCan't see why they wouldn't, making for pennies and selling for dollars.
Will
8470
Chief Product Officer
Dec 22, 2017
bookmark_border
bigshelProbably at some point in the future, but they're a lot more interested in selling headphones than accessories.
Will
8470
Chief Product Officer
Dec 22, 2017
bookmark_border
Hey bud,
"can you guys come up with a solution to the shipping limitations? "
If I post an official solution, or even a recommended forwarder, every international Focal distributor is gonna be calling them up, showing them screenshots of how "Massdrop is actively circumventing distribution agreements".
At which point, it will be on Focal to decide if they want to risk being sued by the distributor, losing that business and dealing with potential litigation, or if they want to keep making the Elex with us.
There are many forwarding services with solid reviews, wish I could give you more advice than that.
"can you guys come up with a solution to the shipping limitations? "
If I post an official solution, or even a recommended forwarder, every international Focal distributor is gonna be calling them up, showing them screenshots of how "Massdrop is actively circumventing distribution agreements".
At which point, it will be on Focal to decide if they want to risk being sued by the distributor, losing that business and dealing with potential litigation, or if they want to keep making the Elex with us.
There are many forwarding services with solid reviews, wish I could give you more advice than that.
DanielFerrer
391
Dec 25, 2017
bookmark_border
WillBut it is a product exclusive to Massdrop... so there should be no problem in that as this product CAN NOT BE BOUGHT ANYWHERE ELSE!
Please make it available to ship internationally
PirateIce
232
Dec 28, 2017
bookmark_border
DanielFerrerDaniel please read the info... Its not up to massdrop, and the availability of this model elsewhere is NOT the only concern of the distributor agreements. You are assuming the ONLY reason to have an agreement like this is to stop ONE model of a headphone from being released at different prices and are NOT REALIZING that THIS could be purchased instead of OTHER focal headphones and... THAT PISSES OF DISTRIBUTORS.
detlev24
2
Jan 5, 2018
bookmark_border
Will1. Reduce the bass response to a tasteful ~3 db above neutral
Why is that? The Elear is lacking of bass already; see the following frequency response, which is translated to what loudspeakers measured in an anechoic environment would show:
BLUE = measured average frequency response (of many samples) RED = target frequency response [B&K 1974] GREEN = correction https://picload.org/view/ddawrora/focal_elear-before.png.html https://picload.org/view/ddawrorl/focal_elear-correction.png.html
Otherwise, it is an aesthetically very appealing mod! :)
BLUE = measured average frequency response (of many samples) RED = target frequency response [B&K 1974] GREEN = correction https://picload.org/view/ddawrora/focal_elear-before.png.html https://picload.org/view/ddawrorl/focal_elear-correction.png.html
Otherwise, it is an aesthetically very appealing mod! :)
dasman
387
Feb 12, 2018
bookmark_border
detlev24To build on rhenom's message... you really need to listen to the elear without a VST eq'ing the cans (MOST people are not going to spend $250+ to EQ their headphones, while also limiting their listening to a computer). Out of the box, the elear is a bass heavy set of cans.
The sonarworks graph in your link shows a 9db drop between the bass and mids. Also, the sonarworks graph is the only one I've seen that shows such an abrubt rolloff in the sub-bass for the elear. Every other site shows the sub-bass extends much flatter (which matches my impression when I heard it).
The curves in the drop discussion shows a 10db+ mid drop and I've seen graphs online that show close to a 15db drop for the Elear. It's this midrange suckout that accentuates the bass heavy sound of the Elear.
The frequency curves I've seen for the elex show that Focal/MD reduced the bass (still above neutral) and may have done some work to reduce the mid suckout. This should result in a decent improvement and a more neutral headphone... which matches what people that have heard it are reporting (eg., a mini-clear or a more resolving/faster HD600).
For myself, I'd love to hear these next to the Clear. I auditioned the Clear against the Elear a few weeks ago and it was everything I could to to not drop the $1200 and take them out of the store... they were that good.
-------edit-------- For sake of comparison, my daily driver headphones are ZMF Eikon (closed, work); modded HD650 (living room); HD600 & HE4xx (home office).
The sonarworks graph in your link shows a 9db drop between the bass and mids. Also, the sonarworks graph is the only one I've seen that shows such an abrubt rolloff in the sub-bass for the elear. Every other site shows the sub-bass extends much flatter (which matches my impression when I heard it).
The curves in the drop discussion shows a 10db+ mid drop and I've seen graphs online that show close to a 15db drop for the Elear. It's this midrange suckout that accentuates the bass heavy sound of the Elear.
The frequency curves I've seen for the elex show that Focal/MD reduced the bass (still above neutral) and may have done some work to reduce the mid suckout. This should result in a decent improvement and a more neutral headphone... which matches what people that have heard it are reporting (eg., a mini-clear or a more resolving/faster HD600).
For myself, I'd love to hear these next to the Clear. I auditioned the Clear against the Elear a few weeks ago and it was everything I could to to not drop the $1200 and take them out of the store... they were that good.
-------edit-------- For sake of comparison, my daily driver headphones are ZMF Eikon (closed, work); modded HD650 (living room); HD600 & HE4xx (home office).
MusicLover
566
Feb 13, 2018
bookmark_border
dasmanI have the Focal Elear and the Focal Clear Headphones.
They are both fantastic and pair well with many amps and even sound very good playing through an IPhone.
I do prefer the Clears but both are worth the price they are selling for.
Kunnistais
0
Apr 17, 2022
bookmark_border
jotryhey，I want to know the answer too!!!!! Did you have got it? Thanks!
Related Products
Drop Refurbished
Like-new products you can trustDrop Rewards
Get $5 for every 500 points you earn! Learn more
Drop Keyboard Club
Become a member and expand your keycap collectionCollaborate With Us
For Brands & DesignersFollow Drop
When Focal announced the Elear in 2016, I was on the hype train immediately. A company known for incredible driver design, built off its own research and IP entering the Flagship headphone arena for the first time? It’s incredibly rare (once every 10-15 years, if that) and intriguing.
I saw Jude’s interview with Nicolas and the hype train hit Mach 1. The Elear wasn’t made by an OEM contracted by Focal, it was made by their team in Saint-Étienne, built from the ground up to exacting standards at every level of production. I saw Jude’s measurements... this looks like a super 650... Mach 3. I bought a pair right away. Those were the longest 40 hours of burn-in I’ve done since my first HD800. Put them on, hit play, and... Mach 0. The bass was too strong for me, the mid presence was too weak for me, the FR reminded me of the early 650 when it had a veil and bass distortion. The clarity, transient response, and soundstage was on another level, so the driver technology delivered on everything it promised, but the FR just wasn’t for me.
This spring, discussions around Focal picked up on Massdrop. We started seeing polls asking for Elears and Utopias. The community started to voice their feelings on both within our platform, and the overall sentiment matched closely with my own experience. Folks didn’t like the bass, folks wanted a little more mids (though there was much debate on this, very easy to have too much in the upper midrange), the driver tech was great, but the FR needed to change. Beyond that, the discussions dove into physical characteristics of the headphone. The Elear is heavy, add a thick, rubberized, 4m cable to that (this was on release, it’s been revised down to ~3m since) and you’re hanging a 100g weight from your 450g headphone with the rubberized material catching on everything for those microphonics we all love.
With a detailed community mandate in-hand, we approached Focal this spring, suggesting we work together on a refinement of the Elear, utilizing elements of the Clear to reach these goals:
1. Reduce the bass response to a tasteful ~3 db above neutral 2. Bring up the midrange presence so it’s in line with the rest of the frequency range 3. Change the cable to be lighter and 6ft long 4. Remove the rubberized coating on the cable 5. Simplify the aesthetic with a black on black on gunmetal colorway
Focal was receptive to our proposal and over the next 8 months we worked to achieve these goals. To reduce the bass response and bring up the midrange, we changed the earpads to a similar style as the Clear while tweaking the damping scheme.
We dropped the long rubber cable and replaced it with two cloth covered cables. One is terminated with a 4-pin XLR, one is terminated with a 1/4”, both are 6ft long.
We changed the colorway from the black + silver combination to a black on black with the cable providing a little contrast with black on gunmetal.
Across all our headphone collaborations, I feel we’ve executed the community mandate most completely in the Elex. This is the Massdrop flagship open headphone collaboration.
None of this would be possible without your interest, your discussions, your insights, and your support. Thank you for your continued interest in our collaborations and community designed products.
This drop is limited to 1000 units, all serialized, the first 500 purchases are guaranteed a serial number under 550.