[G8torbyte]

This guys cracks me up. As someone who has grown up in a different country and made the US his home (nearly 3 decades now_, baseball seems as weird to me today as it was the day I arrive. I think he perfectly summed it up

Yeah, I can imagine how confusing American football is to the fans of football (soccer) outside the US. I lived in the UK a few years and tried to watch Cricket but gave up since a match can last for days.

 

[harris4crna]

I'm listening to the Caldera with an Accuphase A-70 speaker amp. These scale just fine.

 

[lllkkkoo]

I'm listening to the Caldera with an Accuphase A-70 speaker amp. These scale just fine.

Woah, envy your speaker setup, i used to love accuphase when still on speaker. Totl accu preamp.. never heard those before.

You drove caldera from the speaker out or through the 6.3mm out?

 

[harris4crna]

Woah, envy your speaker setup, i used to love accuphase when still on speaker. Totl accu preamp.. never heard those before.

You drove caldera from the speaker out or through the 6.3mm out?

Speaker out, although the 6.3mm output is good as well. The Speaker tap allows the Calderas to sing with pure Class A bliss while maintaining a low noise floor. Accuphase amps are known very very low distortion. It works well. The 3850 is a Class A TOTL preamp. It allows me to dial in the gain without fear of blowing up the Calderas. The DC-37 is a average DAC (to audiophile standards), but add the MScaler it notches up the quality.

 

[AndyF73]

After many years of buying and selling headphones, and many of those were ZMF’s, the Caldera have finally scratched that itch that I’ve always been longing for.

I’ve wasted so much money chasing a sound only to be left disappointed a couple of weeks in after that initial euphoria. However, after owning the Caldera for over a month, I’m as blown away as I was on day one. The Caldera just seems to do everything right and doesn’t have the annoying quirks that bugged me with other headphones. Plus, I can enjoy every pad option I have for them, which I couldn’t say for others in the ZMF lineup.

The caldera is truly an exceptional headphone across multiple genres.

What a journey it’s been!

 

[harris4crna]

After many years of buying and selling headphones, and many of those were ZMF’s, the Caldera have finally scratched that itch that I’ve always been longing for.

I’ve wasted so much money chasing a sound only to be left disappointed a couple of weeks in after that initial euphoria. However, after owning the Caldera for over a month, I’m as blown away as I was on day one. The Caldera just seems to do everything right and doesn’t have the annoying quirks that bugged me with other headphones. Plus, I can enjoy every pad option I have for them, which I couldn’t say for others in the ZMF lineup.

The caldera is truly an exceptional headphone across multiple genres.

What a journey it’s been!

Would you say there is no need to purchase another ZMF model? Would a closed back complement the Caldera at all? I agree, so far, the Caldera has ruined the desire to purchase another HP at this time.

 

[AndyF73]

Would you say there is no need to purchase another ZMF model? I have only heard the Caldera extensively.

For me it beats everything else in their lineup by some margin. I've never experienced such realism with a headphone and it really is special.

 

[goldwerger]

Would you say there is no need to purchase another ZMF model? Would a closed back complement the Caldera at all? I agree, so far, the Caldera has ruined the desire to purchase another HP at this time.

I find the AC very complementary to the Caldera, both in use case and sound signature. A more euphoric signature with elevated bass and high mids that’s just incredibly fun. I love the AC and Caldera both and neither substitutes the other for me.

I think the CC will also be highly complementary. I'm still getting to know these headphones (will try to publish a proper review in the coming weeks) but it’s delightfully distinct as well and more than just a closed version of its open sibling; a remarkable achievement really.

 

[betula]

After many years of buying and selling headphones, and many of those were ZMF’s, the Caldera have finally scratched that itch that I’ve always been longing for.

I’ve wasted so much money chasing a sound only to be left disappointed a couple of weeks in after that initial euphoria. However, after owning the Caldera for over a month, I’m as blown away as I was on day one. The Caldera just seems to do everything right and doesn’t have the annoying quirks that bugged me with other headphones. Plus, I can enjoy every pad option I have for them, which I couldn’t say for others in the ZMF lineup.

The caldera is truly an exceptional headphone across multiple genres.

What a journey it’s been!

Exactly. If someone really resonates to the soul of the Caldera, it is not hard to fall in love. 'Epic' bass as someone said above; impactful, weighty, yet clear with good extension, balance and sub presence. Beautiful mids that capture the timbre and life of vocals and acoustic instruments despite being planar headphones; the Caldera puts flesh on those vocal notes and conveys the soul of violins, guitars, pianos and so on. Treble also sounds as natural as it gets. No artificial perception of cymbals or drums in general: there is no plasticky, cardboardy or too metallic feel to these notes like on many other headphones. On the Caldera these notes sound supremely natural and realistic.
All of this very nicely separated and placed. Every instrument is clearly 'visible' mentally and exist in its own place. No hazy or mushed-together parts of the soundstage: good depth, good width and adequate hight. Plus, the Caldera just keeps getting better and better as you improve your chain.

 

[cinnamonmilk]

I find the AC very complementary to the Caldera, both in use case and sound signature. A more euphoric signature with elevated bass and high mids that’s just incredibly fun. I love the AC and Caldera both and neither substitutes the other for me.

I think the CC will also be highly complementary. I'm still getting to know these headphones (will try to publish a proper review in the coming weeks) but it’s delightfully distinct as well and more than just a closed version of its open sibling; a remarkable achievement really.

I'm a recent new AC owner, and I've also found that it's a great pairing. I've become so enamored with mine that I would even wager to say that if I were to only keep 2 headphones from my entire collection, it would be my AC and Caldera.

I do think the concept of "no need for another" really varies from person to person. I personally feel that with the pad/tuning options and inherent tuning differences (not to mention the visual differences!), that each ZMF headphone has its own unique appeal. Sure, there might be some overlap with some more than others, but in the end it's the combination of every little aspect that makes all the difference.

 

[goldwerger]

I'm a recent new AC owner, and I've also found that it's a great pairing. I've become so enamored with mine that I would even wager to say that if I were to only keep 2 headphones from my entire collection, it would be my AC and Caldera.

I do think the concept of "no need for another" really varies from person to person. I personally feel that with the pad/tuning options and inherent tuning differences (not to mention the visual differences!), that each ZMF headphone has its own unique appeal. Sure, there might be some overlap with some more than others, but in the end it's the combination of every little aspect that makes all the difference.

Well said! compeltely agree..

 

[chrisnyc75]

So giving the thick pads one last try but this time with a little EQ. I can probably fine tune it more but already liking this setting since give it just a little more bite in the mids.

Frequency: 2500 Hz
Gain: 2.7 dB
Q: 2.3

For the most part I’ve always liked the improvements the thick brings with more sub bass, soundstage and layering. It was just that little dip in mids from the stock that always caused me to go back to stock. I use roon, so applying EQ is easy but normally don’t like using it because worried about a loss in quality. However, the Caldera takes kindly to EQ and does not distort or lose fidelity, so shouldn’t be a problem. See if I last more than a few days with thick now.

Threw on a 2nd band for the other dip

Freq: 3500
Gain: 1.5
Q; 4

On quick pad switch the mids sound pretty close to stock now but now I have a meatier and bigger sound.

Tbh, I think it depends on what you are expecting from the pads. If you are seeking neutrality for "all-around" performance that's one thing..... if you are seeking deep slamming bass impact, because you have other options for neutrality, that's another thing entirely.

That's the beauty of ZMF - whatever headphone you are seeking, ZMF can be that - just change the pads.

 

[AcousticMatt]

After many years of buying and selling headphones, and many of those were ZMF’s, the Caldera have finally scratched that itch that I’ve always been longing for.

I’ve wasted so much money chasing a sound only to be left disappointed a couple of weeks in after that initial euphoria. However, after owning the Caldera for over a month, I’m as blown away as I was on day one. The Caldera just seems to do everything right and doesn’t have the annoying quirks that bugged me with other headphones. Plus, I can enjoy every pad option I have for them, which I couldn’t say for others in the ZMF lineup.

The caldera is truly an exceptional headphone across multiple genres.

What a journey it’s been!

Congrats on a beautiful Caldera and, your thoughts echo my own, pretty much verbatim, except I had to stop looking at it like I was wasting money, ha! Just a rental fee...

I've had mine for about 6 months and I love them just as much as when I first got them too. The LCD-3 was my favorite before it, but it had some quirks and it was like every other headphone I've had, I was searching for something, nothing felt quite there... then I got Caldera. It just sounds the most right to me out of all headphones I own. I enjoy every pad option for it too.

Would you say there is no need to purchase another ZMF model? Would a closed back complement the Caldera at all? I agree, so far, the Caldera has ruined the desire to purchase another HP at this time.

Another vote for the AC - it's been the perfect compliment to the Caldera. I have to give most headphones an adjustment period because the Caldera is so good in the midrange for my preferred areas, so most warm headphones sound hollow and weird at first... except for the Atrium Closed for whatever reason, even though they're not as present in the mids as the Caldera. I find the warmth, the general tonality, the staging and the tuning to all be quite special (and they look awesome) and a yin to Caldera's yang.

 

[iamoneagain]

Tbh, I think it depends on what you are expecting from the pads. If you are seeking neutrality for "all-around" performance that's one thing..... if you are seeking deep slamming bass impact, because you have other options for neutrality, that's another thing entirely.

That's the beauty of ZMF - whatever headphone you are seeking, ZMF can be that - just change the pads.

Got thick as my 2nd set of pads and had no expectations of what they would do. Suede was my installed set of pads. The Caldera were the first ZMF I’ve ever owned or heard. I really liked the suede but didn’t care for the thick. Got stock pads a few months later and mostly stuck with that ever since. Occasionally putting the suede back on from time to time.

I always found the thick to be lacking because of the recessed mids. So now with that slight EQ adjustment, I’m really enjoying them now. They have more bass texture, sub bass, weight, and bigger sound than stock. When I looked at the comparison graphs of the two pads, I saw about 5 dB difference between the two in the areas I adjusted. I went slightly less of peak is all. It seems to make all the difference for me. The current sound reminds me the most of the L3000. Clear mids with deep, punchy, realistic bass and a nice slightly warm sound. Its only been two days so I’ll see if I end up back with stock but so far so good.

Just did a quick switch back to stock with no EQ and then back to thick with EQ and like the thick better now.

 

[steve468]

I was...am a thick pad devotee from the moment they got put on the Caldera, about a month after the Caldera themselves arrived. But the thing is, the Caldera have continued to evolve in their sound, and interestingly I only notice the changes when I put on the stock pads. Now, even with the stock pads, the Caldera is much warmer and richer than when I first got it. And the BASS!! It was great before, but now, it's so resonant, natural, and especially textured and detailed. I probably still prefer the thick pads overall for their more spacious and relaxed sound, but it's much closer now.

I don't know why I'm always surprised that headphone/brain break-in is a thing, even with planars, but I always am.