[Spie1904]

Have you listened to the EE Bravado?

Unfortunately not. For IEM, the only IEM I currently own is Campfire Andromeda for more acoustic / vocal songs but I guess Andromeda isn't mid centred either

I don't know of any place nearby to me that demo the bravado either unfortunately.

 

[Lookout57]

The Campfire Atlas has a sound signature that is similar to the Cascade.

 

[cadsh]

Will the new pads be ready for CANJam NYC?

 

[Spie1904]

After some time on leather pads, I switched back to T1 filter and cloth Earpads today and that is just the overall best experience I've had with a headphone. I can still feel the visceral bass but with enormous levels of detail.

In my opinion this is one of my best purchases despite not being my most expensive one
Currently I don't even feel the need to get an open back for home listening as I just enjoy my Cascades that much. I'm aware that there are possible improvements in open backs and this might not be the perfect headphone for everyone.

For me however they hit good enough in almost every category (portable, durability, comfort, sound, versatility, and so on) to be considered the only thing I need

 

[Zabens]

After some time on leather pads, I switched back to T1 filter and cloth Earpads today and that is just the overall best experience I've had with a headphone. I can still feel the visceral bass but with enormous levels of detail.

In my opinion this is one of my best purchases despite not being my most expensive one
Currently I don't even feel the need to get an open back for home listening as I just enjoy my Cascades that much. I'm aware that there are possible improvements in open backs and this might not be the perfect headphone for everyone.

For me however they hit good enough in almost every category (portable, durability, comfort, sound, versatility, and so on) to be considered the only thing I need

I feel the same way. I'm trying to justify getting the ZMF Auteurs but I'm so satisfied with these cans. I'm using the leather pads with the T4 filter. The extra large pads need to come out yesterday though.

 

[K1030]

After some time on leather pads, I switched back to T1 filter and cloth Earpads today and that is just the overall best experience I've had with a headphone. I can still feel the visceral bass but with enormous levels of detail.

In my opinion this is one of my best purchases despite not being my most expensive one
Currently I don't even feel the need to get an open back for home listening as I just enjoy my Cascades that much. I'm aware that there are possible improvements in open backs and this might not be the perfect headphone for everyone.

For me however they hit good enough in almost every category (portable, durability, comfort, sound, versatility, and so on) to be considered the only thing I need

Ugh here I was saving all my extra loot for CanJam NYC and your sales pitch set me back $100. Purchased a set of the cloth pads and a Garage 1217 attenuator for my 78' Technics class A headphone out.

 

[Tennessee]

I finally got myself cloth earpads and although they are too raw in touch (compared to great beyers cloth pads which feels like wearing a cloud) they sound by miles better than leather ones. Earpads will wear-in and feel better with time and they are cooler than leather.
They open this can (bigger stage, but still rather narrow = closed HP) and diffuse the bass a little, which was over-bloating every other frequencies. Also mids aren't "in your face" anymore.
Overall it is still good ol' V-Shaped sound sig, but smoothened and properly balanced, placing this HP one level higher for me. One should use a neutral source (DX200) and they will shine, giving you intimate and fun sound.
I am not using any filters, since they hinders resolving (same as grills on normal speakers) and after 200 hours burn-in you really don't neey em (except for taming bass when using leather pads).
What I am still missing is more resolution, they lack a little in this department and that's why Cascade is priced 800$, becouse it sounds just like that. Very solid, but not best (B+). And they are perfect for outside listening in the city considering hindges, detachable cables and smallish over-ear form.

 

[Spie1904]

I finally got myself cloth earpads and although they are too raw in touch (compared to great beyers cloth pads which feels like wearing a cloud) they sound by miles better than leather ones. Earpads will wear-in and feel better with time and they are cooler than leather.
They open this can (bigger stage, but still rather narrow = closed HP) and diffuse the bass a little, which was over-bloating every other frequencies. Also mids aren't "in your face" anymore.
Overall it is still good ol' V-Shaped sound sig, but smoothened and properly balanced, placing this HP one level higher for me. One should use a neutral source (DX200) and they will shine, giving you intimate and fun sound.
I am not using any filters, since they hinders resolving (same as grills on normal speakers) and after 200 hours burn-in you really don't neey em (except for taming bass when using leather pads).
What I am still missing is more resolution, they lack a little in this department and that's why Cascade is priced 800$, becouse it sounds just like that. Very solid, but not best (B+). And they are perfect for outside listening in the city considering hindges, detachable cables and smallish over-ear form.

Personally I use Leather with T1 filter and SP1000M and I find these to be absolutely great overall.
Maybe they do not compare to Focal Utopia in detail retrieval and resolution but price difference is there for a reason.
For a closed portable headphone, these certainly give you alot of bang for your buck in my opinion

And for Jazz / Blues I actually really enjoy my time with these.
For example: Joe Bonamassa & Beth Hart - Your heart is as black as night

 

[TreeOfLiberty]

How does the bass of the Cascade compare to the bass of the JVC HA-SZ2000?.

 

[TreeOfLiberty]

Can someone recommend a amp/dac combo for the Cascade that is of good quality but dont cost as much as the headphones or more. I need a amp with USB and i want the dac built into the amp so i dont need to buy both.

 

[bluebair]

Can someone recommend a amp/dac combo for the Cascade that is of good quality but dont cost as much as the headphones or more. I need a amp with USB and i want the dac built into the amp so i dont need to buy both.

Ifi idsd micro black label. Or you can do the ifi micro xdsd for better portability.

 

[TreeOfLiberty]

Ifi idsd micro black label. Or you can do the ifi micro xdsd for better portability.

You mean these two amps?:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/xDSD-Bluet...h=item23b0be31c8:g:agQAAOSwPuRcBb51:rk:2:pf:0
https://www.ebay.com/itm/IFI-iFi-Mi...h=item237f22eaf7:g:nn4AAOSw~AVYuAmN:rk:1:pf:0

Regarding the black label, one reviewer writes "It sounds even better with a USB line filter. I bought a iFi iPurifier 2 USB 3.0 Type A Digital Audio Filter, which makes the unit sound even better, especially the high frequency." Where do i buy a USB line filter like the one he is talking about?, cant find it on ebay.

Do you know of any other amps that are good but less expensive?.

 

[TreeOfLiberty]

How would my current amp M-stage HPA-1 work with the Cascade?, its a pretty old amp so i dont know if the sound quality would be that good.

 

[bluebair]

You mean these two amps?:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/xDSD-Bluet...h=item23b0be31c8:g:agQAAOSwPuRcBb51:rk:2:pf:0
https://www.ebay.com/itm/IFI-iFi-Mi...h=item237f22eaf7:g:nn4AAOSw~AVYuAmN:rk:1:pf:0

Regarding the black label, one reviewer writes "It sounds even better with a USB line filter. I bought a iFi iPurifier 2 USB 3.0 Type A Digital Audio Filter, which makes the unit sound even better, especially the high frequency." Where do i buy a USB line filter like the one he is talking about?, cant find it on ebay.

Do you know of any other amps that are good but less expensive?.

I wouldnt bother with that. The micro idsd black label already has most of their ipurifier technology built in. Unless you have an extremely noisey usb port it wont make a difference. Especially with the Cascade, they are not a revealing headphone to that extent I would say.

 

[Spie1904]

Besides the great recommendations made so far, I could also add the Chord Mojo but I personally think the IFI are better. In terms of value for what you pay i think the BL is a great buy if you are not planning on using it while walking for example as it's transportable at best in my opinion.