[Monsterzero]

Violectric V550 did a/b a lot and this was the sound I was after. Well balanced good amount of detail while never sounding clinical or harsh. Vocals sounded amazing and instrument separation very comparable to Burson. Plus hearing so much about tube rolling,costs and availability made me think twice in investing in tube amps. Also to me ZMF Atruims sounded the best with V550 and bass impact was next level. I personally think Violectric is a great all rounder.

The v550 is a nice sounding amp with all ZMF headphones. I get a wide and deep stage out of it. Controlled tight bass, nice texture. Not clinical or dry sounding in the least. Very musical. I bought it primarily for the Caldera, but depending upon my mood or genres of music im listening to that night I use all of my ZMFs on it.

The biggest differences between it and my Airmid is the Airmid stages a bit better and there is a bit more liquidity and is slightly brighter than the v550, depending upon the roll of course.

EDIT: I also find there is a significant difference between the SE and balanced output. When possible always use balanced.

 

[goldwerger]

This is my amateur description of what I experienced.

Good job...!

 

[alvinmate]

Also curious what headphone did you use? That's an important data point I think. Regardless that kind of demo can be a lot of fun, though (potentially) mentally exhausting.

Thanks for the update.

VC, Atruim and Final D8000 pro

 

[alvinmate]

Thank you

Good job...!

 

[Zachik]

This is my amateur description of what I experienced.

You have done a great job describing what you were hearing!
I disagree with your opening statement that you are not an audiophile

 

[FunctionalDoc]

I was wondering if my Glen OTL could drive the Caldera and what tube configuration would be needed ? I purchased a Questyle CMA 15 which is high current drive amp specifically for planar headphones. Just wondering if could I roll some tubes for a different sound with my Glen?

I will be attending Can Jam Chicago this year to check what is new in headphones. I hope to see a bunch of you guys there.

 

[goldwerger]

I don’t have the Glenn (unfortunately) but my experience has been that the Caldera struggles with OTLs and really needs the current or it’s not well controlled (especially bass)

See u in Chicago..

 

[Monsterzero]

I was wondering if my Glen OTL could drive the Caldera and what tube configuration would be needed ? I purchased a Questyle CMA 15 which is high current drive amp specifically for planar headphones. Just wondering if could I roll some tubes for a different sound with my Glen?

I will be attending Can Jam Chicago this year to check what is new in headphones. I hope to see a bunch of you guys there.

The GOTL is one of a select few that can take a pair of 6336 tubes. The 6336s drop the output impedance considerably and allow you to use low impedance headphones, including planars.
However,I can report that when I had my GOTL and tried planars with the 6336s in place it still wasn't a perfect match. There was grain in the sound that shouldnt have been there. Granted the planars I tried were the original AFC, which has an ultra low impedance of around 14, vs the Caldera which is 60 ohms so you might get slightly better results. I'd give it a try, but I'd assume it still will not be an optimal pairing.

 

[L0rdGwyn]

I was wondering if my Glen OTL could drive the Caldera and what tube configuration would be needed ? I purchased a Questyle CMA 15 which is high current drive amp specifically for planar headphones. Just wondering if could I roll some tubes for a different sound with my Glen?

I will be attending Can Jam Chicago this year to check what is new in headphones. I hope to see a bunch of you guys there.

Might not be the ideal pairing, but that doesn't mean you won't get satisfying sound. It does depend on what version of the GOTL you have. If it's the version with six power sockets, you'd want to go for a setup with multiple parallel output tubes. Six 6BX7 or four 5998 would probably get you the lowest output impedance. If it's a two power socket version, you'll struggle to get a low enough output impedance to drive a planar.

 

[robo24]

I was wondering if my Glen OTL could drive the Caldera and what tube configuration would be needed ? I purchased a Questyle CMA 15 which is high current drive amp specifically for planar headphones. Just wondering if could I roll some tubes for a different sound with my Glen?

I will be attending Can Jam Chicago this year to check what is new in headphones. I hope to see a bunch of you guys there.

What sockets does yours have? I managed to find some decent combos with 6 of the 6bx7 rather than a pair of 6080 or 6336b (which lower the output impedence). Even so wasn't ideal.

 

[L0rdGwyn]

The GOTL doesn't take advantage of the 6336, it really needs a higher bias current. I haven't crunched the numbers recently, but you don't get much in the way of output impedance over using four 6AS7G or four 5998. Could run a simulation to get approximate figures, but I'm in Florida. Next weekend could figure out what really achieves the lowest possible output impedance in that circuit.

 

[FunctionalDoc]

I have the 6 sockets version. I haven't been on here in several years wondering if Glen is still round and making amps? I I got powerful solid state so it won't be a big deal just wondering if worth buying tubes or just stick to my Questyle CMA15 . Any you guys like Whirlwind, Monster Zero or anyone else using Zach's new Caldera and your thought vs Verite open? Thanks Guys

 

[L0rdGwyn]

Last time we saw Glenn he wished everyone a happy Thanksgiving on my thread back in 2021. He has been MIA for a long time once COVID hit, I know he changed jobs and moved but hasn't resurfaced much on Head-Fi.

 

[goldwerger]

new Caldera and your thought vs Verite open

My comparison of these two at the very bottom of this writeup:

https://www.head-fi.org/showcase/zmfheadphones-caldera.26159/review/29535/

 

[Monsterzero]

I have the 6 sockets version. I haven't been on here in several years wondering if Glen is still round and making amps? I I got powerful solid state so it won't be a big deal just wondering if worth buying tubes or just stick to my Questyle CMA15 . Any you guys like Whirlwind, Monster Zero or anyone else using Zach's new Caldera and your thought vs Verite open? Thanks Guys

Unfortuntely Glenn has been MIA for quite a few years now and no longer is building amps.

Caldera vs VO...They have some similarities and some differences. Both are fast, Caldera is fastern with a more linear bass response. Tonality I will almost always give the edge to a dynamic driver headphone. Both are quite revealing and good for detail retrieval, but the Caldera has the edge IMO.

ZMF came out with a damping system referred to as ADS which is present in the Caldera and that gives it a more unique and at times, a better stage