In this feature, Thomas reviews the Campfire Audio Clara, is a hybrid multi-driver universal IEM developed in collaboration with Alessandro Cortini. It is priced at $1999.
Disclaimer: This sample was sent to me in exchange for my honest opinion. Headfonics is an independent website with no affiliate links or services. I thank Campfire Audio for their support.
Click here to learn more about Campfire Audio products previously reviewed on Headfonics.
This article follows our current scoring guidelines which you can read in more detail here.
The Clara was designed in close collaboration between Campfire Audio and Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Alessandro Cortini. You may know Alessandro from his work with Nine Inch Nails or his more recent solo releases.
At $1,999, Clara shares a position in Campfire Audio’s lineup with the Solaris Stellar Horizon. It sits below the twin-planar-equipped Astrolith and above the venerable five-BA Andromeda Emerald Sea.
I’ve spent a few weeks with the Clara and have been mightily impressed with its subtle good looks, comfortable design, and refined signature. Clara is a genuinely impressive piece of kit that will surely win over anyone who hears it.
Features
Inside Clara is Campfire Audio’s updated dual-magnet dynamic driver. It has been upgraded with a bio-cellulose diaphragm, giving it a silky-smooth presentation to complement its already impressive depth and punch.
A new Knowles balanced armature with dual diaphragms is handling mid-range duty. This new design utilizes two chambers, each containing a diaphragm and drive rod, all actuated by a single coil for a warm, detailed sound and natural tonality.
T.E.A.C. returns with the Clara and has infused the twin super tweeter armatures handling the highs. This tech helps to improve an earphone’s staging and imaging capabilities while keeping the output smooth and non-fatiguing.
Design
Clara looks to feature the same custom-inspired universal shell design we saw with 2024’s Chromatic Series releases. This design is based on thousands of ear impressions, resulting in a shapely, form-fitting shell.
The translucent blue 3-D printed acrylic is sublimely smooth and well-contoured, free of any harsh edges or printing artifacts. The vented matte black metal faceplate is subtle, and the bulging triangular design motif reminds me of the inner workings of a Mazda Wankel rotary engine.
The nozzle is also metal and features the same matte black coloring as the faceplate. At 6mm at their widest point, the nozzles are average in size, and with a prominent lip can accommodate a wide variety of tip styles.
Campfire Audio’s reliable copper/beryllium MMCX ports protrude from the top of the housing. The same slender surrounds we saw on the Chromatic series are present compared to the beefier ones used on models like the Moon Rover.
Visually, Clara’s design is subtle thanks to a darker colorway but remains interesting and attractive. I especially appreciate the translucent materials allowing you to peer inside at the drivers and sound tubes.
Comfort & Isolation
Clara’s custom-like design makes for a tailored fit, and for those for whom the large shells fit, they fit wonderfully, filling the outer ear. This makes for a stable earphone that rarely requires adjustment to regain a good seal.
I have no issues wearing the Clara for long periods since they do not cause fatigue or discomfort in any way. The cables are reasonably light, and what little overall weight is there, is distributed evenly across and around the ear.
Clara’s ability to passively block outside noise is average at best. To block my surroundings when I took it outdoors to my local coffee shop, I had to raise the volume beyond my normally low listening levels.
Swapping over to foam tips helped improve the isolation, but still, it could be better. Clara is not a top recommendation if high levels of passive isolation are required.
Ear Tips
Clara ships with the same basic wide-bore silicone tips as numerous other Campfire Audio models. To no one’s surprise, they pair well with the Clara and were my go-to for indoor use.
The wide bore and moderate material stiffness provide a more balanced sound experience than the included final tips.
Mid-bass is reduced and brightness increased, though the loss of bass quantity from noise bleeding in when using them outdoors made them unsuitable for the purpose, which is where the final TYPE E tips come in.
With a smaller bore and stiffer, thicker, but still plush silicone, they bumped the mid-bass and softened the highs and mids.
While they warmed Clara’s tonality a bit much for my tastes when used in quiet environments, taking the experience outside where much of the bass loss was mitigated was ideal.
While I’m not a fan of foam tips, the experience of the included Mushroom foamies was like that of final’s TYPE E tips. They boosted the overall warmth while reducing clarity a hint, with the main benefit being improved isolation.
If you feel like moving away from the included tips, JVC’s standard wide bore option offers more or less the same experience as the stock wide bore set, but with improved comfort.
Sony Hybrid and Spinfit CP100 are good alternatives to the TYPE E set, but I found their seal was easier to break.
While the changes are never overly drastic, I appreciate that Clara can be fine-tuned through tip-rolling. I appreciate the ability to further personalize my listening experience through simple methods like changing the tips.
Stock Cables
Campfire Audio’s includes two new Time Stream: Duet cables with the Clara, one terminated in a standard 3.5mm jack, the other a 4.4mm balanced jack. Another model has been added to the Time Stream lineup, the Ultra, but it’s not included with the Clara.
The Duet cables feature a smoky grey jacket surrounding the copper-rich 24 AWG wiring within. Two strands are SPC while the other two are pure copper giving the Duet cables a lovely two-tone look.
Like the original Time Stream cable, the Duets feature the same flat ribbon style. I have found this style of cable ideal for portable use since you can slip it beneath your shirt and not worry about it catching onto anything.
The low profile, aluminum hardware helps with this. The tiny y-split has minimal strain relief and a compact chin cinch that slots unobtrusively into the top and out of the way.
The straight jack has an aluminum sleeve with three ridges to help provide grip and styling. It also provides minimal strain relief.
The MMCX connectors are also sleeved in aluminum and feature Campfire Audio’s durable copper/beryllium construction. Preformed ear guides coat the cable and do a fantastic job of holding it behind the ear.
Cable noise is minimal at worst, and what little is there can be further mitigated with the chin cinch. Tangling isn’t an issue, nor is the memory of bends or kinks.
Overall, I love these cables just as much as I love the original Time Stream release. The new two-tone look and smoky grey jacket further improve the visual appeal.
Packaging & Accessories
This is a completely different unboxing experience than is the norm for Campfire Audio. They’re leaning hard into the collaboration aspect of this product, making Clara feel as special as it should.
Gone is Campfire Audio’s usual astronomical theming for a glossy turquoise surface. Branding is minimal with the model and collaboration name on the front, with the collaboration story and package contents on the back.
Breaking the seal of the magnetic front flap and lifting the lid, you are greeted by a Campfire tradition, “Nicely Done” printed behind the flap. Under the lid are specifications and wearing instructions, while the bottom of the box provides additional care and usage tips.
The inner box is dominated by a massive, waterproof, Pelican-style plastic carrying case that holds numerous accessories. The rest are nestled beneath.
While the packaging is a new experience, the accessory kit is classic Campfire Audio. You get everything you need and more, and it’s fantastic.
The inclusion of final’s TYPE E ear tips is a welcome addition. They are some of my favorite ear tips and have been absent from recent Campfire Audio product releases. Thank you for including them this time around!
Sound Impressions
Summary
Campfire Audio and Alessandro Cortini have tuned the Clara to be a smooth, warm, detailed, and spacious-sounding earphone, free of fatiguing elements like harsh, bright treble, sibilance, or overly bombastic bass.
It is coherent and refined, providing a comfortable, satisfying listening experience regardless of the genre. Clara has a reference-style tune with some extra low-end thrown in for good measure.
Bass
Clara’s biocellulose-equipped dynamic gives the presentation a warm tone with a satisfyingly refined, organic quality. It extends into sub-bass regions with a satisfying effect, giving listeners plenty of visceral feedback that rumbles their eardrums but not excessively.
The mid-bass region is moderately boosted to give the presentation a sense of warmth and weightiness.
The dual-magnet setup makes the driver quick so that notes hit with a solid punch on attack, and decay quickly so that the individual notes of rapid basslines can remain clear and distinct and not smear and blend into each other.
The texturing of the Clara is excellent. Grungy notes sound appropriately informative while smoother tones are replicated accurately too.
Mids
Clara’s midrange is moderately emphasized with a pleasing 3k bump that keeps vocals clear and coherent and gives percussive instruments like drums a satisfying snap.
The mid-bass presence of Clara gives the vocal presentation warmth and body but doesn’t intrude to reduce clarity.
The detail and clarity of the dual-diaphragm armature powering the mids are impressive, especially considering Clara’s midrange’s relaxed nature.
A lot of micro-detail and information is provided, but it’s presented subtly and only obvious when listening to a particularly busy or complicated track.
Sibilance management is excellent with the moderate upper mid bump and warmth on tap taking the edges off any harshness in a track. This is one of those rare earphones that pairs well with the overly hot mid-range mastering of Aesop Rock’s ‘Spirit World Field Guide’.
Treble
The treble region of Clara balances the presence and brilliance regions well, biasing neither. The result is a relaxed presentation that ensures enough shimmer and sparkle to sound energetic yet avoids all fatigue and provides plenty of detail and clarity.
The dual armatures handling this region display plenty of micro detail. Notes are tight and well-controlled, free of any looseness or splash ensuring individual notes and effects remain clear and distinct.
Notes are well-weighted with just enough heft and density to sound natural while retaining adequate space between them. This helps to ensure that busy passages remain uncongested and each track element distinct.
Staging & Dynamics
Campfire Audio often does staging well with their products, and Clara is no exception. A notable bass floor provides a large area on which abundant levels of spaciousness are built.
The default vocal positioning, set just outside the inner ear, also helps Clara’s staging start on the right foot since the vocals aren’t breathing down your neck off the hop.
Height and physical depth are the only areas where Clara feels less free, with a clear ceiling and floor that help focus the staging limits.
Imaging is a strong point, with precise and nuanced channel-to-channel movement. It is quite easy to track sounds as they move across the stage since they never seem to jump or shift at an unnatural pace.
Clara also layers tracks quite well, giving your music a “holographic” or “3D” feel that can be quite immersive.
This competency extends to how individual instruments are separated since each aspect can be singled out and followed without a sense of smearing or interference from other elements.
Click on page 2 below for my recommended pairings and selected comparisons.
