I had only 10 minutes to test the Bathys, but I'm very impressed with the tuning and technicality. This is the first bluetooth headphone that I've felt wasn't a complete compromise in design and soundwise very overpriced. I liked them more than Focals usually. Clear MG/OG and Utopia sound good without EQ, but for me these come after those and far ahead of Celestee, Stellia etc. I've heard that they excel in wired use as well and the BT tonality (assuming they are different) is very good already. Really rough metal sounded perfectly clear and vocal jazz was lovely. I might need to get a pair. I'll go try them for a an hour or two and do a review asap.

[deleted]

I'm curious as to how they stand up to the XS

If your use case allows for the XS equally then they're probably the better choice. I have a pair in the mail so I'll do a review soonish.

They're closed back right? How's the ANC?

Yeah, closed back. Didn't have time to really try anything more beyond initial sound quality. I don't much care for ANC anyway due to the SQ issues it usually causes. Passive isolation has been almost abandoned by consumer BT headphones and that's horrible design aiming to impress the buyer by making the product worse to then show how much it improves with ANC. XM5's are the worst in this way I've come across yet.

If these ever come down in price, I might buy it. Hopefully in a year or two, one can be had for around $400-500.

Yeah, I think the current price is perfectly decent, but $500 would be very competitive.

How many KBPS is it ?

I dunno, basic bluetooth? aptXTM it says.

256kbps most likely. It’ll only be a few more seasons until we get CD quality 1411kbps on cordless headphones.

325kbps it says for aptX.

Ok well a small step is better than no step !

Really want one of those, but it'll take a while to gather cash for it 😂

Yup, they are fantastic. FYI it's basically a wireless version of the Radiance if you were looking for its wired equivalent.

The logo lights up? They might as well have put argb in there for how silly it is.

Any word on if the headband is sturdier than the Clear’s?

I thought the same thing, until I bought them myself. Using the app to set them to a dimmer brightness, they work well enough as a power indicator LED when I go to put them back in the case and realise I have switched them to DAC mode instead of off, or forgotten to switch them at all. Since they lie flat with the LEDs facing up when in the case, it's impossible to miss.

My B&W PXs seem to have pretty solid noise isolation. They are four or five years old now though.

Can't really say. Felt fine. They're pretty light so the construction is likely different and durability is likely more important on this kind of headphone. Probably only time will tell.

I don't mind it. There needs to be some light telling you the modes etc so why not a fancy one. It's a bit over the top, but you can always turn it off.

I wonder why I hated the Radiance and Stellia when I tested them some months ago. What people and reviews say seems usually different to what I experienced so I wonder if they were somehow faulty or if my ears had some momentary sensitivity or I had bad seal. They were really bright with weak bass.

Interesting. The Radiance definitely doesn't have weak bass at all, it's one of the best bass headphones I've ever heard. My brother has them and I have the Stellia, we often trade back and forth. It's a really fun headphone to listen to.

The Stellia isn't exactly a slouch either, but it's more in line with the Clear in terms of bass delivery. The Radiance definitely hits much harder by comparison.

Could be an issue with the source/amp or something? Bad cable?

I used my own setup and had no issues with other headphones. I tested a few and it's not impossible I just had hearing fatigue. I wonder what I tested before them if my ears got really sensitive. I test headphones with slightly louder volumes than I would use them with. Need to go test them again some day.

I just gave back my XM4 after replacing the QC45 for the same issue. Cant even buy something normal nowadays to go to work. Back to our audio corner it is.

Who'd have guessed there was a market for bathtime audiophilery?

The best ad for these would be a French lady enjoying them in a bath, but I suspect Focal is too serious and dry for that. Just like their headphones.