[crabdog]

Added my review of the Cascade on HF here:
https://www.head-fi.org/showcase/review/20174/

 

[NewEve]

Picture have been added to the mini review over here and deleted from this post.

 

[Raketen]

Thank you.

So, if I get you right—from your experience—there is no point for someone owning no balanced gear to invest $1k in a balanced DAP & cable—correct?

Not a Cascade owner, but +1 for this suggestion, particularly if you like your gear already.

 

[Zachik]

The only reasons we care about balanced is a: it requires a different plug on our headphones, and b: it has been hyped by manufacturers.

I am so happy to read this note!
My hearing is fine, but my ears are not trained and I never learned to play any instrument, DAPs excluded
When matching volume, in various tests I did at home with various headphones (that did not need the extra power from balanced vs. SE) and amps that offer SE and Balanced - I could not convince myself that balanced is "better".
Always suspected it is 90% hype and MAYBE 10% something (which I cannot hear). Amos - thanks for making me feel a little bit better

 

[Zachik]

Have anyone compared the sound of the Cascade to ZMF Atticus?
I LOVE the Atticus for its warm, smooth and bassy sound! Wonder what people think about those 2 in comparison...

 

[Sound Eq]

That's some of the beauty of the signature that Campfire seem to be heading towards with their gear - technically capable, but not trading that for musicality, and not skimping on the bass, which is always an integral part of a good "live" sound when you listen to a band in the flesh at a music festival or gig. The music just sounds more "alive".

yes you are right about the alive part that is done right, the alive atmosphere is what this headphone has compared to others I have or heard.

Have anyone compared the sound of the Cascade to ZMF Atticus?
I LOVE the Atticus for its warm, smooth and bassy sound! Wonder what people think about those 2 in comparison...

well i ordered an atticus, so I will know within a month. I am curious as well to compare both

 

[Zachik]

well i ordered an atticus, so I will know within a month. I am curious as well to compare both

Great - looking forward to your impressions!
I am curious - what are you going to compare them on? which Amp?

 

[fjbruening]

Have about 200 hours in the Cascades now - I still haven't played with the filters and frankly don't want the bother for now.

I suppose it's my ears/brain getting used to the sound signature, but these seem to pick up more and more detail over time. Very early on I listed to Ravel's Bolerao, and did so just now. Wow - the 200 hours have made a dramatic difference in the transparency and detail in the woodwinds.

I'm seriously questioning why I have other headphones... I can't take these damn things off my head

 

[K1030]

Have about 200 hours in the Cascades now - I still haven't played with the filters and frankly don't want the bother for now.

I suppose it's my ears/brain getting used to the sound signature, but these seem to pick up more and more detail over time. Very early on I listed to Ravel's Bolerao, and did so just now. Wow - the 200 hours have made a dramatic difference in the transparency and detail in the woodwinds.

I'm seriously questioning why I have other headphones... I can't take these damn things off my head

I feel the same way and I did get rid of a lot of headphones during the end of last year dunng a move. I picked up the Cascades after CanJam NYC and I have no itch to buy other headphones .Mabye the Hifiman Sundara for longer listening sessions but I can't justify it because of how much I enjoy my Cascades.

 

[Sound Eq]

Great - looking forward to your impressions!
I am curious - what are you going to compare them on? which Amp?

i will use my ifi black label as a stand alone dac/amp
and then i will use them on ifi pro can amp and ifi black label as dac
and then on my cowon plenue s dap
then on mojo

 

[Zachik]

i will use my ifi black label as a stand alone dac/amp
and then i will use them on ifi pro can amp and ifi black label as dac
and then on my cowon plenue s dap
then on mojo

Atticus requires more power than Cascades... Not sure some of your options above (cowon DAP, for example) would have enough juice to drive Atticus properly.
iFi pro can should be plenty, and probably the micro BL too. Not sure about Mojo...

Anyhow, looking forward to your notes

 

[Sound Eq]

i guess by now my cascade has over 30 hours burn in, and I find I like it without any filters now

it seems to me now after 30 hours the original tuning without filters is starting to shine most

i really dig the vocals on cascade, this is my first dynamic headphone that i adore that much

listening to Lorde the song Sober, the vocals and the bass, the layering and huge atmosphere just wow what a great experience

also listening to simple minds --- belfast child -and biko -- on tidal ---- what an ethereal atmosphere

it's the atmosphere that cascade creates that is unlike any headphone i have

i will attend canjam uk and i hope i will see ken @KB and want to shake his hand in appreciation

 

[Anaz]

Thank you to those who responded about what filter they use and why.

I find it a difficult choice.
Recently I had a train commute and found myself taking out filter #1, then reinserting it at a cafe.



From my review:

https://www.head-fi.org/showcase/campfire-audio-cascade.22951/reviews?order=rating#reviews

(Maybe have to scroll down as they are all under the same link these days).

“From the manual:
'The lower number value of the acoustic dampener the higher the level of mid and low frequency will be.'

Stock cable
Filter 1T: Evens out a little bit. Slight tweak. Sweet at times.
Filter 2T: Mids coming up now, treble much more noticeable. A sense of space.
Filter 3T: Sound is a bit fuller now, the mids coming into play. Treble not over bearing. Bass not absent but still quite active. Lots of 'body'.
Filter 4T: Prominent mids and treble. Bass relaxed in to the background.

The filters certainly change the frequencies, experimentation with the filters can be a bit time consuming but rewarding as one can discover a particular signature suited to their tastes and one that has synergy with their source and music tastes.

This is similar to the iBasso DX200 and FiiO X7ii swappable amp systems. A great idea by Campfire Audio.

I am undecided on my particular favorite. perhaps 2T or 4T with the stock cable.

At first I misread the blurb to read:
'The lower number value of the acoustic dampener the higher the level of mid and HIGH frequency will be.'
Instead of the correct:
The lower number value of the acoustic dampener the higher the level of mid and low frequency will be.'
Which caused me to go back and forth multiple times checking and rechecking until I read it correctly the next day. SMH.


I will eventually be using the Campfire Audio Cascade with the upgrade cable, so I will wait and see how that results with no filter first.

AL0 Audio SXC-8 and the Filters
Filter 1T: Surround and slightly holographic. Defined. Layered. Lightness.
Filter 2T: Clear with lots of space. Mids quite present. Strong bass.
Filter 3T: Deep. More bass. Mids more prominent. Treble not as active.
Filter 4T: Fuller, more intimate. Warm. Slight high extension. Mids take front seat. Forward at times.

1T would be my personal choice of Filter with the SXC-8 cable.”

Thats it from my review.

I am interested in others opinions as I want to experiment with the filters more.

Of course I can rely on my own ears as I have done, but would like to read some agreeable or conflicting thoughts.

Thanks
Expat

You're spot on with your descriptions of how the filters sound, however, in addition to the cable, the amp also has a significant impact.
Stock cable here and my favorite combination is via a Mojo without filters. I think the 2T filters also sound good and make the Cascades more airy but feel that they then lack lower mids and/or upper bass impact. Anything more than 2T is too bright for my preference.

 

[donunus]

Anyone compare the mojo and the black label ifi micro side by side with the cascade?

 

[ExpatinJapan]

You're spot on with your descriptions of how the filters sound, however, in addition to the cable, the amp also has a significant impact.
Stock cable here and my favorite combination is via a Mojo without filters. I think the 2T filters also sound good and make the Cascades more airy but feel that they then lack lower mids and/or upper bass impact. Anything more than 2T is too bright for my preference.

Thanks for the reply.

Yes. The filters are subtle and incremental, but still noticable.

Nice to hear from others and confirm my findings.

*Edited the start of my original post you quoted. Nothing major.
Just that I was using the SXC-8 cable on the commute.