[SlothRock]

Great pic! I love the CC cup shape. I was surprised to read that not everyone shares my sentiment. Well, great designs are often divisive, I guess.

For me it's very wood dependent. I agree with @PierPP that the dark wood looks better IMO. I can only imagine how creative ZMF can get with this cup shape for future Stabilized runs. Either way, I'm very happy they went with a new shape. You can't make so many closed backs that look exactly the same. A switch up is/was necessary

 

[BassicScience]

I know there’s inherent differences in just open vs. closed, but for someone who has owned/listened to some of the dynamic ZMF's (atrium, VC, Aeolus), which version of the Caldera (open vs. closed) do you think is the best starting place to try out the ZMF planar sound?

Unless you need a closed-back, I think the open Caldera is the place to start based on the listening I've done so far. A slew of reviews of the CC should be appearing in the coming weeks, so you may want to get more impressions if you plan to do a blind buy. FWIW.

 

[Coran]

@BooUrns crafted some new looks of the Grand Palladium cable for the Caldera Closed release. They're available now on the site but will also be available bundled at release.

These are great! What is the name of the colorway of the top one on the site?

 

[Wes S]

CC demo is in the house!

This is my first time seeing the Caldera Closed in person, and they are drop dead gorgeous. I love the look of the cup shape and the feel in hand. These headphones definitely look like a flagship ZMF no doubt.

I am stoked to hear how they sound, and pair with the Aegis!

More to come. . .

 

[idairyou]

CC demo is in the house!



This is my first time seeing the Caldera Closed in person, and they are drop dead gorgeous. I love the look of the cup shape and the feel in hand. These headphones definitely look like a flagship ZMF no doubt.

I am stoked to hear how they sound, and pair with the Aegis!



More to come. . .

You got to let us fellow 300MKII owners know if the Aegis has a chance of replacing the 300MKII in your chain.

 

[Wes S]

You got to let us fellow 300MKII owners know if the Aegis has a chance of replacing the 300MKII in your chain.

Spoiler alert. . .it does.

 

[Wes S]

It's still very early, but I can already tell the CC have some serious magic. They don't really sound like closed backs. . .

 

[erics75]

It's still very early, but I can already tell the CC have some serious magic. They don't really sound like closed backs. . .

How is the tone and timbre? Do they sound natural like the dynamic ZMFs? Or do they have that cooler/harder planar sound that seems to permeate every planar i've heard? I'm assuming the Aegis drives them with lots of authority? That's an amazing demo set! Love how everything looks. Eager to hear your impressions.

 

[Wes S]

How is the tone and timbre? Do they sound natural like the dynamic ZMFs? Or do they have that cooler/harder planar sound that seems to permeate every planar i've heard? I'm assuming the Aegis drives them with lots of authority? That's an amazing demo set! Love how everything looks. Eager to hear your impressions.

So far, they have the speed of a planar with tone and timbre of a dynamic. They sound like the best of both worlds. . .

The Aegis definitely drives them with authority, with excellent grip and control. The pairing is absolutely fantastic.

I am still burning in and getting acquainted with both, but so far I am very very impressed.

 

[idairyou]

So far, they have the speed of a planar with tone and timbre of a dynamic. They sound like the best of both worlds. . .

The Aegis definitely drives them with authority, with excellent grip and control. The pairing is absolutely fantastic.

I am still burning in and getting acquainted with both, but so far I am very very impressed.

What pads came with your review unit?

 

[Wes S]

What pads came with your review unit?

CC Deep Lambskin came installed, and the Bokeh Protein as a secondary pad.

 

[vsg28]

CC Deep Lambskin came installed, and the Bokeh Protein as a secondary pad.

Interestingly, for me the installed pads were hybrid lambskin with suede inside, I believe these are going to be the stock pads for Caldera Closed too:

Lambskin Deep were in the box as the secondary pads, these are slightly deeper than the hybrid pads and allow more of that ethereal feeling in the upper mids with ~1-2 dB lower bass at most:

The BOKEH protein pads came with the BOKEH demo so I thought it was meant for that until Zach mentioned otherwise (these are probably going to get a name change to avoid confusion), I have not finished testing them just yet.

 

[AnyDave]

Interestingly, for me the installed pads were hybrid lambskin with suede inside, I believe these are going to be the stock pads for Caldera Closed too:



Lambskin Deep were in the box as the secondary pads, these are slightly deeper than the hybrid pads and allow more of that ethereal feeling in the upper mids with ~1-2 dB lower bass at most:



The BOKEH protein pads came with the BOKEH demo so I thought it was meant for that until Zach mentioned otherwise (these are probably going to get a name change to avoid confusion), I have not finished testing them just yet.

Yeah, I believe the hybrid pads will be the stock pads on these. That tends to be what I prefer on them as well.

 

[Wes S]

Yeah, I believe the hybrid pads will be the stock pads on these. That tends to be what I prefer on them as well.

Now, I got to get me some of those Hybrids. Curious, are the same as the Bokeh Hybrids?

 

[AnyDave]

Now, I got to get me some of those Hybrids. Curious, are the same as the Bokeh Hybrids?

No, slightly different (thicker). But feel free to try the Bokeh hybrids on there and see what you think.