Great Sounding & Colorful
Look, Fit, Case & Cable
The Cascara is the single DD member of the Camfire Audio Chromatic Series. It is a nice cool blue color. I thought it would be a little too loud visually when wearing it, but my hair covers it well and no one has noticed it at all. The shiny aluminum piece is a nice contrast to the blue. The shells fit quite nice – it takes a little twisting to get them totally seated and sealed in my ear. I used a medium sized set of SpinFit tips. My normal size is Large but given the nozzle fits a little deeper, I was able to get a good seal. The 3.5mm Time Stream cable is quite interesting. It is my first flat cable. I find it to be premium feeling, with no memory and I did not have a problem with microphonics. As for the other accessories, I got the Essential Set and the little pouch, booties for the IEMs are also a very nice shade of blue. I’ve put the IEMs in an after-market case because I carry them in my backpack and need them better protected. Overall, the looks, fit and accessories are very nice and have a quality feel.
Sound
Gear used:
• iphone 14 pro streaming Amazon music HD with Chord Mojo2
• iphone 14 pro streaming Apple Music with Questyle M15
• HiBy R4 with local FLAC files
• HiBy RS6 streaming Amazon Music HD and local FLAC files
Some of my test tracks:
• Little Bit of Rain (Martina McBride)
• Lonely Bed (Albert Cummings)
• Change the World (Eric Clapton)
• When I Fall in Love (Michael Buble)
• Believe (Cher)
• Summer of ’69 MTV Unplugged (Bryan Adams)
• All Through the Night (Cyndi Lauper)
• Mercy Street (Peter Gabriel)
• The Thrill is Gone (BB King)
• Lose Yourself to Dance (Daft Punk)
When I first put them in and fired up my HiBy RS6 with BB King’s The Thrill is Gone, I was impressed with the presentation! The bass has very good impact and it’s quick for a single DD. It’s doesn’t hit as hard and as deep as my bass benchmark, the Symphonium Titan, but it is not lacking in any way. It is good in both quality and quantity and the bleed into the mids is minimal. It’s not as weighty or meaty as some but the bass is satisfying. I enjoy older Blues and Classic Rock with them.
The mids present vivid, clear vocals and mid-range instruments. It has a little leaner body on male vocals but shines very nicely with female vocals. There are no obvious dips or issues. As pointed out, instruments in this range are clear and precise. On Cher’s Believe many sets highlight the sibilance, thereby distracting from the music, but here it was well managed and by no means distracting.
Treble for me is always a tricky subject. I have very middle-aged ears, so I don’t always hear the weaknesses others point out, but I am sensitive to peaks in the 4k-5k region. Therefore, weigh these comments appropriately. I find the treble to have a little brightness but not overwhelming at all. It is extended, carries decent detail and even some sparkle. Overall, it is nice.
Technicalities
The clarity, sound stage and resolution are nothing outstanding but they are very good on a single DD. The clarity is good – the instruments are clear, and the vocals are clean. The micro and macro details are present enough to catch your attention but not enough to fatigue – I can still enjoy the musicality of a piece and admire the detail.
Conclusion
Overall, the Campfire Audio Cascara was a good purchase for me. It checks many of my top tier boxes: balanced, adequate soundstage, clean mids, and enjoyable bass. Not to mention it’s great build quality and nice accessories. It is a good addition to my collection.
