122 MACWORLD AUGUST 2021
PLAYLIST REVIEW: FOCAL RADIANCEFor some classical music, I played the
finale (“Pines of the Appian Way”) from
Respighi’s Pines of Rome as recorded by
Filarmonica Della Scala under the
direction of Riccardo Chailly. This is one
of my all-time favorite orchestral pieces,
which gradually crescendos from super
soft to a crashing climax. The Radiance
reproduced this wide dynamic range very
well, except that the loudest part was
slightly congested. And as before, the
bass was a bit overbalanced and just a
tad indistinct.
Finally, I listened to an album called Bach
Parallels by percussionist Makoto Nakura.
His arrangement of Bach’s Passacaglia in C
minor, BWV 582, for six percussionists
includes marimbas, xylophones, and a
glockenspiel. It starts with a low marimba
and gradually adds instruments and
complexity. The overall sound was slightly
congested on the Radiance, and the low
marimba and high glockenspiel were more
pronounced than the midrange.COMPARISON WITH
FOCAL STELLIA
The only comparable headphone I had
on hand for this review was the Focal
Stellia, which I reviewed at fave.The headband and earpiece yoke
mechanisms are derived from Focal’s
flagship Utopia headphone, and they
contribute to the Radiance’s high comfort
factor. Note the diamond pattern in the outer
earcup grille and the Bentley logo.
The stiff,
molded case
cradles and
protects the
Radiance and
its cable.