Here's the review. The written one is on my site, but I'll post it here at some point once I figure out how not to screw up the formatting.
Cascade Headphone by Campfire Audio
- Thread starter KB
- Start date
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- campfire audio cascade
Hurry up Ken! I can't wait!
I don't believe I waited too long to pull the trigger but I ordered the comets to get me through for now.
hbmorrison
Previously known as hannahjherself
Believe me I am not complaining. Just slightly mystified as to where this detail and musicality is coming from. These Cascades are ruining other headphones for me.
Out and about on a cloudy cool Tokyo day with Campfire Audio Cascade
329161
Headphoneus Supremus
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Looks nice from the side. Can anyone show any pics from front on? I know the headband sticks out a bit, and I want to see how far. I'm vain and crap like that matters to me
Out and about on a cloudy cool Tokyo day with Campfire Audio Cascade
From page one of this thread
Caleb of CA.
*Also see my intensive review of the CA Cascade in the review section or check my sig below
Caleb of CA.
*Also see my intensive review of the CA Cascade in the review section or check my sig below
DanDorn
100+ Head-Fier
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The praise is well deserved. I was listening to the Cascades at my office, with a rig consisting of the AK100ii DAP and the Continental V5, and I kept thinking "this sound is perfection to my taste." But, hey Ken, when will I be able to buy a 2.5mm-terminated balanced cable to plug my Cascades into the balanced output of my Astell & Kern SP1000? Avidly awaiting.
What filters are people using?
I am still undecided. I flit from none to one.
I am still undecided. I flit from none to one.
NewEve
1000+ Head-Fier
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WARNING Explicit content follows
Prologue/Background
Skip if you're only interested in my opinion of the Cascade
Where should I start?
Ok, I come from Grado--started with the SR80i, SR80e and finished with the SR325e.
Tired of the open back design, sandpaper-like comfort and lack of bass, I moved on to the Meze 99 Classics which were very good but the lack of depth of their earpads resulted in the driver raping my ears' cartilage.
Source-wise I started with a Sony NWZ-A15, Cowon Plenue D, M2 and now use a Sony NWZ-A45 as Hawaiibadboy (I like him: no bull and makes sense) mentioned in some comments that the A45 was close to the NW-ZX300 (plus the new Sony's UI is just brilliant). Also, I learned the $$$hard$$$ way that your source doesn't make as much difference as your headphones.
Last but not least, music-wise, to make things simple, here are some of my latest purchase (CD-quality as well as "High-Res"): AC/DC, Ace Of Base (sue me, I grew up in the 90s), Beastie Boys, The Cardigans, The Clash, Crash Test Dummies, Dire Straits, Eric Clapton, Fine Young Cannibals, Genesis, Guns N' Roses, House Of Pain, Inxs, Iron Maiden, Vivaldi, Jimi Hendrix, Johnny Cash, Lee Moses, Madness, Nina Simone, Nirvana, No Doubt, Norman Greenbaum, The Offspring, Patti Smith, Philip Glass, The Police, Queen, R.E.M., The Rolling Stones, Roxy Music, Simon & Garfunkel, Spin Doctors, Styx, Supertramp, Ted Nugent, Toto, Van Morrison, UB40—get the drift?
And the Cascade?
I do not have 1/10th of the vocabulary of the people on Head-Fi but put it this way: the Cascade feel like the best sex you ever had—and I'm now Campfire Audio's new self-proclaimed groupie.
Yes, to me, they sound that good.
Soundstage: just outstanding, borderline unbelievable (to me).
Bass: the Cascade made me discover that 1) there are different types of bass and 2) that it's not because it's there that it needs to be at the expanse of the rest (speaking of which Season 3 is coming out soon).
Mids: I find them as good as the Grado SR325e—which are mainly renowned for that. To me, this is a testament to the Cascade's mids quality.
Treble: the point of comparison is, here again, the Grado SR325e. Especially with the Sony DAPs as a source which do not seem to have the warm sound signature of the Cowon DAPs, I can listen to the Cascade, song after song, album after album, without getting pissed off.
What about the rest?
Acoustic Dampener: haven't used any so far--still in-between the fence.
Sound leak: I've been writing this since over an hour and my girlfriend is watching a movie next to me: no complain.
Cable: little to no microphonics, perfect length.
Comfort: perfect for my bigger-than-average ears, headband pressure can be felt but after a few years of American football and military, I'll live.
Case (outside): sturdy, well made.
Case (inside): like your favourite 1970's pornstar coat.
Pin: cool!
Conclusion
They're everything I was looking for in a pair of headphones for years.
They sound fantastic, they're comfortable, they're travel friendly and they don't leak crap.
Are they worth their price: HELL YES! So, Campfire Audio, WELL ****ING DONE!
Sincerely,
Your new groupie
Pictures update
Niiice box!
Attention to details...
LOVE that cable...
The beast...
Rarely have been that happy after a purchase
Prologue/Background
Skip if you're only interested in my opinion of the Cascade
Where should I start?
Ok, I come from Grado--started with the SR80i, SR80e and finished with the SR325e.
Tired of the open back design, sandpaper-like comfort and lack of bass, I moved on to the Meze 99 Classics which were very good but the lack of depth of their earpads resulted in the driver raping my ears' cartilage.
Source-wise I started with a Sony NWZ-A15, Cowon Plenue D, M2 and now use a Sony NWZ-A45 as Hawaiibadboy (I like him: no bull and makes sense) mentioned in some comments that the A45 was close to the NW-ZX300 (plus the new Sony's UI is just brilliant). Also, I learned the $$$hard$$$ way that your source doesn't make as much difference as your headphones.
Last but not least, music-wise, to make things simple, here are some of my latest purchase (CD-quality as well as "High-Res"): AC/DC, Ace Of Base (sue me, I grew up in the 90s), Beastie Boys, The Cardigans, The Clash, Crash Test Dummies, Dire Straits, Eric Clapton, Fine Young Cannibals, Genesis, Guns N' Roses, House Of Pain, Inxs, Iron Maiden, Vivaldi, Jimi Hendrix, Johnny Cash, Lee Moses, Madness, Nina Simone, Nirvana, No Doubt, Norman Greenbaum, The Offspring, Patti Smith, Philip Glass, The Police, Queen, R.E.M., The Rolling Stones, Roxy Music, Simon & Garfunkel, Spin Doctors, Styx, Supertramp, Ted Nugent, Toto, Van Morrison, UB40—get the drift?
And the Cascade?
I do not have 1/10th of the vocabulary of the people on Head-Fi but put it this way: the Cascade feel like the best sex you ever had—and I'm now Campfire Audio's new self-proclaimed groupie.
Yes, to me, they sound that good.
Soundstage: just outstanding, borderline unbelievable (to me).
Bass: the Cascade made me discover that 1) there are different types of bass and 2) that it's not because it's there that it needs to be at the expanse of the rest (speaking of which Season 3 is coming out soon).
Mids: I find them as good as the Grado SR325e—which are mainly renowned for that. To me, this is a testament to the Cascade's mids quality.
Treble: the point of comparison is, here again, the Grado SR325e. Especially with the Sony DAPs as a source which do not seem to have the warm sound signature of the Cowon DAPs, I can listen to the Cascade, song after song, album after album, without getting pissed off.
What about the rest?
Acoustic Dampener: haven't used any so far--still in-between the fence.
Sound leak: I've been writing this since over an hour and my girlfriend is watching a movie next to me: no complain.
Cable: little to no microphonics, perfect length.
Comfort: perfect for my bigger-than-average ears, headband pressure can be felt but after a few years of American football and military, I'll live.
Case (outside): sturdy, well made.
Case (inside): like your favourite 1970's pornstar coat.
Pin: cool!
Conclusion
They're everything I was looking for in a pair of headphones for years.
They sound fantastic, they're comfortable, they're travel friendly and they don't leak crap.
Are they worth their price: HELL YES! So, Campfire Audio, WELL ****ING DONE!
Sincerely,
Your new groupie
Pictures update
Niiice box!
Attention to details...
LOVE that cable...
The beast...
Rarely have been that happy after a purchase
Last edited:
fjbruening
New Head-Fier
I just snorted my coffee at your description of the Case inside - well done! And you said you didn't have the descriptive lexicon that your fellow head-fi.org brethren possess. Ha!
Nice review, thanks.
Francis
Finally! You hit the nail right on the head for me. For years I've heard poeple complain about headband discomfort and clamp pressure thinking; why do I never have these issues? is there something wrong with my head? And the answer is emphatically yes...damn you football.
It's going to bug some people, but not others. For example, my first serious headphones were MB Quarts, which are rather like Beyers, comfort-wise. I bought a pair of K701s afterwards and they felt like a vice on my head. I'm used to headphones that clamp a bit hard now, but back then it was not fun.
EdDale
New Head-Fier
- Joined
- Jul 31, 2014
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Just checking in after 200 hours of the Cascade.
I was a burn in skeptic - but I thought - hey the guy that makes the headphones says to do it - so i’ll Do it.
WOW
The Cascade is just fantastic Headphone - I was looking for a cafe/office headphone and I love it.
I was a burn in skeptic - but I thought - hey the guy that makes the headphones says to do it - so i’ll Do it.
WOW
The Cascade is just fantastic Headphone - I was looking for a cafe/office headphone and I love it.
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