Focal Bathys High-Fidelity Bluetooth Noise Cancelling Headphones

Quick background - I've been looking for higher-end bluetooth headphones for a long time. I've been through Drop Pandas, Sony XM4, Sony XM5, Bose QC 35, Sony XM4 earbuds, Apple AirPods Pro 1 and 2, AirPods Max, Focal Elegia with dongle DAC, and a few more along the way. I've been happy with many, but they never seem to last. I think there are 2 ways to look at the Bathys - top down (coming from high-end cans like Radiance and Celestee) or bottom up (consumer bluetooth headphones like Sony XM5, AirPods Max, etc). From the top, they aren't necessarily up to the wired standard (but they're not supposed to be). They're not far off, but wired cans with a nice DAC (an additional expense) WILL sound better. There are just realities with bluetooth headphones and they will always be hamstrung compared to their wired counterparts. They do have the advantage of ANC, wireless, and those cool flashy lights on the side, tho. From the bottom up, I think they make a great case for their price. Yes, I can buy both the AirPods Max and AirPods Pro 2 for the price of these Bathys, but the sound quality is better than both combined. It's just that simple. Great sounding audio, comfortable, and DAC mode to get them into the ballpark of the wired cans. At the $800 asking price, they start making sense. Focal state that they need around 50-100hrs of burn-in to sound their best. Wether you're a burn-in believer or not, I DO believe they're gotten better over the past 3 days of almost non-stop listening. I can't wait to see where we are in another couple of days. Also, there has been a definite improvement in comfort, as well. I really enjoyed the Drop Pandas (after using the Sound ID app to customize the EQ) but, like so many others, the battery charge issues took them out of the running. Recently, I picked up a pair of AirPods Max. They sound very good (maybe a little mids-recessed) but I have issues with the comfort. To get a good seal, I have to push them forward on my head and that pushes them up against my ears. I can't wear them for more than an hour or so. I keep falling back to my AirPods Pro 2. The Bathys definitely take it up a notch. They don't have the Apple amenities (spacial audio, fast switching between devices, killer ANC and pass-through), but they make up for all of that with their sound quality and EQ. In short, they sound spectacular, can handle some EQ customization, and are very comfortable. Instead of trying to review these (as many others have already hit all the major points), I'll answer a could quick questions that I couldn't find answers to and then leave a recommendation - 1. Can you plug them into an iPhone using the DAC mode? Yes - you can connect them with a lightning to USB adapter (I used a cheap $10) and they'll play just fine - BUT - you loose your EQ and the app. So, you get a very clean yet uninspired neutral(ish) sound. If you're using an app with an EQ (like Spotify), then you're golden. If not (Apple Music), then I feel like it's a poor trade. I love how the bluetooth sounds (even with AAC) and the EQ is the icing on the cake. I'll stick with wireless or the Creative BT-W4 AptX dongle (see below). 2. If using an iPhone, you can assign the assistant button to Siri or Bixby. I've only seen this feature connected to Alexa or Google. 3. Soundstage is good, certainly on par with my Elegia connected to the Hidizs DAC. As a matter of fact, these are what I wanted the Elegia to be - wireless, far-better than the rest sound quality and EQ to customize. My Elegia and DAC are up for sale. 4. Yes, there is more plastic on board than you might want for $800, but let's be plain - the durability of the headphones are not in question. They are well made, case closed. I don't slight Focal at all for cutting a few corners (and weight) with a few plastic parts and cheap cables. These headphones are consumable - they are bluetooth and battery powered so I give them about 2 years before replacement. They're just NOT going to last long enough for the build to become a problem. In 2 years, they'll give them to my wife and I'll invest in the next pair. 5. When I connected mine to the phone for the first time, I was immediately greeted with a firmware update. I think this is a great sign. There are functions that I'd like to see implemented or changed and this gives me a small bit of hope that these will improve greatly a little down the road. A 10-band eq for more granular control is the top of my list. 6. Are they worth $800? No, not really. I'd have felt a lot better at the $600 price point. BUT, consider inflation, rising costs, the R&D that went in, and the leap in sound quality over other offerings. Given all these, I'll give them the $200 and call it good (which I would have easily spent on a decent DAC for a wired headphone). 7 - What if I want higher encoding rates with Aptx? - Get the Creative BT-W4. This small dongle will connect with AptX Adaptive and sounds basically the same as wired while keeping your eq preferences and access to the app. You can use the Apple to USB adapter for a phone or the USB C (it comes with a USB A adapter in the box) for a laptop. The highs are clearer and bass is stronger yet tighter. For general listening, I'll use the regular bluetooth and for my quiet "listening time," I'll plug in the dongle. It's just as good as wired with the amenities. Well worth the $50. Compared to AirPods Max - If you already have the AirPod Pro 2, then I'd take these any day. I enjoyed the sound quality of the Max, but you get 90% of those headphones for $250 with better battery life and far more portability in the Pro 2. If you don't already have them, I think this should probably be most people's first stop in portable audio. Compared to Sony XM5 - I love the XM5 for its bass and basic EQ. But, these have a ton more soundstage, separation, better frequency response, and the DAC mode. It's in a different class. If those things matter, you're going to spend the money. If they don't, you'll love the XM5. Recommendations (TL;DR) - Buy the AirPods Pro 2 first. You can't beat the ANC, transparency, quality, and portability. You get all the benefits of the Apple ecosystem for $250. THEN, add the Bathys if you still yearn for the natural and smooth sound that puts a Focal headphone in a completely different class. If you're still stuck on the $800, start with he AirPods Max. They're excellent. If you're stuck on the $800 and an android user, get the Sony XM5 (but start with the XM4 earbuds for the portability). They're durable, sound good, and very comfortable. No point in paying the Apple tax if you're not going to use all the features. Lastly, on the topic of AAC - I think this is the real bottleneck of the system. I listen to a lot of classical and AAC absolutely chokes in heavy orchestration and complexity. The BT-W4 connected with AptX Adaptive solves this problem in spades. Verdi's Dies Irae (Requiem) or Mars from The Planets both have very loud passages with massive layers and they come across clear and authoritative with the BT-W4. It's a stunning sound to hear when sitting in the Chick-fil-A having breakfast! Strongly recommended as your first accessory.

These sound excellent. For wireless headphones it's remarkable how good they sound. With the companion app you can personalize the sound after taking a rudimentary hearing test. It makes up for any hearing deficiencies you might have, then there is an EQ on top of that. This sounds hokey but it really does work well. Together I get a full range of frequencies with great bass. The headphones are comfortable to wear for longer uses. They are heavy, but the way they are designed you don't feel the weight in any pointed way (not in headband or on ears for example). I have a big head and at first worried they would feel too tight but once I found the right adjustment point I was fine. They also look great. There is a little LED moment on the Focal logo on outside the ear cups. It's kind of cool, but living in an urban space I opted to keep them turned off to not draw attention. They feel really good too, the materials are sturdy and satisfying to the touch. The bluetooth connection is quick and reliable, and all the tones that signify the various things with the headphone are very cool and actually somewhat high fidelity themselves. Cons: The ANC is not as strong as say the Sony but it still sufficient to allow me to work in a crowded cafe with minimal distraction. I'm personally trying to balance my need for noise cancelling over audio quality. Like seriously folks, these sound really good. Also the buttons on the headphones themselves are a little clunky. They feel sturdy but I'm still figuring out what things are what by touch. I think this will improve with time/use.

I buy headphones and earbuds regularly, and I'm always finding excellent induvial functionality, but no product that ticks all the boxes. I've never spent this much before on headphones; I usually stop at Bose, Sony, Apple levels, so these are my first audiophile grade headphones, and I was a bit nervous! Let me tell you now, these things are incredible. They do a good job with lower bitrate audio but they are endlessly scalable for better quality sources. Prior to these, my go-to streaming service was Spotify; these sound great on Spotify, but I wanted to have a go at some of the HI-res services via the build-in DAC, so I gave Tidal and Qobuz a go. I actually found that even using the same bitrate, Qobuz sounded more detailed for every song I listed to, and that's just over aptX. Then if you really want to treat yourself, try some of the higher res songs via the built-in DAC. Perfection. I would not describe the audio as wide, but it has depth. Instrument separation is good and clarity is exceptional. Bass is detailed, tight, and impactful. Listening to Innerpartysystem's 'Don't Stop', I feel like I'm being punched in the chest; something that my Bose running ear buds partially creates, but not to these levels. I had returned a set of Bose QuietComfort Ultra's in place of these, so one of the things I was concerned about was noise cancellation. I shouldn't have been concerned, the anc on these is better than good in my opinion. You will have no issues on airplanes using these. Hiss is also minimal and I didn't get that feeling of pressure that I feel with cheaper headsets. Connectivity, great. No issues there. I would highly recommend you use the personalized sound profile and perform the 'sound test'. It has you listen to a series of clicks over a backing track in each ear. You simply press when you can hear the clicking and let go when you can no longer hear it. It will then create a custom EQ for you taking your age and hearing ability in to account. I could hear more clarity in the highs. I could pick out more sounds that I couldn't previous hear. This imo is all you need to touch; leave the EQ as is and don't touch your devices EQ. Comfort has also been great for me. Passively they block out a lot of noise, and the clamping force doesn't cause me any discomfort. I can't recommend these enough. They may seem pricy, but the difference in audio clarity between these and the Bose I sent back is night and day; different league. Get them, try a high-res audio service and give the DAC a go, you won't regret it!

I'm a little conflicted about these headphones. First of, the sound quality is excellent, especially after calibrating it for my hearing conditions. This is the feature that sold me on these headphones, as I've seen similar improvement after calibration with my iPods Pro 2. The design, noise cancellation, battery life, and fit/comfort are second to none. However, I've been having some wireless connectivity issues. Since it supports aptX-adaptive HD, I got a couple of UGREEN aptX dongles to connect to my iPhone and Mac. Sometimes this works fine, but often the sound cuts off or I'm not able to connect to the headphones even with short distance to the dongle. Not sure if it's a dongle or the headphone issue, but it's very frustrating to enjoy HD music with constant interruptions. Maybe, it's not really Focal's fault since iPhones don't natively support aptX which is Qualcomm technology and don't provide any HD Bluetooth codec, aside from mediocre quality AAC, forcing us to use these kludge dongle solutions. I'd add that I never had problems with Bluetooth connectivity using AAC codec on the headphones. The saving grace is the USB-C on the headphones which always works reliably and provides the best possible sound quality. So, now I pretty much always use USB-C cable, but the downside is being tethered to whatever source I'm listening from. Oh well.

Read on and you'll understand why I reviewed it this way.... My goal was to find the best sounding wireless headphones that were fairly priced after watching 50 hours of video reviews. With a Prime Day price tag around $250 these Momentum 4's were well worth the purchase. I'm going to say that they just aren't gong to work for me because I also purchased a pair of Focal Bathy's ($699), and a pair of Bower's and Wilkin's Px7S2e in the awesome color Blue at ($249) to compare them with. The Momentum 4's functionality is great but they just sound a bit thick, and less refined. This after listening to the others. And they are pretty non from a fashion perspective which I viewed personally as a plus. They are great if you have larger ears! Moving onto the others. After purchasing the Focal Bathy's I quickly came to realize that they were not the headphones that I was going to walk around town wearing. They are on the larger side, and present with some flashiness. That aside though, they are absolutely awesome sounding and BLOW AWAY the Momentum 4's. So if that's the comparison you're looking for, then there is your answer. I am keeping them as my "reference" wireless headphones. And with the cabled DAC connectivity it's a no brainer! Not even a second thought. Well maybe. For just a moment that happened after I listened to the Px7S2e cans and thought about the price difference. They, the Px7S2e headphones are absolutely pleasurable to listen to. The sound stage is remarkable, really really. And at ($249) on Prime Day they were certainly the best electronics purchase that I had made in years. I also think that they be worth it at full price. Smaller than both the others and with a build quality and design that warrants the full price. Also worth noting is that I did listen to the Bose UC's and I am intrigued by the spacial audio feature and the overall, well almost weightlessness of the headphones. They just weren't priced well enough for me to justify purchasing them and aside from their dominance in the noise cancellation department they just review as "pretty good" on sound quality. I would say to me they sounded on par with the Momentum 4's. I don't get too caught up in the "app" features as they can drastically improve with one update. I will mention that none had me shaking my head in either direction. And lastly, this journey all started with a pair of refurbished AirPods Max headphones. It made sense since I am in the Apple ecosystem. However I was very surprised at how uncomfortable they were as soon as I put them on my head. I was like wow, really. I felt as though they were going to dent my big head. LOL. I did like the "crown control dial" quite a bit I have to say. If you're shopping for wireless headphones and you stayed with me here you should just keep in mind that deciding on speakers and headphones is so very subjective from a sound perspective. We all hear a bit differently. You'll know it when you put "THE" pair on, raise your eyebrows, and say WOW. Fashion statements are a whole other sub topic. AND if you're thinking what about the Sony XM5's, all I'm going to say is that I am turned off by the over functionality of the Sony apps. From their cameras to their headphones and beyond. The end.

I spent a lot of time testing the Bowers & Wilkins Px7 S2e ’s and Px8 ’s before the Focal Bathys arrived (see my review), so this review is seriously colored by the comparison review I worked on for those. The discount pricing I was able to grab was Bathys @ $600, 8’s @ $450, 7’s @ $240. TL;DR—in terms of overall rating, I would draw a line from the 7’s to the 8’s, and I would place the Bathys on that line about 1/3 of the way from the 7’s to the 8’s. So if I could only have one, I’d pick the B&W Px8 ’s. Interestingly, if I could only have two, I might still pick the B&W Px7 S2e ’s before I’d keep the Focal Bathys. But I’ll say the same thing as I said in my 7 vs. 8 review: once I put on the 8’s and start listening to music, I start to forget that I’m supposed to be testing and I just want to listen to more music—and that really cuts to the core of it. The Bathys are not punchy at all. They just lack punch. Testing against Midnight Rider by The Allman Brothers band, which I find overly punchy on both the 7’s and 8’s with a -2.0db bass cut, just for fun I turned the bass as far up as it would go on the Bathys, and I still wouldn’t describe them as particularly punchy. Where the Bathys really shine is soundstage, as many other reviewers have stated. The level of detail you get is incredible, so you can place all of the instruments in space very well, and on top of that you can really focus on the detail of particular instruments. So if you are looking for analytical headphones, these are the best of the three. But, these two features come at a real cost. The Bathys are overly trebly and tinny and lack warmth, depth, and intimacy. So if you want to analyze or transcribe music, the Bathys are for you. If you want to fall in love with music, go for the Px8 ’s. Here are some examples… The level of detail and soundstage of the percussion & typewriter at the beginning of Hold Me Now by Thompson Twins is the best on the Bathys—so if the FBI needed you to identify the model of the typewriter, the Bathys are the way to go. Also, for the last minute of Gratitude by Brendon Lake, there are a few strokes of the cello, and the placement in space and the detail you get on the Bathys are amazing, and they’re lacking in the B&Ws. But the cost of that detail and soundstage…a metaphor I might use would be that you get soup instead of stew. The B&Ws have a richer, fuller, sound. The Bathys sound thin. You might describe them as tinny. The feeling of the sound is like the frequency response that you get from a thin LCD television. I think if there were a recommended EQ for the Bathys from the guys at headphones dot com or a similarly reliable source, that might be a place to start. I’m not confident with creating an EQ myself, but I experimented with the EQ levels a bit to try to add some richness by boosting the lowers frequencies in different combinations. But I was unable to add the rich fullness that I was craving because I also had the B&Ws for comparison—it helped somewhat, but then I’d switch to the B&Ws and I’d be like, oh yeah, that’s how it should be. Two other songs for comparison’s sake that were really helpful: Ventura Highway by America and Another Park, Another Sunday by the Doobie Brothers. The guitar in Ventura Highway is most alive on the 8s… you experience it most fully and get that satisfying Living Stereo feeling. With the Bathys you get the most detail, but it’s the thin tin that makes it not as fully alive. Likewise, in Another Park, Another Sunday, at 1:30 there are three notes on the vibraphone. You can follow the decay of the third note until it gets muted at around 1:36. It’s most alive on the 8’s and 7’s because there’s more richness since there’s a set of lower frequencies that are not there on the Bathys. So you can still hear the detail of those vibraphone notes, but you’re missing the richness of the overtones (the vibe!) of the vibraphone as an instrument. Again, perhaps someone more skilled with an EQ than me could solve this problem. However—should we have to solve problems with an EQ, or should the EQ be more about personal preference? I feel like the EQ options on the B&Ws are just what I need—enough to bring down the punchiness which I do not like, without changing the overall characteristics of the headphones. I got my tweak on the B&Ws, but with the Focals I feel like I need a “remodel” or an “overhaul.” I loved hearing the detail and the expansive soundstage on the Bathys… but like I said in my review that compared the 7’s and 8’s… once I had the 8’s on, I just wanted to keep them on and listen to more music, and I just didn’t feel that way about the Bathys or the 7’s. Even with zero discount, the 8’s would still be my choice over the Bathys. In fact, call me crazy, but I even might choose the 7’s over the Bathys if those were the only two choices available to me. One personal peculiarity I should state about my ears—if I hear boosted treble for a little while, my ears will become desensitized to treble and anything I listen to after that will sound lacking in vibrance and clarity. So in going back and forth, I had to reaclimate to the B&Ws over and over for them to sound good again—it would take a few minutes with the 8’s for high-hats to sound natural and satisfyingly crisp again. So for me personally, I feel like the Bathys give me too much treble out of the box, and I wasn’t able to come up with an EQ curve for it either. In terms of physical comfort, I would say that the 7’s are the most comfortable, followed by the Bathys, and with the 8’s coming in last. For me, the Bathys do put too much pressure on my jaw bone similar to the 8’s, but less pronounced. The Bathys are less warm than the 8’s, similar to the 7’s. The Bathys would be great if you have large ears, or a wide head… There is something about the padding though that makes it so that the Bathys don’t mold (or maybe “connect” is the right word) to your head as well…so there’s more play in them when you move your head—they don’t quite becomes as much a part of you as the B&Ws. I have a narrow head and wear narrow-framed eyeglasses though. Another peculiarity of the Bathys—the options of pass through, soft and silent noise cancelation, do change the characteristics of the sounds slightly. Just something to be aware of and I don’t want to spend words on it, but I could tell a slight difference when switching. I couldn’t really tell a difference on the B&Ws unless I gave external input (snapping my fingers). Interesting learning about the apps during testing: all three headphones can play audio from one source (my laptop) while I access them from their apps and adjust the sound simultaneously. That was a very pleasant surprise. Note for the chemically sensitive—the Bathys don’t have too much odor to them. (I’m writing this on day one.) The case stinks in comparison to the headphones. However—the good news is that I’m pretty chemically sensitive and my mucus membranes don’t react to these, so hopefully that is helpful data. Similar to both the B&Ws on this front.

Bathy's arrived. Sounds is very good and improves with wired interface- DAC. Highs are clear. Bass not overemphasized. The big complaints I've read are comfort and unusual sounds particularly during power on. No such noises for the first power up and connection. The headband and ear muffs are comfortable but we'll see after an hour or two. In my work I wore heavy industrial sound powered phones that were heavy and gripped with a vise-like clamp that were painful in short order. They are a bit heavy, another complaint, but I would think that is to be expected for higher end (Bluetooth) headphones. The ability to connect digitally via the supplied cable is a definite plus as the normal Bluetooth compression is eliminated. Analog to digital compression is not required. Furthermore no DAC or amp is needed. It's handled by the headphones. I found the controls confusing. Multiple pushes required. For example pausing, playing and call functions are handled by one button using one push. Forward is two pushes, backwards is three. This is all using the same button. So there's a learning curve. Simple compared to my old job which had hundreds of buttons so not an issue. Like our car controls once you've driven awhile you know where to reach without looking. Still the look and feel of the controls are lacking. For headphones at this price cheap looking plastic controls are inexcusable. Like putting cheap plastic knobs in a Bentley. Noise canceling is an area whose performance is said to trail other phones like Sony 1000XM5's. However I have a quiet house and quiet neighborhood so again no concern or need for such. If it comes to that I have Sony WF-1000XM4 earbuds with very good noise canceling and good performance. Because let's face it if it is that noisy then there will be no critical listening being done. I've read complaints about the app and having to use it to set the led lights. This concerns seems unwarranted. Just set it once and leave it alone. Who is turning them on and off? They are heavy. The heaviest I can ever remember wearing. Only my 70s era Pioneers were this weighty. Not an issue for me for one I have no neck issues and will not be wearing all day and two I understand the weight is due to the quality of construction. Like a high end European sedan. I have set the EQ to dynamic as research shows it places the headphones closer to the Harmon curve. Returned only due to finding a better price and long time excellent customer service elsewhere. With gear of at this level I realized 30 day returns and nonexistent customer service is unexceptable. Where I purchased allows 60 day return windows and has lifetime customer support.

I needed a headset that would fit my big ears and won't cause ear pain when used for more than a 3h, and this headphones fulfilled that need. My ears still touch a reasonable part of the earcup, but the cushion is so soft and well made that it doesn't cause discomfort or pain when used for around 3-4h, but, may start to feel it if more. I had the Sonos ACE before getting this, and I was able to compare both! which was great, but I ended keeping the Bathys because of the ear cushion being so soft and comfortable which was my main goal. Pros: GREAT audio experience, quality, clear mids, bass won't kill other frequencies. (I am not an audio expert) ha. Two modes of ANC. 24b 192khz supported while on USB C DAC mode which is great. 24b 96khz with aptx adaptive which is also good but not the latest. 3.5mm slot in case is needed. case is nice and well made, not cheap plastic or recycled stuff that feels like paperboard like others. aptx adaptive with BT 5.3 which is nice vs lower end BT headsets or codecs. auto FW updates with the app. good battery life. the CONS:: ANC can't be disabled (off), which is sad! most headphones you can disable ANC, specially for people that can get dizzy or feel sick while using ANC, specially for long times like I do. I keep ANC at the low level, feels better, but for sure doesn't stop much of the noise. do not seem this can be fixed with a FW upgrade, so, if you usually feel sick while using ANC then do NOT get them unless you are like me and can put that aside for the super comfortable earcup pads and the sound quality, and also the good deep audio reviews online about it. Heavy!, yes, are heavy, which is fine as I am tall and kinda big, but could be bad for others. or while on an airplane, car, bus, etc. Not that good transparency mode!. I was able to test the Sonos ACE and their transparency mode was GREAT!!! at the office I had no issues listening to people with the ACE, and the auto play/stop when you remove them was also great, something the BAthys don't. the Bathys transparency mode is fine, but there is still quite some passive noise canceling from the cups and you may need to remove the headset if the place is noisy.(which wasn't an issue with the ACE!). the ACE also have ANC OFF!! which was nice, bathys do not as I said. Bathys (even the MG) do not support APTX lossless nor 5.4 or LDAC. aptx adaptive LL and HD are supported, which should be fine for most users, but you would expect them to update the bathys with the latest bluetooth and codecs without the need to jump to an much much more expesive model in the future just to do that (even the MG are not 5.3). but so far the multipoint connection works great betwen windows bluetooth dongle (creative wg) and android S24U), just keep in mind you can't use the creative HFP while connected to both , you need to disconnect the android (or any other devices) and only have the windows dongle connected to use HFP. (I am about to get a different dongle to test if it is the same for any dongle), aptx adaptive LL and HD works great with that dongle and does 25b 96kz which is fine. no issues so far, no noises, etc, the only noise you may hear is while no bluetooth device is paired and the headphones are on waiting for a connection.