[Aquanote]

i have to bring this thread up, otherwise have to start a appreciation thread
 
liked the cal!´s right out of the box and then went on to recable them just cause I like DIY stuff and wanted to try this once. Since the original cable seems very fragile this was an easy choice.
 
let me say this first: I was always very skeptical about cable voodoo. I believe the cable should be good quality and shielded but not more than that.
 
last week I took the cal!´s with me to my friends house where I stayed the whole week and recabled them there with funky green mogami cable
 
i couldn´t believe the transformation!!! honestly they got so much better, I was stunned.
 
high´s are sparkly and controlled without any exaggeration or hiss, deep, dark punchy bass and mids which are clear as they get while all sounds maintain their precence /dont get mixed up/no muddy here. these are soo much fun now. even soundstage is incredible now for these small, closed phones.
 
today I got to finally compare them with my home rig DT880 250Ohm. The cals have better sound in almost all area´s exept for a the bigger soundstage. Makes me kinda sad cause I really enjoyed the comfy DT880 for quite a while now. On to get the 600Ohm version now, hopefully they´ll be better so I can have a reason for them to stay as my main home phone.
 
would enjoy to read from some fellow CAL! owners how they feel about them
 

 

[dspang]

Cal!'s with a sansa clip+ here.  I'm considering making this my rig for winter.  They would make very warm earmuffs in the cold.

 

[Mad Lust Envy]

I love my CAL as is, though I have let it burn in for around 300 hours.
 
They are great for all purposes, and for the $60 I paid for them, I recommend them them to everyone.

 

[nullstring]

yes, the D1001/CAL responds very very well to recableing
 
The transformation is.. confusing to be honest.
 
I think it's more of an indicator of just how horrible the stock cable is rather than an indicator of boutique cables being beneficial.
 

 

[Aquanote]

Quote:

I think it's more of an indicator of just how horrible the stock cable is rather than an indicator of boutique cables being beneficial.  

i think so too.
 
why some manufactures do their cost cutting on the cable is beyond me though. the difference in price between a crap and a good cable must only be some cents. i mean there is a good driver in them ***!
 
*this space is reserved fo a car parable*

 

[MiguelATF]

The CAL!'s are long gone from newegg....nowadays the only place they seem to be available is on  Amazon which sells them for Creative.....anyone know of any other good sources to find a pair, in early/mid 2011?

 

[registradus]

The Creative website in Australia are currently selling them for $71.95 AUD. Not sure if they ship internationally though...
 
http://au.creative.com/products/product.asp?category=437&subcategory=438&product=17088

 

[vpsporb]

(I didn't know where to post these mods... here is as good as any?)
 
These are great cans modded! I find it disconcerting that I'm enjoying them more than my HD600 lately.
 
Re-cabled, they sound much better than stock...more bass definition, mids and highs were less harsh.
I still found them to be a bit too boomy, and was reaching for the HD600s almost all the time.. except to test with.
Now with 2 more mods, they're quite awesome set of cans.. especially this cheap!
 
I used some Handi Tak (adhesive putty) to mass dampen the resonances in the cups, and a little ring of it behind the driver.
It's no longer Boomy! The Bass still SLAMS, but it's controlled now.. details that were lost due to resonances are
presented with much delicasy now... simply wonderful. 
 
Opened it a couple of times to get the putty density right, and to mold around the standoffs for unwanted reflections.
I have yet to try a small poofy ball of fiber-fill.. I keep forgetting when it's opened-up. lol I think that's the last thing to try.
 
(dimpled surface with philips tip) and i saw the hair in the cup and removed it.. before buttoning it back up. 

2nd is cutting a C shaped piece of Foam, to be inserted under the Pads(between cushion and felt)behind the the Ears
to angle the pads/drivers forward.. for a more 3D soundstage.

A pic of the C shaped foam piece.. for better idea of it.

Edit: 2 final mods
1st. Added an inverted cabinet bumper with paper circle, pressed into damping material.. used as a Reflex Dot to reflect trebles.

2nd. Added a thin amount of fluff (like in speakers) to eliminate standing waves, adding spatial volume n somesuch i've read....

And thats it for mods I think... I'm getting some acoustic damping foam soon.. hmm I might try that too. lol
 
These are seriously FUN, and Great sounding cans modded. The HD600s have more extended delicate highs.. but
they seriously lack the full bodied sound of closed cans. Quite a capable Bio-Cellulose driver Foster designed.
I love my Creative Aurvana Lives.... the little cans that could!
 
I have to update my sig. but my cans are driven by:
 
MediaMonkey/adionSoft WASAPI->COAX->A-GD DI verA->A-GD NFB-11->Millet Hybrid MiniMax/Sylvania 12AE6 halo getter

 

[n0elite]

Hey,
 
Got my Creative Aurvana's today. Sounds good but not so comfortable for me...there's too much pressure on my head and it gives me headaches. Will the pressure become less over time?

 

[kebbin15]

Got them yesterday and couldn't believe what I was hearing. The sound is outstanding for the price ($70) Highs, mids and bass IMO is amazing. These CALs are much much better than my Denon D1100 ($200) not only in terms of sound, but also the build quality is much better and sturdier. Compared them with my M50s and I think CALs have better soundstage and a little bump in bass department. The pads are a little bit uncomfortable after wearing them for an hour but I replaced them with my Nokia Bluetooth hp pads and it fits perfectly. The soundstage has improved and as well as the bass, the bass IMO is now deeper than before and they're much comfortable now.

For $70, these are the best headphones under $100 and can sound better by modding. I can't wait to go home and compare them wtih my Ultrasone Pro 900.

 

[Boeing777]

Right got these for a second time and Boy i love these just right amount of bass,not too harsh Treble and excellent mids and comfortable as well!I cannot understand how i gave My first pair to My Son!

 

[ryswick]

got mine modded with blu tak and i removed them.
 
i loved how the stock sound was. i will go ahead and dampen these one of these days.

 

[jrwong28]

i have to bring this thread up, otherwise have to start a appreciation thread

liked the cal!´s right out of the box and then went on to recable them just cause I like DIY stuff and wanted to try this once. Since the original cable seems very fragile this was an easy choice.

let me say this first: I was always very skeptical about cable voodoo. I believe the cable should be good quality and shielded but not more than that.

last week I took the cal!´s with me to my friends house where I stayed the whole week and recabled them there with funky green mogami cable

i couldn´t believe the transformation!!! honestly they got so much better, I was stunned.

high´s are sparkly and controlled without any exaggeration or hiss, deep, dark punchy bass and mids which are clear as they get while all sounds maintain their precence /dont get mixed up/no muddy here. these are soo much fun now. even soundstage is incredible now for these small, closed phones.

today I got to finally compare them with my home rig DT880 250Ohm. The cals have better sound in almost all area´s exept for a the bigger soundstage. Makes me kinda sad cause I really enjoyed the comfy DT880 for quite a while now. On to get the 600Ohm version now, hopefully they´ll be better so I can have a reason for them to stay as my main home phone.

would enjoy to read from some fellow CAL! owners how they feel about them

I Totally Agree

 

[ninjames]

I have worse headphones and I have much better headphones. But the CAL! are still my favorite.

 

[Magicman74]

Don't own the Cals' (Son does) but being an owner of the D1000's (same driver).  I still don't understand the hype the M50 fanboys have, these $60 cans sound SO much better then the M50's.  I do agree they need a re-cable I added a D2000 to my 1000's and it was night and day. I'm also not a big believer in Burn -in ect. But I will say it happens with these Bio-Cell drivers as it has a layer of membranes that actually change shape after long usage.  I have 1000's of hours of use on my Denon's and they sound better then anything I've heard under $200 smackers.  They are every bit 90% of the D-2000's which I've owned until they crapped out on me.  The 1000's still going strong since 2009.
If you are on a budget of $150 or less it's really a non brainer on the Cal's.  
(Even tho I'm digging the HD439's I just picked up