Yeah 80 is loud. For shorter runs, I do end up between 80 and 85 (have a standard dB meter I got off of Amazon, that red one, UNI-T). This is electronic or house music Iâm talking about.
I do know that 85ish is pretty darn loud over speakers.
For other music, it should surely be lesser, with very occasional high dB elements with those snappy dynamics in the music.
But I ainât getting much time and probably 5-6 hours a week would be my max listening duration, and like 30-45 minutes tops with above 80 dB.
@Roberto_Enther I think 70 to 80 should be okay for Jazz or soundtracks and stuff. But it is really the highs thatâs the main concern here. And bass too, if itâs IEMs or closed backs etc. and most of the sound pressure coming into your eardrums has nowhere else to go.
If your hearing ability is in the normal range, I think itâs extremely unlikely youâd be able break them at any volume youâd want to listen at. At least, thatâs as long as youâre not experiencing bass clipping which the Clear is known for.
The only way to accurately measure your volume level (on an absolute scale) is with a calibrated mic. Something like a phone app is probably only decent for measuring relative volume differences.
Very nice. I go back and forth with the iFi Pro iCAN. The V220 is warm and gives them lots of body. But I canât resist adding just a touch of bass boost sometimes.
But they also sound pretty good with my LD MK9 and Rebel amp. They are a very easy to drive headphone and not real fussy.
It has been 2 months since I purchased the Focal Clear OG, like @ShaneD I have been lusting this for years now.
First week, it was ok sounding. Decide to swap headphone for next week.
Second week of use, still ok sounding. Boxed it, and decide to put it on classified.
Weeks later got tired of offers. The breaking point was 400$ with shipping and fees! So, I decide to keep it!
Third week of use, decide to put some heavy bass music to burn in at night as Focal recommended.
Fourth week, I like it now as a jack-of-all-trades!
Equipment:
Laptop > Douk U2 pro > coaxial > BF2 OG > balanced > V222 > focal clear balanced
The best way to describe it is like DMs said. These are good all arounder.
Pros:
Neutral tuning. I can actuality play my entire playlist without skipping any songs. Everything sounds good to great! Best with female vocals than male.
Confort. One of the most comfortable headphone I have used. The pads breathe pretty well, even beyer velour although comfortable sometimes generate heat.
Resolution. Top dynamic penformance. Although, Iâm lacking some resolution in vocals like breathing (easy to discern on hd8xx even with the funky tuning).
Cons:
Soundstage and Imaging. It is small, different, and I cannot seem to unlock soundstage depth yet. Imagine is good, but with my other cans I can point things easier. I though I liked wide soundstage but even the dt900 pro x is fine and doesnât bother me in this aspect.
Neutral tuning. My favorite music is metal and Edm which these are not for. They are ok for some metal like Arch enemy but Slipknot is a no.
Pads and headband deteriorate really fast. I bought a headband cover, and use it since day 1.
Iâm planning to keep using it for a little longer. The tuning makes me want to keep it for reference, my other cans are V-shaped. Also, bought a RNHP to try with it( didnât bought only for clears, I loved this small piece of equipment with the BF2 OG).
Im even considering getting the Utopia 2020. Iâm amazed by the clear, it is not a look at me kind of amazed it is more like a oh this is nice.
Interesting to hear your take. I was not won over in the first week as they seemed overly bassy and I preferred the vocals on my Elexâs.
My testing time has not been well used though. I had a gall bladder attack from mid to late December. That required two visits to an ER. After the second visit I was feeling better, but managed to pick up Covid during my ten hour visit. And three days later that was my new thing. And then symptoms persisted for weeks. Not a great situation for testing.
I started to feel better when I got my Beeâs from Nectar Sound. Still heavy into that. I think next week I will pull the Clears out and do some more comparisons against the Elexâs. Before I got the Beeâs I was using the Clearâs but I donât trust what I was hearing. Post severe Covid (about 4 days), it was a head cold for about 10 days with lots of phlegm and then weeks with a dry cough. Still a bit of it now, but I feel fine.
Bottom line is that that I donât yet have a clear opinion on the Clearâs and how they compete against the Elexâs. The Elexâs were pretty much my favourite headphone ever, along with my Grado GH2âs.
More work to be done and I do Love this kind of work.
Thanks for the well wishes! I am feeling Much better, but it is just minor symptoms that keep hanging on. Still sleeping like crazy, which is not a bad thing, but unusual for me.
The last couple of days have been Focal days. Some thoughts come up.
The Clear is Very close to the Elex. Two years ago I bought the Elexâs as they were half the price of Clearâs, landed, in Canada. I made the right choice! Nowadays, the smart buy would be the Clearâs. The difference now (when the Elexâs are on sale) is less than $300.00 in Canuck bucks.
And the warranty goes from one year to three years.
The Radianceâs really are awesome. The more bass in the song, the better it sounds.
The Clearâs and the Radianceâs really are a great combo. I am SUCH a Focal fanboy.
Elex about 3yrs, Clear about 4months and Radiance about 3 months I believe. Clear brand new at 890 from Headphones .com , Radiance used but barely at all (like a week) .
