Focal has been developing and producing loudspeakers and loudspeaker components primarily for car audio, hi-fi and studio applications for over 30 years. For some time now, the portfolio has been expanded to include headphones, whereby emphasis is also placed on in-house engineering with the label “Made in France”.
If you enjoy listening to music with headphones and have high standards, sooner or later you will have set your sights set on a dedicated headphone amplifier. With the Arche model, Focal offers you a premium device for stationary use.
Headphones at a price of about 4,000 Euros are not on your ears every day. With its premium model Utopia, the French high-end manufacturer Focal is putting all its design expertise in speakers into the equation for a product of a higher spec than anything...
Focal unveil a foldable studio headphone to the market in the form of the Listen Professional, which has scarce competition in terms of value for money.
With the Utopia, Focal has undoubtedly succeeded in creating an ambitious-yet-outstanding product for a demanding audiophile clientele. These headphones are also recommended for professional users in sound control rooms and editing suites. At the same time, evaluating a product in this price range presents me with a challenge. The Focal Utopia sounds outstanding and in many aspects audibly superior, compared to high-quality products from the high-end category. But the extent to which these improvements justify the significant surcharge is another question. The higher prices are often associated with significant additional development and design costs. This, in turn, has repercussions on the number of units produced, which leads to higher prices for smaller numbers. Also, the fact that production is completed in France as well as the high standards required for the processing of beryllium, are impactful cost factors.
Nevertheless, I would like to note the distinction of these headphones from competitors such as Ultrasone, Sennheiser, Audeze or Stax. Even given personal tastes, the Utopia definitely ranks at the top of its class.
With the Listen Professional Focal, you’re assured of value for money. The strengths start with a quality design that goes beyond good workmanship and, as expected, impressive sound levels. These headphones are well suited as an analytical listening instrument that can reveal tonal details in all areas of the frequency spectrum. Those who classify the Listen Professional as pure studio headphones will, however, fail to appreciate its suitability for mobile use. Thanks to a relatively short straight cable with microphone and remote control, low impedance, closed design and folding mechanism, the Listen Professional is an almost perfect companion on the go. Only its high contact pressure will cause some issue with the a few users. If you want to invest your money in good sound and practical headphones, the Focal Listen Professional is an almost perfect choice of headphone.
With this complex and high-quality headphone amplifier, Arche Focal aims at sound connoisseurs who want to equip their high-quality headphones with a suitable transducer and amplifier, and are willing to pay a suitably exclusive price for it. A cohesive concept with straightforward operation which results in exemplary neutral, transparent and – at the same time – emotional sound.
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