[sp33ls]

Emotive Clarity!

I just posted my Caldera Closed Review here:

https://www.head-fi.org/showcase/zmfheadphones-caldera-closed.27214/reviews

I took everything I had written about the CC and cleaned it up and added to it and put it in a review format.

What a pure pleasure it has been to spend many many many hours with the Caldera Closed!

Very well done, thank you!

The comparison with the Blackwood VC was great for me. Helps ease the FOMO a bit...
Nonetheless, I likely won't be able to help myself come ZMF November...

I'm excited to read more impressions by happy ZMFans.

 

[cglin222]

Does the caldera closed (not the ltd) have the bbb head strap? Some pictures show not couple shows it’s bbb black

 

[erics75]

Does the caldera closed (not the ltd) have the bbb head strap? Some pictures show not couple shows it’s bbb black

My Demo CC ash unit does not have the BBB.

 

[JackarlTwo]

Does the caldera closed (not the ltd) have the bbb head strap? Some pictures show not couple shows it’s bbb black

I believe the stock Shou Sugi Ban Ash is with the normal strap and not the BBB, (as shown on the product page). The BBB is typically only used with LTD and stabilized units as far as I know. You can buy the BBB separately too.

 

[cglin222]

I believe the stock Shou Sugi Ban Ash is with the normal strap and not the BBB, (as shown on the product page). The BBB is typically only used with LTD and stabilized units as far as I know. You can buy the BBB separately too.

Ya ok wondering since when I got my ltd AO bubinga I didn’t get it only got it on AC Olive ltd maybe they didn’t have it till AC time

 

[Monsterzero]

Swapped out the stock hybrid pads today for the thin protein pads, and I'm rather enjoying them.
They def have a faster and snappier presentation. Additionally i feel like the bass, both mid and sub seem to be slightly elevated as well as a slight elevation in treble.

On the downside, the thin protein gives up some of the 3D-ness. It's still there, just not to the extreme that the hybrid pads gave. That and the hybrid pads have a more natural decay to them.

I'd probably suggest the thins for metal and EDM and the hybrids as a better all arounder.

 

[goldwerger]

Does the caldera closed (not the ltd) have the bbb head strap? Some pictures show not couple shows it’s bbb black

My shou sugi ban ash demo unit has the BBB strap

either way, once can be fitted on any zmf headphone afaik, but not sure what's the stock config

 

[suno23]

countdown begins.... 4-8 weeks wait time? I guess Ill finally swap out the pads on the AC to suede and see what all the fuss is about while I wait.....maybe fire up the HA-6A, its been 5 months since I've touched it! and the blame is all on the BLISS.

I ended up going with the suede top perf. and protein pads. I think I read that the new suede pads should boost the bass over the old suede on the AC. I hope the protein pads on the CC are like the reviews I've read so far.

What pads did you guys go with on the CC?

 

[idairyou]

countdown begins.... 4-8 weeks wait time? I guess Ill finally swap out the pads on the AC to suede and see what all the fuss is about while I wait.....maybe fire up the HA-6A, its been 5 months since I've touched it! and the blame is all on the BLISS.

I ended up going with the suede top perf. and protein pads. I think I read that the new suede pads should boost the bass over the old suede on the AC. I hope the protein pads on the CC are like the reviews I've read so far.

What pads did you guys go with on the CC?

I purchased the LTD with the tuning kit and a Pro OFC silver/copper cable.

I found the Shedua wood more appealing, and I have always been a big fan of the coffee gold rods on ZMFs.

For $150 the tuning kit was too good of a deal so had to add it to the purchase and I will have all the pads to try out.

Normally I make my own cables, but I like supporting a medium sized business when they make things with a lot of love, so I threw in a cable as well this time. Nothing too nuts since I am not a cable guy and for me Mogami copper is all I need, but $120 for a well-made cable is a good buy.

 

[suno23]

I purchased the LTD with the tuning kit and a Pro OFC silver/copper cable.

I found the Shedua wood more appealing, and I have always been a big fan of the coffee gold rods on ZMFs.

For $150 the tuning kit was too good of a deal so had to add it to the purchase and I will have all the pads to try out.

Normally I make my own cables, but I like supporting a medium sized business when they make things with a lot of love, so I threw in a cable as well this time. Nothing too nuts since I am not a cable guy and for me Mogami copper is all I need, but $120 for a well-made cable is a good buy.

I should've done the same. Ill wait a day or two to see what people think of the hybrid pad...its the only one I wasn't too interested in but I guess we will find out soon.

 

[Pablo67]

Emotive Clarity!

I just posted my Caldera Closed Review here:

https://www.head-fi.org/showcase/zmfheadphones-caldera-closed.27214/reviews

I took everything I had written about the CC and cleaned it up and added to it and put it in a review format.

What a pure pleasure it has been to spend many many many hours with the Caldera Closed!

Excellent write-up/review. Comparing the VC Blackwood made complete sense.

 

[soundchaos]

I’m on the fence now about ordering an atrium closed to go along with the caldera closed. I love the cocobolo…do the two cover different ground and are different enough to have both in the collection?

 

[Superunknown2]

"I See a Darkness" is another title contender. Bonnie "Prince" Billy (Will Oldham) is my current favorite lyricist. One of the great lyricists of all time IMHO.

I have owned the Verite Closed three different times since it came out. I do get some of the Verite Closed vibe with the Caldera Closed. Curiosity has killed this cat more than 9 times. Therefore, I have an African Blackwood VC arriving on Monday.

I owned two VC's, including one Ironwood, which is similar to the Blackwood. I must have good hearing in the upper mid frequency, because on both VC's I had to keep the volume set so the upper-mid spike wasn't too loud. This caused all the rest of the frequencies to be too quiet, and it took away the excitement. I have and love all other ZMF flagships, but the VC I just couldn't like. Oh well. With 4 screaming kids under 10, close back headphones and heavy metal are very tempting. The CC is especially temping I must say....

 

[Pablo67]

I owned two VC's, including one Ironwood, which is similar to the Blackwood. I must have good hearing in the upper mid frequency, because on both VC's I had to keep the volume set so the upper-mid spike wasn't too loud. This caused all the rest of the frequencies to be too quiet, and it took away the excitement. I have and love all other ZMF flagships, but the VC I just couldn't like. Oh well. The CC is temping I must say....

Yep… I hear you (no pun intended?) I had VC Blackwoods and wanted… REALLY wanted them to work out. Mesmerizing holographics and great details… but for me, that was about it. To my ears… sounded hollow with little to no body, or soul. Sold. In came the AO… hallelujah!
Next stop… AC mid- hardwood!
CC sounds enticing AF… I plan on “speed dating” them in the fall @ CanJam for sure.

 

[Superunknown2]

Another thing i can say at this point is, and this can be taken with a few grains of salt, is i prefer the CC with the ZMF Lektrik cable. It seems to speed up the CC just a touch, tightens up the bass a touch and there is a slight improvement in air vs. ZMF 2K copper cable.

Of course this can be dismissed as being ear, tastes and system dependant, but if you have the Lektrik or another silver cable I recommend giving it a shot.

Interesting you say that. I have a CO, and the only cable I can use it with is a Lektrik S. If it weren't for that cable, I would have sold my CO long ago. With the Lektrik S, it is awesome. I have a Verite Silver cable, and that thins out the bass too much, making the CO sharp and thin. The standard copper cable is worse for me on the CO because it makes the CO sound like there is bloat in the lower-mids, and it almost hurts my ears. I have a 2K copper cable, and it is a little better, but still unusable on the CO. People who say cables don't matter irritate me. They absolutely do matter. I also have a AO, and it would be unusable if it weren't for the Verite Silver cable for similar reasons.