[KlaraKlang]

That stained oak is spectacular...really tops.

The Pic is made at daylight, in real they are much darker, i love it

 

[Kbeau]

My goodness I'm loving the synergy with the Pendant and Sylvania tubes. The Caldera is my only headphone at the moment aside from a PC38X and though I really want to get an Atrium back in my stable someday, I could die happy with the Caldera as my one-and-only. Go, Zach! I love the aesthetics...

 

[rustydabear]

I am finding my new Caldera’s to be a little too high frequency for me with the stock leather pads. They are better with the cowhide pads, but not nearly as 3D. I have not had this problem with my Atriums or Verite closed. A similar thing happened to me with Meze Lirics a year ago. I assume the suede pads may be a suitable option for me? Has anyone else experienced this with their Caldera’s?
Or just my aging, sensitive ears?

 

[gonintendo]

I am finding my new Caldera’s to be a little too high frequency for me with the stock leather pads. They are better with the cowhide pads, but not nearly as 3D. I have not had this problem with my Atriums or Verite closed. A similar thing happened to me with Meze Lirics a year ago. I assume the suede pads may be a suitable option for me? Has anyone else experienced this with their Caldera’s?
Or just my aging, sensitive ears?

I think the suede pads and possibly the thick pads sound right up your alley (I’d start with suede)

 

[Kbeau]

I am finding my new Caldera’s to be a little too high frequency for me with the stock leather pads. They are better with the cowhide pads, but not nearly as 3D. I have not had this problem with my Atriums or Verite closed. A similar thing happened to me with Meze Lirics a year ago. I assume the suede pads may be a suitable option for me? Has anyone else experienced this with their Caldera’s?
Or just my aging, sensitive ears

To my ears the suedes warm everything up and make it more immersive although with more highs.. It's a little less shouty with some more sparkle up top... IDK its my prefered pad for enjoyment but ide say the leather still is the technical winner on details/definition

 

[NutritiousNoodles]

I am finding my new Caldera’s to be a little too high frequency for me with the stock leather pads. They are better with the cowhide pads, but not nearly as 3D. I have not had this problem with my Atriums or Verite closed. A similar thing happened to me with Meze Lirics a year ago. I assume the suede pads may be a suitable option for me? Has anyone else experienced this with their Caldera’s?
Or just my aging, sensitive ears?

Unfortunately don’t have the stock leather (will get them at some point). Out of suede, thick and cowhide, suede is the brightest through the high frequencies. This also depends on whether it’s high treble or low treble that is causing the issue. If it’s high treble, then suede can attenuate high treble, from the impressions posted here by @GoldenOne. If it’s lower treble, then thick pads will warm up that region the most without losing much of the staging and imaging of the stock (from my ears).

Hope this helps.

 

[joshua1122]

I am finding my new Caldera’s to be a little too high frequency for me with the stock leather pads. They are better with the cowhide pads, but not nearly as 3D. I have not had this problem with my Atriums or Verite closed. A similar thing happened to me with Meze Lirics a year ago. I assume the suede pads may be a suitable option for me? Has anyone else experienced this with their Caldera’s?
Or just my aging, sensitive ears?

Check for changes with pad geometry: Rotate your pads both forwards and backwards and see if that changes HRTF in any useful way. Rotating the pads 1/4 ~ 1/2" to the front has helps me with some of the dips for me, for example.

You said it gets better with cowhide (dotted green):

So that could be the 5kHz dip, or possibly even the 3.5kHz dip. Since the cowhide has almost +5dB in the 7.2kHz region, I'd say that's possibly not your sensitivity.

You also said you don't have a problem with the Atrium (red dotted). Are you using stock pads?

Again, there's a -6dB dip around 4~5kHz that Atriums have that Calderas don't, so this could be telling.

For Caldera suede (dotted brown), both the 4.8 ~ 5.5kHz and 7.2kHz region are slightly more elevated. If you have sensitivities with either of those, the suede will likely not help you. I do feel like they somehow blunt the treble in ways that don't show up on FR measurements, so they could still be worthwhile trying.

I would use a tone generator to see what frequencies give your ear the most discomfort, and try lowering that region with an EQ of sorts as an experiment to see where the issue is. If you see a pad measurement that have the lowest values for that region, that one might be your best choice.

That's a bummer that the Caldera is giving you trouble, especially since you paid the extra customs and whatnot. Well, if you enjoy the rest of what Calderas have to offer, you could always just add EQ into your chain to avoid the treble peaks. It's my personal opinion that most headphones are more enjoyable when you personalize their sound to your ears using your own EQ to make it yours, so that would be my suggestion.

 

[rustydabear]

Check for changes with pad geometry: Rotate your pads both forwards and backwards and see if that changes HRTF in any useful way. Rotating the pads 1/4 ~ 1/2" to the front has helps me with some of the dips for me, for example.

You said it gets better with cowhide (dotted green):

So that could be the 5kHz dip, or possibly even the 3.5kHz dip. Since the cowhide has almost +5dB in the 7.2kHz region, I'd say that's possibly not your sensitivity.

You also said you don't have a problem with the Atrium (red dotted). Are you using stock pads?

Again, there's a -6dB dip around 4~5kHz that Atriums have that Calderas don't, so this could be telling.

For Caldera suede (dotted brown), both the 4.8 ~ 5.5kHz and 7.2kHz region are slightly more elevated. If you have sensitivities with either of those, the suede will likely not help you. I do feel like they somehow blunt the treble in ways that don't show up on FR measurements, so they could still be worthwhile trying.

I would use a tone generator to see what frequencies give your ear the most discomfort, and try lowering that region with an EQ of sorts as an experiment to see where the issue is. If you see a pad measurement that have the lowest values for that region, that one might be your best choice.

That's a bummer that the Caldera is giving you trouble, especially since you paid the extra customs and whatnot. Well, if you enjoy the rest of what Calderas have to offer, you could always just add EQ into your chain to avoid the treble peaks. It's my personal opinion that most headphones are more enjoyable when you personalize their sound to your ears using your own EQ to make it yours, so that would be my suggestion.

Thanks Josh!
I will try a tone generator. I use stock pads on my VC and atrium.
It does suck having to pay the extra duties,/taxes.

 

[iamoneagain]

So I decided to give the thick pads a try. They look barely thicker than the suede. Changing the pads was just impossible for me. I remember changing the pads on the L3000 once and that was enough. I had to get my wife to change the pads for me. But to be honest, I have trouble changing the bed and getting the corners to stay put.

Anyway, at first I could hardly tell much difference from the suede, which is a good thing. I wasn’t wanting to change the pads back anytime soon. I was worried they would sound muddy or too warm and that’s not what I’m hearing. They are now reminding more of the L3000, being a hint warmer than the suede and even more immersive. I listened to Burn the Witch by Radiohead again, and the sub bass is more like what I remember. This rumbling that dominates the first few seconds of the song. You have to listen for it little more closely with the suede pads.

So now I’m going back to songs I was listening prior to see if I prefer this pad over the suede or finding any issues. So far, everything works. Mids are still rich. Soundstage hasn’t really changed. The euphoric magic is still there. It’s really a subtle change. Think they might just be a hint less bright and that might be one reason I go back to suede since thick a hint less airy. And on my setup the suede brightness wasn’t an issue. So only problem is I can’t change them back myself

 

[Nothingpersnal]

So I decided to give the thick pads a try. They look barely thicker than the suede. Changing the pads was just impossible for me. I remember changing the pads on the L3000 once and that was enough. I had to get my wife to change the pads for me. But to be honest, I have trouble changing the bed and getting the corners to stay put.

Anyway, at first I could hardly tell much difference from the suede, which is a good thing. I wasn’t wanting to change the pads back anytime soon. I was worried they would sound muddy or too warm and that’s not what I’m hearing. They are now reminding more of the L3000, being a hint warmer than the suede and even more immersive. I listened to Burn the Witch by Radiohead again, and the sub bass is more like what I remember. This rumbling that dominates the first few seconds of the song. You have to listen for it little more closely with the suede pads.

So now I’m going back to songs I was listening prior to see if I prefer this pad over the suede or finding any issues. So far, everything works. Mids are still rich. Soundstage hasn’t really changed. The euphoric magic is still there. It’s really a subtle change. Think they might just be a hint less bright and that might be one reason I go back to suede since thick a hint less airy. And on my setup the suede brightness wasn’t an issue. So only problem is I can’t change them back myself

I also had issues swapping pads when I was A/Bing the stock and suede and testing the Caldera pads on a VO. I had to get a friend to swap them for me and even he said it was much more difficult than the Verite.

 

[Monsterzero]

So I decided to give the thick pads a try. They look barely thicker than the suede. Changing the pads was just impossible for me. I remember changing the pads on the L3000 once and that was enough. I had to get my wife to change the pads for me. But to be honest, I have trouble changing the bed and getting the corners to stay put.

Anyway, at first I could hardly tell much difference from the suede, which is a good thing. I wasn’t wanting to change the pads back anytime soon. I was worried they would sound muddy or too warm and that’s not what I’m hearing. They are now reminding more of the L3000, being a hint warmer than the suede and even more immersive. I listened to Burn the Witch by Radiohead again, and the sub bass is more like what I remember. This rumbling that dominates the first few seconds of the song. You have to listen for it little more closely with the suede pads.

So now I’m going back to songs I was listening prior to see if I prefer this pad over the suede or finding any issues. So far, everything works. Mids are still rich. Soundstage hasn’t really changed. The euphoric magic is still there. It’s really a subtle change. Think they might just be a hint less bright and that might be one reason I go back to suede since thick a hint less airy. And on my setup the suede brightness wasn’t an issue. So only problem is I can’t change them back myself

I also had issues swapping pads when I was A/Bing the stock and suede and testing the Caldera pads on a VO. I had to get a friend to swap them for me and even he said it was much more difficult than the Verite.

Now yall know why I don't roll pads

 

[NutritiousNoodles]

So I decided to give the thick pads a try. They look barely thicker than the suede. Changing the pads was just impossible for me. I remember changing the pads on the L3000 once and that was enough. I had to get my wife to change the pads for me. But to be honest, I have trouble changing the bed and getting the corners to stay put.

Anyway, at first I could hardly tell much difference from the suede, which is a good thing. I wasn’t wanting to change the pads back anytime soon. I was worried they would sound muddy or too warm and that’s not what I’m hearing. They are now reminding more of the L3000, being a hint warmer than the suede and even more immersive. I listened to Burn the Witch by Radiohead again, and the sub bass is more like what I remember. This rumbling that dominates the first few seconds of the song. You have to listen for it little more closely with the suede pads.

So now I’m going back to songs I was listening prior to see if I prefer this pad over the suede or finding any issues. So far, everything works. Mids are still rich. Soundstage hasn’t really changed. The euphoric magic is still there. It’s really a subtle change. Think they might just be a hint less bright and that might be one reason I go back to suede since thick a hint less airy. And on my setup the suede brightness wasn’t an issue. So only problem is I can’t change them back myself

Totally agree with the pads impressions, thick pads just take the edge off and give the bass ever so slightly more oomph, a tiny bit closer to a sub woofer type of sound.

Pad rolling was a bit annoying to start with but I got used to it pretty quickly. Not sure if people are aware of Zach’s tutorial on YouTube. But it helps a lot.

To A/B pads quickly, you don’t have to actually attach the pads to the cups to do that. The clamping force is usually enough to keep the pads together.

 

[zach915m]

I am finding my new Caldera’s to be a little too high frequency for me with the stock leather pads. They are better with the cowhide pads, but not nearly as 3D. I have not had this problem with my Atriums or Verite closed. A similar thing happened to me with Meze Lirics a year ago. I assume the suede pads may be a suitable option for me? Has anyone else experienced this with their Caldera’s?
Or just my aging, sensitive ears?

Not a ton to add but that the thick caldera and suede would be ones to try if you don't have them. Everyone's anatomy is different and if you're looking for a touch warmer sound the thick would be the ones to try before any other remedies. They also will retain the imaging you're after. Send me an email if you want to try a set and I'll make it happen: zach@zmfheadphones.com

 

[iamoneagain]

Well, that was fun. I’m already back to the suede. I was actually finding some of that magic sauce was missing with the thick. And slight lack of air was not doing it for me. Got to PJ Harvey - Big Exit and the electric guitar wasn’t twangy enough. Now sounds great again with suede. I did try to change it back myself but still no luck. I think I’ll just stick with suede and only change when they need to be replaced. At least I now know.

Now about cables. I know others may change the sound and maybe even for the better but I’m more than happy with suede pad and OFC cable. I just need to order the longer length when once available.

 

[Renexx]

@zach915m hello Zach, is there already a plan/timeline for the next limited wood for the Caldera in January? Im waiting for a really soft wood for an euphonic planar experience as a last part of my collection