[iFi audio]

I agree! I love pulling them out here and there. Tons of fun. They are due to be out tomorrow or the next day. I am currently running through the collection and giving each one a day. Today is Grado GH2's. Next two days are Focal Elex and Cascades.

True, some things are unsellable! *cough* HD 600 *cough*

Enjoy your collection

 

[Shane D]

True, some things are unsellable! *cough* HD 600 *cough*

Enjoy your collection

Sennheiser certainly has a strong fan base, but I am not among them.
I did own the HD600's twice, and the HD6XX's twice also. I am a little thick and it took me a long time to figure out what I like.

 

[fast edi]

Yes, gladly and thank you.
For example "No where, now here" by MONO, from 7m30s on ward is where I'm looking for an upgrade over what I'm having or at least close to how my T800 perform. Tons of layering with added noise to create an atmosphere for the track. Except for my T800, all sounds very congested and spilt over.
Or "The Valley" -Leprous, from 4m10s. With T800, I love the authority and heaviness of the guitar & the drums over the singing/chanting of the vocalist.
Or "Slave" - Leprous, from 3m10s, with the HD600, it sounds like an uncontrolled mess, weak and thin.
Or "Com" - MONO, from 8m37s, the T800, although with clearer separation, it sounds quite narrow in my ear compared to HD600, I enjoy listening with the Sens more. And I think it lost the soundscape that the artists intend.
Or "Knights of Doom" - The Sorrow, from 3m55s, with HD600 the guitar is lost and again uncontrolled mess. With T800, the instruments are much clearer and enjoyable.
I'm quite happy with how my T800 handles these track with nice separation, dynamic and clarity. It still has some rooms for improvement that I can see it's lacking but it's the best I have for these kinds of music
I'm not good at describing sound at all though, but I can hear the differences.

I would be happy with the Cascade if it's close to the T800 in this regard, but if it's more like the HD600, I wouldn't want to keep it at all.

If listening to those tracks especially enjoyable with different headphones, please do let me know.

That's a lot of homework, hehehe

I will try to check it during this week, but it is going to be complicated. I will reply as soon as I can try it.

Anyone around here with the Cascade, might also give some impressions, hehe

 

[Rockwell75]

Is the Cascade still a viable headphone in this day and age?

 

[Youcan1]

Is the Cascade still a viable headphone in this day and age?

This thing looks more like a $399 headphone than a $799 one to me. If it was ever half off I would be interested to try it since people claim this is one of the bass kings but not at the current price.

 

[Jackpot77]

Is the Cascade still a viable headphone in this day and age?

Think headphone tech outside of the totl cans moves slower than IEMs. In my humble opinion, the Cascade is as relevant now as it was when it launched - it is aiming for the Dorado 2020 / Atlas sort of demographic that CA love to target, but with decent technicality underneath the bass.

Remember speaking to Ken Ball a good few years back at Canjam London and he basically said that the reason they haven't launched something line a Cascade 2 with ADLC diaphragm instead of beryllium was that they hadn't found anything yet that improves enough on the Cascade design to make it worthwhile. It's a hugely niche and stylised headphone, but with the right tuning filters and pads, I think it's a lot more capable than people give it credit for.

 

[Zabens]

This thing looks more like a $399 headphone than a $799 one to me. If it was ever half off I would be interested to try it since people claim this is one of the bass kings but not at the current price.

Too many people disregard basshead headphones as audiophile and therefore not worth the price imo. The Cascades are pretty fantastic if you prefer that tuning and also one of the best built and best feeling headphones I've ever handled. 100% worth it if you ask me. I've had mine almost 4 years now and even though I've transitioned more to iems they'll always be in my quiver of personal listening devices. They make some of my favorite music sound better than anything else I have or have listened to.

 

[iFi audio]

I did own the HD600's twice, and the HD6XX's twice also. I am a little thick and it took me a long time to figure out what I like.

All good, as long as you know what you like that's all that matters really

OK, now back to Cascade...

 

[Shane D]

Is the Cascade still a viable headphone in this day and age?

I would definitely say yes. It is not an everyday headphone for me, but I do pull it out once ir twice a month and really enjoy it. I think it's a very good headphone at $799.00. Definitely a strong player in the mid-fi segment.

I would guess it is pretty good with hip-hop or EDM, but I really enjoy using them for blues or jazz just to shake things up. And of course they really pop with some good rock music.

 

[fast edi]

This thing looks more like a $399 headphone than a $799 one to me. If it was ever half off I would be interested to try it since people claim this is one of the bass kings but not at the current price.

There are a lot of great headphones on the 400€ market, but I really believe that the Cascades belong to a higher bracket. There's really not a lot on the market with these characteristics. Being one of the bass kings is not that easy. They are much more of just bass cannons, they make music very enjoyable overall.

For example, I have the Audeze LCD2C (also around the 800€) and I wouldn't say that they are in a different bracket. I would say that they are very different (one being open planar and the other being closed Dynamic) but overall sound and built quality are on a very similar bracket, if not the Cascades are on a superior one. I also have the Fostex Ebony and the Argons MKIII, and I would say that they are one step above in terms of sound quality and general feeling, in terms of build quality and extras.

I agree that the Cascade have some limitations.

• First, the comfort, because the headband have a weird shape. I have tried several options (nuggets, headband sleves...). At the end I just have figure out how to move the headphones on different spots when they star to get somewhat hot. But comfort is ok, the pads are very comfortable.
• Second, they are really not that good as an outside headphone, they don't isolate too much, they have not a lot of clamping force to feel very secure while walking, and (very silly reason, but...) they look atrocious when you are wearing them. They look great and beautiful on hand, but once you put them on your head, they are awful.
• Third, about built quality, over time my Cascades have start to chip the black coating, and I see small points of metal. Not a big deal for me, it even looks like a cool wear on the corners.

On the positive side:

• They have a very unique sound. Either you love it or you can't stand it. I love it. There are a lot of reviews about sound quality, I am not going to repeat them, but in my opinion they have an amazing bass without giving up on mids and treble clarity, detail and good sound stage (for a close back). @Rockwell75 if you have the Dorado, you know what I mean. I don't have the Dorado but I have seen a lot of people saying that they are really bad for their price, and some people saying that they can be the end game IEM...
• General build quality is great, except the third limitation above.
• The magnetic pads are cool. I know they are common now, but not as much on the 400$ bracket as far as I know. The easy swap with the cloth, XXL, the filers... they have a lot of personalization options that other headphones don't have.
• They are foldable, and easy to store on their really very nice leather case. Both aspects are not as common on lower price brackets. However, that might not be relevant, as I don't consider them great for outdoor use, but it is cool to have them well stored at home.
• The cable is great.

Having said that... I bought them for 600€ used in "like new" condition. Yes, 800€ it's a lot of money, but other options around that price are not that far away. I sincerely don't think these are on the 400€ bracket. They are one step above.

I would love that they could be more portable outdoors, even wireless. I prefer IEMs for outdoors, but still, it would be cool.

If someone finds a good offer, I still would say that there are not a lot of headphones like this, at least if you like bass signatures it is worth a try.

 

[Neweymatt]

Is the Cascade still a viable headphone in this day and age?

Definitely, but then again...

- it is aiming for the Dorado 2020 / Atlas sort of demographic that CA love to target, but with decent technicality underneath the bass.

...and I know how much you love that Dorado2020. So if you want that in a headphone, Cascade is awesome. I guess you just have to ask if you want two things that are quite similar in your collection. I personally wouldn't, and I'd be thinking what else I could do with those $$...

Shame I'm not ever able to attend your BC meetups, I'd be happy to lend you mine for a few weeks

 

[Rockwell75]

...and I know how much you love that Dorado2020. So if you want that in a headphone, Cascade is awesome. I guess you just have to ask if you want two things that are quite similar in your collection. I personally wouldn't, and I'd be thinking what else I could do with those $$...

That's a fair point. I think what I'm craving is a new CFA experience and the Cascade is still their most highly reputed product that I haven't heard. If CFA doesn't release any new IEMs soon I may jump on a Cascade just out of curiosity.

 

[Shane D]

Tuesday is Cascades day. I ran them on the iFi Pro iCAN, but was underwhelmed. No bass boost was kind of plain, but turning it on can easily be too much.

Dropped down to the Violectric V220 and all was well. The warm amp and the bassy headphones are a nice match. With rock they can be a little boomy, depending on the song. I just ran through the new Miles Davis album and Makaya McCraven's new album Deciphering the Message. I Really enjoy these on good, clean jazz. I don't find that the bass bleeds into the mids. Everything just sounds right.

 

[gikigill]

Looking to sell my Cascade if anyone's interested. Got the Focal Celeste and the BW P9 so the Cascade is surplus to my requirements.

Will ship worldwide.

 

[ledzep]

Wanting make up a cable as I cannot justify £350 for the 4.4mm Alo one, wanting some decent connectors.
Currently looking at the furutech ones for the 800 but I'm assuming these are ok for the cascades, or can anyone point my in the direction of some alternative quality ones ?