Our Verdict
Sub-par for mixed usage. These headphones are designed for critical listening, and their open-back design doesn’t isolate any noise for commuting or the office. They are too bulky and not stable enough for sports and don’t have a microphone for online gaming. If you’re looking for headphones to watch TV without disturbing your household, they leak too much for that usage too. They have great audio reproduction, and you should use them in a quiet environment to benefit from their open design.
- Good audio reproduction.
- Sturdy, durable build quality.
- Comfortable design.
- Poor isolation and leakage performance, by design.
- Bulky and heavy headphones.
Good for neutral listening. The Focal Elear have a great audio reproduction with good bass performance, an even and flat mid-range and decent but slightly veiled treble. Their open design helps to create a more open sound, and they are versatile for a variety of music genres. They are very well-padded and comfortable headphones for long listening sessions, and their excellent build quality will last you for years. However, they lack sub-bass for bass fans.
Bad for commuting. They are open-back headphones and do not isolate any ambient noise, making them a bad choice for commute and travel, especially since they leak a lot, meaning people surrounding you will be disturbed by your music.
Poor for sports. These over-ears are bulky, heavy, and not stable enough for physical activity. Over-ears also trap heat under their ear cups, making you sweat more than usual, even with an open-back design.
Unsuitable for office. While they are comfortable for long hours, they won’t isolate ambient chatter, and you will disturb colleagues with your music since they leak quite a lot.
Sub-par for gaming. Even if they have great sound quality and a long cable that should let you game from your couch, they do not have a microphone for online gaming. However, if you’re gaming alone in a quiet room and have a stand-alone microphone, these could be great headphones to game with thanks to their wired connection, great comfort, and great sound.
Changelog
- Updated Apr 20, 2021: We retested and updated the Weight, Length, and Width tests. We also tested these headphones for PS5 and Xbox Series X compatibility.
- Updated Mar 24, 2020: Converted to Test Bench 1.4.
- Updated Nov 21, 2019: Converted to Test Bench 1.3.1.
- Updated Nov 21, 2019: Converted to Test Bench 1.3.
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Popular Headphones Comparisons
The Focal Elear are great critical listening headphones that have good audio reproduction and are one of the better-built headphones we’ve tested so far. Their sound signature is well-balanced and is versatile for a variety of music genres, especially classical and vocal-centric music. They are very comfortable headphones for long listening sessions but may lack sub-bass for fans of bass. See our recommendations for the best audiophile headphones, the best wired headphones, and the best headphones for studio use.
The Focal Elegia and Focal Elear are two similarly-designed headphones that have the same great comfort and build quality. However, the Elear are open-back headphones, while the Elegia are the closed-back variant. Both have good audio reproduction, but the open design of the Elear will give you a more speaker-like experience. On the other hand, the closed design of the Elegia will isolate more and leak less, making them more versatile for outside use cases.
The Focal Elear are better critical listening headphones than the Sennheiser HD 650, but they are also more expensive. They have better build quality and feel like more premium open-back headphones. On the other hand, the Sennheiser have flatter treble, and they are more lightweight and stable on the head. Both are great headphones, but the Sennheiser might be a better choice if you’re looking for your first pair of audiophile headphones.
The Sennheiser HD 800 S are better audiophile headphones than the Focal Elear but are way more expensive. The Sennheiser interact with your ears more like an angled reference speaker. On the other hand, the very large cups of the Sennheiser might be too big for some and could create gaps. Also, the Focal are slightly better-built headphones and feel sturdier.
The Focal Elear are better critical listening headphones than the Focal Stellia, but the Stellia are a bit more versatile. The Elear are open-back headphones that produce a more spacious soundstage than the Stellia; however, they’re a bit bass-light. Although the Elear provide better value for use in a quiet listening room, the Stellia have deeper bass and also isolate more noise, which is better for use in environments with more ambient noise.
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