Very nice comments. Do you have any chamber orchestra in your test track set? I find the RAD-0 Is a winner on that kind of content. But of course I’ve not heard the others. I also like it on jazz ensembles. For P-Funk, well that’s LOUD speaker music. Ditto Soul Brother #1.
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You’ve got me excited to compare the Caldera to my Elite! I’m in line to demo the Caldera sometime in the next few months, and the Elite is my current favorite headphone. I prefer the Elite to all the ZMF dynamics I’ve owned (Auteur, Verite Closed and Aeolus). The combination of sound and comfort is next level in my opinion. I also use a pure silver cable with my Elite (Wireworld Nano Platinum Eclipse) and perceive a bit of extra clarity vs the 2K Copper cable I was using before.
I think the Caldera is the only headphone out there that might be able to win me over and make me sell my Elite. I am always happy to support ZMF, so I’m going to give them a fair shot when I get the loaner in home for a week.
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I don’t feel any amp or headphone is fully broken in ‘til I baptized it with P-Funk, usually “Bop Gun” and “Mr. Wiggles.” Also some George Clinton solo tracks like “Atomic Dog” and "Pumpin’ it up."
"Make my funk the p funk
I want my funk uncut"
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That’s a good point. I have Bach’s cello sonatas and one of Mozart’s piano concertos, but I should have more. I also need to add more jazz.
I think I read a quote from you where you said you’d have one or the other but not both, for financial reasons. Which I completely understand. But… I do think that the Elite and the Caldera complement each other rather than compete against each other. That’s the reason I’m keeping the RAD-0.
I’m glad you’re able to get one on loan. That’s the only way to do it when you’re spending this kind of money - listen to your music on your equipment.
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@Kennyboy - I don’t want to wade in with yet more advice, especially as I’ve yet to hear the Caldera. But I’d like to add to the good advice, above, about buying used so as to minimize any losses from the re-sale of those headphones you like least. In case you’re not aware of it, this is a useful tool to see the used prices of headphones (and other gear) on head-fi: https://devbrada.com/classifieds/. You can also consult https://www.hifishark.com/ for the same kind of info but from a wider range of marketplaces.
From sales in 2023 on devbrada, I’m seeing Calderas going for between $3150-3600, Atriums from $1850-2700, and Utopias for $1800-$3800. (The latter’s wide price range reflects the age of the headphones, I should think).
I’d suggest that the Calderas are holding their value the best, the Atrium less so. It’s worth also noting that the second-hand market for headphones has been pretty poor for sellers recently but better for buyers.
My advice would be 1) to determine your budget, 2) figure out how much you’re willing to lose on the re-sale of headphones, and 3) think of that loss from the re-sales in terms of having rented a pair of totl headphones for a few weeks or months. If you decide that one pair of headphones will become the love of your life, you could always sell the used ones you already have and buy the new ones in a gorgeous limited edition.
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Thx! All advice welcome!. This morning, I found a lightly used pristine 2020 model Utopia with a Jan 2022 invoice from an authorized dealer at what I consider a fair price so I broke down and pulled the trigger. If I like them, I might sell my Clears. If I don’t, I will move on the Utopias.
If I keep the Utopias, this does not mean that I do not still want to acquire a ZMF. From what I am gathering here in this forum in particular, the Atrium would probably be the more logical pairing with the Utopia to give me a greater variety in sonic characteristics,
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This is too early to tell as most owners are still in their honeymoon period. ZMF headphones are known to depreciate quite a lot in the used markets and I expect the Caldera will be no different in 6-9 months from now.
Your other advice though is spot on. I always try to buy used whatever I can. There are only a few pieces that you can’t really do that with. Patience is key.
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I’m not so sure about that. Define “a lot.” You’ll regularly see comments - like the one above by @chrisnyc75 - that ZMFs hold their value pretty well. That’s been less the case recently, potentially, since ZMF has expanded and increased the number of headphones it sells.
I’m referring to him buying them now.
I stopped coming to this forum and have rarely posted over the last year because of people being being less than pleasant and seeking to contradict others. It used to be a nice place. I’m out of here again now. It’s too bad, the conversation on this thread had recently been pleasant to read.
@Kennyboy - congratulations, I hope the Utopia brings you a lot of pleasure.
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Congrats. Yes, in my opinion, if you like and keep the Utopia, the Atrium would be a good pairing to give you a contrasting, but still excellent, sound.
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Thanks!
I know that I am new here and perhaps I should keep my thoughts to myself. But I have personally found folks here to be very patient with me and the disagreements polite. I didn’t interpret any of the disagreements as to resale value of ZMFs to be out of line or personal. As such, why not stick around on the forum a little longer? My 2 cents (not worth a lot)!
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This is true, too. Caldera is CURRENTLY holding its value, but that’s likely because it’s so new there aren’t a lot of them on the second hand market yet and there is a lot of fresh interest in the new model. I’m given pause by the fact that my precious VO, which I paid nearly $3k for is now apparently worth less than half that on the second hand market. But we should all remember that we were previously spoiled by ZMFs holding their value so well, when literally every other headphone in the world, much like a new car, loses most of its value the moment you drive it off the lot (so to speak).
I guess realistically you either have to be (a) VERY sure Caldera is the $4k headphone for you, (b) a ZMF fanboy completist, (c) willing to wait until their second hand value normalizes in a year or so and then pick one up at a deep discount, or (d) ready to buy one now and decide quickly whether it’s the right headphone for you or not while the residual value is still 90% of retail.
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Congrats! I hope you fall in love with Utopia like I have.
And yes, even if Utopia is your “endgame” that doesn’t mean you can’t or shouldn’t add a ZMF to your stable for variety. Utopia doesn’t really compete apples-to-apples with anything in ZMF’s lineup, but it makes a great counterpoint in any hifi system.
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Used item prices got out of hand during the pandemic. Everything from cars to Rolex watches sold for up to 2x or 3x their long term values, and they are now coming back to earth. In 2020-2021 I sold unwanted electronics (i.e., headphone gear) on Ebay for retail or greater. The mood and money policies of that era have passed, so most stuff is likely to return to the long term averages. My rule of thumb is that used will go for 60% of the current list price, but that varies by item, condition, and routine niche fads and fashions.
Buy for yourself and you’ll be happy. Buy for investment value and half the time you’ll be disappointed.
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Absolutely agree. I think the real takeaway is this: If you want to audition Caldera with very little risk, do it now while its residual value is still very high. That won’t last.
Yeah, this is what gives me pause about electrostats. They’re “fascinating”, but are they a good long term decision? I’m not sure. I feel like Utopia is a really solid “familiar” endgame choice; a Stax could make a really good counterpoint “exotic” endgame choice. Or maybe Susvara/lcd-5/Caldera is the right amount of “exotic” to be a good long term counterpoint to Utopia?
This is what keeps me up at night. (not really, but you get my drift). 
And we need to remember that there was a lot of excess demand for ZMFs through the pandemic, which definitely kept used prices high as there was not a lot of inventory and Zach was really backlogged with orders for some time.
Now we are back to more normal or even weak demand, coupled with the fact he has ramped his production up.
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This forum isn’t that bad. Just smaller and more personalized and people tend to get more offended based on the close intimate level of this place imo. Headfi gets way more spicy on a monthly basis. It really comes down to what threads are viewed and who you interact with. I come on here for about 4 or 5 threads only and that works well for me. There’s still tons of good folks having meaningful convos and I don’t take anything personal. Ignore button is a great tool too!
Lovin my caldera still. Especially thru my first watt J2. There is a little bit of noise out of one channel (definitely the amp.) but it’s not a dealbreaker. I never thought I’d try a zmf with a speaker amp but the caldera is the first that is worth it to me. I assume it’s because of the lower sensitivity of the headphone. My 1266 is silent out of the J2 in comparison.
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Au Contraire @Tchoupitoulas I would never contradict you. And you’re wrong about us being less than pleasant, WE ARE ALWAYS REAL NICE. I AM GUMBY DAMMIT wait, where did that come from?
I’d noticed you being scarce, and we’re clearly the worse for it. At least hang out in the music sections…
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I’m currently rocking VO, Auteur Classic & Caldera, and the latter two are my new faves from Zach.
Have had 2 sets of VC prior, and heard Atrium at CJ SoCal and they aren’t as much to my personal liking.
I favor neutrality, and ironically Atrium is right up there, but I would have wished for a bit more sub bass and tiny bit less upper mids, which indeed the Auteur favors 
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Caldera and RAD-0 seem like my dream planar combo. Luckily already got half of it down by owning a RAD.
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