Focal Stellia

High-end closed-back hi-fi headphones

The Focal Stellia is a high-end closed-back headphone designed for audiophile listening, at home and on the move. It combines pure beryllium dome drivers, made in France, with a closed design that isolates you from your surroundings. Its 35-ohm impedance lets it work with a portable player as well as with a dedicated headphone amplifier.

Beryllium drivers and sound

Each ear cup houses a 40 mm driver with a pure beryllium dome, using Focal's own M-shaped profile. Beryllium is a metal that is both very light and very stiff, which allows the diaphragm to follow the signal accurately. Focal specifies harmonic distortion of 0.1% at 1 kHz and 100 dB SPL. The copper voice coil, mounted without a former, further lightens the moving assembly. The result is a detailed, precise sound across the whole spectrum, with a stated frequency range of 5 Hz to 40 kHz.

Closed-back design and isolation

Unlike an open-back headphone, the Stellia is closed: it lets little sound escape and attenuates ambient noise, which makes it suited to listening in a shared room or on public transport. To control reflections inside the cups, Focal placed EVA foam behind the drivers and added vents and acoustic diffusers. The ear pads also contribute to isolation, with one half in unperforated full-grain leather and the other half in acoustic fabric over memory foam.

Materials, comfort and French manufacturing

The headband and ear pads are covered in full-grain leather, in a two-tone cognac and mocha finish. The yokes holding the ear cups are made of solid aluminium. The memory-foam ear pads follow the contour of the ears for a stable fit during long listening sessions, and they are replaceable. The headphone is made in France, and its drivers are produced in Focal's own workshops.

At home and on the move

With a 35-ohm impedance and a sensitivity of 106 dB SPL/1 mW, the Stellia is easy to drive from an audiophile portable player, a portable DAC or a computer. On a desktop headphone amplifier, it connects in balanced mode with the supplied 3 m 4-pin XLR cable. The short 1.2 m cable with a 3.5 mm jack is suited to portable use, and the rigid carrying case protects the headphone while travelling.

Specifications

• Type: closed-back circumaural headphones
• Drivers: 40 mm, pure beryllium M-shaped dome, copper voice coil without former
• Impedance: 35 ohms
• Sensitivity: 106 dB SPL / 1 mW at 1 kHz
• Frequency response: 5 Hz to 40 kHz (5 Hz to 23 kHz at ±3 dB)
• Harmonic distortion: 0.1% at 1 kHz / 100 dB SPL
• Weight: 435 g
• Materials: full-grain leather headband and ear pads, solid aluminium yokes, replaceable memory-foam ear pads
• Finish: two-tone cognac and mocha leather
• Headphone-side connectors: two locking 3.5 mm jack sockets
• Made in France
• 1.2 m unbalanced cable with 3.5 mm jack
• 3 m balanced cable with 4-pin XLR connector
• 3.5 mm female to 6.35 mm male jack adapter
• Rigid carrying case (240 x 250 x 120 mm)
• Leatherette presentation box