The Clear had a creaky headband which was bugging meā¦ similar to the one in Tylls reviewā¦ and the Elex headband never creaked like thatā¦ So I thought, might as well re-purpose it. And I love it.
Yeah the last batch of Massdrop Elexās had a noticeable headband creak. Taking it out of the box was a WTF experience.
Your ClearXās looks great.
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I ended up ordering a set of the red Clear Pro pads as well. 
Headroom has them for $150.
This is the most Focal modding Iāve ever seen. In fact, itās the only Focal modding Iāve seen.
It looks fantastic. How does it sound? And do they sound better or worse after several of those Coke Zeros?
I have no idea what life is like without coke zero flowing through my system, so i have no ideaā¦ Maybe Iām missing out.
But yeah, they sound great. I agree with Joshās review on the Clear vs Elex, itās about like a 5% difference in sound (I just went back and forth just now). If EVEN thatā¦ the Elex and Clear sound incredibly similar. Tonally they sound pretty much identical, there are just a few differences in their characteristics.
Iām justifying my upgrade to the Clear from Elex by having these be my MAIN headphone and planning on making them my main headphone for a long time. If they were secondary, Iād probably just have stuck with the Elexā¦ but I am very happy with them. I am considering removing and spray painting the outer grill of the original Clear body (They are easy to remove) to customize the look a bit further.
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Those look awesome! Where did you get that headband wrap?
Ty for the link! Picked up one my Focal Elex as well 
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Wow this really demonstrates Whatās missing from a frequency graph.
Wait you donāt see much of a difference Between the two? so why are people paying twice the price for the clears?
I think the current THX offerings split almost exactly at the Focal Clears. The Clears sound fine off of my 789, but sound a lot better off of my vintage Marantz, and even my Sprout100. Below that $1500 ish price point, the 789s are perfect, but at that range and beyond I think you see the benefit from a more powerful amp. The Elex are GREAT, but the Clears are substantially better if powered properly.
Side note-it has to feel pretty great to be working on the game that the entire industry is excited about. Iāve explored every corner of the Witcher 3, and I canāt wait for Cyberpunk
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Agree with this for sure, the elex makes more sense for most people, but the clear on a good amp is a step above imo
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Are you talking about powering the Clear out of the speaker output of those amps? Because if I recall correctly Sprout100ās headphone output is less powerful than 789.
I was talking about the headphone out. I know itās not as powerful as some of my desktop headphone amps, but I found the Sprout 100 to be a really solid headphone source and I didnāt expect it at all
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Itās not just about power, when you start moving up from amps like the 789.
Higher end SS amps will measure worse and sound better, because they use different topologies. The 789 uses a ton of feedback to get the measurements it does, there is a generally accepted (though itās not concrete) belief that feedback in amps is generally bad for the sound.
Some manufacturers of high end SS amps will choose to use 0 feedback and have THD in the 0.1% range, because it results in a more pleasing sound.
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I base all of my opinions subjectively on āfeelā. I love when your feedback proves/contradicts what my ears tell me.
I see. Wonder how great it would be if PS Audio makes a standalone headphone amp.
I really wish I had gotten the Sprout early on. It really does a great job of everything. If you have any plans of owning a turntable and nearfield speaker setup, I honestly canāt imagine a better device. The headphone out is so much better than it has any business being as well
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Iām not sure if anyone else saw thisā¦ but @bagwell359 made this argument on my post about harmonic distortionā¦ and I think itās a really interesting perspective.
Look at it this way. Recording/mixing/producing does not capture the full experience of the music. The electrical chain - in particular the transducers and the room or the confined spaces of a headphone - mangles the music. Small/medium amounts of HD(Harmonic Distortion) can add back - not what was lost, but, something thatās akin to it. As long as you donāt overdo it.
It would go along with the reasoning why some amps, which might not necessarily measure as ācleanlyā may sound better and more pleasing overall. Or even more āaccurateā.
Yeah. I actually mulled between the Sprout100 and Emotiva A-100 + dac etc. for my desktop speaker + headphone set up and I end up with the A-100 + SU-8 + 789.