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Reddit Reviews
HD650 for the warmth* *My actual pick would be Focal Clear OG
I don't think this is true. If I handed someone a HD650 then handed them a set of Focal Clears I think they'd be able to immediately hear a huge difference in many ways outside detail.
I own a pair of Focal Clear OGs and a pair of Drop PC38X. I love them both for gaming. I prefer the Focal Clear because it's just so much more comfortable.
I had a chat with you on Discord a few months ago and you also said that you really liked the Focal Clear OG;
XK-Audio Serene lol With the right pads and amplifier, they are heavenly. Like beyond Susvara heavenly. In terms of headphones that made the biggest impact in the industry. I put the following: HD600/650 series. I personally never liked their tuning, but plenty of others do HD800 made kilobucks more mainstream. Industry benchmark for 16 years Focal Clear OG & Hifiman egg series. IMO the first mainstream headphones that can be considered a legit HD800/800S alternative as an all-rounder (at least sonically) Hifiman Susvara. It has been the new benchmark since 2018.
Listened to a lot of headphones in stores, bought the ones I thought sounded the best (Focal Radiance and Focal Clear OG).
Focal Clear OG, if it's a bit loud for them then Focal Radiance, if it's really loud then Jerry Harvey JH7.
I’m a fan of the Focal Clear OG after many years. If you look across the scores, you can see it is the first they all gave at least a 6. I think it rightfully belongs in the top 10. Focal Elex above it is a mystery to me, but acknowledges Elex is a strong performer for the price. HD800S isn’t in their top tiers. Overall strange scoring. These are tools suited to varying genres. You’d think they scored these while listening to pop music.
I have a pair of focal clear OG and akg k371 got them both used the akg was around $100 and it's about 90% as good as my clears. Still more expensive then this lost but the point is most of the reviewers are bought out and they don't know shit. How can you go through a list of 100 headphones and pretend like you remember what each one of them sounded like this is absurd.
I picked up a pair of Focal Clear OGs used for $700 a couple of months ago, and they’re incredible. I’ve got them paired with a Schiit Lyr+, which really takes the edge off the brightness. That’s a huge win because, for me, that was their one real drawback. For context, I also own the HD 650s and the Hifiman Edition EX, but to me, those are a tier or two below them in sound quality. I haven’t had the chance to try other headphones in the same price bracket, so I can’t say with certainty that they’re the best in that range but I can say this: I love them, and they’ve made listening to music way more enjoyable.
Rankings by Use Case
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