Focal Spark Wireless - Review 2022

Focal's Spark Wireless Bluetooth earphones deliver some serious thunder in the bass department. At $99, they also offer a secure, lightweight fit and are easy to operate. That said, the profound bass response can overwhelm the mix at times, and even lovers of powerful low end might find themselves wishing for more crisp, loftier-mid presence in the mix. If you're a fan of the collar-way pattern and booming bass, the Spark Wireless might be upwards your alley, but there are more compelling options in this toll range—even for bass lovers.

Design

Available in blackness, white-and-silver, or white-and-rose gold, the earphones feature a apartment, linguini-similar collar and earpieces that sport the Focal logo on the metal end caps. Inside each earpiece, a ix.5mm Mylar driver delivers the audio. The in-ear fit is lightweight, secure, and comfy, unless of class, you're not into the thought of a neckband in the first place. While the cable's surface is a matte safe, the earpieces and inline compartments have a glossier finish to them.

Nearest the left earpiece, at roughly chin level, is the inline remote control compartment. The remote houses three buttons—a key multifunction push for playback and call management, and plus/minus buttons for adjusting volume and track navigation. (The book works in conjunction with your mobile device's primary volume levels.) Nosotros're not big fans of combining volume control and rails skipping on the aforementioned buttons—it'due south too easy to accidentally skip a track when you meant to adjust the volume. This compartment also houses the micro USB connection for the included (but very brusque) micro USB charging cable.

Focal Spark Wireless Surprisingly, the snap-shut rubber comprehend that protects the micro USB port popped off—non open—fairly easily in testing, actually separating itself from the compartment altogether. You tin press information technology back into place and reconnect it, but this is an badgerer, and a design flaw we rarely come across. A weighted compartment at the halfway point of the cable sits behind the neck—this houses the Bluetooth circuitry, every bit well equally the status LED.

The inline mic offers so-so intelligibility. Using the Vocalization Memos app on an iPhone 6s, we were able to understand every give-and-take we recorded, but there were plenty of sound artifacts, and the overall quality was fuzzy. This is typical of a Bluetooth inline mic, however, and for bones communication purposes, it'll do just fine.

Focal includes three pairs of silicon eartips (Southward, M, and L), a battery clip (information technology looks more similar a magnetic cable cinch, but it allows you to fasten the compartment to your shirt while exercising), the aforementioned charging cable, and a small-scale zero-up case.

Bombardment life is estiamted to be up to viii hours, but your results will depend on your book levels.

Performance

On tracks with intense sub-bass content, like The Knife's "Silent Shout," the earphones evangelize a powerful deep bass response and don't distort at top, unwise listening levels. At more moderate book levels, the drivers deliver quite a thump—it should entreatment to bass lovers, simply at that place could definitely be a trivial more high-mid presence in the mix.

Bill Callahan'due south "Drover," a track with far less deep bass in the mix, gives us a better sense of the general sound signature. The drums on this track sound thunderous—they get a pretty heavy helping of deep bass response for quite a bit more thump than usual. Callahan's baritone vocals also receive a generous depression-mid presence, giving his voice more richness. The high-mids feel dialed back, though—in that location's less treble edge on Callahan's vocals, the guitar strums take less brightness, and things seem by and large shifted toward the lows. The sound signature isn't muddy, simply it isn't the well-baked, articulate sound some listeners will be looking for.

On Jay-Z and Kanye Westward'south "No Church in the Wild," the kick pulsate loop doesn't receive much of the loftier-mid presence that typically makes its attack retain its sharp edge and slice through the layers of the mix. Instead, you get a beefed upward sustain for the drum loop, which gets plenty of low frequency boosting. The sub-bass synth hits that punctuate the crush also have lots of deep bass heft to them, but the track lacks the higher frequency presence that gives the overall mix meliorate definition. The vocals are clear enough only lack their typical crispness. Once more, bass lovers will not be disappointed—the earphones tin can certainly reproduce deep lows—only this is not a balanced sound signature that delivers lows matched with high frequency definition.

Orchestral tracks, similar the opening scene in John Adams' The Gospel According to the Other Mary, become more bass boosting than anyone seeking an accurate frequency response volition want, but some listeners might enjoy the extra presence this lends to lower register instrumentation. The higher register brass, strings, and vocals retain a crisp presence despite the dialed-back loftier-mids, and things audio more balanced here than on other tracks nosotros tested. That, withal, is because this track lacks a powerful deep bass presence to shift the remainder to the lows.

Conclusions

At $100, the Focal Spark Wireless earphones offer a secure fit and powerful bass response. But we've tested similarly priced models that deliver more loftier frequency definition forth with the pumped lows. The Skullcandy Jib Wireless and the JBL Reflect Mini BT are both winners, while the more than expensive Jaybird X3 is worth the higher toll if yous have room in your budget. And if you lot're looking to spend a picayune less, the 808 Audio Ear Canz is a solid choice for its modest price. Focal doesn't become anything glaringly wrong hither, merely the sound signature isn't as compelling as other options we've tested.