[xmr0613]

My experience was first-hand (see my signature). I was willing to give them a try, and bought a pair of "starter" HiFiMan on discount through Adorama. Knew taking them out of the box I wasn't going to like them. They felt like cheap plastic crap you would get on Amazon for $20. They creaked and rattled, were uncomfortable, and sounded terrible. They went right back into the box and off to Adorama.

I have a friend in the Hi-Fi industry who says their entire lineup has QC issues and he refuses to carry their line because of it.

I'm not knocking ALL Chinese stuff. After all, I've got a Denafrips Iris and Pontus II in my chain. But HFM can keep their headphones.

I highly recommend you to at least try the Susvara at a show or through some loaner program if possible. Even if you end up don't like them, it'll give you an idea of what many people's praises are about and how it's similar/different from other headphones. You won't lose anything and HFM certainly won't benefit from just someone trying (for free).

There were multiple times when I came to try a product with negative biases, and got completely turned around. Latest example was the Atrium when I thought according to reviews the detail and speed might not be desirable for me, but after a fellow headfier loaned them to me I've had some of the best headphone experience in life and completely forgot about technical performance when I listened to them. As someone who sees himself as a detail/treble head, I completely rediscovered myself.

 

[misternoe]

Latest example was the Atrium when I thought according to reviews the detail and speed might not be desirable for me, but after a fellow headfier loaned them to me I've had some of the best headphone experience in life and completely forgot about technical performance when I listened to them. As someone who sees himself as a detail/treble head, I completely rediscovered myself.

Interesting, that is exactly why I kind of wrote them off :O

 

[karangovil]

I highly recommend you to at least try the Susvara at a show

Show conditions, at least my one data point from CanJam, are highly non-ideal for testing gear, especially things like detail etc. Too much noise and getting in line etc. Shows are nice for meeting people and seeing new gear and trying stuff out but not for detailed evaluation, imho.

But getting hands on a demo pair would sure be nice!

 

[robo24]

This is potentially going to sound needy, but the thread has been very active today, yet I don’t think any Caldera pics have been shared? Any new Calderas in the wild today? Especially the stock model, which is beautiful like the others!

Not new, but some more pics of the stock model. For me a lot of the beauty of it comes in the up close details of the wood. From afar they just look like a light colored wood. Up close there is a lot of interesting grain. I think if they do darken as they age they'll look even better.

 

[Raidersfan8118]

How does the pad swapping go? The red dot goes on which side?

 

[joshua1122]

How does the pad swapping go? The red dot goes on which side?

Right side.

 

[Raidersfan8118]

Right side.

Thanks I was thinking that but wanted to make sure lol

 

[wkesquire]

What’s the trick again for telling which pad is which if (or when) the red dot fades? I’ve never sold any pads, but I’m wary of using a marker on them in case I do want to list any pads at some point.

 

[karangovil]

What’s the trick again for telling which pad is which if (or when) the red dot fades? I’ve never sold any pads, but I’m wary of using a marker on them in case I do want to list any pads at some point.

 

[joshua1122]

What’s the trick again for telling which pad is which if (or when) the red dot fades? I’ve never sold any pads, but I’m wary of using a marker on them in case I do want to list any pads at some point.

I cut a tiny piece of a sticker and put it on the inside of the pad's flaps, so it doesn't show. It's small enough and placed where it shouldn't be anywhere near acoustic/vibrating surfaces. Seems to work for me.

 

[wkesquire]

I cut a tiny piece of a sticker and put it on the inside of the pad's flaps, so it doesn't show. It's small enough and placed where it shouldn't be anywhere near acoustic/vibrating surfaces. Seems to work for me.

Thanks!

 

[ColSaulTigh]

I highly recommend you to at least try the Susvara at a show or through some loaner program if possible. Even if you end up don't like them, it'll give you an idea of what many people's praises are about and how it's similar/different from other headphones. You won't lose anything and HFM certainly won't benefit from just someone trying (for free).

It's not about not giving them money if their product is a quality one. But with so many other companies out there in this space (ZMF being one of the best ones out there), I tend to put my money where I think it does the most good. In the case of ZMF, I (hope I am) supporting a small, USA-based, customer-focused (depending on who you talk to in this thread...) company. I also buy Meze products because, while not USA based, they build IMO very high-quality products, and are helping support the Romanian and Ukrainian people. Likewise, I don't buy Russian tubes from Russians for the same reasons - I don't agree with their current political and war-based positions.

If I find an outstanding deal on a used pair, I may buy them, try them, and if I still feel the same way, I'll sell them off. If my opinion changes, I'll keep them. But right now, I have other places to focus my dollars...

Bear in mind, this is MY OPINION, by no means am I trying to bash the product line in total. It's just how I choose to make my purchasing decisions. YMMV.

 

[StevenR296]

Shoutout to Zach and his team real quick for throwing us all one hell of a November.

 

[goldwerger]

This Caldera release sounds like it combines everything I love about both: Planar resolution and technicalities with ZMF tonality.

yes!

our 15 month old LG dishwasher literally died on us

off topic, but we had this happen to us twice during COVID lockdown with supply chains halted. We got reaaaaaly good washing dishes by hand for 9 months

What’s the trick again for telling which pad is which if (or when) the red dot fades? I’ve never sold any pads, but I’m wary of using a marker on them in case I do want to list any pads at some point.

I've recently purchased a white marker. Writing on the back of the pad imho will not affect any resale value (you'll do a favor also to the buyer) and not seen when mounted. I just started losing tracks of pads, and this seems easiest (and, to boot, can also add L/R to denote sides while at it..)

 

[robo24]

Do not make Caldera angry. You never know what might happen!

Stay home and listen to the Caldera tonight or drive an hour to witness this, which started in our largest caldera, before it destroys the main road crossing our island? Hmmm.

Update: the volcanic caldera won this evening, but the headphone Caldera will win the rest. Wasn't quite as impressive as having one of these things erupt a few miles from my home as 4 years ago.