[ExpatinJapan]

Check my review in the reviee section.

I cover the filters

 

[menuki]

Check my review in the reviee section.

I cover the filters

Well done review btw! I really enjoyed reading it.

 

[Monsterzero]

nvrmind

 

[noplsestar]

I owned the PM3s sometime ago, and with all the speculation about the Cascade's comfort, I found the PM3s very uncomfortable due to the shallowness of the earpads; seemed more on-ear than over-ear.

Hi, you‘re right, with stock pads the PM3‘s where a bit cramped, but I bought Brainwavz angled upgrade earpads. Now they are super comfy, also with more subbass and treble as well as extended soundstage. With all that said, I am not looking for a more comfortable headphone, I guess I would look elsewhere for that regard. I am looking for a sound quality upgrade and asked myself if the Cascade would deliver that. But I guess - as always - I should listen for myself

 

[Gww1]

On initial listen I was happy with my purchase, I like the build and design and they are more comfortable than I was expecting plus they sounded better than my current portable headphones or any others I had tried.

I've never really been a believer in burn in, I haven't ever noticed any real difference on previous headphones except maybe the monoprice M560 but nowhere near what other people were claiming.
But I am always open so based on what Ken says and everyone I have had them on my PC burning in for the last 24 hours, so around 30 total now.
Just taken them off and sat for a listen connected to my Mojo/Poly and I am blown away, they sound incredible! I'll keep them burning in when not using them for the next couple of weeks as everyone is saying they get even better......

Now super happy with my purchase.

There is also a really noticable difference in sound quality between the mojo and direct from PC, they sound amazing from the mojo and just good from the PC. I expected less difference considering they are easy to drive - the difference on my HD650 between PC and mojo is much less.

 

[DanDorn]

Hi, you‘re right, with stock pads the PM3‘s where a bit cramped, but I bought Brainwavz angled upgrade earpads. Now they are super comfy, also with more subbass and treble as well as extended soundstage. With all that said, I am not looking for a more comfortable headphone, I guess I would look elsewhere for that regard. I am looking for a sound quality upgrade and asked myself if the Cascade would deliver that. But I guess - as always - I should listen for myself

Yes, you will have judge the sound. For my personal taste, the Cascade have a much more dynamic and exciting sound compared to the PM3.

 

[menuki]

So, I finally wanted to share some thoughts and impressions on them.

After a while of listenting now, they really begin to grow on me more and more everyday.

It would call them lush, natural sounding with an engulfing and atmospheric bass which seems to bloom into the soundstage in a not at all negative way. Quiete the opposite, this bloom really makes any track convey more emotion imo. The bass, which is generally probably my favorite thing about the Cascades, is rather tight, has a beatiful authoric slam and extends deeep into the sub-bass as well. When a track has sub-bass, the bloom I mentioned gives the headphones a kinda "always-on" feeling, which is something I had to get used first, but when I now compare these to any other headphone I currently own (Audioquest NightOwl, 1MORE Tripple Over-Ear, 1MORE Quad In-Ear) I instantly begin to miss the sub-bass and bass quantity the Cascade provides. It's hard to not love the bass these produce if you, well, generally like some sweet bass in your music and if you're not a fan of a clinical presentation where the bass is practically anemic. I think it's pretty clear by now, but I'm sure that without the beryllium material used on the drivers these wouldn't be able to produce such clean bass.

Coming to the mids, they do feel just a bit recessed without filters, but when I put in the 2# filters, the bass seems to just tame a little bit and provide more mids in return. I really like the mids these produce... They seem to sit just right in the middle of the stage and you never really feel they're overly overshadowed by either the bass or the highs. It's truly incredibly how these are able to pump out so much bass but still let the midrange shine through without any overly added warmth or even distortion. Something very interesting I noticed, is that when I push the headphones closer to my ears, the midrange becomes seemingly clearer and a bit more volume. Now, I think that after a while of wearing these, the pads might settle in and the mids might in turn come out even more and I also noticed that the bass seems to ever so slightly get a bit more tamed when I pushed them onto my ears, which was also nice! What I want to say with this is, they won't sound any worse once then truly begin to settle in pads wise after like half a year or year, which is lovely!

Now, the treble. I'm beginning to think that I might be a bit, or rather quiet a bit treble sensitive, but I still like my treble clear and extended and these do a fantastic job in providing exactly these two characteristics! Not in a single track I listened to yet was the treble too much and that says a lot because some records are just mastered with too much treble in the first place... I tried a lot of headphones in my life and most of them became at least a bit sibilant on certain tracks, these don't. This in turn somehow makes them seem kinda dark or very warm when putting them on for the first time of the day, but after just a little while I begin to prefer this kind of treble to the treble which sounds exiting and detailed first but begins to annoy you after a while. Now, together with the bass quantity (which is never ever lacking) and the present but softer treble, these are really really nice for low volume listenting, which is something that becomes more important to me by the day sind hearing loss is really scary and can happen more quickly than we think when we listen to music too loud! With these I never really feel the need to increase the volume since everything is still there, especially the bass and I usually turn headphones up in the first place because I want more bass, which in turn often makes the treble too piercing in other headphones and then I think get concious about my hearing health again.

Comfort! To me one of the most important things when it comes to headphones. What good are any headphones or IEMs if you cannot wear it for a longer period without feeling any pain or fit issues. Now, while these are certainly not the most comfortable headphones I've ever tried (Aoen Flow Closed, HD700 and Fidelio X2 top them), they do in fact have the best pads so far, even though they are bit small in diameter, which is okay for me since I have rather small ears. A little negative would be that a little part of my left ear becomes a bit clustered (just a bit of pressure which might result in some very slight pain/discomfort) after a longer listening session and it feels good to take them of for just a bit. So far this has been totally okay and I think this might also improve once the pads get even softer from use.

Overall, these are superb headphones. The build quality alone is really good, everything feels so solid and robust I would never second guess their ability to get packed into their case, thrown into my backpack without even remotely getting any damage since I first, usually don't throw my backpack around and second because they are so well built and the case is just so soft on the inside and they fold together and fit so neatly into the provided case as well.

I will post a review after a few more weeks once I made sure that the little comfort issue won't get the upper hand, but I think I'm good and it would really be a shame to give these away because their sound signature is truly fun, addicting and just musical! As some others have mentioned, I don't constantly judge them too much sound quality wise and I rather just listen to the music and enjoy the experience.

 

[DanDorn]

So, I finally wanted to share some thoughts and impressions on them.

After a while of listenting now, they really begin to grow on me more and more everyday.

It would call them lush, natural sounding with an engulfing and atmospheric bass which seems to bloom into the soundstage in a not at all negative way. Quiete the opposite, this bloom really makes any track convey more emotion imo. The bass, which is generally probably my favorite thing about the Cascades, is rather tight, has a beatiful authoric slam and extends deeep into the sub-bass as well. When a track has sub-bass, the bloom I mentioned gives the headphones a kinda "always-on" feeling, which is something I had to get used first, but when I now compare these to any other headphone I currently own (Audioquest NightOwl, 1MORE Tripple Over-Ear, 1MORE Quad In-Ear) I instantly begin to miss the sub-bass and bass quantity the Cascade provides. It's hard to not love the bass these produce if you, well, generally like some sweet bass in your music and if you're not a fan of a clinical presentation where the bass is practically anemic. I think it's pretty clear by now, but I'm sure that without the beryllium material used on the drivers these wouldn't be able to produce such clean bass.

Coming to the mids, they do feel just a bit recessed without filters, but when I put in the 2# filters, the bass seems to just tame a little bit and provide more mids in return. I really like the mids these produce... They seem to sit just right in the middle of the stage and you never really feel they're overly overshadowed by either the bass or the highs. It's truly incredibly how these are able to pump out so much bass but still let the midrange shine through without any overly added warmth or even distortion. Something very interesting I noticed, is that when I push the headphones closer to my ears, the midrange becomes seemingly clearer and a bit more volume. Now, I think that after a while of wearing these, the pads might settle in and the mids might in turn come out even more and I also noticed that the bass seems to ever so slightly get a bit more tamed when I pushed them onto my ears, which was also nice! What I want to say with this is, they won't sound any worse once then truly begin to settle in pads wise after like half a year or year, which is lovely!

Now, the treble. I'm beginning to think that I might be a bit, or rather quiet a bit treble sensitive, but I still like my treble clear and extended and these do a fantastic job in providing exactly these two characteristics! Not in a single track I listened to yet was the treble too much and that says a lot because some records are just mastered with too much treble in the first place... I tried a lot of headphones in my life and most of them became at least a bit sibilant on certain tracks, these don't. This in turn somehow makes them seem kinda dark or very warm when putting them on for the first time of the day, but after just a little while I begin to prefer this kind of treble to the treble which sounds exiting and detailed first but begins to annoy you after a while. Now, together with the bass quantity (which is never ever lacking) and the present but softer treble, these are really really nice for low volume listenting, which is something that becomes more important to me by the day sind hearing loss is really scary and can happen more quickly than we think when we listen to music too loud! With these I never really feel the need to increase the volume since everything is still there, especially the bass and I usually turn headphones up in the first place because I want more bass, which in turn often makes the treble too piercing in other headphones and then I think get concious about my hearing health again.

Comfort! To me one of the most important things when it comes to headphones. What good are any headphones or IEMs if you cannot wear it for a longer period without feeling any pain or fit issues. Now, while these are certainly not the most comfortable headphones I've ever tried (Aoen Flow Closed, HD700 and Fidelio X2 top them), they do in fact have the best pads so far, even though they are bit small in diameter, which is okay for me since I have rather small ears. A little negative would be that a little part of my left ear becomes a bit clustered (just a bit of pressure which might result in some very slight pain/discomfort) after a longer listening session and it feels good to take them of for just a bit. So far this has been totally okay and I think this might also improve once the pads get even softer from use.

Overall, these are superb headphones. The build quality alone is really good, everything feels so solid and robust I would never second guess their ability to get packed into their case, thrown into my backpack without even remotely getting any damage since I first, usually don't throw my backpack around and second because they are so well built and the case is just so soft on the inside and they fold together and fit so neatly into the provided case as well.

I will post a review after a few more weeks once I made sure that the little comfort issue won't get the upper hand, but I think I'm good and it would really be a shame to give these away because their sound signature is truly fun, addicting and just musical! As some others have mentioned, I don't constantly judge them too much sound quality wise and I rather just listen to the music and enjoy the experience.

I think your pre-review is spot on and my thoughts on the Cascade align with yours. I too have, after much experimentation, decided that the #2 filter strikes just the right balance in creating the sound signature I prefer. One thing that I've experienced––and that I dont believe I've seen expressed in these posts––is the how cross-genre versatile the Cascade are. Love to listen to Jazz and Classical with them.

 

[menuki]

I think pre-review spot on and my thoughts on the Cascade align with yours. I also too have, after much experimentation, decided that the #2 filter strikes just the right balance in creating the sound signature I prefer. One thing that I've experienced––and that I dont believe I've seen expressed in these posts––is the how cross-genre versatile the Cascade are. Love to listen to Jazz and Classical with them.

I can only agree to the cross-genre versatility of these. They are fantastic with EDM and then I move over the some Bach and they still sound great! Then I switch over to some Daftpunk and oh boy do they begin to sing... Daftpunks "Get Lucky" or "Motherboard" in FLAC quality really somehow sold me. After listenting to both tracks something clicked and I realized how well they scale and how neutral or rather natural they sounded with these particular tracks, the bass boost on the Cascades really brings these songs alive, truly, and the bass is really not overpowering at all, it just plays along with the rest of the track so freaking well.

I really begin to realize that it's not always the headphones which have the be "neutral", but it also greatly depends on how the track was mastered in the first place. Some tracks just have thunderous bass and some tracks just have too much treble, but in both cases the Casade feels at home, although if the track has some over-the-top bass boost going on then the Cascades almost scare me because the rumble and air movement is real!

I was always the guy which had a particular headphone, praised it, only to realize some flaws later on which made me sell them. The HD700 had too much treble and not enough bass and they really only sounded good with EQ. I had them for a while though and they were my first real audiophile headphones! Then the Fidelio X2 came along and I was sold, but I sold them again because they leaked too much sound and no real isolation. The Yamaha MT220 had too much treble and the AEON Flow Closed don't have enough bass, atleast to my ears and especially compared to the Cascades. I had the 1MORE Tripple Over ear for about a year now and I was very satisfied, but you can't really get replacement pads and they are not as comfortable, nor do they sound as good as the Casades. Heck, I thought these are bass heavy and I liked them, now the Cascades show me what Bass heavy really means and I can't go back. This might be the first time I actually keep a pair of headphones for a longer period since these check soo many boxes. There will never be a perfect headphone, there are always trade-offs, so let's see how they stand against the test of time!

 

[menuki]

This is me being a bit paranoid again, worrying that anything could ruin my experience with the Cascades in the future, so I wanted to ask, do you know if it's possible to tighten the extenders so that they don't click in and out that easy? Right now it's fine, but in the future this will get loose and I worry that it might not keep the position on my head. It's really great that they'll offer replacement pads though, this is just very important for any headphone which should last a long time.

 

[Emailz]

See my Post #732 and Post #739. I added a replacement HD 580/600 headband cushion for added padding and so the the center notch could relieve pressure on the center.

Has anyone else tried this? Is the weight of the headband more evenly distributed across the top of the head with this method? I’ve had my Cascades for a couple of days now and I’m absolutely blown away by the sound and build quality. Unfortunately, I can’t listen to them for longer than 30mins to an hour without feeling a pretty bad hotspot on the top of my head.

If this method is really helping I’m going to order the cushion today. I really want these headphones to fit comfortably as i don’t think I’ve ever heard any other headphones like these. If it doesn’t, I guess I’ll have to return them and stick with the Vegas until I have other options.

Edit: I also want to mention that clamp pressure is perfect and the ear pads are extremely comfortable. It’s just the headband that’s causing discomfort :/

 

[brokengundam]

Has anyone else tried this? Is the weight of the headband more evenly distributed across the top of the head with this method? I’ve had my Cascades for a couple of days now and I’m absolutely blown away by the sound and build quality. Unfortunately, I can’t listen to them for longer than 30mins to an hour without feeling a pretty bad hotspot on the top of my head.

If this method is really helping I’m going to order the cushion today. I really want these headphones to fit comfortably as i don’t think I’ve ever heard any other headphones like these. If it doesn’t, I guess I’ll have to return them and stick with the Vegas until I have other options.

Edit: I also want to mention that clamp pressure is perfect and the ear pads are extremely comfortable. It’s just the headband that’s causing discomfort :/

Strangely enough, I found that adding the cushion/cover hurt more. My solution has been adjusting the cups to make first contact behind my ears then rotating them to cover the front. Whether or not that has been helping, or a placebo because I've gotten used to it, I can't say. I put in anywhere from 3 to 10 hours of usage a day with the Cascades, so my head may have just adjusted to the pressure.

 

[KB]

Has anyone else tried this? Is the weight of the headband more evenly distributed across the top of the head with this method? I’ve had my Cascades for a couple of days now and I’m absolutely blown away by the sound and build quality. Unfortunately, I can’t listen to them for longer than 30mins to an hour without feeling a pretty bad hotspot on the top of my head.

If this method is really helping I’m going to order the cushion today. I really want these headphones to fit comfortably as i don’t think I’ve ever heard any other headphones like these. If it doesn’t, I guess I’ll have to return them and stick with the Vegas until I have other options.

Edit: I also want to mention that clamp pressure is perfect and the ear pads are extremely comfortable. It’s just the headband that’s causing discomfort :/

Hey Guys,

I just wanted to chime in here on a couple of things that folks are bringing up some good points.

• The headband has a strip of spring steel in it, you can physically bend the head band to make the headband clamp harder OR lighter, you can bend the headband to change the shape of the curvature of the headphone to better suite your head. Please experiment with this. Dont worry if you break your headband (not possible) we have replacements. The cool thing about the Cascade is its fairly modular.
• If your sliders are not staying, meaning they no longer stay in the position you have set. Please PM me so I can look into your situation and have your set serviced. Were here to help, we do not have a huge staff here so we appreciate your patience. For instance, JD and I are leaving for Germany tomorrow so I will be out of pocket so to speak for a week. Were doing a lot of travel these days sadly.
• We found that if you like a flatter frequency response, or one that has less mid and low sensitivity, remove the white dampers. Please do so carefully so you can re apply it if your not happy with this tuning. I have few guys here in the shop that prefer no dampers, so both cup windows are fully open.

Hope this help and thanks for all the posts here.

Cheers guys,

ken

 

[zeta555]

Hey Guys,

I just wanted to chime in here on a couple of things that folks are bringing up some good points.

• The headband has a strip of spring steel in it, you can physically bend the head band to make the headband clamp harder OR lighter, you can bend the headband to change the shape of the curvature of the headphone to better suite your head. Please experiment with this. Dont worry if you break your headband (not possible) we have replacements. The cool thing about the Cascade is its fairly modular.
• If your sliders are not staying, meaning they no longer stay in the position you have set. Please PM me so I can look into your situation and have your set serviced. Were here to help, we do not have a huge staff here so we appreciate your patience. For instance, JD and I are leaving for Germany tomorrow so I will be out of pocket so to speak for a week. Were doing a lot of travel these days sadly.
• We found that if you like a flatter frequency response, or one that has less mid and low sensitivity, remove the white dampers. Please do so carefully so you can re apply it if your not happy with this tuning. I have few guys here in the shop that prefer no dampers, so both cup windows are fully open.

Hope this help and thanks for all the posts here.

Cheers guys,

ken

hi ken.

any plan to sell bigger pads? or any replacement pads would be nice.

 

[menuki]

hi ken.

any plan to sell bigger pads? or any replacement pads would be nice.

They stated that they will offer replacement pads soon, which is really nice but also important since these should last quiet a while. Bigger pads would be interesting, but I also really wonder if they wouldn't change the sound signature too much, but it would be nice to hear something from Ken himself So far, while they're not the most comfortable headphones as mentioned, they either become more comfortable everyday or I get used to them - Probably a mix, but with the cloth arround the headband (which was posted a few posts ago) they are pretty comfortable!