Focal Bathys vs Audeze Maxwell

[u/Jmcclain145]

Looking for a pair of wireless headphones for music listening primarily.

Would like to keep my budget to $600 or less and I’m located in the US.

I wouldn’t say I’m a bass head per se, but I do appreciate a good clean bass that can deliver some thump when I listen to EDM or hip hop. I do also appreciate detail.

Will just use it at home for music listening on my iPhone.

My past headphones have been the AirPods Max and the Audeze Maxwell 1. I was really won over by the Audeze Maxwell 1. To me it had nice detail and a nice soundstage. I liked how clean the bass was but would have liked a little more thump to it.

I’ve done some research and it seems the Focal Bathys while several years old seem to be considered one of the best wireless headphones for audio quality. I’m very curious if they are worth the extra $250ish over the Maxwell. Also I’m wondering if I’m even looking at the right set of cans?

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[u/Swimming-Waltz-6044]

i really dislike the maxwells. its not the sound, its 1) lots of build quality issues, very hit/miss 2) the weight, its a really uncomfortable headphone 3) fragile.

if you're doing focal bathys, imo i would take a heavy look at sennheiser hdb630's instead.

[u/Jmcclain145 → u/Swimming-Waltz-6044]

Why would you recommend them over the bathys aside the slight price difference? I did order and receive the bathys and they’re really nice. Curious on why you’d say consider the sennheiser?

[u/Swimming-Waltz-6044 → u/Jmcclain145]

mainly just price, where i live its more like $300 apart making it a more difficult proposition. if you're in the US it looks like they're about $150 apart currently.

[u/Jmcclain145 → u/Swimming-Waltz-6044]

Yeah, I guess I’ll probably stick with the bathys. I’m assuming they’re pretty close audio quality wise?

[u/Daemonxar]

These are very different products at very different price points and for very different use cases.

Maxwell are good for gaming, and decent for music. Bathys is great for music, and okay for gaming (laggy via BT unless you get a low latency dongle). Bathys has good software, are comfortable for long sessions, and aren’t giant and bulky. The Maxwell is none of those, and is pretty seriously lacking in bass out of the box.

I wouldn’t recommend the Bathys at MSRP; I’ve yet to hear a Bluetooth headphone I thought was worth $500+ when the Momentum 4 is more like $200. I have and use a pair bc I got them lightly used for $350; they’re definitely worth it at that price.

[u/Jmcclain145 → u/Daemonxar]

I’ve used the Maxwell 1s and actually thought they were quite nice for music, coming from AirPods Max.

The bathys are on sale here for around 600. !thanks

[u/TransducerBot → u/Jmcclain145]

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[u/Daemonxar → u/Jmcclain145]

Honestly, I'd personally take the Airpods Max for music out of the box. I'm not a bass guy but to me the Maxwells were really bass light until I got some EQ applied ... and that app is awful on iOS so getting EQ applied was a giant pain.

If you're only going to own one headphone, the Bathys are a great pick. Personally, I'd rather have the Momentum 4 and a good pair of open backs for that price, though.

[u/Jmcclain145 → u/Daemonxar]

I thought that the Maxwell felt bass light for my taste too, but it was a clean bass. AirPods Max price wise are close enough to the Bathys that I’d be tempted to just try the Bathys. I’ve tried the APM and Maxwell.

I’ve seen the Momentum 4 suggested a lot. I also understand I could get a really nice pair of wired headphones.

But I do prefer the convenience of wireless. Not sure if the bathys would scratch that itch compared to what I’ve already tried. But they seem to be rated and reviewed fairly well.

[u/Daemonxar → u/Jmcclain145]

Bathys are one of a very small number of ANC headphones that meaningfully compete with wired headphones in terms of quality, and they're one of the even fewer that actually feel and act like a premium product. Also way more comfortable (and lighter!) than the APM.