I currently have a pair of Focal Elegia headphones (and also a pair of Grado 325’s). I must admit that I’ve never really got on with the Focal’s, I find the sound overly clinical and “metallic”. The detail is amazing but there is a lack of warmth and it takes a good half hour of listening for my ears to adjust to the sound. I much prefer the sound of the Grado’s but they aren’t as comfortable to wear as the Focal’s, and also being open-backed they are less user-friendly when listening in company. So, with all that being said, I’ve come to the conclusion that I’ll keep the Grado’s but replace the Elegia’s. The question is with what? I like a warm and detailed sound and they would need to be closed back and extremely comfortable. I tend to use the headphones to listen via iPhone and iFi Hip-Dac2 and occasionally plugged into a Naim Uniti Star. Budget can be up to £2K - what would people recommend?
Headphones are very personal, sonic preferences and comfort vary hugely between models so I usually hesitate to make specific recommendations but since you found the Focal a bit clinical (agree) and like the Grados it sounds like our tastes overlap.
You might look at ZMF. ‘Warm and detailed’ is a good description of their brand character, and even their open back models don’t leak sound like Grado. Nothing does!
I have the Verite closed and Auteur Classic. The latter fits your budget and is a really nicely balanced all-rounder. The Atrium is highly regarded and maybe you could find one of these or a Verite secondhand. The Verite is really classy.
I also have the Grado HP100SE. They are quite bright but I love them. The wood version (s950) shares the bigger driver and much larger, softer and now very comfy earpads. I haven’t heard them but might be worth an audition if you can? I suspect they will be a touch warmer than mine.
I also found the Sennheiser 820 very technically impressive but not so engaging when I tried them. I know others on here love them.
Bruce
This is probably one of the hardest questions to answer. It is so extremely personal.
I tried Grado, but they were so uncomfortable. I like my Focal Elear and Hifiman Arya. My Sennnheiser HD800s are the most clinical.
The best advice is to find a dealer with a broad collection and go listen and feel.
I like my Focal Elears a lot, but I didn’t care for the Elegias for pretty much the same reasons as the OP. Instead I went for Dan Clark Noire X (which are closed back, although there is an open back version), which I much prefer. But they are not very sensitive and need some level of amplification from an iPhone.
BTW I demoed Focal Clear MGs last week. I suspect I will be making my move to those at some point this year. It would be nice if Focal came out with a new model and dropped the price.
When I went on my Headphone Safari, tried absolutely loads (including Focal, Sennheiser, Audeze, Beyerdynamic, Grado and Meze)…
The ones that surprised me the most and that I eventually purchased were the Meze 109 Pro’s.
Stunning headphones at a fraction of the cost of some manufacturers listed above and yet such a full and engaging sound with plenty of detail.
Definitely worth a listen if you have a local dealer👍🏼
I’d definitely recommend taking look at what ZMF has to offer, I recently got a pair of their Atrium open headphones and they’re by far the best I’ve ever heard. Warm, lifelike sound and detailed without becoming clinical or fatiguing. I’m currently using them with a Uniti Atom HE and that pairing works very well but from what I’ve read they truly shine with a tube amp so I’m considering buying one of those too, perhaps a Cayin HA-3A.
I had focal clear mg which I found detailed but thin, metallic like and lacking in warmth. Had same issue with using them with others in the room. Now have Focal Stellia closed back, completely different presentation and comfort , more detailed than clear mg but with an organic warmth and much better bass drive and articulation. Both used with Atom HE. If you can find a dealer pair ex dem with a warranty you might meet your budget.
I do like Focal (my main speakers are Aria 926) so the Stella’s look attractive, I could push the budget (depending on what I get for the Elegia’s). If they sound the way I want them then I can justify the extra cost.
The Stellia need a bit of driving. Not sure your setup would show them at their best. I didn’t find them organic personally but very detailed and a bit wearisome! Try with your kit rather than buying blind.
Bruce
I too have the Elegia and feel the same about them. They are certainly an acquired taste. Entertaining but annoying!
I think you’re going to need something that is easy to drive. The Meze is a great option (I have the 105AER) but would been on trying the Silva and 109.
Take all the headphone video reviews with a pinch of salt unless you know that the reviewer aligns with your own experience. I watched a summary of the years models and 2 chaps would fairly consistently agree and the last guy completely different! So as folks have said, it’s very personal and subjective.
Other closed back Focal’s I would be willing to try are the Celeste and the Radiance, the Clear is very highly regarded (open back).
I find the Elegia, comfortable and I got them at a big discount. What saved them was using a bespoke equalisation (looked up on HeadFi) and applying that in Audirvāna. Transformed them.
Having once done that I cant imaging chasing expensive headphones without applying EQ in the digital processing chain.
Try the Focal Bathys MG. Can be used wired, USB and Bluetooth. Closed back and the benefit of noise cancelling and portability.
They also have two processing modes, SQ Via equaliser and sound personalisation via the Mimi software.
Yes, Roon also offers ‘Opra’ equalisation for many headphone models, including several variations for the Elegias.I found this helped a lot once I compared them and picked my favourite.
I did not know that. Will try later 
I started off with Focal Clears powered by an Atom HE and was not a fan. “Metallic” is a perfect descriptor imo. I ended up with Meze Elites which I very much enjoy but the other more reasonably priced Mezes are all worthy options in my opinion.
And I have tried….very useful. Thanks very much.
Like @BrendanD and @rossd I work with EQ to make the headphones match my taste.
Currently I am testing the convolution option in Audirvāna 3.0 beta. I also was able to snatch a pair of Elegia headphones for a reasonable bargain (hardly used for 200 euros) and figured they were worth the try at that price.
My main pair of headphones are Sennheiser HD650, but being open back I also wanted a pair closed back headphones.
Together with using convolution (IR files from AutoEQ, sometimes a little modified to my personal taste) I discovered that the Elegias were able to open up a new dimension with quite some of my favorite albums.
Great experience to feel like being next to Mike Oldfield in his Nassau studio on Return to Ommadawn. Same experience with Silje Nergaard on the acoustic version of Be Still My Heart…
So absolutely worth trying before buying a different pair.