It's still not the same, the HD800S EQs extremely well but is always going to sound somewhat ethereal and diffuse. It's a much better headphone technically, but the HD6XX does provide a different, more intimate presentation and is tonally possibly more "right" and natural sounding out of the box than any other headphone. If I could only pick one, sure I'd take the HD800S any day and EQ it. But for $199 can probably afford to keep the HD6XX around too.

I have the HD800S as well but I still appreciate the HD6XX, it is a very different headphone. Technically, the HD800S is much better, but tonally, the HD6XX, and there are times I prefer that. It's also simply more compact, which can be better if lying in bed. To be honest the logical tonal upgrades to the HD6XX are really more the Focal Clear and Utopia, which I listen to more than the HD800S.

"Comforting" is right.

8,000 THB including delivery to anywhere in Thailand. It's basically new, with box, maybe 5-10 hours listening on it. I have too many headphones.

I think it looks fine, I have it and the HD600. Thinking of selling the HD600 as I prefer the HD6XX so it's superfluous.

Minus $10 off your first order if you sign up to their newsletter, so $189 in that case. You should get a pop-up with this extra offer, if you don't try opening the link in incognito mode.

Drop do actually ship this internationally and international shipping is quite reasonable, $15-20. You may have import duties and/or VAT depending on your country's specifics, and luck of the draw, but this could well still work out as a very good price for what is essentially a dark blue HD650.

Resolve has a good video about EQing it.

It's not great without EQ but apparently very salvageable. Oratory also has a Harman EQ.

$329 on Adorama, at that price I think could be worth it.

Sitting on a headphone wouldn't be covered by warranty anyway, unless you had a policy that specifically covered accidental damage. If ordering from China it would have to go back to China for any warranty, if you could even get that.

But it's a matter of getting the headphone almost half price. Personally I'd take half price no warranty over paying double for a warranty I probably will never use.

That's a new headphone. I have almost all of mine from China, aside from the HE6SEV2 which is an Adorama exclusive, I'm actually in Asia so that was a lot more of a hassle for me to get than the Chinese ones. I bought from Chinese sellers on Shopee which is a SE Asian marketplace, I did not buy from that seller on Ali, so I can't say for them. But you presumably aren't in SE Asia and can't buy from Shopee, so I linked Ali. I have spent more than that with other sellers on Ali, without issue, I have spent thousands of dollars on Ali. That seller seem to have a good amount of positive feedback, from selling Hifimans specifically, and their prices are low but not unrealistically so, they are in line with Asian prices.

I have HE400SE, Edition XS, Ananda and Arya Stealth, all from China. They are made in China, Hifiman is a Chinese company, it's ultimately coming from China whatever you do, it's just a matter of the markup.

There are valid warranty concerns and all the hassle with that. But it's literally a matter of you would pay double that price to get them in the US, probably about bang on double when you factor in sales tax. It's not like it's this tiny difference. Up to you.

It's not $200 more if you are buying it at current sale prices from China, Ananda was $386 on Ali after discounts last I looked. Edition XS is very much on the same level as the Ananda, just different. But you will need an amp for it, so factor that in if you don't have one.

If you are using a low power dongle, get the Ananda. If the Edition XS, you want an amp.

The sensitivity is the volume it reaches at a given power (or sometimes voltage) level. So a headphone that has 103dB/mW sensitivity will get to 103dB with 1mW power. One with 92dB will only get to 92dB with the same amount of power. It takes 10x the power to increase volume by 10dB.

10x by the published specifications, it might be a slight exaggeration as the Ananda isn't quite as easy to drive as Hifiman purport on the spec sheet, although it's still very easy to drive. Ananda is 25Ω/103dB, Edition XS is 18Ω/92dB.

You probably wouldn't want to be running the Edition XS off an Apple adapter. Ananda should be fine off one though. I don't have an Apple dongle, but running it off a Qudelix 5K without EQ I'm at 299mV which at 25Ω would be 3.6mW. The Apple dongle does 31mW into 32Ω. Using EQ, I'd go substantially higher. But the Edition XS needs a lot more power than that.

The Edition XS is harder to drive than an average headphone, but it's not crazy hard to drive. It's more than the Ananda is particularly easy to drive, its official sensitivity numbers are similar to an IEM. Now I think it's actually less sensitive than they publish, but it's still extremely easy to drive for a full size over-ear.

That's basically it, the Edition XS has more bass and is closer to the Arya Stealth in that regard. Ananda maybe slightly smoother through the mids and treble.

Comfort stock is for me much better with the Ananda, it's a better headband. Some people find the Ananda clamp too much, and it doesn't have cup swivel. The Edition XS does have cup swivel and is much looser stock, but for me too loose, it felt very insecure and would fall off if I tilted my head down. Bending it fixed this.

Ananada is much easier to drive from low power portable sources, Edition XS needs around 10x the power.

In Asia they sell for very similar prices, (like within $25) and I think they are competing around the same level. If the Ananda was much more expensive, the Edition XS for sure is better value.

I think they have a very good soundstage, it's big without sounding unnatural. I have the Edition XS, OG Ananda, Arya Stealth.

HD800S is the headphone that gets into uncanny valley territory with soundstage, it is very large and with some music (like orchestral) very good, but it's sometimes veering into too much unnatural party trick territory.

Hifiman is more natural in this regard, IMO.

Perception of soundstage is extremely personal, it depends on both your physical ears and head and how the headphone interacts with them, and also your brain, just how you personally interpret what you are getting. I think there can be some broad agreement that some headphones (HD800S) are very wide, and others (HD600) are much less so but the specifics of how you find it are going to be quite personal I think.

AZ09/Pro is a lot cheaper, more comfortable, and will fit his KZ ZS10 Pro a lot better, it's specifically designed for that connector. I doubt there would be any discernable sound difference particularly not on that IEM. I have all of UTWS5, AZ09, AZ09 Pro and ZS10 Pro. If I were him, I'd get the AZ09 Pro.

It's pretty marginal particularly with something like the ZS10 Pro which is extremely sensitive and doesn't need higher power, in fact the less power the better for this IEM. The AZ09 (or the Pro version) will also fit the ZS10 Pro a lot better and will be a lot more comfortable, the UTWS5 won't attach as firmly and the hooks are much larger and less comfortable.

I have all of these items, I doubt I'd be able to tell the difference between the UTWS5 and the AZ09/Pro with the KZ ZS10 Pro.

I'd recommend the Pro version over the AZ09, the hooks are more comfortable / better fit and it has AptX as well as AAC if you use Android. I think maybe a bit better connection and stability as well. The OG AZ09 is decent too though, at least in my experience.

Moondrop Click has an actual DAC chip in it.

It's pricey but if it actually did Kato sound performance it would be worth it. The Kato is also $190. Many audiophiles would take better sound quality over ANC.

I won't be jumping on this as while I do trust Moondrop sonically for the IEMs their history so far on the electronics/usability side of it with TWS has been a bit spotty.

And you are right that the Samsung Galaxy Buds Pro / Buds 2 Pro are strong competition, with both the electronics side and the sonic side. But I think I'd probably put the Kato above for sound, if it did end up doing that.

Also consider Azla Xelastec, these actually mould to your ears with your body heat and I think they might be the better choice for your specific situation. I also think they work better with the Dusk, they are short wide-bore tips and don't affect the sound so much. CP155 will boost bass more. CP155 are generally a good fit for that IEM though, I use them on the OG B2 where they also help the bass a bit.

But specifically for your case I suspect Xelastec might be the better choice. They size larger than most tips, you probably want to go down a size. I usually use L in SpinFit but mostly use M or ML in Azla and even have MS on one side on one IEM (Azla Crystal on the Moondrop A8). You'll probably want SS or S, maybe MS at most for your larger ear.

It's normal that stock tips don't work and you have to try a variety of aftermarket tips. It's also normal that one ear is smaller than the other, my left is slightly smaller than my right and while on most IEMs I do use the same size, some I get a better fit with a smaller tip on the left.

Xelastec and SpinFit CP155 on my Blessing 2s, you can see how the Xelastec have really changed shape a lot at this point, and also how much shorter they are compared with the CP155, which allows the IEM to sit further into your ear.

Hifiman open backs tend to actually boost the bass a bit if you don't have a good seal, you get very low sub-bass roll-off but a boost from as low as 20-25Hz up.

Example for the Ananda, (source). They vary on the extent to which they do this but most do, break the seal on a Hifiman and usually perceived bass will significantly increase, not decrease.

And the Clear! The thread you linked is about the Clear doing it. Amir also noted the issue in his Clear review as did Oratory1990 in his EQ for the Clear (pdf).

I think it's definitely something that effects the open backs rather than the closed backs, as Focal say in that statement. But it definitely affects the Clear as well, and in my experience, a bit more than the Utopia, I have to go a little louder on the Utopia to get it.

This is what Focal said about it (in October 2018). You are right, it wasn't the 2020 revision specifically that they fixed it, but they claim to have identified and fixed an issue with voice coil fragility at some point after the initial release. But as you say, there do seem to be still a high number of failures.

>Regarding defective Utopia drivers, as already mentioned in the first pages of this thread, we experienced a voice coil fragility during early production batches. Not all headphones from these batches were affected. This problem which caused some drivers fragility has been identified, analyzed and fixed. We managed to take on defective headphones returns, but some units could be left on the market.

>As this issue is identified by our Team, we have informed our distribution network and they know how to proceed in case of defective drivers. Indeed, all defective headphones under warranty (according to local warranty policies) will be repaired free of charge by the Focal Team (the driver will be replaced). Which is why we strongly recommend you to contact your local dealer (specifying the serial number of your product and attaching the invoice) if you are experiencing any issue with your headphones to ensure After Sales Service. Please note that the serial number and the invoice are compulsory to track your headphones.

>The official warranty of Utopia, Clear and Elear headphones is 2 years by default. There are then specific cases in some countries for potential extension, please contact the local distributor to know the local warranty policy.

>In conclusion, we are aware of this situation and will do our best to fix all defective headphones. Be sure we have reinforced our quality controls.

https://www.head-fi.org/threads/focal-utopia-general-discussion.811273/page-590#post-14515753

I did see that post about fixing the voice coil. I think if I did end up with a failure on one of mine out of warranty I'd try a local/DIY repair rather than Focal, because they reputedly charge an absolute fortune to fix them (like literally thousands of dollars to fix a Utopia driver). Which is outrageous... but they do sound good.

The Clear is worse for this than the Utopia, both from my own experience (I have both) and reviews I've seen.

I can get it on both but have to go louder on the Utopia before I get it. Like you say it's variable, but it's not just my ones, for example both ASR and Oratory1990 specifically mention the clipping issue with regard to the Clear, but not the Utopia.

I get the impression that the Elex may be worse than the Clear though. There are also plenty of reports of driver failure particularly on older (pre-2020 revision) Utopias, and the Elex.

The Clear has it, if I go looking for it with test tones or listening to music louder than I would usually listen. I do have to go louder than I would ever listen sustained, but not crazy volumes either. So does the Utopia, although I have to go to a higher volume to get it there. All of Focal's open back headphones do this, it's inherent to the design. It seems to be very variable though between different headphones and even the cups, I get it on the right on the Clear first. Some seem better than others.

For me, it is never an issue at regular listening volumes on either the Clear or Utopia, even with a substantial EQ bass boost (+8.6dB on the Clear with Oratory1990's Harman target). So, for me, it's not a problem.

This is what Focal themselves say about it:

>As already mentionned several times on Head-Fi, the issue described is actually not a quality issue.

>Indeed, we have made a clear design choice on Elear (and by consequence Elex) and Utopia. Our headphones have been designed to favor the respect of the dynamic contained within the audio signal versus dynamic compression that would offer a higher SPL capability but less respect of the original audio signal. To cut a long story short, the choice was audio quality oriented rather than SPL oriented. This allows our products to work with full performances until the mechanical clipping is activated. This means that you jump directly from a very low distortion to a sound which could be heard as rattling / cracking noise. On very special tracks with only very low frequencies at very high level, you can thus hear some noises - as you will do on classic loudspeakers.

>If we change your pair of headphones, the new one will be designed similarly and it will also have a kind of cracking sound when you will be listening to music with high volume and a fair amount of bass. The only solution we can recommend you is therefore to listen to your headphones at a lower volume.

>The only solution we can recommend you is therefore to listen to your headphones at a lower volume.

https://www.head-fi.org/threads/massdrop-x-focal-elex-review-measurements.867615/page-46#post-14228871