Apologies as I am very new to forums in fact I’ve never posted on any type of forum, so please Mr moderator don’t shout at me and please feel free to put this post where it belongs. Just to give you some information on my background in Hi-Fi. Many moons ago ,I had an Linn Sondek/Naim /Ruark Ultra high system and was well up on gear. I sold everything when I moved home as I couldn’t accommodate all the equipment.
Now I,m not a total numpty, but I have just bought brand new. Naim Unity Atom HE . Purchased a pair of Focal Stellias used on EBay without listening to them first in a shop. I know stupid Me.
The many reviews online suggest that this is good and describe both as being good.
Headphones arrived today. Set everything up. No problem ,I was expecting the headphones to blow me away. Oh my god the sound is awful. Very tinny and almost no bass. Tried via adapter into 1/4 jack at front and also balanced dlr on rear. Sound still very poor. In fact I have pair of B&W Px8,s and these sound ok into front 1/4 inch jack. At least they don’t sound thin and very bass light. Is there a specific setting I,m missing here??? Think connection at front is automatic. XLR connection I had to select analogue 1 to get any sort of sound. Are the headphones supposed to sound like this
I don’t think they should ???
Desperate for help and advice please spent a lot of dosh here and at moment feel hard done by.
Play some music in auto repeat or select a radio station and set Atom HE at relatively high volume (50-60) for 48 hours and go away. Listen again in 2 days. Hopefully will be much better, at least this happened to my Focal Clear MGs.
You say the phones are used; do you know exactly how ‘used’ they are? If very new they may need running in. If very used might they be damaged? I’m unsure how phones might sound if damaged. You obviously realise it now but phones are very personal and the Stellias are hardly cheap. Maybe you could eat humble pie at a Focal / Naim dealer and listen to their demo pair. Maybe they all sound just like yours.
@HungryHalibut i never hac the Stellia, but have the Utopia and they took aged to break in. The Stellia are reported to have more bass than the Utopia. so I wonder if the OP pair is defective? Lastly Focal headphones keep evolving. I wonder if the OP has the latest?
I found the Atom HE to be excellent with my hifiman Anya organic headphones, as others have suggested warm up often plays a part but that should mean good out of the box and improve with warm up over time they should never sound awful….
I’d claim a return of these Focal cans, not sure about your options via eBay?.
You can get really good headphones even from €250-400 and up, guess Stella’s are more expensive. If they have the signature of Focal flagship loudspeakers, they may be highly analytical, maybe not for you ?
Approx 5 years old according to seller on eBay receipt direct from focal direct bought them from France with arc amp. Seller says he’s done hundreds of hours with headphones. I’ve tried them plugged into my iMac jack direct. Played Lady Gaga poker face which is quite bass heavy on the Stellias the track sounds thin very light almost no existent bass very thin and almost echoing.
Using my B&WPx8,s track sounded as it should. Surely the Stellias shouldn’t sound the way they do.
Have to go into town tomorrow will visit shop where I bought the Naim and see what they think. Im already thinking I’ve been sold a dud at £1900 quid they were described as immaculate, h,mmmm.
To look at they look very well looked after,but that doesn’t mean they are working correctly.
BTW many many thanks for quick reply. It’s nice to have help
The OP said they sound awful, I said they should never sound awful.
I have never listened to the high end Focal’s as the MG Focals didn’t do it for me ergo I didn’t explore further… After lots of demos the HIfiman Anya’s were comfortable and sounded great so I made my choice!
I do wonder if the headphones sat on a shelf largely unused for 5 years, and despite their age are not run in, because what you describe sounds similar to my own initial reaction when buying Atom HE and Stellia as a package. They really did sound truly awful at first - harsh/tinny at the top end and with very thin bass. I had immediate buyer’s remorse. However, after a thorough running in, the sound completely transformed, and I couldn’t be happier with the combination. Bass is certainly not lacking now. I used to be a bit sceptical about running in periods, but not anymore - honestly, it is a big, big thing with Stellias in my experience. And it took time; from (hazy) memory a good 50+ hours to sound ‘right’. Of course, you may have a faulty pair, but it does possibly seem worth getting some hours on the clock before losing hope…
The suggestion to hear another pair of the same ‘phones seems sensible to me, and if different either borrowing to try with your Atom, or take your headhones to compare directly.
I had a long demo at home with Atom HE and Stellia and didn’t like them. I recall them as ‘busy’ and rather technical sounding, superficially impressive and fine with some tracks but overall a bit tiring. I felt I listened more to the headphones than the music. Top end was a bit ‘sharp’ at times but there was plenty of bass if I remember right.
So although I wasn’t a fan but they were never ‘tinny’ or ‘awful’. The pair I had were a dealer demo pair, presumably run-in. Have to suggest you check nothing is faulty with them or the HE as has been suggested.
Ebay can be a minefield. My “perfect condition” Beyerdynamic T1’s arrived with a tatty headband and stank of smoke. It took some cleaning and new pads and headband, to make them acceptable.
The Focals are most probably broken, corroded or have some other problems. Blown drivers sounds the most probable. Best return them and ask for a refund, or start a complaint procedure with Ebay. The threat of a bad review will often convince a seller to take stuff back.
They should sound good from the start, and burning in makes a minimal, if any difference. Some reviewers consider the “burning in” malarky as a myth BTW.
Phew you no what,that does give me hope. If there faulty there may be redress. However they look in mint condition so maybe the previous owner didn’t clock up as many hours as I thought. The seller seemed genuine but you never know. Sounds your experience is similar to the sound I,m experiencing. First port of call get them checked out. If working ok several overnighters with thumping rock, dance music and hopefully I,ll be able to breath again. Great reply btw and again many many thanks. P