CLEAR MG PRO vs ARYA vs HD800S! Headphone Comparison 

I’d recommend stealing the Clear MG then… just not from me. 😂

@@christopher1800 Is it endgame?

@@jcap8391 For me, yes. Both in terms of sound & budget. 😂

@@christopher1800 sheeet I hope so I was gonna buy a recliner or this. Should I buy it over a delicious leather recliner that will mold to my lard ass?

Second-hand market is the way to go. So many audiophiles don't mind bleeding money to try out new gear. I bought a HD800S -40% on MSRP. It's 9 months old.

you also need a couple of hundreds dollars worth of DAC+AMP to power them properly :)

This comment should get pinned, because it would really help to imagine what the headphones are really good for even for audio noobs like I am.

Generally speaking Hifiman and Focal headphones will do decently with all genres. That's what they are made for. HD800/800s has that old school German/Austria timbre. It's made for acoustic or classical music. Try it with Wiener Neujahrskonzert 2021. I feel 800s sounds more epic like sitting in the Golden hall of the Musikverein.

You look like dms

heard them the other day, they sound weird :/

@@OptLab sorry about the confusion ,I was speaking about the focals.

That's what frustrates me, any 1.5K headphone should be absolute perfection.

@@UntakenNick thats why you buy hd 600 which are better then the 800 and save the money.

@@UntakenNick if that was the case how would 3-6k headphones sound like?

Get a used utopia. I just found one for 1500$ but I'm too broke for that

​@@Kana0211on

And you got rid of it. Because...it just wasn't good enough, all-around, nor worth $1500? Like all of these headphones.

@@x-techgaming nah I still use it on the daily.

@@jollyrioger2572 Why did you say, "was"..?

@@x-techgaming Maybe english isn't his native language or it just was a mistake.

Nice to heard that. Did you try HD800s?

literally the perfect comment, i have an aeolus and an OTL amp and was looking at the 800S to complement it. plus my amp is warm-leaning so i feel like that would combat the brightness of it. do you like the treble on the HD800S?

should i get Clear OG or MG?

@@wyx5854 MG is superior. OG is a pretty great deal while there's still stock. Your wallet will make the decision.

What amp would you recommend for the 800s? Never had a tube amp mostly just used chifi dac amps

Check out Josh Valour's recent amp tiering. I have an A90.

only thing HD800 has is its unique staging property, otherwise not much

@@fatdoi003 It doesn't have to have more than that. If one parameter is a 10 and the others are 8-9 then that's already top tier candidate right here. Because there is no such thing as perfect headphone. And it's not even me that sees it in such high regard. As you can see people keep including it in their top tier lists, instead of other stuff.

@@fatdoi003 yes the soundstage is the best in any headphone so far. But it has also really great imaging and need something like the LCD 4 to get better details in a headphone. No headphone below 3-4k can beat it in any 2 of the mentioned strong points. And No headphone can beat it in all 3. It has absolute perfect german qc and longlivety and spareparts around so buying used is a very valid option. But as we can see there are finally other very good options for other tastes available in the pricerange!

Don’t ordinary headphones typically hold onto their value for a few years? The only headphones I see that change yearly are the tws, anc, and beats by Dre headphones.

seem like you never seen hd650, it born before hd800 and still ton of people buying 650 and 6xx. those are truly insane the amount of hd650/6xx been sold for the past 15 years and ton of people still highly recommend them

What's your idea

Would you recommend them for studio use?

@@RoyalProtectorate I have the clear mg pros, I honestly don't find them dark at all. In comparison to my hd600's, they are about the same in terms of brightness, but smoother highs that are also more clear. They are great for studio use!

@@BusinessDuck69 Most people would call HD600 headphones very dark sounding and only to be used for smooth listening though lol, don't think that's a good baseline

@@PantsaBear Well all this stuff is subjective at the end of the day. I've only ever heard the hd600's being described as neutral, and I'd have to agree with that. The Clear Mg Pros are a similar sound but more full and detailed.

Still recommend the Nad pre amp with the mg pros?

Why not? Any accurate headphone is capable of fitting that bill. But the fact that many non-neutral and claustrophobic headphones often get recommended for the job (like MDR 7506 or DT 770) never made any sense to me. I think you can say that often times audiophiles might care more about sound quality and be more knowledgeable about gear than the sound producers themselves, who ofthe are probably like "I have these speakers that have been recommended to me, so I can get whatever headphones" ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

@@Leonhart_93 Yeah DT 770 is really an odd choice, but I believe a DT 880, while it can have sparky trebles, be a much better budget open back can for mixing music.

A producer would not judge tonal balance based on headphones alone anyway. The HD800 is very useful in detecting noise and other flaws in the tracks.

1yr later but I wouldn’t be surprised if the guy was using Sonarworks with them. Sonarworks is a sound mod which EQs the headphones to as pure neutrality as they can get to and the 800s are reputably fantastic responders to the mod, albeit more expensive than the DT880 pro had HD650 which also respond phenomenally. I can only assume he found the sound staging and imaging quality useful but I’d be surprised if he wasn’t using it modded.

Thank you!

Soo.. what do you prefer for competitive gaming? (Foot steps). Also, what amps/dac do you use for this 3 headphones?

@@YTjuanchicod If you're going to be spending that much on a pair of headphones and your only concern is gaming I think that the HD800S's are excellent, but if you're looking to daily drive a set of headphones that are very expensive and you want to cover multiple fronts, gaming, movies, music, etc, then Arya's/LCD-X's are a better use of money and come within a very close range of what the HD800S's offer for soundstage so why not get all the extra added benefits, the clarity and punchiness and responsiveness of planars, for less cost, and in the case of the X's, the added bass.. in some ways the bass is better because footsteps are low freq, so they're more present just not quite as locatable, if that makes sense. Modius/Magnius by Schiit Audio on balanced wires to drive the beasts Arya/HD800S, less is needed for the X's, because they dont take as much juice to drive em.

Are the LCD X suitable for bass heavy genres?

@@ourada46 pretty good, yeah, though i liked the xc more. they're also both very heavy so wouldnt recommend more then 2-4 hours of use per day with them unless you got a iron neck

LCD-X are heavy. They are quite dark and bassy. The price is affordabl-ish. If they take well to EQ it can be a good option for a planar.

Physical fatigue (hp weight) or listening fatigue?

Mission Failed for him lol

I had the opportunity to listen to both the original Clear and new Clear MG this week and they are both fantastic headphones. To my surprise they are substantially different to warrant an audition of each type. My conclusion was that the Clear MGs were the best.

The build quality of Hifimans has always put me off

I'm going for the Arya because it's the different one. If I'm spending all that money on headphones, they'd better deliver sounds differently. The Clear seems to be the 6xx with better bass, same clampforce and headband, same soundstage and imaging issues and 7 times its price. I'd go for the ZMF Auteur if I wanted a true upgrade from the 6xx at this price tag instead.

@@superash82 That's a myth by now.

How is the Neve RNHP headphone amplifier compare to just using the DX7 Pro ?

how come? what caused the headaches?

@@h.hristov too much Treble, probably?

The big cups pressing against a facial nerve?

I got it and had to send it back. Zero bass

2c not worth it, the treble is not good for the price. The 2 fazor 2020 (With EQ) is worth it, u can get it new for 750, just ask this retailer: karl@tmraudio.com

If you have a chance, try the original Clears. I have both now, and the MG sounds like putting a pillow in the original Clears. The vocals and the details are so much better on the older one! I will send the MG back and I stay happy with my lovely Clears.

Ich habe meinen Focal Clear MG pro seit einigen Tagen und kann überhaupt nicht bestätigen, dass er ein mangelndes Klangbild im Höhenbereich hat. Ich betreibe ihn an einem RME Adi-2 DAC FS. So unterschiedlich und individuell kann eine Hörerfahrung sein!

Did you run in the headphones as suggested in the manual? I found it improved the treble.

Same here.

I think he has the 2nd gen but took the mesh off himself.

@@bibbyG55 On which observation do you base your hypothesis? And if he did so, he should have said so in the video to let viewers know that their Arya experience might be different due to him modding his.

He did a review and he said he took the mesh out. Not sure if it was the Arya review or another Arya related video.

@@Simon-dn9kv He also gushed over the LCDX despite him having a previous version that didn’t have the crazy frequency response the newer models had (up until November 2021). He’s terrible with follow ups lol

I already have the HD800S and the Aryas..... Oh boy, here I go buying headphones again!

@@DefiantAML Do you have a preference between the two? And what DAC(s) and amp(s) are you using with them?

@@MayTheSchwartzBeWithYou Thats really tough because they both sound amazing. I think it depends on the type of music you want them for. To my ears the Aryas sound a little fuller and the 800S more spacious. Build quality wise, Sennheiser without a doubt. But hifiman really know how to make good drivers. My end game goal is to have an end game dynamic, planar, and electrostatic. These two fill two of my categories.

@@MayTheSchwartzBeWithYou Dac: Gustard X16, SMSL SU8 V2, Amp: Topping A90, SMSL sp200, Loxjie P20, Aune X7s.

Clears would be a little weird for gaming, the soundstage ur used to w the t1 would basically disappear entirely and everything would feel closer and tougher to separate accurately. 1990 and the t1 are really good at that. Arya has a big soundstage and detail (good for games) but without the harshness u get w beyers on treble

Which songs specifically show clipping in the MG?

I have the Clear MG and I have never experienced clipping. You either have a defective example or you’re playing at levels where you don’t care about your ears. And the Focals will clip past a certain point by design. It’s the reason why they’re some of the most dynamic headphones around. Mind you, you shouldn’t be anywhere near that “certain point” unless you want to destroy your ears.

@@ghas4151 No. This is a compromise-related problem that Focal addressed years ago in Head-Fi. And by the way, there are many reports there that also confirm this. It's no secret that the Focal clear / MG, Utopia/ 2022 clip on certain tracks, even at moderate volume. I had 3 MG, 2 Utopia and 1 Utopia 2022. They all clipped like hell on certain tracks. Amir from ASR, also noticed it very quickly in his Clear test.

Clear or Clear MG?

@@dapperbrick7516 mg sorry

I don't know first hand, but from hearing other reviews I would say that the original Clears sound better, though the MGs are supposed to have slightly better resolution. One reviewer said the MGs had an 18khz fatigue issue that only young people can hear. I have the original Clears and I have found little to nothing to dislike about them. They have a non-fatiguing sound without being too warm or dull. The imaging and detail is still very good regardless of what they say about the soundstage. No headphone is perfect but, you can listen to them all day and just enjoy the music without trying to analyze the sound.

Hd800s is the most analytical/accurate I believe between the 3, so I would go with that (take with a grain of salt I never listened to it)

If you had to sell the HD800 or the arya, which one would you let go?

@@josha8715 I hate to say it but I'd probably sell the HD800 first. I love the HD800 for its speed and clarity. It looks like a helmet from a sci-fi flick but it's very comfortable. What it does - in terms of soundstage and detail - is brilliant. But it's so amp-dependent. With that treble spike - and without EQ, pad-swapping or a sensible mod - it's not an all-rounder like the Arya. The Arya has a more polite sound, which can feel less engaging than the HD800. On the other hand, the HD800 can also sound piercing while the bass extension on the Arya is a no-brainer and its planar clarity is sometimes more revealing than the doughnut driver in the HD800. Given its famous soundstage, it's weird to talk about the HD800 as being more "in your face" - as if I were comparing an HD6XX to a Grado - but it's a great can for jazz, classical and anything acoustic. I love what it does to old vinyl. But if we're talking about anything where tonal balance is key - metal, really sharp rock, hip hop, or even modern pop - the Arya is a more rewarding ride. This is a can you can just forget about as you drive through a wide variety of music for hours on end. If you EQ it, the HD800 has a few tricks up its sleeve. It doesn't have the easy thump of the HD800 (or the bodyslam of the Focal Clear) but a 6-decibel boost below 100 Hz gives it a decent bit of authority. And, while the HD800S has incorporated the celebrated French Mod, it's not the center hole that needs the most work. It's all that exposed metal, including screws, right underneath the cup liner. You can adjust the overall balance with a pad swap (I have Dekoni Elites) - and anything that compensates for the bass that spills out of it from those soft velour pads is helpful - but the real problem is all that metal in the cup, underneath the liner pad. A little Kleenex, strategically placed, is surprisingly effective at taming the excess, making the HD800 a more enjoyable ride. Even so, if I had to cut to the bone, I'd cut the HD800 before cutting the Arya. In that, I speak from experience. I'm on my third HD800. I bought these cans, when they first came out, then sold them when money got tight, then brought them back as soon as finances improved, sold them again, and am now enjoying my third pair. But if I found my back against the wall, I'd sell off the HD800 and keep the Arya. I just find this headphone so euphonic. I have other cans I really like - including the LCD-X, the LCD-2c and the DT1990 (all of which have do well at what they do well) but the Arya is a keeper. It has nice bass extension without producing a treble veil. It pops. You can feel the texture of the music.

@@kafkaworkshere Thank you for the very detailed reply! i’m getting rid of the HD 800 because I’m selling them to my brother in law. I figured I get something to replace the perfect headphones so that I don’t have only the sony z1r and the hifiman he400se. I was thinking either the Sennheiser HD 800 S or the hifiman arya. I am really considering the arya because of it’s versatile 3.5 MM connections, but I am unsure whether to get V1, V2 or the stealth magnets version

@@kafkaworkshere it’s true, the arya v2 has great bass, clarity and impressive speed, it breathes new life into all genres of music. better than my hd800 in some ways so i wonder if it’s better than the hd800s for me

@@kafkaworkshere Hello. I feel like you can help me. I can't audition these headphones. I have to buy one of them blindly. Clear, Arya, LCD X, 800S. Now the background, i have Ananda and DT 770 right now. I used DT 1990, Fidelio X2, DT 1770 and couple more cheap headphones. To be honest out of all these headphones DT 1990 sounded the most impressive to me. It was incredibly speedy, resolving and imaging was incredibly precise. Ananda is a bit disappointing because it lacks what i like about DT1990. It sounds very compressed, dead, monotonous compared to 1990. Also less detailed on the surface. I appreciate what Ananda does but i think it's not for me. Ananda's biggest strength is the realism in my opinion. It sounds RAW. As for the soundstage i would put Fidelio X2 and DT 770 in front of both Ananda and the DT 1990. Out of all these i still like DT 770 a lot. I think it has the best presentation out of all these. Big soundstage, placement of the all instruments and vocals work great for me. I also like V shape sound. I'm not fan of vocals, i like the music part of most songs. I like the harmony of rich music alongside of vocals. I hate forwards vocals. Vocals shouldn't steal my attention. I like air up top, without air it sounds dry and lifeless. I like bass punch and sub bass when it's called. I like rhythm. This is where Ananda fails hard. It doesn't have rhythm, dynamism, ups and downs. Rhythmic stuff sound dead flat. For example this: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-sfM7_JLk-84.html and this: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-EflyUGTFKiw.html sound boring on Ananda as well as rock metal. Rock metal sound infinitely better on DT 1990. I will use the headphone for games and movies as well. Immersion is very important. I was really impressed with Fidelio X2's soundstage but it's technicalities were lacking. Imaging and details weren't great compared to DT 770. It was grainy. I think what i want is DT 770 on steroids. Bigger and better soundstage. Harmonious presentation all around me. Good rhythm. DT 770 does this best among all headphones i've tried. 1990 is impressive but way too aggressive and forward. Ananda's presentation and soundstage is confusing to me. It sounds big, intimate and deep like everything is on top of each other but still distinct. Music comes from in front of me. DT 770 can sound in front me, right left or even behind stimulate from every angle. 360 degree sound. I'm in between LCD X and HD800S. I don't consider Arya too much because of my Ananda experience. Clear has the dynamics and speed which was very impressive on DT 1990, i like dynamic headphone but it's soundstage is small according to everyone. Sorry for the long post. Can you compare the DT 1990 to other headphones like LCD X and HD800S ? Especially the dynamics. I really like the speed and dynamics of DT 1990.

I never heard that either. The DT1990 has a massive treble peak!!!! Several db! I cant believe that he never mention that! I would never mix on the DT1990.

It's dark compared to the OG I guess. It's like you took the OG Clear and tuned it to sound more like an Audeze. I highly prefer the OG among the two in terms of tuning.

@@waa3866 Exactly. I tried the MG against my old one, and it is like if they put a pillow inside. Very muffled upper mids. Clear OG all the way!

have never listened to the Clear MG but worked professionally with the DT1990 for 4 years. treble, indeed, was simply too much to take and 'digest'. sold them, got me a pair of Audeze LCD-X 2021 and my mixes and masters translate really well to other equipment. despite being heavy they are extremely musical and perfect for my job. in 2023 i would NOT recommend the DT1990.

hows the sound

@@ozunkeskin6919 it really lives up to the reviews and I'm goint to start commuting more again, and it pairs really well with my ibasso dx160

@@ncokicsi hows the sound? can you call that the sound out of this world? or just, okay a very good sound experience?

@@ozunkeskin6919 I went from Ananda and HD6xx and the positional cues are true step up, I'm still in the process of relistening stuff and I'm truly amazed that it can come out of an IEM.

@@ncokicsi you mean you impressed after the HD6xx and Anada? you tried well amped the Arya or HD800s ? they truly other league

I like their bass, no problem.

Try a Chesky binaural recording i.e. Noah Wall or Amber Rubarth. The accompanying guitar/mandolin/base "walks away" one foot at a time from HD550s, to Sundara, to Arya.

​@@dennismanning6684 Thanks, Amber Rubarth is a good example of what I was trying to explain above. The few songs I listened focused on her voice, the guitar was there just to accompany. I prefer her music on the focal Clear. While Melodys Gardot - Sunset in The Blue album is also a vocalist album, but the other instruments add a lot more to the songs that the Hifimans brings them up in different distances.

@@juanp756 Yep, it's all in the recording quality/style. Thx for the Melody reference, very excellent Brazilian like jazz, so much ambient sounds on a wide and very 3 dimensional soundstage...made for the Ayra's esp. Probably next hi-res purchase.

Interesting. I've all 3 models in my collection (Arya V2, Focal Clear (original) and HD800S) and for me all of them are exceptional for gaming! I mean gaming for pleasure and to relax, mostly singleplayer. Which one i take depends on the mood and on the particular game. Something like an open world title, horizon zero dawn for example is more impressive most of the time and to me more appropiate on an Arya V2 / HD800S. Something like Resident Evil or in general more intimate, closed in experiences sounds in general more impressive on the focals with their visceral punch and smaller, in this regard, more believable soundstage.

@@dennismanning6684 love chesky recordings, they always sound like magic on good pair of headphones

Try HD800S and LCD X

You can eq it. Takes eq like a champ and wont distort.

Diana V2 is essentially endgame. It does everything Arya does but the driver is arguably one of the best in the business, except for HE-1

@@Shahzad-Khan I am not asking which is technically the better headphone. Joshua always admitted that Arya is not technically perfect but still subjectively it is his favourite headphone even though he has reviewed TOTL headphones like Hifiman Susvara, Abyss 1266 etc. What changed now is the question. Finally I don't think Diana V2 or even Phi does everything Arya does. According to Joshua, Arya has a much bigger soundstage/Scale than the Diana siblings.

Wait he finds DT 1990 better than LCD X ?

the lcd-x is a great compliment to the 800s. Like polar opposites. I have and love both!

@@briantomasinomedia5077 thanks for the suggestion! I will study the lcd-x!

Wena. Te compro los 800s jaja

@@MrJodete23 jajajaja no los puedo vender (regalo de mi esposa), saludos

I just heard the Clear Mgs in Dallas, and I believe their bass is as good as any open back headphone below $2000. Audeze headphones, have been a, "power over finesse", experience for me. I could hear more details in bass guitars, with the Aryas and the Clears. The rounded, fuller, presentation, is preferred by some. Aryas, had offered great detail in the bass, but spread over a larger space, where the whack of a kick drum, had felt more subdued. The kick drum was unbelievably enveloping with the LCD-Xs, but I felt I could place it more easily with the other two. I have owned at the over $1000 price point: Clear OG > HiFiMan Arya v2 > Audeze LCD-3 > Audeze LCD-X 2021. Clear OGs, had offered a hyper detailed experience that was all about sharp edges, for me. The Clear Mgs, had that toned down a bit, more "musical" and less "technical". Audezes had sounded more rounded and laid back. They are dark, but musical, headphones. I might end up going with the Arya Stealths. As long as they had fixed the plasticky, thin timbre. I had returned the Arya v2s because I hadn't liked how they had sounded with female vocals.

so what's the verdict?

Depends on what you prioritize.

As the price goes up people become much more demanding. 😅

According to Focal the sound is the same, it's just what's in the box that is different.

@@Hell4Gamers Strangely enough, the reviews say otherwise. Might have something to do with the earpads. Almost everyone says the Clear MG has better soundstage. Another reason for that might be that the Pro doesn’t have a balanced cable included. Soundstage could be better on the MG with its balanced cable and the correct equipment.

@@christopher1800 no. The mg pro and the normal clear mg are the same headphones. Just different color and other cables.

@@RC-qc2nz I believe you, it’s just that some reviewers don’t. Anyway, I chose the Clear MG for its balanced cable. The aftermarket for decent balanced cables is practically non-existent here in the Netherlands. And those earpads are built to last with the microfibre material, so I don’t expect those to wear down too quickly.

@@christopher1800 What reviewers? Never heard heard or read that anywhere.

Like he said in the video. You need a beefy amp to get the right sound from the arya. A90, singxer sa1, audio gd etc

I used to use the DX7 Pro with the Arya and they could easily power them at -20 to -15db. I added a Jotunheim 2 recently for more versatility (kept the DX7 Pro as a DAC), but I reckon you could do well with the Topping as an endgame amp.

@@ninq1755 Did you ever any problems in the S region?

@@blessedred Do you mean sibilance? Not really with the Arya. It's not a sibilant headphone. What does occasionally happen is that there's some shimmer in the treble that can get a bit intense but it's rare.

I like that we can use aftermarket cable the same for both :)

Maybe the notorious 6 kHz peak? You can EQ it out with Roon, RME, Wavelet, etc etc. No biggie. Or you get used to it like you did with the DT1990...