ZMF Caldera - New Planar Magnetic from ZMF!

[Pharmaboy]

Does the OG D8K have this peak as well? I know the Pro is supposed to be brighter than the OG.

I have the D8K and can't hear a peak or anything close to it. I swapped the D8K's stock earpads for the Pro's "G" pads and loved the result: better sound (particularly in the entire bass range) and better comfort.

FWIW, the Caldera and D8K have little in common, physically or sonically. I love them both but for different reasons. Sometimes I do head-to-head comparisons, but it's really just an excuse to hear both, not because I'll discover something new about their respective sounds.

IMO, the Caldera wins out on nearly every measure of sound, comfort, and design. Yet there's something so chill and enjoyable about the D8K.

I love planar headphones, and these two (plus the amazing/overperforming ZMF Ori) are my favorites.

 

[jinxy245]

borrowed Schitt Bifrost OG version (not multi-bit).

Actually it is the Bifrost 2, which is multi-bit that you borrowed, it doesn't have the NOS upgrade that's available.

Thought you'd like to know...

 

[Pharmaboy]

Actually it is the Bifrost 2, which is multi-bit that you borrowed, it doesn't have the NOS upgrade that's available.

Thought you'd like to know...

Oops!

 

[jinxy245]

Oops!

It doesn't change anything you said though, just another data point to your story. I imagine there are systems out there that might minimize the Caldera bass, but I haven't heard any either. Preferences play a part too obviously.

 

[Leto Dal]

A fun read about preferences and how to butcher your Caldera tuning https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/zmf-caldera-headphone-review.50016/

Applied Amirs EQ, the treble is just too much, in some recordings Caldera becomes shouty, bass is bloated and starts to bleed into the mids. Best are the acoustic recordings where the instruments simply dont sound natural anymore. Sometimes I wonder how much does age matter and if my mid 30s ears are just not ready for this haha, but with this tuning I probably would have sold my Caldera long ago.

A good example why supposedly objective ASR echo chamber "reviews" are to be avoided.

 

[betula]

A fun read about preferences and how to butcher your Caldera tuning https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/zmf-caldera-headphone-review.50016/

Applied Amirs EQ, the treble is just too much, in some recordings Caldera becomes shouty, bass is bloated and starts to bleed into the mids. Best are the acoustic recordings where the instruments simply dont sound natural anymore. Sometimes I wonder how much does age matter and my mid 30s ears are just not ready for this haha, but with this tuning I probalby would have sold my Caldera long ago.

That website is a bad joke.

 

[goldwerger]

A fun read about preferences and how to butcher your Caldera tuning https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/zmf-caldera-headphone-review.50016/

Applied Amirs EQ, the treble is just too much, in some recordings Caldera becomes shouty, bass is bloated and starts to bleed into the mids. Best are the acoustic recordings where the instruments simply dont sound natural anymore. Sometimes I wonder how much does age matter and my mid 30s ears are just not ready for this haha, but with this tuning I probalby would have sold my Caldera long ago.

Age might have some impact, but there’s no cure for having a bad taste..

 

[wizzman121]

Age might have some impact, but there’s no cure for having a bad taste..

 

[Pharmaboy]

A fun read about preferences and how to butcher your Caldera tuning https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/zmf-caldera-headphone-review.50016/

Applied Amirs EQ, the treble is just too much, in some recordings Caldera becomes shouty, bass is bloated and starts to bleed into the mids. Best are the acoustic recordings where the instruments simply dont sound natural anymore. Sometimes I wonder how much does age matter and my mid 30s ears are just not ready for this haha, but with this tuning I probalby would have sold my Caldera long ago.

Well, I definitely have a dog in this race, because I love the sound of the Caldera and see no need to EQ it to (possibly) "improve" it. And I am entirely unsurprised that Amir's suggested EQ results in bonkers, degraded sound.

(What follows are my opinions on Amir & ASR. Feel free to ignore every word)

Spoiler

I'm at the point where I won't click on any link with "audiosciencereview" in it. This isn't rank prejudice on my part. It's an informed decision that I formed over the past 2-3 years based on:

1. Amir's "reviews" that are little more than gear measuring sprees. They contain little if any commentary on how the "reviewed" item actually sounds. In these "reviews," it is often unclear whether Amir actually listened to the item at all, beyond measuring it
2. Some of those "reviews" harshly trash particular components that actually sound quite good to me & others. This leads me to wonder whether measurements matter less than Amir supposes they do; or that his measurements are (at least on occasion) incomplete or inproperly performed. IMHO it's likely both
3. Amir himself (I think it's a him) has been thoroughly debunked in writing by any number of tech reviewers and observers I would trust ahead of him any day. The general rap on him is that he fudges at least some of his data to push pre-ordained conclusions or to favor this or that audio mfr/brand/bud/ASR devotee
4. Having said all that, perhaps the most annoying thing about ASR is its discussion threads. These are typically stacked with full-on Amir acolytes obsessively discussing measurements made by Amir, their techno/spiritual leader; their own measurements (of unknown veracity & competence); or how reviews of this or that component by normal reviewers outside the ASR belief system, must be fallacious because those reviewers either didn't measure the gear exactly as Amir would, or they did measure the gear, with endless bloviation ensuing about perceived granular flaws with those measurements and any conclusions based on them
   • In these discussions, extreme contempt is often expressed toward those who listen to audio subjectively, for musical enjoyment, and who don't adhere to the ASR belief system. There are spit-flying diatribes along these lines. Particular bile is directed at any audio commentators who fail to conduct blind listening tests (per high ASR orthodoxy) of gear in question
   • The Us-vs-Themism of ASR is reminiscent of certain rabidly opinionated religious, cultural, and political websites I wouldn't waste a second of my lifespan consuming

For reasons of my own, in the past couple years I've done quite a bit of online research on class D amplifiers for 2-channel audio. This is a rapidly developing field undergoing a true paradigm shift as class D sheds its reputation for poor sound and vaults forward, technically & sonically. As it turns out, Amir has several class D "favorites," mfrs and models that measure plu-perfectly and therefore sit on the (ever-changing) ASR Pantheon of the Audio Gods. Conversely, a great many other mfrs and models do not meet with Amir's measurement-based approval. These mfrs and models are thoroughly (and frequently) reviled on various ASR discussion boards. Of course, to learn anything at all about the sound of class D amps, I have to go anywhere but ASR.

I conclude that ASR is the self-proclaimed Church of Audio Orthodoxy, the epicenter of audio "objectivism" in which sound matters not at all, while measurements (and endless technie design ephemera) are all that matter.

 

[betula]

Well, I definitely have a dog in this race, because I love the sound of the Caldera and see no need to EQ it to (possibly) "improve" it. And I am entirely unsurprised that Amir's suggested EQ results in bonkers, degraded sound.

(What follows are my opinions on Amir & ASR. Feel free to ignore every word)

Spoiler

I'm at the point where I won't click on any link with "audiosciencereview" in it. This isn't rank prejudice on my part. It's an informed decision that I formed over the past 2-3 years based on:

1. Amir's "reviews" that are little more than gear measuring sprees. They contain little if any commentary on how the "reviewed" item actually sounds. In these "reviews," it is often unclear whether Amir actually listened to the item at all, beyond measuring it
2. Some of those "reviews" harshly trash particular components that actually sound quite good to me & others. This leads me to wonder whether measurements matter less than Amir supposes they do; or that his measurements are (at least on occasion) incomplete or inproperly performed. IMHO it's likely both
3. Amir himself (I think it's a him) has been thoroughly debunked in writing by any number of tech reviewers and observers I would trust ahead of him any day. The general rap on him is that he fudges at least some of his data to push pre-ordained conclusions or to favor this or that audio mfr/brand/bud/ASR devotee
4. Having said all that, perhaps the most annoying thing about ASR is its discussion threads. These are typically stacked with full-on Amir acolytes obsessively discussing measurements made by Amir, their techno/spiritual leader; their own measurements (of unknown veracity & competence); or how reviews of this or that component by normal reviewers outside the ASR belief system, must be fallacious because those reviewers either didn't measure the gear exactly as Amir would, or they did measure the gear, with endless bloviation ensuing about perceived granular flaws with those measurements and any conclusions based on them
   • In these discussions, extreme contempt is often expressed toward those who listen to audio subjectively, for musical enjoyment, and who don't adhere to the ASR belief system. There are spit-flying diatribes along these lines. Particular bile is directed at any audio commentators who fail to conduct blind listening tests (per high ASR orthodoxy) of gear in question
   • The Us-vs-Themism of ASR is reminiscent of certain rabidly opinionated religious, cultural, and political websites I wouldn't waste a second of my lifespan consuming

For reasons of my own, in the past couple years I've done quite a bit of online research on class D amplifiers for 2-channel audio. This is a rapidly developing field undergoing a true paradigm shift as class D sheds its reputation for poor sound and vaults forward, technically & sonically. As it turns out, Amir has several class D "favorites," mfrs and models that measure plu-perfectly and therefore sit on the (ever-changing) ASR Pantheon of the Audio Gods. Conversely, a great many other mfrs and models do not meet with Amir's measurement-based approval. These mfrs and models are thoroughly (and frequently) reviled on various ASR discussion boards. Of course, to learn anything at all about the sound of class D amps, I have to go anywhere but ASR.

I conclude that ASR is the self-proclaimed Church of Audio Orthodoxy, the epicenter of audio "objectivism" in which sound matters not at all, while measurements (and endless technie design ephemera) are all that matter.

Spot on. I agree with every word.

 

[goldwerger]

Well, I definitely have a dog in this race, because I love the sound of the Caldera and see no need to EQ it to (possibly) "improve" it. And I am entirely unsurprised that Amir's suggested EQ results in bonkers, degraded sound.

(What follows are my opinions on Amir & ASR. Feel free to ignore every word)

Spoiler

I'm at the point where I won't click on any link with "audiosciencereview" in it. This isn't rank prejudice on my part. It's an informed decision that I formed over the past 2-3 years based on:

1. Amir's "reviews" that are little more than gear measuring sprees. They contain little if any commentary on how the "reviewed" item actually sounds. In these "reviews," it is often unclear whether Amir actually listened to the item at all, beyond measuring it
2. Some of those "reviews" harshly trash particular components that actually sound quite good to me & others. This leads me to wonder whether measurements matter less than Amir supposes they do; or that his measurements are (at least on occasion) incomplete or inproperly performed. IMHO it's likely both
3. Amir himself (I think it's a him) has been thoroughly debunked in writing by any number of tech reviewers and observers I would trust ahead of him any day. The general rap on him is that he fudges at least some of his data to push pre-ordained conclusions or to favor this or that audio mfr/brand/bud/ASR devotee
4. Having said all that, perhaps the most annoying thing about ASR is its discussion threads. These are typically stacked with full-on Amir acolytes obsessively discussing measurements made by Amir, their techno/spiritual leader; their own measurements (of unknown veracity & competence); or how reviews of this or that component by normal reviewers outside the ASR belief system, must be fallacious because those reviewers either didn't measure the gear exactly as Amir would, or they did measure the gear, with endless bloviation ensuing about perceived granular flaws with those measurements and any conclusions based on them
   • In these discussions, extreme contempt is often expressed toward those who listen to audio subjectively, for musical enjoyment, and who don't adhere to the ASR belief system. There are spit-flying diatribes along these lines. Particular bile is directed at any audio commentators who fail to conduct blind listening tests (per high ASR orthodoxy) of gear in question
   • The Us-vs-Themism of ASR is reminiscent of certain rabidly opinionated religious, cultural, and political websites I wouldn't waste a second of my lifespan consuming

For reasons of my own, in the past couple years I've done quite a bit of online research on class D amplifiers for 2-channel audio. This is a rapidly developing field undergoing a true paradigm shift as class D sheds its reputation for poor sound and vaults forward, technically & sonically. As it turns out, Amir has several class D "favorites," mfrs and models that measure plu-perfectly and therefore sit on the (ever-changing) ASR Pantheon of the Audio Gods. Conversely, a great many other mfrs and models do not meet with Amir's measurement-based approval. These mfrs and models are thoroughly (and frequently) reviled on various ASR discussion boards. Of course, to learn anything at all about the sound of class D amps, I have to go anywhere but ASR.

I conclude that ASR is the self-proclaimed Church of Audio Orthodoxy, the epicenter of audio "objectivism" in which sound matters not at all, while measurements (and endless technie design ephemera) are all that matter.

Exactly (spoilers and all)

 

[TheMiddleSky]

A fun read about preferences and how to butcher your Caldera tuning https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/zmf-caldera-headphone-review.50016/

Applied Amirs EQ, the treble is just too much, in some recordings Caldera becomes shouty, bass is bloated and starts to bleed into the mids. Best are the acoustic recordings where the instruments simply dont sound natural anymore. Sometimes I wonder how much does age matter and my mid 30s ears are just not ready for this haha, but with this tuning I probalby would have sold my Caldera long ago.

DCA Expanse "supposed" to be one of the best headphone ever measured (AFAIK). It's crazy that Caldera, with some resonances from wood housing, able to have similar result and even (partially) outperform Expanse for THD+N test at 94dB -114dB (who listen at 114dB!). Good measurement can sound great as well!

*I read asr just for fun only*

 

[Fantanest]

Made an audition video to compare Caldera & D8K Pro side-by-side. Check it out at my YT channel! https://www.youtube.com/@us.ftaudio

 

[Toonartist]

Well, I definitely have a dog in this race, because I love the sound of the Caldera and see no need to EQ it to (possibly) "improve" it. And I am entirely unsurprised that Amir's suggested EQ results in bonkers, degraded sound.

(What follows are my opinions on Amir & ASR. Feel free to ignore every word)

Spoiler

I'm at the point where I won't click on any link with "audiosciencereview" in it. This isn't rank prejudice on my part. It's an informed decision that I formed over the past 2-3 years based on:

1. Amir's "reviews" that are little more than gear measuring sprees. They contain little if any commentary on how the "reviewed" item actually sounds. In these "reviews," it is often unclear whether Amir actually listened to the item at all, beyond measuring it
2. Some of those "reviews" harshly trash particular components that actually sound quite good to me & others. This leads me to wonder whether measurements matter less than Amir supposes they do; or that his measurements are (at least on occasion) incomplete or inproperly performed. IMHO it's likely both
3. Amir himself (I think it's a him) has been thoroughly debunked in writing by any number of tech reviewers and observers I would trust ahead of him any day. The general rap on him is that he fudges at least some of his data to push pre-ordained conclusions or to favor this or that audio mfr/brand/bud/ASR devotee
4. Having said all that, perhaps the most annoying thing about ASR is its discussion threads. These are typically stacked with full-on Amir acolytes obsessively discussing measurements made by Amir, their techno/spiritual leader; their own measurements (of unknown veracity & competence); or how reviews of this or that component by normal reviewers outside the ASR belief system, must be fallacious because those reviewers either didn't measure the gear exactly as Amir would, or they did measure the gear, with endless bloviation ensuing about perceived granular flaws with those measurements and any conclusions based on them
   • In these discussions, extreme contempt is often expressed toward those who listen to audio subjectively, for musical enjoyment, and who don't adhere to the ASR belief system. There are spit-flying diatribes along these lines. Particular bile is directed at any audio commentators who fail to conduct blind listening tests (per high ASR orthodoxy) of gear in question
   • The Us-vs-Themism of ASR is reminiscent of certain rabidly opinionated religious, cultural, and political websites I wouldn't waste a second of my lifespan consuming

For reasons of my own, in the past couple years I've done quite a bit of online research on class D amplifiers for 2-channel audio. This is a rapidly developing field undergoing a true paradigm shift as class D sheds its reputation for poor sound and vaults forward, technically & sonically. As it turns out, Amir has several class D "favorites," mfrs and models that measure plu-perfectly and therefore sit on the (ever-changing) ASR Pantheon of the Audio Gods. Conversely, a great many other mfrs and models do not meet with Amir's measurement-based approval. These mfrs and models are thoroughly (and frequently) reviled on various ASR discussion boards. Of course, to learn anything at all about the sound of class D amps, I have to go anywhere but ASR.

I conclude that ASR is the self-proclaimed Church of Audio Orthodoxy, the epicenter of audio "objectivism" in which sound matters not at all, while measurements (and endless technie design ephemera) are all that matter.

Bang on… although I think you could have included, “Toxic Culture” to the mix.

Discounting their audio preferences, I just find the whole atmosphere is like some sort of cult following mixed with vile attacks on anyone who dares to have a different opinion!

 

[Tchoupitoulas]

Age might have some impact, but there’s no cure for having a bad taste..

Worse is the presumption that his taste adheres to some sort of universal benchmark (from the end of his review, linked above):

"Objectively it is clear that Caldera deviates significantly from what research tells us is highly preferred frequency response. That is fine but company needs to conduct its own research to see if their target is more performant."

It's entirely too dogmatic. What really bothers me is the arrogance. It doesn't even occur to him that ZMF is highly popular for good reasons beyond aesthetics and craftsmanship, as attested by innumerable positive reviews online and by the voluminous number of enthusiastic posts here and in other forums. Nor does he entertain the possibility that it might be worth considering why ZMF Headphones are so popular. Doing so, I suspect, might force him to question his assumptions.

He'd do well to note that there are hundreds, if not thousands of us who are presumably flawed for not adhering to a "highly preferred frequency response." Not everyone needs to like the sound of ZMF Headphones. And not all headphones have to be EQ'd to fit some supposed, single standard parameter.

In any case, while I don't love every single ZMF release, I can see their widespread appeal. "Their target" seems to be perfectly "performant" to a good many of us.