Focal Elex

Focal Elex open back dynamic driver headphones

About 10 hours of use.

Comes with nice cardboard, foam lined storage box with magnetic closure.
Has two cables, 3.5 mm at the headphone end, one with 4 pin XLR and the other with 6.35 mm at the amp end. Both are 6 ft, I believe.
Also comes with manual and informational packets.

These are the entry level Focal open back headphones. Despite that, they are quite impressive for how cheap they are. They will give you pretty much everything Focal is known for with their headphones - intimate but 360 degree and deep soundstage, dynamic and physically engaging sound, pretty good build quality, etc. I found them to have pretty punchy bass with at least some rumble down low, clear mids, and a bit more forward treble but less so than like a typical Hifiman. Makes for a more neutral bright, snappy, punchy sound. Pretty fun to listen to actually. I would say that compared to the Utopia 2022, for example, you'll be missing out on the extra detail the berrylium drivers give, the even more intense dynamics, a more refined tuning across the board, and extra extension at either end of the frequency spectrum. It is definitely a significant upgrade to go the Utopia, but then you'd have to cough up like 10x the amount! It's a bit much.

But, that's not what you should expect from these. I consider these a pretty fun listen overall. They are an engaging and intense listen - you will need to match their energy to listen for extended periods. They are super easy to drive, so you don't have to worry so much about your source chain. I found they pretty much always sounded like described above. They can get a little aggressive sometimes, but then you just lower the volume a bit and you're good. I usually experienced aggression with more clinical solid state gear, and not too often. They do sound nice on the tubes for sure. Kinda tames the highs and gives some warmth to the whole experience.

I really just bought these to see what the difference was between the Focals at both ends of their spectrum and, like I mentioned, was still impressed with what I heard at the entry level. The 10 hours of use actually came from a couple hours at home when I first got them and then 8 hours at work the next day. I brought them back home because I was just listening to the music all day at work and got nothing done. That's how these are - they can grab ahold of you and keep you occupied (happily) if you're not careful. The Elex will have you tripping on its value proposition, I'm sure.

Mainly selling these so someone else can have a taste of the gateway drug to Focal that is the Elex. Maybe you'll end up with the Utopia like I eventually did? Try these first, though. But actually -- I just don't listen to dynamic driver headphones much anymore and have moved to planar magnetostatic headphones instead. These have been chilling on my shelf for awhile now. Have fun, and remember to take a break once in awhile so you can get some actual work done. Please enjoy!