Headphone Reviews

Sound Quality
In absolute terms the sound of the Caeden Linea No.10 is just okay: bass is a little thick and murky, encroaching somewhat on the lower mid-range. Apart from that the mids are fairly good; vocals sound fairly natural. But as we transition from mids to treble I find a significant roll-off making voices sound fairly veiled. The treble too is somewhat laid back, and has the rather unusual characteristic of turning "sss" sounds more toward a "th" sound. A withdrawn mid-treble. High treble remains fairly intact.

So, it's easy to nit-pick these cans. But! The overall impression when listening is one of ease. There's no trace of harshness. Extended listening to psycho-acoustically accomodate to these cans yields much better results than direct comparison and first listen experiences. Despite the flaws, this is a very pleasant listening experience. Audiophiles will grumble, but your average consumer will likely be delighted.

My take on these cans is that they'd make an outstanding present for the lady in an audiophile's life. I know, I'm assuming most audiophiles are male...they are! And I know I'm spinning these cans as having feminine appeal. I'm sure some guys out there will like the looks of the Linea No.10, but they wouldn't be my cup of tea. None the less, for the right person (not a nervous audiophile) these will very likely please.

One odd thing I did notice is the similarity between the sound of the Linea No.10 and the original Sennheiser Momentum. Measurements of the Linea No.10 and Momentum show a fairly similar raw frequency response. The Linea No.10 has more bass, which is both good and bad as it's a bit more satisfying to have some low boost, but it also bleeds a bit excessively into the mids. But the Linea No.10 also has a bit better controlled treble fall-off above 4kHz. When I compare these cans side-by-side—which is a bit unfair as the Momentum is an over-ear design, and the Linea is an on-ear design—I surprisingly found the Linea No.10 a more natural sounding experience.

Also interesting is that both headphones have a deep notch at around 4kHz. This is likely a tuning to rid the cans of a resonance here; sometimes affected by the spacing between the front of the driver and subsequent grill. I think this may be the reason "sss" sounds a little like "th" in these cans.

Switching to Bluetooth mode does little to change the sound but for a minor amount of additional confusion in the sound, and a bit less extension at both ends.

Isolation from outside noise is quite good for a headphone of this type.

Summary
The Caeden Linea No.10 delivers a solid balance of style, comfort, convenience, portability, and a pleasing listening experienc...all at a very fair price. Thee tasteful color combinations are available; headphones come with one-button remote cable, USB charging cable, and faux leather carry pouch.

Sound quality is mixed. Bass is a bit bloated and encroaches a bit on the mids; mid-treble is somewhat withdrawn and makes "sss" sound a bit "th" sounding. On the other hand, bass is not overly exaggerated, treble is never agressive or harsh. High treble is present and delivers a bit of sparkle to compensate for mid-treble veil. After some listening and psychological accommodation, the Linea No.10 provides a satisfying listening experience.

Not going up on the "Wall of Fame" due to my focus on sound quality as of major import there, but, damn, I know a lot of ladies that would be pleased as punch with these elegant and enjoyable headphones. Heartily recommended in that way.

(Editor's Note: Normally I would have compared these directly to the MEE Matrix2 wireless headphone. Unfortunately the original model, currently on the Wall of Fame is discontinued. I am investigating the new Matrix2 and similar Ausdom M05 to sort out a future recommendation.)

Video
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Resources
Caeden home page and Linea No.10 product page.