HeadphoneOverreview

Focal Clear

The open-back everyone recommends — praised for its clarity, punch and finish, and argued over for a treble that reads as spot-on or metallic, its value at launch price, and a build that doesn't always last.

34 sourcesUpdated
$700Typical US price

Score aggregates reviewer opinions across topics.

Focal Clear

The short version

What to know.

The original Focal Clear is an easy-to-drive open-back dynamic whose sound most reviewers call warm-of-neutral and well balanced. The broad agreements: strong detail and clarity, unusually punchy macro- and micro-dynamics, a present, rich midrange, bass that extends deeper than the Sennheiser HD 600 family's, a stage that is intimate rather than wide, comfortable fit for most, and no isolation. Measurements from a dozen rigs agree on the shape — a mild 1–1.5 kHz bump, a 4–5 kHz dip and a narrow ~6 kHz peak — and on a driver with little headroom that can audibly clip when pushed with bass. The disagreements are the decision: the treble is 'lispy', metallic and fatiguing to a weighted majority (Audio Science Review, Sonarworks, Resolve, SBAF and several owners) and spot-on to Stereophile, The Absolute Sound, The Verge and others, a split that tracks treble sensitivity, recordings and upstream gear; value divides between a money's-worth endgame and overpriced against the cheaper Elear, a verdict that shifts with the price paid; and the build is premium to reviewers but a real gamble to owners, who report failed cables, creaking or snapped headbands, pads that discolour, dead drivers and unit-to-unit variation in clipping.

About this product

The original 2017 Focal Clear — a 40 mm aluminium/magnesium 'M'-shape dome open-back dynamic (55 Ω, 104 dB SPL/mW, 450 g), the mid-tier of Focal's line between the Elear and the beryllium Utopia. Launched at $1,499 and since discontinued; replaced by the 2021 Clear MG. Not the Clear MG or Clear MG Professional (magnesium driver, retuned). The black-and-red Clear Professional uses the same driver and measures the same; only the colour and bundled accessories differ.

Focal's Clear was the middle child of the French speaker maker's first serious headphone family, slotted between the entry Elear and the beryllium flagship Utopia. It pairs a 40 mm aluminium/magnesium 'M'-shape dome with an easy 55 Ω load that runs from almost anything, and it arrived in 2017 at $1,499 with a hard case and three cables — the accessory kit its older siblings lacked.

For several years it was the default 'first endgame' dynamic recommendation, and it has since been discontinued in favour of the 2021 Clear MG, so today it is mostly bought used. Its reputation comes with an argument: over the treble, over whether it earned its launch price against Focal's own Elear, and over how well the chassis, pads, cables and drivers hold up.

A good fit for

  • Listeners who want detail, clarity and punchy dynamics from an open-back
  • HD 600/650 owners looking for more bass extension, slam and resolution in a similar warm-neutral balance
  • Anyone driving from modest or portable sources — 55 Ω runs off almost anything
  • Vocal, acoustic, jazz and moderate-volume listening
  • Used-market buyers who can inspect pads, headband, cables and both drivers before paying

Think twice if

  • You are treble-sensitive or listen loud to bright recordings — the ~6 kHz peak reads as metallic to many
  • You want deep sub-bass rumble or plan to EQ in a big bass boost — the driver can clip
  • A wide, holographic soundstage is your priority
  • You want set-and-forget durability — cables, headband, pads and drivers have a real failure record
  • You need isolation or share a room (open-back leaks freely)
  • You would be paying near the old $1,499 list price — the value case rests on the later and used prices

The reviewer consensus

Agreement &
disagreement.

3 / 12topics divide opinion
isolationtonalitybassmidsdetaildynamicssoundstageimagingcomforttreblebuildvalue
1 Strong agreement8 Mostly agree3 Divided opinions

Common ground9

  • Strong detail and clarity — the trait it is named for.
  • Unusually punchy, fast macro- and micro-dynamics.
  • A warm-of-neutral balance with a rich, present midrange.

Points of contention3

  • Treble: a narrow ~6 kHz peak measured on every rig reads as 'lispy', metallic and fatiguing to a weighted majority (ASR, Sonarworks, Resolve, SBAF, several owners) and as spot-on and natural to Stereophile, The Absolute Sound, The Verge and others — treble sensitivity, recordings and the source chain decide it.
  • Value: a money's-worth endgame to most reviewers, overpriced against the cheaper Elear to ASR and Sonarworks — a verdict that softens a lot at later and used prices.
  • Build: premium to reviewers with loan units, a durability gamble to long-term owners (cables, headband, pads, the odd dead driver, and unit-to-unit clipping).

A closer listen.

12 topics · 3 divided
Left: criticalRight: positiveTighter lines: more agreement

Treble

Leans criticalDivided opinions
Reviewer sentiment17 supporting sources
CriticalNeutralPositive

Band: opinion spread · Dot: weighted average

Sources split. Every rig measures the same narrow peak near 6 kHz after a 4–5 kHz dip, with more peaks higher up. A weighted majority — the measurement benches, Resolve, Headphones.com's own critics, SBAF regulars and several owners — hear it as sibilant, metallic or fatiguing. A large minority — Stereophile, The Absolute Sound, The Verge, Headphones.com's 2018 reviewer and happy owners — hear a treble that is natural, resolving and at most slightly edgy. Treble sensitivity, bright recordings and a sharp-sounding source chain decide which camp you land in.

Measured

Every rig shows a narrow ~6 kHz peak after a 4.5–5 kHz dip: 3–6.5 dB above 5 kHz and 5–13 dB above 7 kHz on the sai (GRAS 43AG-4), listener (B&K 5128) and earphonesarchive databases, and ~3.6 dB above 5 kHz on oratory1990's GRAS. ASR singles out an 11.3 kHz peak as the source of its 'brightness'; Stereophile saw a 3.5 kHz peak and 'a small subsequent peak at 6kHz'. Above 8 kHz the rigs disagree by up to ~10 dB (HypetheSonics reads 8–12 kHz hot, oratory1990 reads it recessed), so claims about 9–11 kHz 'peaks' depend on the rig and the seating.

vs. listeners — The narrow peaks are measured by everyone; whether they read as 'lispy' and metallic or as natural bite is not something the graphs settle. Reviewers on both sides name the same levers: treble sensitivity, bright recordings, and the source chain — several SBAF owners report the metallic sheen faded after a DAC or amp change, while others call it a trait of the metal driver.

Where it splits
Peaky, metallic and fatiguing — sibilance and edge that make long or loud sessions hard.59%

“It created fair amount of "lispiness" with female vocals for example.”

Audio Science Review (amirm)
Spot-on and resolving — at most a hint of edge, natural cymbals and no sibilance.41%

“Treble tonal balance is spot on and wonderfully resolving. Cymbals, strings, and trumpets sound fantastically true to nature.”

Stereophile (Tyll Hertsens)
Link to this topic

The hardware

Specifications.

Checked

Design

Type
Open-back over-ear
Drivers
1 × 40 mm dynamic (Aluminum/Magnesium 'M'-shape dome)

Electrical

Impedance
55 Ω
Sensitivity
104 dB/mW≈ 116.6 dB/V
Frequency response
5 Hz – 28 kHz

Connection

Cable
Detachable, dual-entrycommunity-sourced: cable entry
Connector
3.5 mm
Plugs supplied
3.5 mm, 6.35 mm, 4-pin XLR

Physical

Weight
450 g

Manufacturer-published figures, not measurements · from dam.focal-naim.com. Cable entry not published by the maker — community-sourced from hands-on reviews: stereophile.com, theabsolutesound.com.

Follow the evidence

Sources 34

1–6 of 34 sources

Read with context

Limitations & method.

As of

What to keep in mind 6

  1. A read of the reviews as of September 2026. The original Clear is discontinued and replaced by the Clear MG, so you'll mostly be buying used and prices move around.

  2. This is the original 2017 Clear (and the identical Clear Professional), not the Clear MG or MG Professional, which are tuned differently.