Our Take: Long-known for building some of the finest speakers in the world Focal has finally created a headphone, and simultaneously advanced the state of the art. The Utopia is their shot across the bow to all who build high fidelity headphones.

An audio tour de force, Focal has created a sonic masterpiece which does not sacrifice comfort or appearance – a rare achievement. Made in France from the finest materials and with striking industrial design, the Utopia draws the eye first, then delights the ear while displaying astonishing attention to detail from the Beryllium drivers to the supple leather earpads and case.

You will hear with deep resolution as you experience Utopia’s thick, clear, and satisfying sound signature which is noticeably more engaging than other headphones. Pushed ever further by the endlessly wide soundstage it is easy to forget you aren’t listening to a pair of Focal’s speakers.

To get the most from the Utopia we suggest pairing them with a great Headphone Amplifier and DAC(Digital to Analog Converter). Currently we like to pair the Utopia with the SPL Phonitor X amp with the DAC192 converter installed.

Utopia is the only full range fully open back loudspeaker design built headphones in world. The acoustic quality of the pure Beryllium formed “M” shape dome achieves an outstanding frequency response from 5Hz to 50kHz! When listening these headphones disappear revealing your music’s precision, realism, dynamics, and clarity. Comfort and durability define the headphones aesthetic.

Removing the conventional yoke in favor of integration into the headband creates great design and comfort. The pittards leather, used in Utopia’s cushions, reinforces classical and elegant lines. Epic sound, great design, and comfort live together in France.

The Utopia is the result of more than 35 years of innovation, development, and manufacturing of speakers and loudspeakers in France. As a world first, Utopia features the only full range and fully open back loudspeaker built within a pair of headphones, using pure Beryllium formed in the brand new “M” shape dome.

The acoustic quality of this exclusive solution allowed Focal to avoid the use of any crossover or passive filtering process to achieve a frequency response from 5Hz to 50kHz!

The listening experience is outstanding in terms of realism, natural sound reproduction, dynamics, and clarity. When listening to the Utopia, the headphones virtually disappear and the audio signal is revealed with a level of precision never achieved until Utopia.

Design is also a key point, be it in regards to the way of using the headphones, comfort, as well as the aesthetic. Another achievement with Utopia is the removal from the conventional rotation included on the yoke and its integration into the headband to ensure a total purity of the design.

The Pittards leather, used on the cushions, reinforces the character of classically elegant lines, as well as the expression of comfort and overall performances.

For a tweeter the deciding factor is the MASS of the dome. The lighter the dome, the better the acceleration of the dome. Resolution is directly proportional to acceleration, rigidity and damping!

Why Beryllium?

• Beryllium is 13 times more rigid in flexure than Aluminum
• Sound velocity in Beryllium is 2,5 times faster than Aluminum
• Very good thermal conductivity
• Very hard: scratch the glass
• 7 times more rigid than Titanium or Aluminum at the same mass
• Extended Frequency response up to 40 kHz
• Undoubtedly the best stiffness to weight ratio
• High internal damping