Customer Reviews

Focal Fan

I am so happy I bit the bullet and treated myself to an amazing pair of Focal Celestee headphones!!!! The sound is incredibly crisp and transports me to a newer musically sound experience!

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Focal Celestee

Excellent headphones which sound especially good when using a headphone amp.

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Great sound

Great Sound, clear and accurate. I listen primarily to classical music.

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Yne Very Best headphones

Best sounding headphones I've ever heard. Crutchfield had the Best price of anyone. Fast delivery. Tk U Very much

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Wow, I hear the difference

First, the Celestee is beautifully made and the quality is un-mistakeable. But here is where I am very impressed. I have old ears, with some hearing loss so I questioned the "wisdom" of spending this much on a set of cans. I am glad I did! The sound-stage is simply spectacular, especially to my HD-650's. I can hear so much more simultaneously I am very impressed. And if you use a little EQ you can customize the sound even more to your particular situation. But these are great headphones right out of the box. I highly recommend them.

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Focal Celestee

Little less bass than expected. Other than that they sound great.

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Amazing headphones!

I bought the Celestee headphones last year. I was never really into headphones; I've owned various $50-200 headphones, and they all more/less sounded the same, and I just assumed that's how headphones sound. Spending so much time working from home because of the pandemic, I decided to give the Celestee a try, not sure what to expect when I placed my order. The packaging & materials quality are top notch in both look, feel, and function. Focal recommends at least 8 hours for the headphones to break in, which in my experience was 100% true. Just like my Aria 926 speakers, the first few hours are very vanilla --- the sound is very clean, clear, and transparent, but lacking in dynamics and excitement. However, after the initial break in period, the Celestee headphones really started to open up and come to life --- dynamics improved dramatically, sound stage opened up, and the right-left coherence became much more unified and connected. I added a Dragonfly Cobalt a few weeks later and it took all the characteristics of the headphones up several notches. Overall I'd describe the sound as very much inline with the Focal "house sound": clear, transparent, detailed, smooth, dynamic, and fun. I listen mostly to jazz, classical, and rock; I love how distinct every instrument is, it's not just one "sound" but the instruments layered in the most delicious way, they all have their own voice. I honestly had no idea headphones could sound this incredible; simply amazing, highly recommended!

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IMMERSIVE and ADDICTIVE

IMMERSIVE and ADDICTIVE First, I have to say that the source is an Astell & Kern SR25. Expensive and more eq settings than I have ever seen. 2 pages worth! 2nd the Focal was my 2nd headphone purchase. I actually bought Meze Neo. The reviews were very good and inexpensive. I tested them on a YouTube channel which goes through different frequencies. According to the test graphics, the MEZE's were remarkable. I didn't like them at all. I wanted to like them but didn't. I reached out to a paid reviewer to ask what am not hearing with the Meze's that has great reviews. I tried them in the A&K and 3 different synth workstations and didn't like them. 2 different companies told me my ears are a blessing and a curse. So here come the Focal Celestee's. Plugged them into the AK SR25 and O M G! These made the A&K worth the money, and they actually made me like music that I normally do not! Really that good. Music is VERY important to me. You don't know me but trust when I say music is VERY important to me. I never thought I'd spend that kind of money on headphones. I did and it is well worth to me. You be the judge.

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Well worth the cost

I was on the fence about these due to the price but I was not disappointed. These are very solidly built and include a very high quality connection cable. If you have never listened to music on a pair of audiophile headphones, prepare to be amazed. Its like hearing everything for the first time. I paired this with the ibasso DX170 DAP music player and the sound is fantastic.

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So close to perfect

The quality is apparent from the moment I opened the box. Presentation is amazing. Fit and finish is top-notch. The sound is very open and spacious. The only thing that is a bit lacking is the bass. What bass there is is very tight, but I wish there was just a little bit more.

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Celestee

Awesome build quality and very comfortable after hours on my head. Most importantly the sound quality is awesome from the first listen. I use these at home through a ifi Audio Zen headphone amp. I am primarily listening to Qobuz Hi-res audio. I normally listen to B&W P7 wireless which are great but the step up to audiophile headphones is sublime.

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Focal Celestee

Purchased these headphones to use in my office. I already have a pair of Sennheiser HD650s that I really enjoy, but the sound leakage can be problematic at times. Anyway, I'm 58 and my hearing isn't as good as it once was, and I'm never really considered myself an audiophile, but these are really, really nice headphones. Only used them a few hours and I am sure they will only improve even more after broken in. The bottom line is I highly recommend them to anyone looking to purchase quality headphones, but I will give two "slightly" negative comments. First, on my head they seem a little tight. Not so much as to cause a headache, but the clamping force is a little greater on these compared to the HD650s. I realize this may be subjective, since head-sizes vary, and I fully expect them to feel more comfortable over time. At first, the 650s seems a little tight, too. Also, they are just a little heavy. I'm sure this is a result of Focal using quality materials, but just be aware. I'm not sure what your listening sessions will be like, but it is not uncommon for me to wear headphones 6 to 7 hours daily while at work. I am slightly concerned the weight "may" make wearing them that long a little uncomfortable. Then again, I suspect my neck muscles will get used to the extra weight.

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Great step up to serious phones

I've been looking for a pair of "audiophile " phones, for late night listening, already have some Bluetooth types, great for on the go, but Bluetooth is a compromise with audio. When I saw these on utube being reviewed by a trusted type who loved them, I decided, after stressing for a few months, to try them. And the fact that they look really cool does not hurt. They come in a great hardshell case. You could drop it off of a building. This is what a "Bargain" set of phones made in France look like. The cable, leather ear cushions , all first rate. The sound? Not really a phones guy, but these could convince me to join the club. Decent bass, Soundstage, not fatiguing at all. So this is why everyone loves Focal products. Now I'm taking these to work. At 35 ohms the volume from my Sony media player is good, makes me want to upgrade my player. You just don't get tired listening to these. Now, to a phones guy these are inexpensive, but to us mortals a grand is a decent chunk of change. But these are worth it, great music in style, the French do know style. No pair of cans will ever beat speakers , but these are close. Now my neighbors can get some sleep. Worth every penny.

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Could Have Been Great

These headphones produce a very balanced and articulate sound. The "too short" headphone cable is a real discouragement. However if you only listen to music on your handheld portable device you won't have a problem with the length. Have contacted Focal to request that they make a cable 1.0 meter longer than the one supplied with this otherwise outstanding product.

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Excellent

Using with Schiit Bifrost DAC & Schiit Jotunhiem headphone Amp. I'm retired and listen to music streaming on Tidal, classical & old rock, audio books and the TV hooked to Bifrost with optical cable. Right. I find the Celestees to be very comfortable for long stretches. They seem heavy BUT I do not feel the weight. The sound seems to my ears is balanced across the frequency range. Older rock tracks, Cream, Who, Steve Miller sound great. Enough detail to hear Baker's drumming and Jack Bruce's base. Movies sound great as well. You get the base in the kabooms but the dialog is not over powered. The sound stage is wide enough for both music and films. The sound isolation is quite good. I use the Celestee's to listen to books while my wife listens to tennis in the TV which is eight feet in front of me. Note the stock 1/4" cable is short. I bought a 10' Corpse Cable.

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Great headphones some faults.

really great headphones quite fantastic sound. I was upgrading from my LCD2c and it was a tuff decision based mainly on how deep and dark the sound stage on the LCD2c is. But i decided to go with the Focals.

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Focal Celestee

These headphones have incredible transparency, detail retrieval, and slam that I have never heard on any loudspeaker setup or headphone. I listen via Tidal and a Dragonfly Cobalt. I haven't ever been in the control room of a recording studio, but this headphone makes me feel like I have. Vocals have clarity, definition, and fullness that I didn't realize was possible. It legit feels like you are in the studio with the artist. When I first started listening, I felt like the sound was a bit hollow, but what was missing was an inflated bass response. This headphone reproduces drum (and other low freq. instrument) realism unlike anything I've experienced, without requiring an artificially inflated bass/sub-bass response to bolster the slam feeling. If you want every track you hear to have the "subwoofer thump", then you will need to EQ. As expected from a closed-back headphone, this does not have is a large sound stage. To me, the music feels very much like it's in my head, which is fine. My use cases require sound isolation, so it's a sacrifice that I happily make. Comfort, build, and aesthetics are top notch. The included cable isn't the greatest, as it holds its shape. This is a minor nitpick and easily fixed with another cable. Overall, this headphone has made me feel like I've sunk significantly deeper into the "audiophile" world and makes me concerned about how much I'm going to have to spend in order to achieve this sound on a l

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Best in class

In my opinion, the best headphone in this price range and under price bracket. Very impressive. Works very well with the Chord Mojo.

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Easy listening

If your ?? for audiophile headphones without breaking the bank, these are the ones ??, nice warm sound and comfortable.

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Another winner from Focal

For those looking for a state of the art closed back headphone that won't break the bank, the Focal Celestee should be at the top of your list. I also own the Elegia, which this model replaces. While the Elegia was a good solid closed back design, it never really excited me in terms of sonic presentation; it is a very neutral sound which some might describe as "flat" across the board. I now use the Elegia as a monitor headphone for mixing tracks and it excells at that. However, for pure pleasure listening the Celestee has improved on the Elegia's weaknesses. It has much better bass and treble presentation and is a fuller sound overall to my ears. I had the good fortune to be able to compare my new Celestees to Focal's closed back flagship, the Stellia. For those looking at both models they are very similar in sound. They both display the characteristic Focal detail and dynamics and both have very pleasing bass depth. Yes, the Stellias have the edge when it comes to soundstage and micro detail, but honestly they don't strike me as being that much different for the extra $2,000 price tag. Besides, if you own an equalizer you can tailor the sound of the Celestee to VERY closely match that of the Stellia. The Stellias did strike me as being the more comfortable of the two, likely due to the type of leather used as well as slightly less clamping force. If cost is not a consideration, get the Stellias, otherwise the Celestee offers nearly identical performance for ? the price.

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An absolute winner

Gorgeous-looking, gorgeous-sounding. Compared side-by-side with a comparable closed-back model, the presentation jumps out at you without being unduly aggressive. Not bass-heavy, but not thin either. A wide soundstage with an unreal level of detail. Plays well across a wide range of genres - jazz, classical, rock, pop. As you can see, I'm not an expert, but I am blown away by the quality of the build and of the presentation.

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