You seem to be a proven ZMF fan, then the Caldera will probably be part of your portfolio at some point.
Somehow I donāt really warm up to Focal, they have absolute qualities from a technical point of view, but the sound isnāt really natural for me, for whatever reason.
In addition, the comfort is not there for me; even when fully extended, the headphones are simply too small.
Since I got the Aune Amp, Iāve slowly learned to appreciate the sound qualities of Hifiman headphones, somehow it fits together. And these Shaped Cups are super comfortable to me.
The Caldera is definitely a good combination of technical qualities and musicality/voicing.
In some ways, ZMF reminds me of the old Serblin-era Sonus Faber. Very very musical and involving, but not the last word in details/transparency/staging/frequency-extension, etc., but definitely good enough for me.
I need to try the Utopia, but the Susvara and Abyss didnāt do it for my tastesā¦
ps. Disclaimer, I didnāt claim to have good tastesā¦
Yes on the comfort. Focal headphones, regardless of their musical presentation, seem to be designed for people with small heads and small ears. Both HiFiMan and Dan Clark Audio seems to have had larger folk in mind. Both have really comfy productā¦ oval (egg shaped) ear cups and very comfy ear pads.
I do not concur, and I have a large head and large ears. Clampy 6 series Sennheisers feel very small. I had to bend out the yokes on my old HiFiMan. My Dan Clark feels about about the same size as Focal, but has softer pads.
Caldera is magnificent, there is no question. My personal āhot takeā is that CALDERA - not 1266 TC - has THE BEST bass in headphonia. Not quite as much soundstage or resolution, but if youāre all about that bass (no treble), thenā¦
āOn this day 12 years agoā¦ā reminder from social media:
I was so satisfied with office tunes via my Headroom Desktop and my Audeze LCD2s. How far this journey has gone. Above all the gear, thereās years of musical fulfillment!
But it begs the question ā was the gear necessary? How much is our enjoyment due to the nerd-factor/ownership-pride of gear, versus the artistry and emotional conveyance itself? Even harder question, if I could talk to my younger self, would I do it the same way againā¦ ?
Finally getting some help at work which means Iāll be spending more time at the office.
Decided to up my desk game. Found a screaming deal on an OG Mogwai with the separate input transformers (Under the desktop).
Shaped Cups are super comfortable to me.
