[jh88]

I'm thinking about getting a stabalized Caldera tomorrow. But after reading about the Atrium with the Envy I'm not so sure now.

I'm really looking for a headphone for rock music and this has been on my radar for awhile now...and the Abyss 1266TC.

 

[robo24]

I'm thinking about getting a stabalized Caldera tomorrow. But after reading about the Atrium with the Envy I'm not so sure now.

I'm really looking for a headphone for rock music and this has been on my radar for awhile now...and the Abyss 1266TC.

Having the Envy, the Atrium Open is the one ZMF I prefer on my OTL. The closed version does better on the Envy but it’s 50-50.

Got the TC and Caldera at the same time about a year ago. TC is long gone. Caldera is quite different but ultimately more my preferred sound signature especially with female vocals, which are too recessed to me on the TC. The TC is still amazing but with the lack of comfort and weird fit that requires specific placement to get the same sound each time, I just gave up on it. If you see a Caldera you really want, go for it!

 

[jh88]

Having the Envy, the Atrium Open is the one ZMF I prefer on my OTL. The closed version does better on the Envy but it’s 50-50.

Got the TC and Caldera at the same time about a year ago. TC is long gone. Caldera is quite different but ultimately more my preferred sound signature especially with female vocals, which are too recessed to me on the TC. The TC is still amazing but with the lack of comfort and weird fit that requires specific placement to get the same sound each time, I just gave up on it. If you see a Caldera you really want, go for it!

Thanks for your feedback. Did you listen to much rock music on them?

 

[robo24]

Thanks for your feedback. Did you listen to much rock music on them?

Depends on what kind you mean, mostly older rock like Beatles, Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, Hendrix, Fleetwood Mac and I love the Caldera for all of them. With some of the remastered Beatles releases it's like hearing them for the first time again. Tool is amazing on them. I don't know if Jon Mayer would be considred rock but also amazing. Harder rock than all that I don't really listen to. Atrium Open is also excellent with all that, and I'd put the TC 3rd based on vocals.

 

[betula]

I cannot stop admiring those grains!

I thought I would share a few more thoughts on some further comparisons between the oak and my ebony Caldera. As stated earlier, the difference is not huge, but audible. I would class these differences as sub-variants of the same sound, probably marked with lower case letters 'a' and 'b' as opposed to 'A' and 'B' to further emphasise we are talking about minute differences. Keep this in mind.

When I put the oak pair on my head right after the black & white ebony, it sounds somewhat softer, less tight, slightly less clear. There is a slightly lesser sense of definition/weight/impact which also shows as a small apparent loss of soundstage depth, simply due to the marginally inferior clarity.

When I put the ebony pair back on my head, the sound immediately feels a bit speedier, more rounded, more focused, more dynamic but most of all: clearer. There is a bit more control, a bit more definition. The ebony pair somehow feels more solid and more rounded in its sonic presentation; oak sounds a little lighter and softer in comparison, but still not diffuse. This roundness is interesting, as with the 'clearer' sound I would expect a little more intense treble, but to my surprise that is not the case. Despite the small enhancement in clarity and definition, the edges of the notes are somehow more rounded, more coherent: the whole treble area feels a little smoother and more cohesive despite the slightly more impactful presentation. Bass is also a little more controlled and precise.

In my experience this coherence, cohesion and control is what makes TOTL headphones vs. 'mid-fi' category. With headphones that offer exemplary instrument separation like the Cladera, this coherent feeling of musical 'flow' is the hardest to achieve. This is why flagship headphones sound the most lifelike.

One last random thing I thought I mentioned is that I find guitar plucks on the Caldera truly exceptional. All acoustic instruments sound great on the ZMF flagship due to its weighty and organic sound, but string instruments somehow truly excel. From piano to violin everything sounds sublime, realistic and engaging, but guitar plucks particularly captured my attention the other day. (Random example track.) Picking a guitar string creates a complex sound and it is notoriously difficult to replicate in a lifelike manner. (I used to play classical guitar in a previous life.)

One thing is to capture the lifelike, organic tone and timbre of the instrument. This is hard enough itself; I could probably count on one hand how many other headphones come close to the Caldera in this regard. The other thing comes down to technicalities: the speed of that guitar pluck, the attack, sustain and decay. Attack is so precise on the Caldera! Add the ability of reproducing a full dynamic range in a timely manner (usually more of a planar treat) and you have both sides of the coin: organic tone & timbre with speed, clarity and agility. What a combination!

 

[goldwerger]

I cannot stop admiring those grains!

I thought I would share a few more thoughts on some further comparisons between the oak and my ebony Caldera. As stated earlier, the difference is not huge, but audible. I would class these differences as sub-variants of the same sound, probably marked with lower case letters 'a' and 'b' as opposed to 'A' and 'B' to further emphasise we are talking about minute differences. Keep this in mind.

When I put the oak pair on my head right after the black & white ebony, it sounds somewhat softer, less tight, slightly less clear. There is a slightly lesser sense of definition/weight/impact which also shows as a small apparent loss of soundstage depth, simply due to the marginally inferior clarity.

When I put the ebony pair back on my head, the sound immediately feels a bit speedier, more rounded, more focused, more dynamic but most of all: clearer. There is a bit more control, a bit more definition. The ebony pair somehow feels more solid and more rounded in its sonic presentation; oak sounds a little lighter and softer in comparison, but still not diffuse. This roundness is interesting, as with the 'clearer' sound I would expect a little more intense treble, but to my surprise that is not the case. Despite the small enhancement in clarity and definition, the edges of the notes are somehow more rounded, more coherent: the whole treble area feels a little smoother and more cohesive despite the slightly more impactful presentation. Bass is also a little more controlled and precise.

In my experience this coherence, cohesion and control is what makes TOTL headphones vs. 'mid-fi' category. With headphones that offer exemplary instrument separation like the Cladera, this coherent feeling of musical 'flow' is the hardest to achieve. This is why flagship headphones sound the most lifelike.



One last random thing I thought I mentioned is that I find guitar plucks on the Caldera truly exceptional. All acoustic instruments sound great on the ZMF flagship due to its weighty and organic sound, but string instruments somehow truly excel. From piano to violin everything sounds sublime, realistic and engaging, but guitar plucks particularly captured my attention the other day. (Random example track.) Picking a guitar string creates a complex sound and it is notoriously difficult to replicate in a lifelike manner. (I used to play classical guitar in a previous life.)

One thing is to capture the lifelike, organic tone and timbre of the instrument. This is hard enough itself; I could probably count on one hand how many other headphones come close to the Caldera in this regard. The other thing comes down to technicalities: the speed of that guitar pluck, the attack, sustain and decay. Attack is so precise on the Caldera! Add the ability of reproducing a full dynamic range in a timely manner (usually more of a planar treat) and you have both sides of the coin: organic tone & timbre with speed, clarity and agility. What a combination!

I love this wood, looks just gorgeous

 

[iamoneagain]

Thanks for your feedback. Did you listen to much rock music on them?

I mostly listen to rock on my Caldera. It ranges from 80’s alternative, classic rock, punk rock, indie. It all sounds great. Find the stock pads work best for this music. The Caldera hits hard, has great pace, jangly electric guitars. It does everything right. I found the Utopia seemed to do equally as well with all this music. When I had the Expanse, maybe did well with about 80%. Just certain albums didn’t move me.

I was the one saying how great the Atrium Opened sounded on the Envy. But as mentioned, think I was blown away by the improvement I heard when switching systems. When I heard both the Caldera and Atrium out of the Ferrum Orr, which sounds more like my home system, I preferred the Caldera. It felt more control and had more resolution while still having all the fun musical enjoyment. But really don’t think you can go wrong with either one but I don’t find the Caldera lacking in any way with all kinds of rock music.

 

[Leto Dal]

For the not so good recordings like some of the 70s rock stuff, I prefer Atrium Closed atm (dont have the open yet hehe) and I certainly prefer AC for stoner - space rock, doom and drone stuff. Caldera shines with good recordings and fast stuff like math metal and well recorded prog like Tool, it just reveals more detail and is far more faster.

 

[iamoneagain]

I don’t know if another ZMF would sound better but I don’t have an issue even with bad recording from Husker Du or Jesus and Mary Chain. But it’s also about synergy with your setup and preferences. I try to keep a fine balance between most technical without crossing over to analytical and feel Caldera hits that mark. Not sure if I’d miss the resolution swapping out for a less technical headphone. My guess is after a few minutes, if it sounds great, probably wouldn’t notice.

 

[jh88]

For post hardcore, prog metal (ie Architects, Memphis May Fire, Devil Wears Prada, Every Time I Die) would the stock or thick pads be best? Looking for something that will give the sound more weight and punch.

 

[Benesyed]

I'm shocked that something this pristine is listed as B stock! Great saving for me though!

 

[iamoneagain]

For post hardcore, prog metal (ie Architects, Memphis May Fire, Devil Wears Prada, Every Time I Die) would the stock or thick pads be best? Looking for something that will give the sound more weight and punch.

Not too familiar with this music and way too aggressive this early in the morning, but think stock would be best since you’re looking for speed and forward mids for this to shine. Might even work with thins if really wants to bring out the guitars. Below is just my general take on the pads. And I’ve said it before but think I’m done with talking about pads. I’m sticking with stock for everything going forward. It just works for everything for my tastes.

I think i finally got a grasp of the differences between stock and thick. Stock has great punch, exciting guitars, forward vocals and pretty good soundstage. The thick is more laid back especially in the mids and vocal are slightly recessed. The bass and punch are actually about the same as the stock but stand out more due to recessed mids. The soundstage is noticeably bigger.

So now my recommendation would be to always start with stock and if mids are too harsh in your setup to give the thick a chance. I can adjust to the thick and it sounds pretty good but end up feeling like somethings missing. When I switch back to the stock, it always sounds like a breath of fresh air and realize what I’ve been missing. But what think comes in the play is your own personal preferences. Even if I strongly feel a certain way, someone else will strongly feel the opposite. That’s what great about all the pads options. No one pad suits everyone.

 

[mattiastomas]

After a long wait finally ordered my Caldera! Saved some money over the stabilized sets and ordered the Homage Amp too.

Nabbed a set of thick pads as well. Am excited to give it a listen! Have heard so many good things about the Caldera but never managed to audition a pair

 

[jh88]

Pulled the trigger on these beauts!

 

[NovaFlyer]

I cannot stop admiring those grains!

I thought I would share a few more thoughts on some further comparisons between the oak and my ebony Caldera. As stated earlier, the difference is not huge, but audible. I would class these differences as sub-variants of the same sound, probably marked with lower case letters 'a' and 'b' as opposed to 'A' and 'B' to further emphasise we are talking about minute differences. Keep this in mind.

When I put the oak pair on my head right after the black & white ebony, it sounds somewhat softer, less tight, slightly less clear. There is a slightly lesser sense of definition/weight/impact which also shows as a small apparent loss of soundstage depth, simply due to the marginally inferior clarity.

When I put the ebony pair back on my head, the sound immediately feels a bit speedier, more rounded, more focused, more dynamic but most of all: clearer. There is a bit more control, a bit more definition. The ebony pair somehow feels more solid and more rounded in its sonic presentation; oak sounds a little lighter and softer in comparison, but still not diffuse. This roundness is interesting, as with the 'clearer' sound I would expect a little more intense treble, but to my surprise that is not the case. Despite the small enhancement in clarity and definition, the edges of the notes are somehow more rounded, more coherent: the whole treble area feels a little smoother and more cohesive despite the slightly more impactful presentation. Bass is also a little more controlled and precise.

In my experience this coherence, cohesion and control is what makes TOTL headphones vs. 'mid-fi' category. With headphones that offer exemplary instrument separation like the Cladera, this coherent feeling of musical 'flow' is the hardest to achieve. This is why flagship headphones sound the most lifelike.



One last random thing I thought I mentioned is that I find guitar plucks on the Caldera truly exceptional. All acoustic instruments sound great on the ZMF flagship due to its weighty and organic sound, but string instruments somehow truly excel. From piano to violin everything sounds sublime, realistic and engaging, but guitar plucks particularly captured my attention the other day. (Random example track.) Picking a guitar string creates a complex sound and it is notoriously difficult to replicate in a lifelike manner. (I used to play classical guitar in a previous life.)

One thing is to capture the lifelike, organic tone and timbre of the instrument. This is hard enough itself; I could probably count on one hand how many other headphones come close to the Caldera in this regard. The other thing comes down to technicalities: the speed of that guitar pluck, the attack, sustain and decay. Attack is so precise on the Caldera! Add the ability of reproducing a full dynamic range in a timely manner (usually more of a planar treat) and you have both sides of the coin: organic tone & timbre with speed, clarity and agility. What a combination!

Those are gorgeous!! Reminds me of a tiger's stripes