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attlo996 OP t1_itib13n wrote

I was hoping so bad that these could be a game changer. I also really wanted to own a Focal headphone, so as soon as I saw these I immediately bought them. Sound was great (not 800€ great but still...) and I will not cover it here, but sooo many problems with ANC. First ANC was not that great at all, but for me it was ok, since I don't care that much about ANC. Then I noticed a hiss on the right cup, and I found out it was related to the Focal logo Led, if I turned off the Led the hiss would disappear, the hiss in transparency mode was definetly noticeable more than in the other modes. Also using the Bathys while riding my bike, the volume dropped really slightly everytime I ran over a pot hole, I think it could be caused due some type of compensation ANC was trying to achieve. It's a shame, I really think this is the right path for Focal but for me this product felt like an alpha version. And as much as I wanted to, I really wanted to keep them, I could not ignore those problems. Has anyone found these problems as well? Any opinion? Anyway now I'm thinking about a Focal Radiance + something like a Qudelix as a portable endgame.

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headphonehamster t1_itieanj wrote

Thank you for sharing. I’m kinda in the same boat, except I already own the Radiance and am looking for portable BT end-game set. I hoped the Bathys could be just that, but I’m leaning more towards PX8 as the complete package is just better (even though I really want this to be the Bathys).

As far as Radiance with a BT/portable DAC/AMP as a portable end-gam, I can chime in on that one. I’m dragging along my Radiance with an M17 currently, and while a Qudelix (or perhaps BTR7) would make it a bit more portable, it really isn’t. It is too bulky, cables need to be detached fron Radiance to be stored and it’s just too bulky to walk around with in my opinion.

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N54TT t1_itlzpbg wrote

I still have my bathys. i had both the px8s and these and sent back the px8s. as for transparency, yes i agree on the noise floor when it's on, but it didn't bother me at all compared to the px8s. as for bluetooth connectivity, it's rock solid. and the noise floor in either of the ANC modes is extremely minimal compared to transparency. I'm not as active as you are. most of my use case is in my office working and monitoring things around me (dog, toddler). so i can't speak to activity related tasks. I know they purposefully didnt' go overboard on ANC to retain the best sound quality possible and it really shows on these cans compared to the px8s and for sure far beyond my ole trusty xm4s. everyone has a use case that's important to them of course.

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attlo996 OP t1_itm5d09 wrote

The thing that made me crazy was not the noise floor, but it being only in one cup, and being related to the LED, that made me crazy. If the noise would be there in both cups, I could have deal with it, but being only in one cup made me felt like the headphone was broken. And also I find it very hironical that they could have just avoided to put the LED there in the first place and solved the problem, since nobody really want to use that led.

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N54TT t1_itmu737 wrote

so weird. i'm not currently experiencing what you're talking about. toggled it on and off like 10x to see if i can hear a difference in both ears. led on or off i don't hear any difference with transparency on. i wonder if you actually did have a dud.... i've never owned focals before, but from what i gather, aren't they prone to QA issues?

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attlo996 OP t1_itmvm17 wrote

In some reviews I did read about hissing problem in transparency mode, and I texted few people here on reddit and they had this problem too. I though about a QC issue as well, but if it's so common I can't buy them until I have a working unit.

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N54TT t1_itn0pst wrote

The hissing i don't refute. but the light associated with the hissing i can't replicate. the hissing is there regardless. i should also state that I don't think it's that bad.

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Alan-Supreme t1_itk1nt1 wrote

i own them takes heaps of time to burn in don’t give up !

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Slideshoe t1_itk6dgq wrote

Those are technological problems. They won't burn in.

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Alan-Supreme t1_itk6gs5 wrote

i’m very happy with mine 🤪

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hanotak t1_itk9p8o wrote

That has literally nothing to do with the discussion.

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