idairyou
500+ Head-Fier
I'm really happy with my Aged Oak but man, I can't say I am not jealous of the Redheart. I got a bonus at the end of the month, so I may have to get the Redheart Atrium to make myself feel better.
I'm really happy with my Aged Oak but man, I can't say I am not jealous of the Redheart. I got a bonus at the end of the month, so I may have to get the Redheart Atrium to make myself feel better.
Persuit your dreams (in this case dream wood).I'm really happy with my Aged Oak but man, I can't say I am not jealous of the Redheart. I got a bonus at the end of the month, so I may have to get the Redheart Atrium to make myself feel better.
I’ve taken a week away from head-fi just get a break. In the meantime I’ve gotten really good at pad rolling. Can change both pads in less than 2 minutes. This has greatly given me a better perspective of their differences.
The thick lambskin is just not for me. Can’t listen for more than 10 minutes. Has really nice low end but the mids sound sucked out. Soundstage has this concert hall type effect. There is no magic with these pads.
The suede was my the one I started with and used for first month and half. This is very mid centric. The shimmer of the highs are tamed and the bass isn’t as tight as the stock pads. But what you get is up close vocals that are slightly warm and intimate. However this comes at the cost of clarity, soundstage, tightness and impact. But what you gain is this less than technical emotion experience. The music moves you. The issue is knowing what you’re missing from the stock pad.
So when I first started posting about the Caldera it was all based on the suede sound. So my comments about the lack of technical abilities were based off of that. But even with suede, I loved its sound. However, the stock pad really makes these headphones shine. The sound opens up, better clarity, bass impact, tightness and texture improve, and highs shimmer. The mids still have the magic the suede have but little further away and little brighter. It’s a small sacrifice to pay for the rest of the improvements. The stock is also more revealing, so if have bright setup or harsh recording, will sound worse than suede. But piano or acoustic guitar sound perfect on stock compared to slight muted sound of the suede. Suede also can sound a hint congested compared to stock.
First off, thank you for these insights. I swear I’m dying out here without something to read, so thank you.I’ve taken a week away from head-fi just get a break. In the meantime I’ve gotten really good at pad rolling. Can change both pads in less than 2 minutes. This has greatly given me a better perspective of their differences.
The thick lambskin is just not for me. Can’t listen for more than 10 minutes. Has really nice low end but the mids sound sucked out. Soundstage has this concert hall type effect. There is no magic with these pads.
The suede was my the one I started with and used for first month and half. This is very mid centric. The shimmer of the highs are tamed and the bass isn’t as tight as the stock pads. But what you get is up close vocals that are slightly warm and intimate. However this comes at the cost of clarity, soundstage, tightness and impact. But what you gain is this less than technical emotion experience. The music moves you. The issue is knowing what you’re missing from the stock pad.
So when I first started posting about the Caldera it was all based on the suede sound. So my comments about the lack of technical abilities were based off of that. But even with suede, I loved its sound. However, the stock pad really makes these headphones shine. The sound opens up, better clarity, bass impact, tightness and texture improve, and highs shimmer. The mids still have the magic the suede have but little further away and little brighter. It’s a small sacrifice to pay for the rest of the improvements. The stock is also more revealing, so if have bright setup or harsh recording, will sound worse than suede. But piano or acoustic guitar sound perfect on stock compared to slight muted sound of the suede. Suede also can sound a hint congested compared to stock.
The suede is just a more compressed, closer intimate sound on the Caldera. There is no trace of harshness in my system. You also have to turn up the volume to just the right level or the details will be lost. But for some music, the suede sound better than the stock even though I know it’s technically less accurate. It’s hiding some of the sound for this very unique presentation. I could still be very happy sticking with this sound if never bought the stock pads. It’s just I wouldn’t know what the Caldera was fully capable of.First off, thank you for these insights. I swear I’m dying out here without something to read, so thank you.
What you describe above is very similar to the experience I had pad rolling with the Atrium. Suede, after hearing the leather, just reminds of you what you are missing. I really struggled to get over that and always came back. Something about how the balance of the leather stock was just perfect. Nothing stood out, everything sounded “right” and was super technical. Also the suede, to me on the atrium at least, sounded like the bottom dropped out and the highs sorta stayed in this starting to be peaky in comparison feel. It kinda ruled out all suede or even hybrid pads for the atrium for me.
Interesting. I felt that electronica was the only genre that I listen to frequently where I actually preferred the Susvara over the Caldera.Caldera - Way more heft and weight when it comes to bass, great for electronic music, super punchy and engaging. Much more balanced and forgiving, haven't yet heard a song on these that sounded bad. Caldera really shines with electronic music.