Sound is amazing. I’m still playing around with pads, but even with the stock Caldera pads I’m very pleased. @wkesquire was kind enough to lend me his set awhile back so I could spend a couple of weeks auditioning them, so I’ve been confident for some time that I would eventually buy a Caldera, I just wanted to wait for the perfect set to come along. Red burnt ash was literally my dream ZMF before it was even an actual option, so when these came along I knew I could not pass them up. 
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I will make it in a single post, what have gotten here in the past week.
FiiO FA7S
At almost 60% off, why not? 
Pentaconn Coreir Brass
Ohh, there has been some hype on this eartip. So I had to check it out myself.
FiiO BR13
Little audio swiss knife.
Very useful toy. USB and Bluetooth in + RCA out + Coax and Toslink input/output.
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Picked up some Diana suede bass ported pads to compare to the leather bass ported and Kimber Select Hybrid USB cable.
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For the past few months, I’ve been considering whether to add a pair of Focal Clears to my collection. After some searching, I found a dealer in England who had three pairs in stock, but they were not allowed to ship them abroad, so I had to get them sent to a warehouse hotel that could then forward them to me.
Unfortunately, it turned out that it would be prohibitively expensive in customs and VAT once they entered the EU, so I dropped the idea.
The other day I came across a sales ad for a brand new pair of Focal Clears and then my FOMO got the better of me – have just had them delivered 
I have only had the chance to listen to them very briefly on my Naim Uniti Atom HE, where I usually use my HD 800s - Fantastic sound! - I am going to enjoy these!
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Welcome to the club! 
I think you will enjoy them, they are a remarkable value (at least in the US from our local benefactor whose forum we are on), and sound fantastic. They do scale up with better gear too. The cables are crap though due to their microphonics and inflexibility. They do look great however (they are French, so but of course!)
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Thank you, Robson
I’ve been listening to them for the past couple of hours and I must say that I am super satisfied!
I’ve had cables made by Hart Audio for my other headphones, and I’ve just written to them and ordered one for my Focal Clear; 150cm Charcoal Gray with a 4.4 termination.
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Welcome to club Clear. It’s one of the easiest premium class headphones to drive, so it’ll sound okay on most hardware. It does scale, and IMO best with a full-bodied warmer DAC/amp.
The underside of the headband is known for staining from head juice. Some use these or a similar product:
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Thanks for the tip about the headband cover.
I think it’s a good thing to have, so I’ve just ordered one.
No doubt the light underside is delicate - I can see it on my Bathys Dune too.
In the long run, I might also try a pair of Dekoni Fenestrated Sheepskin Pads for Focal Clear - I can see that there are quite a few Clear users who use them.
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I’ve been running Dekoni fleece since the factory pads wore out. They sound a bit warmer to me, but good.
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Do you know if the pads for the newer Clear MG will fit on the original Clear?
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AFAIK all the full size pads fit other Focal models, check the Dekoni website. They may sound awful, and the Utopia lives in another place.
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Perfect - I’ll check it out, thanks!
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This arrived a few days ago.
Donald was a pleasure to work with and he was indeed ahead of schedule. Beautiful sounding amp!
Stellaris with stepped attenuator vol control
#39
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Congrats, happy listening.
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Woot! Congrats, and welcome to team blue!
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I am not going to buy these, because I am not made of money. But SOMEBODY better grab this deal before the prospect drives me MAD. 
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Picked this up to hold me over until my assortment kit arrives, but I also wanted to see what the fuss was all about and if I could tell a difference. Long story short, my DNA amp needed a new fuse and I was in the market haha.
Also picked this up to see how it would pair with my MR since I’ve heard good things. Took advantage of the headphones.com sale by being a sonic member and with some points I earned I was able to land this for $215 shipped 
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YEEEAAAAHHHHH!!! Welcome to team blue! 
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Hey man. What a pick up!! You must have been overjoyed with the unboxing experience. Zach is a material science guru. He really cares. You must be in heaven. Some have said the Caldera is a little like the Susvara with greater bass slam. 
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