I’ve owned these for about half a year now, and I can honestly say that I’ve fallen in love with music all over again. I’ve owned many headphones which admittedly were not high-end (max price around 200 euros), and even some bluetooth garbage of 300+ euro’s. All I can say is that these ab-so-freakin-lutely blew my mind, to a point where I was saying to myself: “what the hell have I been listening to all these years?”. I really don’t know much about all that audiophile stuff and their terminology. What I do know is that I’m either in or out when it comes to headphones. My ears and brain either likes the sound or not. And this one is a winner, one that I’ll use for many years to come. I combined these with an iFi Neo iDSD (amp stage isn’t great but can easily drive these cans), connected to a Rasp-Pi 4 with Ropieee and using Roon.
Having owned the OG and now the MG, I must say I prefer the better detailed sound and the low end of the MG. I have mine paired with the Topping A30 D30 Pro Stack, and they really bring life to these headphones. Thanks for your review.
Did yours have a upper mid scoop like the ones crinacle measured? It seems there is pad variation going on unfortunately because some MGs measure like the old clear but with slightly better treble and some have Audeze like tuning with a massive dip from 3-5khz.
Thanks for the review team. Love that there are differing opinions on the team regarding which is the preferred “Clear.” Shows how there’s something out there for everyone. It’s part of what makes this hobby so great.
I agree with everything Chrono said about these. The Clear MG fixes pretty much every issue I had regarding the OG Clear timbre. I'd rather have reduced smooth treble than peaky neutral treble, and the Clear MG has exactly what I'm looking for in regards to midrange and treble. It is also the first high end headphone I would feel comfortable with not using EQ. I can straight up just plug it into my Switch or phone thanks to it being easy to drive, with no EQ and it still sounds fantastic. I do prefer the red + black look of the Pro version so that's what I got.
To my ears, the comparison between Clear OGs and MGs reminded me of the comparison between Sennheiser HD600 and HD650. Similar to HD600, OGs have more open sound and treble emphasis and slightly lower bass emphasis. MGs have higher Bass emphasis, smoother treble but sounded slightly rolled off in comparison leading to a little darker/warmer sound signature (similar to HD650). Due to ear canal shape, size, and length, different people will have different perceptions. High frequency hearing loss will also play a role here. To my ears, I think I prefer OGs but sometimes I EQ the bass by a few dBs to increase the sub bass impact. My eyes prefer the MGs, though. :) I prefer the sound from MGs when I used the OG pads. They feel better to the touch and sound more open. (The OGs pads were half off during the holidays so bought extra pairs.) Try them both if possible and decide based on your experience.
I just bought the Clear OG and I don't find the treble harsh at all, in fact, I used to have the HiFiMan Ananda and the treble in that one was a little bit harsher to my ears, which is weird because unlike the Clear OG I've never seen anyone call the Ananda harsh, I'm glad I bought the Clear OG, I definitely don't want something darker than this.
I prefer the Clear OGs. These were too dark for me. Classical and Jazz sounded much better on the Clear OG. Then again, I do not find the Clear OG upper mid or treble too bright or shouty as Chronos finds them to be.
Hi, thank you and congratulations for your video. I can't find the link for the equalization of the FOCAL MG PRO headphones? could you give it to me please? THANKS
I own these headphones and I personally find them currently the best BY FAR for my personal preferences in terms of the sound signature (and I really had a lot of headphones). I am looking now a while for a closed back headphone alternative for mobile usage which sound close to the focal clear mg, but I cannot find any :( They sound so gorgeuous "warm" with a spectacular amount if micro details.
I tried both before, to me it didn't sound that much different. My personal preference would be the Clear MG, I think the Clear MG is slightly cheaper too. However, one important thing to consider for anyone, especially if you're not weightlifting with your neck is the weight. I'd recommend the Clear MG over the Hedd to anyone just because of this since they both don't sound that much difference.
@@tietoliikenne Thanks, to be honest I don't mind weight :D I prefer to squeeze out the max SQ I can from this price range. The only other factor would be design. The Focal definitely is extremely gorgeous. But I'd still go for max SQ - and I'm sure both are great and endgame for the regular consumer but I have no way of testing and comparing. Thanks for the info!
I tried the HEDDphone and knew after 10 seconds they weren't for me just from comfort alone. They felt like I was wearing a helmet on my head. No thanks
Guys, you need to make a pad swapping review of the Clear MG, just like you did to the original Clear! Then, we could compare them both with the different pads.
Unfortunately, another review in which the most important information is withheld: the mechanical clipping problem. In the head-fi thread, you can find out everything important.
When I auditioned them alongside Meze, Sennheiser and Audeze they were not my choice. I felt you knew you were listening to the music through headphones. Poor but for the price probably value for money. I bought Audeze LCD4z which for my ears are stunning.
Hi I have shure srh 440 and I’m very happy with quality of sound . There two things 1- noise leaking from headphones to surround.my sister always say I can realize which song you’re listening to. So are these headphones closed or still there’s sound leakage? 2- hi-res files because my shure was originally produced in 2004 so I’m wondering are brand new wired headphones such as focal clear mg do better in terms of playing hi-res songs?
Is it good for metal and Rock ??? Would you please next videos just tell us about "what kind of a headphone is good for the kind of genre music" ... Thank you
I had the clear OG, and currently have a utopia, and they work pretty well for metal and hard rock. Better than the high majority of headphones out there. From what I have heard, the best one for metal is the abyss 1266 phi TC, but if you're not going to spend 5k on headphones, the focal open backs work well. I haven't heard kennertons, but a friend of mine who has a kennerton closed back, the one that costs $1200 listens to metal and likes that with it as well. The original clear is the best deal in this pricerange for that genre though.
I own the Clear Mg and only listen to rock and metal. It performs really well with growling as well as clean vocals, rhythm guitar (especially palm muted open string notes), bass guitar and exceptionally well with kick drums (no surprise here). Where I find it lacking is the 'lead' instrument parts as the withdrawn energy between 4-8 kHz makes solos sound muffled (compared to the backing instrument) especially if they have effects like wah-wah, reverb, phaser etc. In other words, the backing instruments sound louder than the lead instruments which is a turn off IMO. Other than focals, Rosson Rad-0, Kennerton Thror, Abyss cans and Hifiman Susvara should excel with rock and metal.
They are very good especially for poor recording's. I listen then in local audio shop with Hugo 2 and very like them. I own Utopia and Abyss 1266, they are imo best dynamic and planar headphones for metal that you can buy but unfortunately they are unforgivable for poor recording's.
I am currently listening with my Focal Clear MG's to the remixed Beatles Revolver record Giles Martin worked on. On Ellenor Rigby, I almost hear the rosin fall off the bow of the cello. Such detail that I never heard before. I also find them very comfortable to listen to and my years do not get warm.
Utopia is even more resolving, and with better layering and imaging, but presented in a more fatiguing way. It's a "technical" headphone. Not one that I want to pay $4000 for.
Crinacles review really puts me off these because it looks so bad in upper mids compared to original but then head fi measurements show it to be identical to the old one so what do i trust?
@@TheHEADPHONEShow Right. I think ill just stick with my white clears. I dont think there should be pad variation at this price level .Focals speakers certainly have better Quality Control than there headphones.
Does anyone have any suggestions for alternatives to the Audeze Mobius headsets? I like them bc of their sound quality, mic quality and the simple/ordinary look to them, so I want to get a headset the same as that. The Audeze were great but the band kept breaking and I just gave up returning them all the time. Price range maximum is AUD$700 I use it for sound design, music making, watching movies, playing games, streaming etc so was hoping for a best of everything scenario
if you liked the mobius the hyperx orbit is basically the exact same thing. I can give you some recommendations like the tygr 300r which are pretty affordable and can be used for a lot of things.
@@chrono-headphonereviews242 I cried, three. I'd have considered buying them from you if I knew you were selling them. You probably sold them in a pinch and didn't get what you could/should have. Been there... done that 🤷🏻
Other retailers do it as well (minidisc's lachlan, audio46 etc) and to different degrees of "bias". Audio46's hifiman r10 reviews for example I'd say that is just straight up lying to move units, saying buzzwords that audiophiles like to hear. Edit: actually I forgot which vendor. I couldn't find the video I watched back then anymore but you get the idea.
Notice that although he retails the Focal MG, he states that if you have the OG, there is no need to buy the newer MG. In other words, although he COULD have steered Clear OG owners (like me) to pony up $1500, he took the trouble to say, "Nah..., not necessary." That supports a view that there is objectivity in his review.
@@poturbg8698 Yeah, it's a process but people are slowly learning that the review and community content side of things isn't influenced by the store. We're also doing something new, so I don't expect everyone to get it right away.
Just for anyone wondering, when Chrono says it was released "this year", he meant 2021, not 2022.
It's a mistake that everyone's gonna make for the next 6 months xD I mean.. it's already 2021..
I’ve owned these for about half a year now, and I can honestly say that I’ve fallen in love with music all over again. I’ve owned many headphones which admittedly were not high-end (max price around 200 euros), and even some bluetooth garbage of 300+ euro’s. All I can say is that these ab-so-freakin-lutely blew my mind, to a point where I was saying to myself: “what the hell have I been listening to all these years?”. I really don’t know much about all that audiophile stuff and their terminology. What I do know is that I’m either in or out when it comes to headphones. My ears and brain either likes the sound or not. And this one is a winner, one that I’ll use for many years to come. I combined these with an iFi Neo iDSD (amp stage isn’t great but can easily drive these cans), connected to a Rasp-Pi 4 with Ropieee and using Roon.
Can we please all agree to call the original model the "Clear OG"?
I'm on board ;)
The Clear MG is one beautiful headphone
Having owned the OG and now the MG, I must say I prefer the better detailed sound and the low end of the MG. I have mine paired with the Topping A30 D30 Pro Stack, and they really bring life to these headphones. Thanks for your review.
Did yours have a upper mid scoop like the ones crinacle measured? It seems there is pad variation going on unfortunately because some MGs measure like the old clear but with slightly better treble and some have Audeze like tuning with a massive dip from 3-5khz.
Thanks for the review team. Love that there are differing opinions on the team regarding which is the preferred “Clear.” Shows how there’s something out there for everyone. It’s part of what makes this hobby so great.
I agree with everything Chrono said about these. The Clear MG fixes pretty much every issue I had regarding the OG Clear timbre. I'd rather have reduced smooth treble than peaky neutral treble, and the Clear MG has exactly what I'm looking for in regards to midrange and treble. It is also the first high end headphone I would feel comfortable with not using EQ. I can straight up just plug it into my Switch or phone thanks to it being easy to drive, with no EQ and it still sounds fantastic. I do prefer the red + black look of the Pro version so that's what I got.
To my ears, the comparison between Clear OGs and MGs reminded me of the comparison between Sennheiser HD600 and HD650. Similar to HD600, OGs have more open sound and treble emphasis and slightly lower bass emphasis. MGs have higher Bass emphasis, smoother treble but sounded slightly rolled off in comparison leading to a little darker/warmer sound signature (similar to HD650).
Due to ear canal shape, size, and length, different people will have different perceptions. High frequency hearing loss will also play a role here.
To my ears, I think I prefer OGs but sometimes I EQ the bass by a few dBs to increase the sub bass impact.
My eyes prefer the MGs, though. :)
I prefer the sound from MGs when I used the OG pads. They feel better to the touch and sound more open. (The OGs pads were half off during the holidays so bought extra pairs.)
Try them both if possible and decide based on your experience.
Chrono, you said you would post a link to your EQ curve for the FOCAL Clear MG? I don't see it.
I just bought the Clear OG and I don't find the treble harsh at all, in fact, I used to have the HiFiMan Ananda and the treble in that one was a little bit harsher to my ears, which is weird because unlike the Clear OG I've never seen anyone call the Ananda harsh, I'm glad I bought the Clear OG, I definitely don't want something darker than this.
I prefer the Clear OGs. These were too dark for me. Classical and Jazz sounded much better on the Clear OG. Then again, I do not find the Clear OG upper mid or treble too bright or shouty as Chronos finds them to be.
So glad I got the beautiful 🥰 Clear MG Pro well you could still get your hands on them. Thanks again. 😊
My end game headphone. It’s truly is a jack of all trades, master of none.
So Rosson RAD -0
ldc5
@@dilbyjones twice as much
do they have a good subwoofer, vibrant and strong? do they go down very low?? because most open headphones lack a lot of subwoofer below 50hz.
Hi, thank you and congratulations for your video. I can't find the link for the equalization of the FOCAL MG PRO headphones? could you give it to me please? THANKS
I own these headphones and I personally find them currently the best BY FAR for my personal preferences in terms of the sound signature (and I really had a lot of headphones). I am looking now a while for a closed back headphone alternative for mobile usage which sound close to the focal clear mg, but I cannot find any :( They sound so gorgeuous "warm" with a spectacular amount if micro details.
Are these comfortable for long sessions for gaming? 8 hours straight? I've got 800s and they are too lose and annoying after 1h..
Wow ok I was under the impression that MG is pretty much the same as OG. The smoother treble definitely piqued my interest!
Its possible that some may be lacking in uppermids compared to the original so be cautious of that
Help please: At this price I am torn between the HEDDphone and the Clear MG - Anyone with experience on both?
I tried both before, to me it didn't sound that much different. My personal preference would be the Clear MG, I think the Clear MG is slightly cheaper too. However, one important thing to consider for anyone, especially if you're not weightlifting with your neck is the weight. I'd recommend the Clear MG over the Hedd to anyone just because of this since they both don't sound that much difference.
@@tietoliikenne Thanks, to be honest I don't mind weight :D I prefer to squeeze out the max SQ I can from this price range. The only other factor would be design. The Focal definitely is extremely gorgeous. But I'd still go for max SQ - and I'm sure both are great and endgame for the regular consumer but I have no way of testing and comparing. Thanks for the info!
I tried the HEDDphone and knew after 10 seconds they weren't for me just from comfort alone. They felt like I was wearing a helmet on my head. No thanks
Are the quality issues fixed? Had a clear and it broke so quick
Guys, you need to make a pad swapping review of the Clear MG, just like you did to the original Clear! Then, we could compare them both with the different pads.
Goldensound said something about a 18k Hz ringing issue and fatigue with this headphone. Have you noticed anything like this?
18kHz? Noone can hear this high.
@@ClaudeVanKot while humans can hear that high but there's no music that uses that frequency bandwidth..i think he meant 8khz
No he meant 18k, that borderline hearable with good ears but you dont necessarily have to hear a sound to be fatigued by it.
@@haberdasherrykr8886 ringing is more a thing of the headphone itself, rather than the music.
What is he listening to, seriously??
Unfortunately, another review in which the most important information is withheld: the mechanical clipping problem.
In the head-fi thread, you can find out everything important.
transformation of the year award goes to..............
great review, but cant beat the $990 price on the OG Clear, thats a steal. Just picked up a pair today.
Are they working fine?
When I auditioned them alongside Meze, Sennheiser and Audeze they were not my choice. I felt you knew you were listening to the music through headphones. Poor but for the price probably value for money. I bought Audeze LCD4z which for my ears are stunning.
Those were one I auditioned when I chose these. I just couldn’t do a $4k headphone, and this was the best for my budget.
can you "fix" the Clear MG high end with an EQ?
I got the rubber cable with my Elegia. I don't know if that means anything.
Amazing headphones
Hi
I have shure srh 440 and I’m very happy with quality of sound .
There two things 1- noise leaking from headphones to surround.my sister always say I can realize which song you’re listening to. So are these headphones closed or still there’s sound leakage?
2- hi-res files because my shure was originally produced in 2004 so I’m wondering are brand new wired headphones such as focal clear mg do better in terms of playing hi-res songs?
1- they're open back
2 - you're comparing a 100 dollar headphone to a 1500 dollar headphone, it will sound better
This man totally did not leave a link in thebdescription on eq profile
How about build quality and comfort?
Is it good for metal and Rock ??? Would you please next videos just tell us about "what kind of a headphone is good for the kind of genre music" ... Thank you
I had the clear OG, and currently have a utopia, and they work pretty well for metal and hard rock. Better than the high majority of headphones out there. From what I have heard, the best one for metal is the abyss 1266 phi TC, but if you're not going to spend 5k on headphones, the focal open backs work well. I haven't heard kennertons, but a friend of mine who has a kennerton closed back, the one that costs $1200 listens to metal and likes that with it as well. The original clear is the best deal in this pricerange for that genre though.
I own the Clear Mg and only listen to rock and metal. It performs really well with growling as well as clean vocals, rhythm guitar (especially palm muted open string notes), bass guitar and exceptionally well with kick drums (no surprise here). Where I find it lacking is the 'lead' instrument parts as the withdrawn energy between 4-8 kHz makes solos sound muffled (compared to the backing instrument) especially if they have effects like wah-wah, reverb, phaser etc. In other words, the backing instruments sound louder than the lead instruments which is a turn off IMO.
Other than focals, Rosson Rad-0, Kennerton Thror, Abyss cans and Hifiman Susvara should excel with rock and metal.
Clear mg blows away any planar headphone listening to led zeppelin
They are very good especially for poor recording's. I listen then in local audio shop with Hugo 2 and very like them. I own Utopia and Abyss 1266, they are imo best dynamic and planar headphones for metal that you can buy but unfortunately they are unforgivable for poor recording's.
Does it come with balanced cables ?
Yes it does, it's got like a 3ft Single Ended and a 6ft Balanced
I am currently listening with my Focal Clear MG's to the remixed Beatles Revolver record Giles Martin worked on. On Ellenor Rigby, I almost hear the rosin fall off the bow of the cello. Such detail that I never heard before. I also find them very comfortable to listen to and my years do not get warm.
Utopia is even more resolving, and with better layering and imaging, but presented in a more fatiguing way. It's a "technical" headphone. Not one that I want to pay $4000 for.
Crinacles review really puts me off these because it looks so bad in upper mids compared to original but then head fi measurements show it to be identical to the old one so what do i trust?
It's likely due to pad variation.
@@TheHEADPHONEShow Right. I think ill just stick with my white clears. I dont think there should be pad variation at this price level .Focals speakers certainly have better Quality Control than there headphones.
@@TheHEADPHONEShow Would a Yamaha AS-1200 amp be enough to power the Focal Clear MG's? Or do they need some kind of dedicated headphone amp?
Does anyone have any suggestions for alternatives to the Audeze Mobius headsets?
I like them bc of their sound quality, mic quality and the simple/ordinary look to them, so I want to get a headset the same as that.
The Audeze were great but the band kept breaking and I just gave up returning them all the time. Price range maximum is AUD$700
I use it for sound design, music making, watching movies, playing games, streaming etc so was hoping for a best of everything scenario
if you liked the mobius the hyperx orbit is basically the exact same thing. I can give you some recommendations like the tygr 300r which are pretty affordable and can be used for a lot of things.
What song was used in the intro?
How Dare You Sell Your Camphor Burl Verite Closed!!
HOW DARE YOU!! 😆
I cried...
I cried, too
@@chrono-headphonereviews242 I cried, three.
I'd have considered buying them from you if I knew you were selling them. You probably sold them in a pinch and didn't get what you could/should have. Been there... done that 🤷🏻
I don't like the rolled off highs of the MG, but it probably appeals to the masses. Good review!
The mg sounds almost identical to the utopia. The utopia has a more open Soundstage and that 5% more emotion to vocals.
First time i heard the word “nasalliness” 😂
Where is Blon Bl 07
Still too much elevation around 1-1.5k
Anyone wear these in public?
I'm really not into the idea of a reviewer of headphones also being a retailer. Not sure if I can trust this channel to be completely void of bias.
Nah. These guys are legit. They’ll let you know when a headphone sucks
Other retailers do it as well (minidisc's lachlan, audio46 etc) and to different degrees of "bias". Audio46's hifiman r10 reviews for example I'd say that is just straight up lying to move units, saying buzzwords that audiophiles like to hear.
Edit: actually I forgot which vendor. I couldn't find the video I watched back then anymore but you get the idea.
@@moviemogul83 just bc they'll let you know when a headphone "sucks" doesn't mean they're free of bias
Notice that although he retails the Focal MG, he states that if you have the OG, there is no need to buy the newer MG. In other words, although he COULD have steered Clear OG owners (like me) to pony up $1500, he took the trouble to say, "Nah..., not necessary." That supports a view that there is objectivity in his review.
@@poturbg8698 Yeah, it's a process but people are slowly learning that the review and community content side of things isn't influenced by the store. We're also doing something new, so I don't expect everyone to get it right away.
Can you get replacement ear pads when the originals wear out?
Yes, asked that question to a Focal sales guy today
Original pads costs 180€. 😅