Focal Listen Professional Closed-back Reference Studio Headphones Reviews

I'm really enjoying these. They sound good and they are very comfortable.

These headphones are incredible. I mainly listen to symphonic and cinematic soundtrack music. One of the great tests for headphones and speakers is listening to a solo violin. These headphones capture every nuance and tonality of the instrument in vivid detail. The same for trumpets, harpsichords, and acoustic guitars. These headphones capture amazing detail in everything I play through them. Even more impressive is that I can hear the ambiance of the studio or hall. It almost feels like I am sensing the back wall of the room. Truly breathtaking. The case and cords that come with these headphones are magnificent and everything is clearly designed by a skilled engineer. The feel, comfort, and isolation of these headphones are among the best I've heard. Can you tell I love these? I cannot understand less than 5 stars for these. Truly brilliant in design, sound, fit, feel, and ambiance.

Received these headphones over a month ago and have used them for hour after hour after hour with no discomfort whatsoever...they sound great and crystal clear...was nervous about the comfort cause a customer had issues with ear cup padding not being big enuf to go around ears fully...i have large ears and by golly i can wear that set all day long recording and stay quite comfortable !!! I also have an expensive beats headset that make my ears hurt after an hour...Glad i ordered this Listen Pro set...I LOVE 'EM...!!!

I have been really enjoying these headphones, which I use mostly for producing with virtual Instruments, analog synthesizers, voice overs with microphone, as well mixing and mastering. I find a they are very comfortable, and I have not found any ear fatigue yet. However, the ear cups are just the right size for my large ears; would be nice if they were just a tad larger to really sit around my entire ear. The sound reproduction is detailed and lush. My only small, personal comment is that the low end seems a bit pronounced. You can drive these cans fairly hard and they still maintain crisp and detailed tones. Recommended.

I've been using ATH-50's for years. I upgraded to the ATH-70's a couple of years ago. I made the mistake of lending them to one of our younger techs and they were returned to me broken. I decided that I'd like something in the same range as the ATH-70's but a little sturdier. These Focal's are definitely sturdier. They do not pivot at the cup, but seeing I'm not DJing, I don't really mind. They sound very transparent and flat. They seem a little tight but I'm going to assume that they will loosen up as I use them more. Probably not great for an extended mixing session, right out of the box. Still, they are great for monitoring at FOH, with enough isolation and comfortable earpads. I hope to get years of use out of these phones.

fantastic headphones. great sounding and comfortable.

Ive used my fair share of budget headphone monitors so this pair was my first upgrade recommended by Jimmy Hart. I was a bit nervous as I had to return so many in the past few weeks after realizing that they either hurt too much to have on for long period or just didn't sound great overall. These FocalPros however are amazing and makes everything sound so wide. It's not too low or high and I can hear more details in my mixes now. Highly recommend for the price and quality, thanks Jimmy and Sweetwater!

I was looking for a new pair of headphones for my mastering studio, but couldn't decide what to buy. Mark Magdich at Sweetwater recommended the Focal headphones, and after doing a lot of research I bought the Focals.
In a word: WOW !
The clarity, comfort and dynamic range are fantastic.
I have been recording for 50 years and have yet to experience a better pair of cans.
I strongly recommend this product, Sweetwater, and Mark Magdich.

- Focal tuned this set for clarity and details. I can hear all the instruments. No muddiness as far as I can tell.

- Low end will be a little bit weak on some genres.

- This set rests comfortably on my ears.

- I bought this set to enjoy music. For mixing and mastering, I use Senn HD 650.

- This set sounds very similar to Sony MDR-1AM2.

- Would I buy this set again? Big yes.

The design change from the Spirit Pro to the Listen Pro appears to be very well thought out. They definitely appear to more durable around the adjustment aareas that were very fragile before. They feel lighter and sit tighter on the ear with less pressure. The cable locks in with a twist and more secure than the Spirit Pro design. Sound is good out of the box and should improve after the break-in period. ( My Spirit Pro's did) The case and "mic " cable are nice extras as well and about $50 cheaper than the Spirit Pro's were several years ago.

I have not use the headphones with a stereo yet. I use them though my effects pedal and they sound great! Thank you again Calvin!

FYI: I was recommended to buy an additional headphone amp for greater detail. Using them without is just fine and have never noticed a lack of clarity in any way. Very much enjoy the sound profile as it. The whole experience is delightful. They sound feel and look like a professional set of headphones. I will keep them in the case with both of the cable types and I hope to enjoy these for years to come.

Sweetwaters the best place to order this product from. I highly recommend buying this pair on the site!

LITERALLY THE BEST HEADPHONES I'VE EVER HAD – PAIRED WITH THE TRIO6 BE's – INCREDIBLE!

Transparent, comfortable, durable, stylish and come with great accessories.

Definitely, require some burn in but once they're burned in, WOW. Very transparent and surprisingly wide soundstage for closed back headphones. Very happy with this purchase.

These do what the specs say they do. No sub? no problem. You can actually hear the lows without the hype. I actually didn't want to take them off to listen to my main monitors because they are that comfortable and you will get submerged in the music as if the mains were plugged into your ears. If your mix suck, they will tell you. If you sing off key, they will tell you. If your wife is complaining, they wont tell you...lol. they will make all that constant playback mean something. No ear fatigue. My hearing is terrible and i can hear everything in my mix and when i play it back on the mains, it sound exactly the same. Don't rate them with consumer level like Beats and so on. These are made for people that make music to be played on Beats.

First of all i never write many reviews but Wow these things r incredible paired with tidal the dragonfly red, they are flat but detailed u will here bass where there is suppose to be bass and highs r unbelievable and the mids just right, now I have to listen to all my music all over again because of the little nuances I didn"t here before WOW!!! I only had them for two weeks but when I get off work I can"t wait to put them on, the one thing I noticed is that I don"t listen to them as loud as I did before with other headphones because of the detail and depth is there at a more moderate volume then before with this setup (dragonfly red and tidal HiFi) and these headphones. The only way I can describe listening with these is that u feel more immersed in the music, close ur eyes and enjoy. Focal has always been known for there high end speakers so I had to give them a try and if i didn"t like them they Iwould go back and before I got them I thought I should have maybe bought higher end cans but these really hit the spot for me . My ear buds that I use are the Shure SE846, basically I wanted a setup I could pug and play and not have to adjust anything for the music to sound as close as the way the artist recorded it. Thx!!! Tad great choice.

We live in a great time for affordable, high-quality audio equipment, but these headphones take the cake for me. The sound is absolutely beautiful. I mix with these, produce with these, and sometimes I turn off the lights and lay on down listening closely to a great album. The only negative is that the stock ear pads are not particularly durable -- mine lasted for about 7 months of frequent use before I replaced them with Dekoni's custom-fit faux-leather product, which works great.

first time listening to it (through Scarlette 6i6), can tell it has deep yet clean bass and good but a little too sharp on the high side. After 3 weeks of light listening, well, the best I have heard. The high end not piercing any more. During which time got a chance listening to wireless headphones on display at Bestbuy including Bose wireless (it is in wired mode), immediately both my son and I can tell what came out of Focal listen pro is far superior, real music with instruments playing, while the other headphones instruments are not that distinguishable, even though still sound very good (you will have to listen to both to tell). Maybe not a fair comparison as wireless function costs additional money. But bottom line we really like how this focal headphone sounds. The up or down side (depends on your viewing angle), you will hear imperfection, either from source or your player. The headband was a little tight in the beginning as well, but now it is ok, easily an hour pass by.

The only thing with headphone is that it is headphone, sound does not come from front, but around, hence only give it 4.5.

I bought these because I recent bought a pair of Focal Alpha 65's. Anyways, great pair of phones for monitoring, everything translates pretty well to my two sets of mid range monitors. The lows are nice and tight, I've had them for about two to three months now. However I'm taking away half a star because the headband is not very comfortable, after about 30-45 minutes I have to move the headband. I can wear my Audio Technicas ATH-M50x's for much longer without discomfort. While I like the looks of the Focal Spirit Pro's more I do enjoy these, the red on the ear pads matches my Focusrite 18i8 which nice, the cables looks very luxurious as well.

Before these, I owned the Focal Spirit Professional for over 2 years. They WERE amazing - until they had the famous crack issue. Luckily, even slightly beyond warranty, Sweetwater is having them repaired at no cost. Supposedly the repair takes Focal a while,though, so I bought these in the interim.

First impressions, MUCH more comfortable than Spirit Pro (except below). The earpieces feel really great and they aren't as restricted and tight as the Spirit Pro. Be sure to stretch them out a bit, as they are stiff out of the box.

The sound seems amazing but of course they are not broken in yet. The sound like typical Focal, clear, #3D. detailed and tight. Very flat.

The half-star deduction is the for the headband cushion. The cushion is too thin so the plastic around it hits your head, not really the foam. Even 2mm more foam would eliminate this issue. Also, truth be told, the older Spirit Pros are much more attractive.

Comfortable, well made Studio headphones for the price. My teenagers love them so much, they took them from me! I found them to have a neutral response across the audio spectrum, and easy to wear for long sessions. Good for all around usage.

Price wise this is a great pair of headphones. No overload bass, clean midrange, subtle highs. Snug fit ,puts you right in the middle of the recording or mix. They can make you say to yourself, that's what I,m talking about.

Great way to sanity check my mixes. I mix in an untreated room and use Sonarworks SoundID reference plugin to shape the sound a little for my monitors and for these headphones. Together, they can give me as close to a complete picture as I can expect given my mix circumstance.

If you buy these, spend the extra coin and also get the SoundID plugin, its worth it.

The one and only thing I don't like about these, which is why I gave it 4 instead of 5 stars, is that the silicon headband gets uncomfortable quickly. I'm generally mixing on my monitors and then reference checking on these headphones, but even after an hour I want to take them off. No pain no gain I guess.

Love the sound and comfort of these. My last headphones I loved too, but the band and muffs all start deteriorating and flaking. Must be my skin type.

I was noticing red stains at various times on papers on my desk. I finally narrowed it down to the headphones. The cloth and foam, or whatever material inside, hold sweat and or oils. There is no way to wipe these down. I'm in a real world situation, and take the headphones off to grab a coffee or whatever. I do have a hook I can use and that I have to remember to use now every time.

My concern is that I hope there isn't any kind of carcinogenic materials used in the construction. I do sweat doing long sessions, I'm sure most do, and if it is leaving residue on paper, what might be leeching into my body?

I've never heard about those headphones before and Robby Resnick, who is my gear angel (I know you call him sales engineer) for more than a decade suggested it to me. Loved it, the looks, the sound, the package, everything. After it goes to the real-life situation you can see what is really working and what is not.
Really liked the sound, as far as I need, it was a home run. Comfort-wise, it hurts a bit after a while, but it is very personal, I mean, it must vary from person to person.
They provide the phone with 2 cables and I think the coil one could be a little longer and lighter. Sometimes it's annoying to record with that cable pulling down. The case is amazing but if you are planning to take it with you, you will need a big backpack, some sort of gig bag could be amazing.
I think the ear cushions wear off too fast. Mines started to deteriorate in less than 2 years. I tried to get a replacement part, and boy, the Sweetwater guys were fast. Unfortunately, I am in Brazil and I tried to contact Focal direct. Forget about it. Won't tell my experience about them here, but their post-sales sucks, big 5 Stars and A+ to the Sweetwater guys who really make it happens
If I would buy it again? Probably not, although the product is amazing, I think we have better options in this price range.

Headphones are hard to clean ear pads.
Also, not very comfortable for extended periods.
They sound ok... but trued to register product for warranty, however have found that to be a headache as focal sends link to finish registration but its faulty.
I would not by another focal product again. Disappointing!!!!!

Nice case, response is good, but what I don't like about these cans is, I can't wear them for very long, the top of my head starts hurting, very uncomfortable around my ears. I have other cans like Sony studio, Samson SR850 and even Behringer HPS3000 and they are all very comfortable. I can wear them however long I want to and not get tired of wearing them. You would think for the price they would get that right.

They do what they say. Not the most comfortable over the ear, and your gonna get hot ears. Sound decent if ya like the higher end of the sound spectrum. Overall … Id keep shopping and skip these. Bass is non existent… but when ya listen to your recording it BOOMS cuz… well … not very impressed. Save your money and get some cheap headphones, same thing .

These headphones for what you pay for, they should be more comfortable. They don't fit over the ears very well. At a half hour my top of my head starts to hurt, the cable is so heavy that it is so irritating while recording. It gets so frustrating having something pulling on you while your trying to concentrate on your performance. Only good thing I can say for these as they do sound good, but I think you can get the best of both worlds with a different set.

These headphones ride the line between ON EAR and over ear. If you're a medium ear-sized person like me though...they hurt after about 10 minutes. I had tried the $1500 version of these at a friend's house and thought "wow these are really comfortable!"...foolishly I thought the Listen Pros would be the same material. They're not. They sound good! They just hurt really bad.

I compared these to a number of closed-back phones priced between $150 - $400. None had a chance to break in - each one was used less than an hour - so these results may have changed over time. In comparison to the best of them, these produced music that sounded colored and closed in. I was replacing an old pair of Sennheiser HD280 Pros and the Focals didn't sound much better. Of the phones I tried, I felt the Audio-Technica ATH1000Z (these were the most expensive) was the most comfortable and best sounding, as it sounded the most open, uncolored, spacious (music not in between my ears, but around me) and full range in comparison to the rest. I liked the rest in this order: Master and Dynamic MH40, B&W P7, Sennheiser HD1, Sennheiser HD598CS, Focal Listen Pro, Beyerdynamic DT770 Pro Limited Edition. My reference phones are the Sennheiser HD600's. None sounded as good as the Senn 600's, but of these closed-back headphones the Focals were pretty weak.