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Atrium vs Caldera

Apr 22, 2025 at 9:56 PM Post #2 of 8
I have owned an Atrium (open) for the past year, and currently have the Caldera Closed as part of the Watercooler headphone forum tour. I've tended to enjoy warm, mid-range focused headphones, coming from the 6XX, but have always found the Atrium to be aggressive somehow. It is punchy and engaging for sure, but more often than not I find myself needing to turn the volume down during busy passages (this is with the solid mesh and Auteur pads).

The Caldera Closed really put things in perspective for me, where I find I'm able to enjoy the music at lower volumes for a more casual listen (e.g. while working) and it still sounds great. And if I really want to push things louder to really get immersed in the music, it doesn't get overwhelming (like being directly in front of the speaker at a concert). For a closed-back, it doesn't lose any of the spaciousness that the Atrium is typically prized for. In direct comparisons it definitely has less mid-bass presence, but somehow I find the presentation to be more tonally rich (and more satisfying as a result).

For what it's worth, I've just sold my Atrium this week; perhaps I will add a CC at some point down the line, but for the time being my regular rotation is going to be the Bokeh closed and the HFA Dahlia (both combined can be had for less than the cost of the CC and gives you all kinds of sonic frontiers to explore).

Hope this helps!
 
Apr 22, 2025 at 10:11 PM Post #3 of 8
michael2v said:
I have owned an Atrium (open) for the past year, and currently have the Caldera Closed as part of the Watercooler headphone forum tour. I've tended to enjoy warm, mid-range focused headphones, coming from the 6XX, but have always found the Atrium to be aggressive somehow. It is punchy and engaging for sure, but more often than not I find myself needing to turn the volume down during busy passages (this is with the solid mesh and Auteur pads).

The Caldera Closed really put things in perspective for me, where I find I'm able to enjoy the music at lower volumes for a more casual listen (e.g. while working) and it still sounds great. And if I really want to push things louder to really get immersed in the music, it doesn't get overwhelming (like being directly in front of the speaker at a concert). For a closed-back, it doesn't lose any of the spaciousness that the Atrium is typically prized for. In direct comparisons it definitely has less mid-bass presence, but somehow I find the presentation to be more tonally rich (and more satisfying as a result).

For what it's worth, I've just sold my Atrium this week; perhaps I will add a CC at some point down the line, but for the time being my regular rotation is going to be the Bokeh closed and the HFA Dahlia (both combined can be had for less than the cost of the CC and gives you all kinds of sonic frontiers to explore).

Hope this helps!
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Thanks a bunch for your super detailed review! After reading your comments, I think the Caldera Closed might be a better choice than the Atrium.
 
Apr 22, 2025 at 10:21 PM Post #4 of 8
Oh, one other thing I would add: the CC is surprisingly sensitive to the output impedance of the amplifier feeding it (more so than any other headphone I've tried). If you are using something with a fairly low impedance (say <10 ohms), it sounds fantastic, probably everything as intended, but in trying the different headphone taps on my Bigger Ben, I found the 32-ohm tap to be the sweet spot. It warms up the treble just the tiniest bit, and adds a bit of richness across the spectrum. 100-ohm and higher it just falls apart, it completely smears the treble response.

8 or 16-ohm amps don't sound sterile by any stretch, but 32-ohm is just <chef's kiss>. If you only have a higher-impedance output amp (like a Bottlehead Crack), it won't be the best pairing given its 120-ohm impedance, but anything lower than 32 and you should be golden.
 
Apr 22, 2025 at 10:28 PM Post #5 of 8
michael2v said:
Oh, one other thing I would add: the CC is surprisingly sensitive to the output impedance of the amplifier feeding it (more so than any other headphone I've tried). If you are using something with a fairly low impedance (say <10 ohms), it sounds fantastic, probably everything as intended, but in trying the different headphone taps on my Bigger Ben, I found the 32-ohm tap to be the sweet spot. It warms up the treble just the tiniest bit, and adds a bit of richness across the spectrum. 100-ohm and higher it just falls apart, it completely smears the treble response.

8 or 16-ohm amps don't sound sterile by any stretch, but 32-ohm is just <chef's kiss>. If you only have a higher-impedance output amp (like a Bottlehead Crack), it won't be the best pairing given its 120-ohm impedance, but anything lower than 32 and you should be golden.
Click to expand...
Wow! You’re so professional! I have an Uniti Atom and EarMen Ch-amp. How do you think these amps would sound with them?
 
Apr 23, 2025 at 3:10 AM Post #8 of 8
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