A friend of mine swears by the DHC Molecule Elite, based on a Holo May → DNA Stellarus → Utopia setup. I was surprised at this because I use the Molecule Elite on all my headphones, and I didn’t think it would be compatible with a brighter-leaning headphone like the Utopia, but he claims that even though the treble is extended, it’s very smooth, not bright at all.
Is the Prion4 like a “grown up” Molecule Elite? I’ve been pondering my next cable upgrade and the Prion4 is one of the cables that I’m looking into, maybe at Thanksgiving, when DHC has their annual sale.
As an aside, it’s interesting how you get used to the sound of a cable. I lent my Molecule Elite to a friend yesterday and I struggled to adapt to the DHC Complement-C on my Stellia, just because the Complement-C has a very different sound. Maybe I’ll end up struggling to adapt back to the ME when I get it back.
On the DNA it doesn’t lean bright at all, on the Stratus at least it’s a very different sound to the other amps I tried it on, and I could see going with a silver cable with that combo.
Was thinking the same thing, the more forward and clean nature of that cable likely helps to tighten and liven up that more warm and relaxed slightly looser leaning combo (guessing)
I personaly think the real stand out of the 2x personaly is the added speed tbh. It gives a pretty fair bit better micro control. That said, tbh, im not entierly sure the price is justified just for utopia when going dual here. Maybe im off base slightly on price but i seem to remeber them being like 5k for a stack? Im not sure i would go with them at that price tbh
From the time I’ve heard the golden with the 800s yes while better than the normal one I don’t know if it was all that worthwhile, but the regular one is a solid value if you can find them at this point
Me chiming in on 2x cma800r pricing:
Used I grabbed both of mine for $1600 all in. I have seen singles for $800 but usually more for a better condition unit.
Edit: just thinking about it, at 1500 i think it may be the best amp for utopia that ive heard. Its more detailed than forge (and certainly more then mogwai og) which i may subjectively prefer bit they are way more. I can also see someone prefering the gsx-mini (the crazy micro focus and blunted transients work quite well with utopia) but it wasnt realy for me over all
@Rmsanger
I think you posted and asked about the Radiance but deleted it before i could respond.
The Radiance fits what I use it for perfectly. That being my commuting, going for a walk, sitting on my work desk headphone. It synergizes perfectly with my Cowon Plenue S dap, so much so i bought a niche 3.5mm balanced cable basically just for it.
It is basically what all the reviews say it is. Thick heavy bottom, great natural mids, pushed back treble. I use the EQ on the Cowon to add a few db up high, which helps get vocals back to center stage as opposed to being down a hallway. Too much though makes the radiance turn the highs harsh and glaring.
It is smooth and natural enough that its exciting on trips, but doesnt fatigue or give you a headache.
I don’t have a closed back other than my Lawton modded TH610, and I wanted something different so, just found a decent deal on a lightly used Radiance and bought it. Should be here next week.
So I’m posting here because I’ll build my upgrade path around the Focal Utopia, but really these are more general questions on how to go about it. I’ve been kind of struggling with that, and also how to formulate my concerns.
@M0N’s detailed recommendations per price point for the Utopia have been immensely helpful and I do believe it’d make sense to me to get either a LTA MZ3 or Mass Kobo 433 and be very happy with either of those. I suppose what I’m stuck on is that both of these are brands I can only buy from abroad and very likely won’t find used on the market. Is this still worth the cost then? Does this have enough value? Should I rather go to a local shop and try out various amps and then asking for a deal if I like one?
How do you all generally go about this? Do you / can you target specific gear at this price point if you want it used? Is it a stroke of luck to get something used? Or do you buy new? Is the issue here that I’m in the EU and do not have access to shops that offer these brands? Am I at a price point where I need to buy new if I want a specific gear?
Feeling kind of stuck and I hope you can give me input on making my mind make sense again
Haha, that seems like such a simple solution to all the thoughts I had the past few days. So it basically comes down to patience: do I possibly wait months to find something on the used market (and how good of a deal will that be?) or do I just splurge on new now?
I’m still somewhat waffling in-between. On the one hand, I love a good value. On the other, I’d love it even more if I felt I had all my ducks in a row by the end of this year. Black Friday could offer some deals anyway… Will have to give it more thought. Thank you for your input
