Explaining the design principles for this luxury but mid-priced item, Focal says it focused on combining sophisticated shades to create headphones with a highly original identity, unique in its market segment. After working with a Designer & Product Colorist, the brand has chosen Navy Blue. "It is the first time this blue has made an appearance in the Focal collection, and it blends harmoniously with the Soft Copper finish."
“Navy is the new Black. Dark blue is a versatile and timeless color that has been increasing in popularity. By choosing Navy Blue, we are adding a sophisticated, sumptuous feel to the headphones. The combination of this blue with copper and bronze accents is a trend influenced by interior and accessory design, and has become popular in watchmaking and consumer electronics sectors. These shades offer a very interesting and elegant alternative to more traditional chrome and silver parts,” explains Doris Bölck, Designer & Product Colorist.
Expanding on why these new luxury headphones are also about sound quality, Focal says its engineering team was inspired by the developments and achievements in lowering undesired resonances with the Elegia headphones - the brand's mid-priced ($899) closed-back design - and introduced acoustic treatment inside the Celestee earcups. Otherwise, the Celestee inherits most of the Elegia components, such as the 40mm aluminum/magnesium ‘M’-shaped dome full-range drivers. The resulting sound, they state, is precise, balanced and reinforces the depth in the bass.
The engineering involved in making the closed-back Celestee headphones resulted from an integrated vision, which is part of the company's "savoir-faire". "Once the five manufacturing stages involved in the speaker drivers are complete, they are tested and measured, and then kitted out by dedicated teams to provide uncompromising audio quality," the company explains.
Essential to the Celestee design was the combination of fine materials. Once again, attention was paid to every detail, including the accessories with the thermoformed woven rigid carrying case in colors to match the headphones, the aluminum yoke that molds perfectly to the head while providing optimal grip, and the choice of a semi-aniline leather and microfiber headband, as well as leather earpads, to provide added comfort while offering excellent soundproofing.
In terms of design, the Navy Blue finished earpads, headband and earcups contrast with the Soft Copper details in the speaker driver grille, cable connectors, rings, etc., to create a sophisticated look. The Celestee headphones are also ready to work with portable players and smartphones with an easily manageable impedance of 35 Ohms.
The Focal Celestee will be available for $990 in the US in February.
Focal Naim America: www.focalnaimamerica.com
www.focal.com
