Reviews
Fun and enjoyable open-back. Highly recommended
"Beautiful looking, feeling, and sounding headphones! I can see why people consider it a little brother to the Utopia. I wouldn't put them in the same league but, similar to the Utopia (2016) every time I put on the Clears I find myself forgetting that I have them on, which reflects on well comfort, enjoyment, and general unobtrusiveness. Maybe the best compliment I can pay the Clears is that when I'm listening to them I don't feel the need to switch the Utopia. Experience buying from headamp was excellent! I'm local so I appreciated getting to meet some of the team when I dropped by to pick them up. Thanks!"
— Dennie K. (5/5)
Nice
"Best sounding headphones i own. They are also some of the best looking cans on the market"
— Walter W. (5/5)
Focal Clear MG FIRST IMPRESSION
"Took a chance on an OPEN BOX Clear MG and could not be happier. Justin is always a pleasure to buy from him. PROS * Build * Easy to drive * great neutral-warm sound presentation * Carrying case CONS * 3.5mm Cable (very short)"
— Drakkar N. (5/5)
Amazing Headphone & Service
"They look beautiful and sound beautiful, non fatiguing, with the usual excellent Punch and slam Focal headphones are known for. This was my first purchase from HeadAmp and im very pleased, they shipped fast and their customer service is very good, I will definetely buy again from them in the future."
— Gustavo (5/5)
Good companion headphone to the Arya v2
"Very Good! I like it more than the OG Clear as it sounded like the HD650 when I A/B them both. Without amp the OG Clear had less soundstage than HD650. The Clear MG has more soundstage than both unamped. This MG sounds good really good with Jazz to me. I stopped listening to most music with lyrics, and if the song has a music video I don't listen either. I like how the Clear MG makes my music come alive, and I listen at low volumes."
— Ray (5/5)
Amazing product and awesome service
"This was my first purchase from HeadAmp, very impressed! Amazing products and value. These Clear MG are simply stunning, amazing detail and sound stage, very happy with my purchase."
— Dodsa (5/5)
The Focal Clear MG's / The HeadAmp Experience
"I'll start by saying that I don't write a lot of product reviews simply because audiophiles are a rare breed. For example, the "right" headphone for me might be "just OK" to someone else's ears. After reading review after review and owning dozens of pairs of headphones, I'm resigned to the fact that perception and taste varies a great deal. Nevertheless, after ordering the Clear MG's and spending some time with them, I was compelled to sit down and share a bit. First and foremost, we (as audiophiles), have a variety of choices when it comes to where to "buy" gear. That said, there aren't many retailers that offer a "buyer's experience" that matches the level (or price point) of the gear. Particularly in the online space. Not so with Headamp.com. I have found the products offered though this site to be very carefully curated and after asking some questions via the website chat feature, I could easily see that Justin and is staff at HeadAmp have an intimate knowledge of their bespoke offerings and it really helped guide me to my purchase decision. This is important. In the age of Amazon and big box stores, it's important to recognize businesses that do it right! Businesses that share the passion for music and listening to music. My experience shopping with HeadAmp was first rate because they check all of those boxes. Now onto the Clear MG's. They are crafted and presented to the highest standards. A beautiful set of cans. Comfortable... even over long periods of time with very little "clamping". I'm even able to wear them with my "readers" making it possible to wear them while I work... which can be uncomfortable with some headphones. Everything about the Clear has been carefully considered. From the alloy and leather used in the build, to the quality of the luxury case and it's matching dye lot. But there are plenty of headphones out there that are uniquely designed, well made... and just don't sound very good. So lets set the exceptional craftsmanship aside for a moment. I played a number of albums right out of the gate. First, I pulled up Bobo Stenson's Cantando on my A&K SE180 using the SEM2 DAC. As audiophiles, we often talk about frequency attenuation, and sound stage, and notches here, and roll-offs there. I'm guilty of the same. But music is an emotional experience... or at least it should be. Listening to the acoustic base and the brush work on this track through the Focal Clear MG's just brought a smile to my face. I was immediately hooked by the detail and separation I heard just seconds into the first track. From there, I just spent hours revisiting albums and rediscovering them in a new way through the Clear MG's. I find them to be very transparent, but not without a degree of excitement and panache. That probably means different things to different people. "Transparency" can sometimes be suggestive of a "dull" listening experience. Quite the contrary. If, however, your brand of excitement is driven by an artificial attenuation of the low end, I would look elsewhere. The excitement here comes instead from the pristine separation of the instruments and the detail they present. There is nothing artificial here. From the materials right down the sound signature, they are exceptional."
— Scott (5/5)
Great looking open headphone that you can wear outside!
"PRO: BEST LOOKING HEADPHONE IMO Built really well Great staging Great for instrumentals (really highlight the instruments) CON: Bass is too bloomy Muddied highs and vocals compared to L700 This headphone certainly looks very nice. As soon as you open the packaging and hold it in your hands, you can feel the quality. This is not the case for most of the headphones I own. This is perhaps the only audiophile headphone that I feel comfortable wearing outside or bring it to work/school (this is the primary reason I bought this headphone). However, this headphone is not the best headphone I ever heard. It excels in some areas, but it is not the best of all. First, this headphone is really good at staging. I only own one other open headphone, Stax L700, and this sounds wider, in my opinion. It blooms the music and places instrumentals really nicely. However, that comes at a cost. The treble is certainly not as sharp as Stax. It is not as detailed as other headphones. Vocals and treble are especially recessed when the music is bass-heavy. Bass can sometimes be too bloomy and controlled, making the sound muddy. Compared to my Argon (my go-to bass-heavy gear); the bass is not as controlled. Argon imo has a very nice and tight bass that also allows highs to express itself. This, on the other hand, lacks that."
— any (4/5)
Endgame...Again?
"I left a review on the Clear's a few weeks back. I had concluded my review with "Only way I get would rid of my Clears is....if I get the Clear MG's" Well I hate to say it but I ended up going that route. Justin (thank you!) at Headamp was able to get me in the first batch of MG's so I absolutely had to swap them for the MG's. What they say is correct, the MG's are slightly bit warmer than the Clears but that also allows me to listen to it for longer sessions. At times, after a few hours of listening, the highs of the (original) Clears sometimes could get slightly exhausting. The new MG's have gotten rid of that flaw. This could be a pro and con to some as I know having a "warmer" flavor is an aquired taste. The measurements between the Original and MG are almost 99% identical but it's hard to really describe when I say the first thing you notice is that the sound feels fuller/denser. All in all, I have no regret in upgrading to the MG's. I wish they would get rid of the microfiber headband as it's prone to wear but I can't lie, the overall design language of the Clear's in general is absolutely exquisite. Compared to the Ananda's, the Clear's still don't have the same amount of depth and soundstage but in return, you're trading those for a more intimate CLEAR (I know, such an overused pun) and flatter FR. At the end of the day the MG's are are more evolutionary rather than revolutionary. If I had the originals for many years, I would not be rushing out the door to upgrade. Luckily I was in a situation where I could easily swap them for the MG's for a bit more money so that was a no brainer situation. If you absolutely LOVE the original Clear's sound then you might be prone to disappointment. Go into the purchase like a blank canvas with no expections and that's when you'll truly appreciate the new MG's. For now my itch has been satisfied. I just have to make sure I stay off this website or else my wandering eyes will look to what headphone to buy next."
— Will (5/5)
