French company Focal makes some stunning, but outrageously expensive speakers, but they also make way less expensive headphones that not only sound great, but are well built and extremely comfortable. Now Focal has focused on the in-ear market with the new Sphear. Sphear was designed to have Focal’s “Spirit of Sound” signature that’s incorporated into their Spirit range of headphones, with an accent on accurate and clear mid-range. Focal promises that the Sphear will be comfortable enough to be used for hours on end without discomfort. “Consumers seem to have a ‘love-them-or-hate-them’ attitude towards in-ear headphones,” said Ben Jensen, president of Focal North America. “Those that dislike them, typically complain about the weight, excessive bass and overall discomfort caused over long periods of listening. We’ve spent two years of development taking a new approach, not only to the design of the headphone for sound quality, but also in relation to how it interacts within the ear canal, offering a lightweight alternative.”
In this age of “High-Resolution” audio files, its spherical design provides what Focal calls a solution for those passionate for high resolution sound. Hopefully The Gadgeteer will be able to review the Sphear and see how it compares to their terrific Spirit range of headphones. The Sphear in-ear headphones will be available August 1st and sell for $179 US. For more info, visit www.focal.com/usa/en.
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“outrageously expensive”
Says who? I’ve been a dealer for 8 years. We sell plenty of Focal speakers to plenty of normal people. From $99.99 on the car side and $599.99 on the home side. Yes they have some that go into the higher ranges. Expensive is an opinion, and to use the word outrageous is irresponsible on a public forum. That makes people think the wrong way towards the brand and what it does. I’ve been to France and the factory and I’ve seen what goes into the product. I’ve also seen plenty of people spend thousands on speakers they love.
Mike
Mike,
Thanks for the comment.
My intention was not to disparage Focal because they do make incredible products is a broad range of prices. Maybe I could have worded it better, but my point was that their best speakers top out at over $180,000.00 and yet their headphones are very affordable. In my mind, that’s a good thing.