Focal Bathys Mg review

The headline news for the Focal Bathys Mg is quite straightforward.

Focal has taken the only wireless headphones in its stable, revised some design elements, and made one major change: it’s switched from a 40mm aluminium/magnesium driver to one made from pure magnesium, hence the ‘MG’ suffix.

This isn’t the first time we’ve experienced a pair of headphones with that ‘Mg’ tag – the company’s Clear Mg wired headphones passed through our test rooms back in 2022 and walked away with a five-star rating. Is this story going to have a similar ending?

If you’ve already seen the star rating, you’ll know the answer, but humour us and work your way down to the end of this review and soak up everything these sensational wireless headphones have to offer…

Price

We tested the original Focal Bathys back in 2022 when they launched for £699 / $799 / AU$1199. Unsurprisingly, the new Bathys Mg retail for a little more – £999 / $1299 / AU$2300 to be precise.

There aren’t huge numbers of wireless headphones on sale at this end of the market. Two models we’ve tested in recent years are the five-star T+A Solitaire T (£1200 / $1600 / AU$2160) and Mark Levinson No. 5909 (£999 / $999 / AU$1599), although looking around online, the Levinson pair appears to have reached the end of its shelf life.

The next price point down from the Bathys Mg is where a lot of the action is, and this includes models like the Bowers & Wilkins Px8 (£599 / $699 / AU$1150) and Dali IO-8 (£599 / $900 / AU$999). The Focals will need to outperform both of these pairs to stand a chance of achieving five-star status.

Design & build

If you’re familiar with Focal’s styling and design language when it comes to headphones, the Bathys Mg won’t look too out of the ordinary.

However, anyone used to the more sedate, dare we say slightly duller, styling of wireless headphones from the likes of Bose and Sony might take a bit more persuading that the Focals are for them.

The Bathys Mg look and feel like a pair of premium headphones, wireless or not. The leather used to cover the top of the headband and the memory foam earpads seem high quality and nice to the touch. The aluminium and magnesium yoke design feels built to last, too.

Focal claims that the Bathys Mg use more premium materials than the originals, including new foam for the headband and earpads, and they do feel slightly more supple when given a gentle squeeze. That leather also feels slightly higher quality.

The intricate detailing on the outer surface of each earcup goes above and beyond anything we’ve seen at cheaper price points, and while it might be a little showy for some tastes, you can’t argue that they don’t make a serious impression, especially when you add the backlit Focal logo in the centre of each earcup (don’t worry, it can be turned off).

The Bathys Mg have a chunky and dare we say rather bulky design – they weigh in at 350g, which is almost 100g more than the Sony WH-1000XM6, and you can tell the difference in-hand.

But the Focals don’t feel particularly uncomfortable to wear, and they carry out daily commutes pretty effortlessly, although one member of the review team found their ears did get quite warm while in use.

As seems to be the trend now for wireless ANC headphones, they only fold flat (instead of into a ball) and they come with a substantial carry case, which you’re probably going to want to carry around with you to protect your premium purchase.

The headphones are only available in one finish, which Focal describes as chestnut, although the carry case doesn’t seem to match and appears much more brown in colour, to our eyes at least.

Features

The Bathys Mg include support for AAC and SBC codecs and can handle higher quality aptX and aptX Adaptive streams from compatible sources.

They use the Focal & Naim companion app, which gives you some control over the headphones, but it isn’t quite as in-depth as some apps from rival brands. This is mainly because the Focals forego some of the features you find further down the pricing scale in favour of concentrating on performance and getting the basics right.

For example, there are no touch controls, so there’s no assigning to be done in the app – it’s all physical buttons, which some might feel is no bad thing. Also, there’s no wear detection, so if you want to pause your music, you need to hit the playback button before (or after) you remove them from your head.

In the app, there’s a five-band EQ for adjusting the sound and a choice of three preset EQ modes: Home, Loudness and Dynamic.

You also have three different Noise Cancellation modes: Transparent, Soft and Silent and the ability to alter the LED lighting around the Focal logos on the outside of each earcup – although to us, a light show like this feels a little unnecessary on a pair of expensive wireless headphones.

The most interesting thing in the app, we find, is the Sound Personalisation mode, where the headphones feed you test signals designed to help create a sound profile more befitting your current hearing ability. It’s a thorough process that we found well worth experimenting with during testing.

The headphones come with a 1.2m headphone cable with a 3.5mm jack and a USB-C cable of the same length for wired listening.

For home listening, you can go from wired to wireless, either using the 3.5mm jack or by using Focal’s own built-in DAC, which supports sample rates all the way up to 24-bit/192kHz. All you need to do is switch the headphones into DAC mode using the small slider under the edge of the right earcup and connect them using the USB-C cable.

The right earcup hosts all sockets, and buttons for volume up/down, play/pause, Bluetooth pairing and waking a virtual assistant.

Battery life is claimed at 30 hours with Bluetooth and ANC engaged, 35 hours when using noise-cancelling and either the 3.5mm or USB-C jack and 42 hours in USB-DAC mode.

Fast charging should give you five hours of playback time in 15 minutes.

Noise-cancelling & call quality

Focal has added new digital mics to the Bathys MG (the headphones use eight in total, four per earcup) in an attempt to improve noise-cancelling, and during testing, we found them to be highly competitive and up there with some of the best pairs we’ve tested.

Upper bass and lower midrange rumbles are handled well and traffic noise is subdued nicely too. The Focals are more accomplished here than the Mark Levinson No. 5909 and the Bowers & Wilkins Px8.

You have three modes to play with. 'Silent' is noise-cancelling at its most intense but it doesn’t feel as intrusive as the noise-cancelling employed by the likes of Bose in its flagship QuietComfort Ultra Headphones. 'Soft' lowers the intensity a little, while transparent allows outside noise to peek through.

Call quality is good, although not quite as noise-free as it is when speaking through the Sony WH-1000XM6, which are the current class leaders in this regard. The way the Sonys subdue wind noise is particularly impressive. Background wind and high-pitched noise permeate through the Focals a little more easily, but our voice remains clear and natural, and less processed, when holding a conversation.

Sound

With the original Bathys on hand for comparison, the Focal Bathys Mg immediately sound like a cut above. They offer more across the board: a greater sense of refinement, expression and more precise deployment of notes throughout the frequency range.

The Bathys Mg have greater control over lows and highs, which makes the original sound a tad unwieldy.

Like an excellent pair of stereo speakers, you just aren’t aware of the Focals adding or taking anything away from the music. They give you a natural, balanced account of any genre of music you care to play through them.

We start with a spot of indie rock courtesy of Geronimo by Stereophonics. And the Focals dispatch it with relative ease.

Each stompy drum thwacks hits with weight, precision and texture, and there’s dynamic differentiation between the quick one-two hits that add thrust to the track. It’s not the most complicated ensemble, but the swagger of the track is communicated without any confusion.

The percussion at the start of the song cuts through the meaty drums like a raspberry sorbet cuts through a rich triple chocolate brownie.

There’s a cutting crispness and a sharpness, but the actual level of the treble is sky-high, and could quite easily sound wince-inducing on poorer-performing headphones.

One thing the Focals do really well is sound beautifully balanced and neutral. Some wireless ANC headphones can sound a little artificially boosted at the top or bottom end, but the Bathys Mg don’t play these games and deliver music with a completely straight bat.

We switch over to Adele’s Skyfall and are captivated by the Focals’ delivery. As the keys of the piano strike at the start of the track, the Bathys Mg handle them delicately, but don’t shortchange you with the dynamics or weight of each key press.

When the rest of the orchestra kicks in, the Focals reveal layer upon layer of texture and detail. It’s a spectacular level of insight and a clear cut above what is served up by any of the cheaper, yet flagship, rivals from the likes of Bowers & Wilkins, Dali and Sony.

There’s plenty of sparkle and texture to the percussion, while strings sway sweetly and with sharply defined edges.

The expression in Adele's vocal as she shifts through the gears at the track’s climax shows the Focals have plenty of stretch in their dynamic range.

Finally, we switch to playing Duel Of The Fates from the Star Wars: The Phantom Menace soundtrack as a 24-bit/192kHz stream from Amazon Music using the Focals in USB DAC mode – and we are treated to a sophisticated, refined and pristine performance.

The headphones allow the choir and each section of the orchestra room to breathe, despite the track’s frantic and fevered delivery. It’s a real rollercoaster of a track and the Focals just savour every one of the four minutes it plays for.

They deliver a masterclass in balance, poise and refinement, which draws you in and entertains as though you were watching the action unfold on the big screen.

Not only do the headphones have to keep up with the speed of the track, but they also have low and high-level dynamic shifts to contend with as they jostle for position in a congested sound field.

Verdict

We completely understand that not everyone can go out and spend this kind of money on a pair of wireless headphones.

Indeed, some might be asking why you would need to, given the five-star headphones available for half the money from some of the biggest, most experienced players in the market.

But, we would implore you to take the time to listen to the Focal Bathys Mg. The original Bathys showed Focal could make the jump from wired to wireless successfully, and the changes made for this version push the envelope even further. They’re exceptional performers.

Review published: 7th August 2025

SCORES

• Sound 5
• Features 5
• Build 5

MORE:

Read our review of the T+A Solitaire T

Also consider the Dali IO-8

Best wireless headphones reviewed and rated by our in-house expert