ATTICUS and EIKON, the new dynamic driver headphones from ZMF
- Thread starter Hisoundfi
- Start date
Bifrost 2/Jotunheim 2 is absolutely killer with Atticus. I had taken a break from my Atticus in favor or planars (ETHER 2, ETHER C flow 1.1) and Verite Closed (also great with this DAC and AMP).
Wow I forgot how hard Atticus hits in the bass. Jotunheim 2 has greater impulse / impact vs. Jot 1 to my ear and this really synergizes with the Atticus. Also, the added sound stage of Jot 2 really opens up the Atticus. The crunch of electric guitar and layering of chords is among the most exciting that I've heard. I know sounds hyperbolic, but this headphone, AMP, and DAC combination are really excellent in the midrange. Atticus will still sound thick and rich and bit woolly in the treble but who cares this is great fun.
whirlwind
Headphoneus Supremus
The Atticus can slam. Mid bass is so good.
I really hated to get rid of mine, but I am glad they went to a very good home and will be well taken care of.
I concur on that slam. Also, I am the lucky owner of said pair, and definitely cherish them (hence my profile pic).
whirlwind
Headphoneus Supremus
Cocobolo wood is just beautifulI concur on that slam. Also, I am the lucky owner of said pair, and definitely cherish them (hence my profile pic).
It sure is, and the benefits of it being a harder wood are a big plus in the impact department.Cocobolo wood is just beautiful
paconoodles
New Head-Fier
Coming from someone who's in love with the Sundaras (I prefer them over than the lcd-x's even with EQ), would you recommend the Eikon or the Atticus? Wish it was easier to audition ZMF's stuff.
The bass extension and detail retrieval of the LCD-X's are phenomenal, but I prefered the tonality of the Sundaras. With the LCD-X's, I'd ocassionally have a song where one part of the frequency peaked, and I rarely had moments where the music sounded rich, full, and all encompassing like the Sundaras.
The bass extension and detail retrieval of the LCD-X's are phenomenal, but I prefered the tonality of the Sundaras. With the LCD-X's, I'd ocassionally have a song where one part of the frequency peaked, and I rarely had moments where the music sounded rich, full, and all encompassing like the Sundaras.
Gorillaphant
100+ Head-Fier
How do you like the Atticus compared to the Verite Closed?
Currently have a VC and should soon have the Jot2 and Atticus as well. Definitely looking forward to trying things out after reading your comment.
Pharmaboy
Headphoneus Supremus
It will be a scene right out of a Hallmark movie: years from now, your Atticus, looking worn & sad, will show up on your doorstep, wipe its none-too-clean nose and say, "Weren't you my daddy?"
Not a chance! Even if I quit listening with them (which will never happen), I would keep them just to look at them.
I made that mistake with my Ori. 
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They are very different headphones. Atticus has a similar frequency response to HD650, but with much less sub-bass roll off. I hear VC as being much more linear in the bass. VC lacks the mid-bass bump that Atticus has. Sometimes I wish VC had a bit more sub-bass to low mid-bass when listening to poorly recorded metal. But when I'm in the mood for a more linear sound I'm glad for that linearity. It's nice to have two headphones with different tunings for different occasions.
I think the stand out feature of the Atticus is actually the timbre. I think it has nearly the best timbre for wood instruments and guitar that I've heard in a headphone (maybe the best?). Atticus sounds like it has a bit more slam in the bass and maybe more wood resonance vs. the VC. There is an album with guitar percussion technique "Sergio & Odair Assad Play Piazolla" where when listening with Atticus it sounds like the guitar body is part of the headphone. It actually startled me the first time I heard it.
The relative weaknesses of Atticus vs. VC: slower responses and more distortion overall vs. the beryllium VC drivers. With really fast metal, Atticus has some trouble keeping up in terms of some congestion in the mids and mid-bass. This is a relatively minor effect and much less notable than the way the Fostex biocellulose driver turns into a muddy mess with high speed metal. Atticus actually does a very good job of maintaining a bass boost in the mid and going fast with kick drums. It only feels slow relative to the speed of the super fast VC driver.
Pharmaboy
Headphoneus Supremus
I have a silkwood VO & don't own a VC. However, I had both headphones on loan IMS several years ago & was greatly impressed by the VC, clearly the best closed headphone I've yet heard.
Don't know what cable(s) you use w/your VC, but I recently had a cable discovery with the VO. Until last week, I'd only used the nice ZMF stock cable (black/braided), which IMO is better in every way than the old ribbon stock cable. Anyway, I swapped cables on the VO for the 1st time using my favorite aftermarket cable, ForzaAudioWorks' TOTL copper design, the HCP Noir. And I definitely heard a difference, which kinda surprised me.
Didn't spend much time comparing, but w/the FAW cable I heard:
- a subtle upgrade in the entire bass range: slightly more bass + somewhat more impact
- and one thing I love about the VO--the way it reveals the timbre of each note, with space around each note--seemed to get slightly better throughout the bass range
So if you haven't played around w/cables on your VC--perhaps you should.
I’ve never really heard a cable swap difference and yes I’m using the stock cable. It might be with a change for better ergonomics and it’s something I have considered for a while.
With well recorded music it’s less of a problem. For historical reasons a lot of black metal is recorded with almost no bass and or sub bass.
Pharmaboy
Headphoneus Supremus
My ignorance about metal is showing. It's not a genre I much like, so I'm not very familiar w/its sound, historical or otherwise.
The few cuts I've heard sound pretty compressed, which seems to hype overall level while pushing down dynamics.
That’s exactly correct. A few early bands in the 90s created that sound to be purposefully anti mainstream and it kind of hung around. It has the overall effect of killing bass and emphasizing mids and upper mids. I still love it for some weird reason but have this losing battle to try to find a headphone to make it sound like it does live.
Opeth is one of the few metal bands with great dynamics in the recordings.
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