Ive heard or owned all of the ZMF dynamic headphones, except for the Eikon. For metal I love the VC as well as the Auteur.
The Atticus has too much decay and a substantial mid bass hump that gets in the way of faster metal. Just my .02
The Verite Closed (with the Universe hybrid pads) are really really good for metal. I have never heard the Auteur, but I agree with you about the Atticus. I prefer the Aeolus (with the Universe suede pads) over the Atticus.
Wow! They're well known in Russia under "Laconic" brand. Actually, I personally for long own their TOTL amplifier Laconic Night Blues NB-3A - for Grado one of the best (especially with carefully selected tubes). Also very, very good for old rock with i.e. Denon D7000. Not much experience on metal with it, but considering situation, should give it a try )
Wow! They're well known in Russia under "Laconic" brand. Actually, I personally for long own their TOTL amplifier Laconic Night Blues NB-3A - for Grado one of the best (especially with carefully selected tubes). Also very, very good for old rock with i.e. Denon D7000. Not much experience on metal with it, but considering situation, should give it a try )
Yes, Zampotech is also the creator of the EC ZDT JR if I'm not mistaken? From what I have read so far, the SW51+ is one of the best tube amps under $1000 for the HD6XX and the ZMF headphones.
I was listening to my Hemp more last night and continue to enjoy it. I had a few beers, so I didn't feel my impressions would have been worth posting.
I do wonder whether my Liquid Spark is holding them back (and to a lesser extent, my Modius' warm se output). The next upgrade, if I don't want to go down the DAC rabbit hole - and I know that I don't - would be to upgrade the amp to a Liquid Platinum or a Jotunheim 2. I'd consider the Lyr 3, but since it's only SE, and I know the Modius SE output is a bit (maybe more?) inferior, I'd probably feel the urge to upgrade that as well.
I know @YtseJamer really likes the Hemp/LS synergy, so I'm trying to just enjoy it while I wait for a good deal one of those balanced amps in the for sale forum.
I was listening to my Hemp more last night and continue to enjoy it. I had a few beers, so I didn't feel my impressions would have been worth posting.
I do wonder whether my Liquid Spark is holding them back (and to a lesser extent, my Modius' warm se output). The next upgrade, if I don't want to go down the DAC rabbit hole - and I know that I don't - would be to upgrade the amp to a Liquid Platinum or a Jotunheim 2. I'd consider the Lyr 3, but since it's only SE, and I know the Modius SE output is a bit (maybe more?) inferior, I'd probably feel the urge to upgrade that as well.
I know @YtseJamer really likes the Hemp/LS synergy, so I'm trying to just enjoy it while I wait for a good deal one of those balanced amps in the for sale forum.
Yeah, it's not a good idea to post impressions about headphones after a few beers lol.
I sold the Liquid Spark and now I'm using the Liquid Platinum with the Hemp (with the Bifrost 2) and the sound is great, but it's bit of a pain to use the LP with low impedance headphones because of the high gain. (I don't have an attenuator)
I also ordered the new Jotunheim 2 a couple of weeks ago (still waiting for the tracking number grrr), so if you want, I can let you know soon if it's a good amp for the Hemp.
Yeah, it's not a good idea to post impressions about headphones after a few beers lol.
I sold the Liquid Spark and now I'm using the Liquid Platinum with the Hemp (with the Bifrost 2) and the sound is great, but it's bit of a pain to use the LP with low impedance headphones because of the high gain. (I don't have an attenuator)
I also ordered the new Jotunheim 2 a couple of weeks ago (still waiting for the tracking number grrr), so if you want, I can let you know soon if it's a good amp for the Hemp.
The Verite Closed (with the Universe hybrid pads) are really really good for metal. I have never heard the Auteur, but I agree with you about the Atticus. I prefer the Aeolus (with the Universe suede pads) over the Atticus.
I actually loved the Atticus for metal and continue to kick myself for having sold them when I was trying to fund the Verite.
I suppose it depends on tastes; there's definitely a softer smearing of the sound with the Atticus and Aeolus vs the Verite/Auteur/Eikon, but I find they really beef up a lot of the black metal I'm into as well as make most low tuned doom stuff absolutely crushing. I did think the VO killed it at more technical focused metal, though I'm not a huge death guy.
I actually loved the Atticus for metal and continue to kick myself for having sold them when I was trying to fund the Verite.
I suppose it depends on tastes; there's definitely a softer smearing of the sound with the Atticus and Aeolus vs the Verite/Auteur/Eikon, but I find they really beef up a lot of the black metal I'm into as well as make most low tuned doom stuff absolutely crushing. I did think the VO killed it at more technical focused metal, though I'm not a huge death guy.
BTW, I'm not saying that the Atticus are not good for Metal. I also miss my pair of Atticus sometimes, but I thought they were redundant after getting the Aeolus.
I actually loved the Atticus for metal and continue to kick myself for having sold them when I was trying to fund the Verite.
I suppose it depends on tastes; there's definitely a softer smearing of the sound with the Atticus and Aeolus vs the Verite/Auteur/Eikon, but I find they really beef up a lot of the black metal I'm into as well as make most low tuned doom stuff absolutely crushing. I did think the VO killed it at more technical focused metal, though I'm not a huge death guy.
A matter of taste for sure, I mostly listen to metal and I perceived the Aeolus to be too "congested" for my taste, I'm sure that's the "softer smearing" you're talking about. I felt it took the edge off the music too much and made it too "bloomy". In hindsight I should probably have given it more time with the Verite pads instead of the stock pads, but I don't think it would have changed the outcome.
I want a certain "bite" in my metal, but there also needs to be some forgiving qualities considering the production standards of many metal records. I've only had the Auteur for a day, but I can already say it's way more up my alley.
A matter of taste for sure, I mostly listen to metal and I perceived the Aeolus to be too "congested" for my taste, I'm sure that's the "softer smearing" you're talking about. I felt it took the edge off the music too much and made it too "bloomy". In hindsight I should probably have given it more time with the Verite pads instead of the stock pads, but I don't think it would have changed the outcome.
I want a certain "bite" in my metal, but there also needs to be some forgiving qualities considering the production standards of many metal records. I've only had the Auteur for a day, but I can already say it's way more up my alley.
Yeah, I can see where the Aeolus and Atticus could be congested with certain genres. And that sounds better than smearing, I suppose
But for sure, really depends on your go-to's. So much of what I listen to is poorly recorded, which I find the Atticus/Aeolus cover up beautifully. I thought the Verite did a better job for super tight/crisp and decently recorded stuff, whereas the Atticus/Aeolus are so good for thick heavy/dense doom and for adding body to some thin black metal stuff. I just happen to listen to that stuff with a lot more frequency.
I loved the Auteur when I owned it as well, and at the time felt like it went with everything. I've owned every other ZMF set aside from the VC since then though, so not sure how I'd feel about them now.
Basically the short version for me personally is: if it has guitars, it probably sounds best on ZMF's.
A matter of taste for sure, I mostly listen to metal and I perceived the Aeolus to be too "congested" for my taste, I'm sure that's the "softer smearing" you're talking about. I felt it took the edge off the music too much and made it too "bloomy". In hindsight I should probably have given it more time with the Verite pads instead of the stock pads, but I don't think it would have changed the outcome.
I want a certain "bite" in my metal, but there also needs to be some forgiving qualities considering the production standards of many metal records. I've only had the Auteur for a day, but I can already say it's way more up my alley.
I'm not a fan of the Aeolus with the stock pads, and honestly I couldn't be happier since I replaced the stock pads with the Universe Suede pads. To my ears, the Aeolus (with the Universe Suede pads) sound like the HD6XX on steroids. What do you think of the Auteur so far?
I'm leaning towards the Jot 2 for this added flexibility.
I have a pair of FiiO FH7 I'm checking out, and my Liquid Spark on low gain is almost too much power. Anything past 9 o'clock is too much. I don't have a portable dac or dap anymore, so I have limited options here, haha.
The Hemp is also sensitive, so much more power would be overkill.
Hi! I own a grado SR80e and a Philips x1s and would like to buy an upgrade headphone. I listen mostly to thrash metal but also sometimes to Hard Rock and heavy metal . I dont have a powerfull amp, so would need something that is not hard to drive. I have a hiby fd1 and a shanling up4 and a budget neoteck amp . Would like to upgrade only the headphone and not the dac/amp. Any suggestions around max. 400$? Thx
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