Focal - Spirit Classic - Closed Back, Circumaural Hi-Fi Headphones

Love these headphones. I am surprised they do not have higher ratings as I find them to be able to compete with the best in this range.The highs are non-fatiguing, the midrange is very transparent, and the low's are well extended but not by any means boomy. Perhaps the best trick these have up their sleeve is the sense of pace and timing. These headphones are fast and that means the flow of the music is never too much for them to handle; they can create a quick barrage of different notes without losing a beat. It's hard not to be amazed by the sheer quality and quantity of the rhythmic abilities presented by these phones. There is something deeply appealing here with the sweet and savory nature of their presentation.These headphone's are also slightly laid back so if you want something that over-emphasizes the music, this may not be for you. These are the sorts of headphones you would use in a quite room with your eyes closed when listening to music for long periods of time.Some pros and cons follow.Pros:1) The mid's are delicious; they have soulful, creamy, and sultry quality to them. While they are laid back, they are airy (a term usually used to describe the highs) while still being fairly palpable. Wonderful!2) The bass is deep and extremely well textured. You can both hear and feel the undulations of the bass notes.3) The highs are presented in a forward, almost razor precise, sweet and playful manner without making you vince. I hate harsh headphones and these simply aren't that. Relaxed and smooth. Though, as stated in the cons, considering how airy and fluffy the midrange is, I would expect slightly airier highs.4) Amazing PRAT (pace, rhythm, and timing). Toe tapping-ly good.Cons1) They don't assault you with the sheer amount of sound like a HD650 does, but they also feel more agile because of it. It's give and take, I guess.2) The soundstage isn't enormous, though I personally find that it's intimate nature makes its size forgivable.3) The sub-bass is pushed back a little in the soundstage; it is not as forward as the midrange or mid-bass (when it comes to the party). It is very well extended, however. I think overall these qualities help prevent fatigue for long listening sessions so may be benefits in some ways.4) The high's can be just the slightest slightest bit gummy a small percentage of the time, though this may be due to my DAC (Dragonfly v1.2), due to a lack of high-range synergy with my ears, or even the quality of the recordings (I will say that I am super sensitive to high range frequencies). Regardless, this only happens to the slightest degree and doesn't change the fact that the quality of the sound present here is deserving of a full five stars (including the highs). Nonetheless, considering the airy midrange, I think Focal should attempt even airer highs with any subsequent products.Other assorted things one should know (not really cons or pros for me):1) The low input impedance means that you will really need to find a headphone amp with a low output impedance as well. I found that my macbook pro's headphone out caused significant distortion in these phones. My guess is that some of the people (and I could be wrong here, just hypothesizing) who are having blown drivers may be having them due to a lack of impedance matching with the headphone amp. Personally, I find the dragonfly v1.2 dac works nicely with these, though if you can find something more musical and less analytic, I think that would be recommended as well (perhaps a modified centrance with the 1ohm output impedance?). I'll update this section when I get a chance to try out more dacs and amps.2) They can hug your head very tightly. Though I wouldn't recommend this, I personally had to leave them stretched on a box for a couple days though (maybe too long in hindsight). They should fit your head better over time, however.3) Sometimes the swivels squeak. This is a known issue, but a little annoying. I know some people put a little oil in the swivel to make it go away. Not a huge issue for me, personally.Conclusion:It's hard to describe how good these headphones are without listening to them. I could nitpick little things, but I love listening to these and everyone I know who has listened to these is equally amazed by their breath of capability. If you want reasonably priced closed headphones for home use, I think these are unbeatable. Could you do better overall? Sure. But I think you would have to spend near or over a grand to surpass them overall (and even then not in every way).

I felt compelled to write a review about these headphones since there were just 9 reviews that averaged to a 4 star rating. This Focal Classic is clearly underrated. To give you a background, my in-ear headphones of choice is the $1,000 Shure 846s. For over-the-ear headphones, I auditioned all types of headphones including, among others, B&W P7, Bose, Beats Pro, Audio-Technica ATH-M50, Audio-Technica ATH-M50, Sennheiser Momentum, Philips Fidelio X1, Parrot Zik 2.0, and others.As we ALL KNOW, sound preference and what we each think sounds "good" or "great" is so subjective. Therefore, I will tell you that I tend to prefer a "U" shape spectrum on the sounds scale with very, crisp sparkly trebles, and very prominent deep, tight, powerful bass. I enjoy listening to as large of a sound spectrum as possible, while hearing the realistic details of every instrument, every grain of every violin string, and to notice every intricate detail of background instruments as possible, while feeling like the vocalist is performing within feet of me. I listen to every genre of music from movie scores, trance, house, R&B, Hawaiian reggae, pop, classical, hard rock, rap, and yes, even some limited country.That being said, despite not personally being very familiar with Focal as a headphone brand, but rather having some distant familiarity with Focal as a speaker maker, admittedly I was hesitant to admit that these were going to be "the ones" that I would keep. But one headphone audition after the next, while each time comparing them to the Focal Classic, the Focal remained the undisputed Champion, defeating every reputable-brand headphones maker and model after the the other.The detail that is heard through the Focals will leave you with a "Wow" moment. You will rediscover music that you've listedned for years and hear new details. The stage presentation is wide and distinct, while each instrument and detail, from my perspective, is no less than incredible. The trebles are crystal clear and bright, while the bass is powerful with great depth. Most headphones cannot accomplish both. One tends to drown out the other. With the Focals, none of the brilliance is lost. I was simply amazed. I have probably owned and tested over 3-4 dozen over the ear headphones in my adult lifetime, and the same with in ear headphones. If you told me these headphones cost $1,000, I would believe it. They are that good. And NO, I did not receive these free to review like many reviewers receive free gear from companies. I paid for these on my own, choosing these over MANY others.Those who know me say I am extremely musical and with an excellent ear for music and detail. I am extremely picky with the gear that I listen to music. Simply put, you will NOT be disappointed, and in fact, will have the "WOW!" factor. I am confident of this. Therefore, to quickly give it a rating on a 10 scale, based on MY personal preference of sound quality:OVERALL SOUND: 10/10BASS: 10/10MID: 10/10TREBLE: 10/10SOUNDSTAGE: 10/10DETAILS/SEPARATION: 9.5/10CONSTRUCTION/BUILD QUALITY: 9/10COMFORT: 8.5/10DO YOU NEED A HEADPHONES AMP? I SAY NO.