[keanex]

 
Pros: Sturdy build quality, customizable sound, imaging quality, control and texture of the midbass, incredibly euphoric and well textured midrange.
Cons: Weight, comfort.
Tonal Balance: Bass heavy to neutral.
Style: Closed Circumaural
Listening Set-Up: Musicbee (WASAPI/FLAC) -> Matrix HPA-3U
Cost at Time of Review: Starts at $700
 

Reviewing Process

I’ve had the Blackwood for a bit over a month and during this time I’ve exclusively used them for desktop listening. I’ve primarily used them for critical and noncritical music listening, though some I’ve spent some time playing Borderlands with them. During this time I feel that I’ve become comfortable enough with the sound to share my opinion, but remember that this is just my opinion. I recommend demoing a product when available as nothing trumps experience.
 
Thanks to Zach at ZMF for the review loaner.
 

Build & Fit

Build
The Blackwood are a highly modified Fostex T50RP that feature skillfully crafted African Blackwood cups, carefully stitched cowskin pads and the plush ZMF pilot pad. The construction looks and feels top notch in every aspect - no creaks or causes for concern when handled and the overall - overall a high-end feel to the Blackwood. I have one quip and it stems from the unsmooth headband adjustment system, though it isn’t a prolonged issue as headbands are usually “set and forget”. Other than that I have no complaints thus far, it’s clear that Zach puts pride into his work.
 
Comfort
The African Blackwood used on the cups are stunning to look at, but unfortunately they add quite a bit of weight in conjunction with the planar drivers of the T50rp. Downward force can be a bit much at times even with the plush pilot pad, I find myself taking short breaks during extended listening sessions due to the weight. Clamping force is on the light side, not feeling secure as my HD600 despite having thick and plush leather pads. The pads are comfortable though and I have no seal issues. In-fact the isolation is rather great on the Blackwood, though the inefficiency of the drivers makes them less than ideal to lug around. The Blackwood are best suited for home listening.
 

Sound Quality

Disclaimer
The review will be written from the perspective of the Blackwood stock, with all bass ports open. Bass port sections will be below the main sound quality portion.
 
TLR
The Blackwood are a warm, detailed and highly euphoric headphone that provides a highly engrossing experience with every genre that I’ve thrown it’s way. Truly a pleasurable experience through and through from Fleetwood Mac to Daft Punk, from Rage Against the Machine to Madonna.
 
Bass
Using the Bass Shaker Test the Blackwood are capable of digging incredibly deep, with a focus on the sub-bass. In real world listening I find the lows to be emphasized to a modest amount which gives the Blackwood an overall warm and full tone. The sub-bass digs incredibly deep, as noted in the bass shaker test, adding a satisfying rumble in bass heavy electronic tunes. Big sub-bass presence tends to add a bit of sluggishness and there’s some here. The Blackwood performs acceptably with James Blake’s Limit to Your Love, sounding mildly bloated but controlled enough for separation between the quick bass notes.
 
The midbass is punchy, controlled, and extremely well textured which adds a lively low-end presence to rock and electronic tracks alike. Rage Against the Machine’s track Take the Power Back highlights just how well the Blackwood are at replicating the texture and liveliness of the bass guitar and kick drum. Warmer than neutral, but energetic and lively, the midbass is incredibly satisfying.
 
The low end as a whole provides a lot of energy without being overbearing and I am thoroughly enjoying Daft Punk’s album Discovery with these on my head right now. Compared to it’s sibling the Vibro, the Blackwood don’t have as much bass presence, but has a tighter and punchier bass response.
 
Mids & Highs
The midrange is an absolute pleasure to my ears. The tonal balance leans warm and full without midbass bleed or a sense of sluggishness, giving a sultry and euphoric tone throughout. Detail retrieval is top notch while simultaneously being forgiving to poor recordings. The bane of my musical existence is the quality of Lana Del Rey’s recordings and something with Zach’s tuning smooths out the grain present, seemingly enhancing the quality of the recording. This is something that I also noticed when listening to Lana through the Vibro and if anyone has any idea why this might be, I would love to hear your thoughts. Lastly the texture is spot on, one listen to Take the Power Back and I had chills as it felt as if I could feel the pick scraping along the electric guitar's strings. The midrange is highly engrossing and I’m not afraid to admit that I am in love with how the midrange is tuned.
 
It’s not all roses though, there is a mild peak in the upper midrange that adds a bit of sibilance and tizz to bright leaning recordings. Not razor sharp, but the amount of sibilance heard on Glory Box from Portishead is certainly increased compared to the HD600. They aren’t as bright or shouty as the Vibro though, Zach has cleaned that aspect up a bit.
 
The treble extends fully and smoothly with no audible grain. The treble is present and balanced nicely with the midrange, though air isn’t present. This is expected with a closed headphone that isolates as well as these do though.

Presentation

Soundstage width and depth are a bit more spacious than the average closed headphone, thanks in part to the huge pads, while having a bit more space than the Vibro. Imaging is the Blackwood’s strength in the soundstage, being highly accurate with games and music alike. I find a good sense of left and right, near and far and good incremental positioning in between. Instrument separation is equally fantastic, opening up space within the intimate soundstage. The combination of the imaging accuracy and instrument seperation keep the soundstage from sounding congested. There’s no mistake that these are closed headphones, though I hear no resonance or hollowness that headphones can fall victim to when underdamped.
 
Bass Port Options
Preface
Since it’s a bit difficult to go back and forth in a timely manner due to the nature of inserting and removing the stoppers I can not easily go back and forth between tunings. The thoughts expressed here are done by memory and could be a consequence of expectation bias. I am sharing these thoughts in good faith though and hope they are helpful.
 
One Port Closed
The overall sound is full and warm, though less ballsy in the sub-bass than with all ports opened. The midrange still sounds lush but sounds less engaging than all ports opened as well. The sound is more balanced, while losing some of the euphoric qualities that made me fall in love with the stock sound. Let’s just say that Run the Jewels isn’t banging quite as hard now.
 
Two Ports Closed
Much more balanced with a hint of warmth throughout, reminiscent of a beefier sounding HD600 in tonality. Clean and punchy bass that extends all the way down still, cleaner than with all ports open and perhaps quicker now as well. Unfortunately the midrange has a bit of grain showing through, and isn’t as clean as the HD600. Sibilance is also shown, though a step down from the Vibro. Imaging is also cleaned up as is instrument separation. Width sounds a touch larger, but depth has not changed. Overall a tuning that provides a powerful bass response while sounding fairly balanced throughout.
 
Three Ports Closed
Much like one port closed I’m not a huge fan of this tuning. The sub-bass clearly shows further improvement in sub-bass control and speed, but the bass seems to have lost its fullness. Clarity throughout seems increased, but the tone of the midrange sounds plasticy throughout and the overall sound comes off thin and wimpy after everything before it. Soundstage cohesion is up, as is midrange clarity, but the euphoria is all gone for me. Compared to the HD600 it’s closest in tonality, but sounds thin in comparison.
 

Conclusion

As of now the Blackwood are my closed headphone end-game. Tonally they reminded me a lot of the Audeze LCD-X that I demoed, and with the bass ports closed they have a tonal balanced not too far off from the Sennheiser HD600. I admit that I instantly fell in love with them from first listen, they’re one of the first headphones that I’ve listened to in awhile (other than the Vibro) that made me excited to come home and listen to old favorites as if I were hearing them for the first time. They’re not as resolving as the HD800, nor are they as comfortable as a DT770, and they have a peak in the upper midrange, but boy are they fun to listen to music with.
 
Hats off to Zach for another wonderful headphone.