Its not right at start only when first setup. However if you boot it up and then just adjust the volume up or down it blasts out at 100%. Roon have reached out to Audioquest but I have not seen an update yet and that was over 6 months ago. I’ve just sold my Audioquest Cobalt as was not using it for this reason.
Well I’ve been using my desk-based headphone setup almost every day for a few weeks now, so thought I would report back for anyone interested.
I love it!!! So much so, that I got a Roon lifetime sub and a yearly Qobuz sub too.
I was a little concerned about buying headphones without trying them on first, especially a premium set like the Focal Clears, because you never know how they will fit your head shape and if you will have any pressure points after wearing them for longer periods. Fortunately for me the Focal Clears seem to fit perfectly and I find them extremely comfortable for hours at a time, with no pressure points at all. The headband is really well padded and just seems to disappear when I put them on. They came with a very nice case and cables too. I am using the balanced 4-pin XLR into the Sony TA-ZH1ES.
The Sony is a DAC/AMP which just seems to do its job with no fuss. It has zero background noise, no hiss, and the music just sounds amazing to my ears. Sometimes I’ll be listening and a track comes on and it sounds so good I think it must be some high-res format, but when I glance at the top-panel display it is just CD quality but still sounds amazing. It does take a fair amount of desk space but my desk is large enough that I still have room for it. I might look to get some monitor risers so I can move it underneath my monitors. It came with a remote which I haven’t used yet because I am always sat directly in front of it, but I have ordered a 5m balanced extension cable to allow me to listen from my sofa, so the remote will come in handy then.
I am still using my 8th gen i3 NUC (running ROCK) as a Roon endpoint, although I have now moved it into an Akasa fanless case, still working flawlessly and now totally silent. It is plugged into the USB input on the Sony amp using a QED USB cable. I just leave the NUC running all the time, I only turn the amp on/off as needed. FYI, when I turn off the Sony amp the endpoint disappears from Roon, and it reliably re-appears within seconds when I turn the Sony amp on again.
My iPad mini has hardly left my desk since I started using it as my Roon controller, I have it propped up on a small wooden iPad stand and it just sits there as my dedicated music controller now, with a great screen for showing album artwork, etc.
So, I love this setup. I still have my eye on either the Focal Utopias or Meze Empyreans as a possible upgrade one day, but I’ll wait to try them out somewhere first. Definitely in no hurry.
One dangerous side effect of discovering Roon and the world of high-quality streaming is that it has definitely re-awakened my love of listening to music, I mean actually setting aside time to properly listen to something, whilst maybe reading the cover notes and discovering something new about the album or artist, instead of simply having music on in the background whilst doing something else. It is something that I haven’t really done for over 20y. It has even got me thinking about re-organising and extending my AV rack (which is currently just TV-related boxes and games consoles) to make space for some proper audio gear, but if I go down that route that’ll be another thread 
Anyway, thanks for the input from everyone, stay safe and enjoy the music!
Charlie
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And so it goes.
Thee chases the dragon and the dragon chases thee.
https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B01G4T07IK/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1
This is an important add-on for your Focal Clears.