These $180 earbuds are for audiophiles only

Famed in audiophile circles, French brand Focal is now making a splash in the headphone industry with its first premium in-ear model, the Sphear ($179.99 MSRP).

With excellent sound quality and a beautiful design, the Sphear in-ears show Focal is onto something. But like many premium in-ear headphones, it’s hard to stomach paying such a high price for earbuds. And at $180, the Sphears need to be close to perfect to justify the investment.

From a design standpoint, the Sphears are straightforward, but make a fetching first impression thanks to a sleek brushed-metal backing with a cutout exposing the Focal logo.

It’s a lovely touch, but there actually isn't a ton of metal in the Sphears' housing. The slender cord and inline controls don’t add a ton of weight, either, so the whole package is very light. They feel more comfortable as a result, and don’t put as much pressure on your delicate ears.

However, they’re so light that you may end up breaking your expensive in-ears if you don't treat them with care. To keep that from happening, we recommend using the included carrying case, and don't ever yank them out of your ears by the cable—it's the quickest way to wreck in-ears like these.

Included in the packaging are several tips of various sizes, including both silicone and memory foam tips. Memory foam tips are extra comfortable and help you get an ideal fit, so much so that many in the know buy third-party tips online.

However, you can't just jam them in and expect them to hold. Our advice? Grab one size up from what you think you need, roll them in between your thumb and forefinger to compress the foam a bit, then place them in your ears, and hold until the foam expands to fit your ear canal. Do that and you'll have a near-perfect seal every time.

The Sphear also features an in-line remote located where the left and right channels separate, with a button that can answer calls and play/pause/skip tracks based on how many times you press it in quick succession. Best of all, the remote is fully compatible with Windows phones, iPhones, and Android devices.

Pretty much all in-ear headphones are good at blocking outside sound while preventing your music from being heard by those around you, but the Sphears only check one of those boxes. While they do an admirable job of blocking ambient noise, your neighbor may hear your music if you blast them at a decent volume.

In our testing the Sphear in-ears offered a very consumer-oriented sound, providing equal benefit to bass, mids, and highs. The bass isn’t as heavy-handed as you’ll find on many modern headphones, something that is exacerbated if you don’t take the time to pick a tip that fits your ear properly.

Even with a great seal, we found that bass takes a bit of a backseat to cymbals, shimmers, and other shrill sounds because low-frequency notes are emphasized less than you'd expect. It's fine for most, but it becomes much more pronounced when you listen in settings where low-frequency noise tends to mask your music a bit, like in public or at the gym.

In general, though, most of your music will sound just as it should: free of audible distortion or channel balance errors.

For a first foray into the world of high-end in-ears, the Focal Sphears more than get the job done. That said, at $180 they are probably beyond what most shoppers are looking for in a pair of earbuds. Instead, we feel that they'll primarily appeal to enthusiasts who want "the Focal sound" in a portable form factor.

But in a wildly saturated market, there are just so many competing models that sound just as good (if not better) that cost less. For example, the Marshall Mode EQ are also comfortable, sound great, and have customizable sound profiles to let you tweak the output to your liking. If you're in need of more bass or isolation, the Decibullz Contour can be custom molded to fit your ears, while the Bowers and Wilkins C5 series 2, JLab Audio Epic In-ears, and JBL Synchros Reflect all fit the bill just fine.

But if you can find the Sphears on sale, then by all means pull the trigger and you’re unlikely to be disappointed. Either way, Focal has clearly shown that it knows how to make a great pair of headphones, and we can't wait to see what they come up with next.

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