Focal Bathys discomfort after short period of wear

Submitted by LooneLuxxe t3_11cw7y9 in headphones

So after 3 odd years of putting off buying a nice, new pair of headphones (to replace a pair of beats from when I was a teenager which were... awful in all aspects, and very much falling apart), I decided to take the plunge yesterday and bought a pair of Bathys which I had tried on in the shop and had minimal issue with.

I'd read reviews prior, all of which emphasised the apparent comfort of the headphones for at least a few hours (and I checked whatever forum posts popped up on google search, didn't see any red flags) so I felt fairly comfortable with the purchase.

Upon opening and trying them on today, the sound is great, but they're uncomfortable after around 5 mins, and gave me a headache 30 mins after putting them on for the first time from the pressure around the ear cups. Less than that on subsequent attempts throughout the day. I'm currently stretching them out over some books but the experience has left me a bit worried nevertheless. Has anyone experienced this level of discomfort when wearing these for the first time, and if so what did you do to 'break them in'?

Unfortunately, the place where I bought them has a no-returns policy on opened products, so I'm trying to figure out whether or not this is something that might subside with time or whether I should be prepared to throw in the towel and put them up on eBay (which I really don't want to do).

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Puzzleheaded-Pen4413 t1_ja6to1a wrote

No experience personally, but did read a lot of those kind of headphones will take some time to loosen up a bit. Give it time, especially since you can't return it.

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wagninger t1_ja79os5 wrote

For me, it’s 2 things with focal: even used ones have been very uncomfortable for me in the beginning, and then very, very comfortable after a while. I only have experience with the Stellia and Utopia, but I would assume this one is similar.

The second thing is, do you experience more pressure under your ear than above it? I always jam a piece of rubber between the top of the cup and and headband, to increase the pressure on top vs on the bottom, and then they fit like a glove.

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LooneLuxxe OP t1_ja7lkz7 wrote

Yes this seems like a very accurate description, there is marginally more pressure under the ear than above. Could i ask for more details on your rubber trick? I don't think I have any rubber I could use but maybe something else could be comparable

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wagninger t1_ja7lyrc wrote

Sure! I just use a piece of rubber that you would normally use to protect toddlers from corners of furniture: link

I think it is very soft and doesn’t do any damage over time, and is easily removed if someone with a smaller head wants to have a listen 😊

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toastyhoodie t1_ja5iv60 wrote

So for me, I prefer the higher clamp. I can see where it could be tiresome to some.

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Jaytiss t1_ja6ueog wrote

I mean you could list them on av exchange or eBay and get most of your money back. That’s my take. You could try new pads. Amazon has a few options for focals. I’d give it 1-2 weeks and 10+ hours of use. They might grow on you.

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