Picked up a pair of Atrium closed and it came with caldera ultra perf pads. Bass is obviously solid but the highs get to me a bit. I’ve heard some using the suede aut pads or suede caldera perf pads but not sure if that’ll help the highs. Guess I could look into the mesh option. Maybe these just aren’t my things.
On to the Atrium open?
The Atrium Closed highs got to me too. I never tried the ultra perf pads on those, but I tried the lambskin and suede pads and the suede pads helped a little. When I got the Acoustic Titan Mesh Solid plate installed, those really helped a lot for me.
I also have a bokeh closed coming and I think they use the same mesh. May test some things out. I’ll try the caldera perf side suede as well.
I’m just not going to roll pads forever. If I don’t find something that works sooner than later I’ll get rid of them.
I feel I have to touch the vol too much. Turn it up then back down, repeat lol. Not fun to me.
I think the Bokeh have a different mesh. The Atrium Closed mesh I used is the picture below, where its all solid. When I had the Atrium Closed, I thought it was a pretty decent headphone when I got it tuned to my preference, but nothing too special except one thing. The one thing that made me really like those headphone was the macrodynamics. It’s one of my favorite headphones for the sound of percussion.
Ok cool. I saw where Zach said the titan mesh which I believe comes with the bokeh set I got can be used with AC too.
I’ll give it a little more time and some additional tweaks. Hopefully the Atrium open is a bit better for me.
Did you get your AC new or used? The Atrium drivers are generally thought to need a good bit of burn-in before they settle into their sound. I’ve had mine for about 9 months now, so I can attest to the changes that take place.
I’ve tried quite a few different pads, but I haven’t tried the Caldera Ultra Perforated. I’m pretty sure those aren’t recommended for the AC. I assume fully-perforated pads would not work well on a closed back. I assume they probably rob a lot
of the bass, and bass is the thing most people like best about the AC.
I use the Caldera Suede TSP pads. I liked them quite a bit more than the stock Caldera Lambskin Thin TSP pads. I’ve also tried the Auteur Suede Solid pads, and they sound great as well. Quite a few folks like the Auteur Hybrid Solids as well as the Caldera Suede TP pads.
In case you aren’t familiar with the acronyms ZMF uses, TSP is “top and side perforated” and TP is “top perforation only”.
As a side note, I don’t use any mesh on my AC and have never felt the need to dampen the treble in any way. Obviously, we all hear things differently.
The meshes can be swapped. Last i checked there is a closed, more open, and you can go meshless. My AO came with a closed mesh but i liked the semi open much more, it added much much needed detail and texture.
They’re used and definitely burned in. I have these on. Look to be maybe caldera thin perf or caldera stock? Too many pads lol
Those are likely the stock Caldera Lambskin Thin (TSP) pads. The inner walls of the pads aren’t perforated, so they aren’t the Ultra Perforated Caldera pads. I never got on well with these stock pads. I much preferred the Suede version. They were thicker and less aggressive-sounding.
Ok, yeah after looking this morning I realized they’re either the stock or thin caldera lamb.
So the Caldera suede tsp was good to calm the high/sharp peaks?
The Atrium open that I have coming have the universe suede perf. Any recommendations there?
Thanks for the assistance!
Was that the radial mesh (semi open)? I only see solid and radial for open back models.
I think any of the recommended suede pads will smooth the highs and soften the peaks you may be hearing. Your choices are Caldera Suede TSP, Caldera Suede TP, Caldera Suede TWP (top wide perforation), or Auteur Suede Solid.
From least to most bass quantity in regards to the Caldera Suede pad options, it would be:
Caldera Suede TSP>Caldera Suede TP>Caldera Suede TWP
I think the the Auteur Suede Solid pads probably fall somewhere between the Caldera Suede TSP and TP, though I have not heard the TP or TWP versions yet.
Ok cool. I have a bokeh coming with the pad options. Looking at the site, all three are recommended for the AC. I’ll give them a shot and maybe pick up a Caldera suede TSP too.
Appreciate the help.
I had forgotten until now, but I also have what was originally called the Bokeh Suede Pads for my AC. I think they would probably be called Caldera Suede Thin TP pads now with the new naming scheme, but I don’t believe they’re sold anymore. I liked how they sounded on the AC, but they were a little too thin for my big ears. If you want to try those, just let me know.
I think they may still sell them and those, the hybrid version and Lambskin will come with my bokeh so I should have some options.
Need to pick up a universe pad for the AO. Some of these used sets come with the dumbest pads lol.
It’s super confusing, but the Bokeh Closed now includes the Caldera Suede TP with the tuning kit. These pads are thicker than the Bokeh Suede pads that were originally an option with the BC. The Bokeh Suedes would be equivalent to a pad called Caldera Suede Thin TP, though this doesn’t appear to exists anywhere on the ZMF website at this point.
Gotcha. When I looked at the site and it mentioned “old bokeh” pads they’re all compatible/recommended. We’ll see.
If these don’t work then I’ll try one more pads and then just move on.
For the Atrium open, only Auteur Lambskin (perforated) or the Caldera ultra perf are really good.
While the Auteur pads tend to be a little more warm and perhaps slightly deeper, the Caldera ultra perf are more neutral and a little less bassy than the Auteur Lambskin’s pads.
I like both over the Universe.
I like the Auteur pads and use them the most, the Caldera ultra perf more when it’s a warm, thick tube combination.
Copper and hybrid headphone cables are not to be sneezed at.
These also scale very well with the Atrium in general, depending on requirements.
But also other Zmf’s just not quite as effective as the Atrium.
Yes. I looked at my order and it was the acoustic titan mesh - radial vented
Which Bokeh, Open or Closed?
