[Makiah S]

Zach said in the video that an upgraded Auteur with the dampening system from the Atrium will be released in the future. I think that's @CaptainFantastic 's dilemma

That sounds like an outstanding idea! Years ago I spent some time with Auteur and even then it was hands down one of my favorites

 

[DeweyCH]

That sounds like an outstanding idea! Years ago I spent some time with Auteur and even then it was hands down one of my favorites

I foolishly decided recently to pare down to just 1 open-back dynamic and kept my Auteur over my VO. I REGRET that decision, but not because of the Auteur, just because I really love that VO I had. Plus you can see from my sig how well that paring down went.

 

[jgwtriode]

I don’t think the bubinga is getting aged copper, only stainless steal. The copper is for the aged cherry.

Well I can ask, it will be a while before I can do it anyway, since my budget is currently blown,

Happy listening,

jgwtriode

 

[whirlwind]

Video just went live
ZMF Atrium headphones the new TOTL

So well said Tyler.

As soon as these headphones start playing, it is the mid's that just grab you instantly.

I love the depth and height of the stage...the mids want to reach for the moon

Again, very well done video, you guys rock at these videos.

 

[CaptainFantastic]

Zach said in the video that an upgraded Auteur with the dampening system from the Atrium will be released in the future. I think that's @CaptainFantastic 's dilemma

And I think he said a slightly improved driver.

 

[TylersEclectic]

So well said Tyler.

As soon as these headphones start playing, it is the mid's that just grab you instantly.

I love the depth and height of the stage...the mids want to reach for the moon

Again, very well done video, you guys rock at these videos.

Such an addictive listen… loving these more an more! I rambled way too much and let my ZMF love shine a bit ha!

 

[paradoxper]

Atrium needs a run with Lichtenberg

 

[heliosphann]

Such an addictive listen… loving these more an more! I rambled way too much and let my ZMF love shine a bit ha!

The most import thing is that you didn't go full Zeos!

But seriously, nice review.

 

[zach915m]

that means we have to go to cam jam sg, just for this

Very true.

Hi zach915m , will the new Auteur Classic still be available with the Copper grills/rods? Thanks

Not sure yet, and even if the stock edition doesn't have it as an option, we always like doing LTD runs.

@zach915m Atrium Closed coming soon? Might pair well with my pendant. In the meantime I have my VC’s.

Hmmmmmmm.....................

Very similar to my ear to the Auteur. I have been listening pretty exclusively to the Atrium for the last week, and plan on doing a play-by-play side-by-side between it, the VC and the Auteur (and some other cans - Susvara, HE6SE, Rognir and HD8XX... like, all of them) tonight or over the weekend.

My first impression was it takes the warm, fun-to-listen aspects of the Aeolus, then layers on the mids of the Auteur, bumps the clarity to like 95% of the Beryllium drivers in VC/VO, and then says "Here, be enveloped in warm, detailed, engaging music."

This is a really good description!

Ah! Yes, I see how the “new” Auteur (when reintroduced) might be preferable to the original one.

We haven't figured out exactly what the logistics will be yet for the auteur VS auteur classic, as the driver on the classic is a new driver and the system is completely different, so likely the two headphones will be different enough so that owners who like the auteur may want to keep the sound the same and see if they like the classic better. That being said if there's a user replicable way that can be added or subtracted we will make sure you can keep that modularity for existing auteur owners, I just can't promise anything yet.

 

[whirlwind]

As always, the beauty matches the wonderful sound.

The aged cherry wood looks wonderful as it has gotten darker with time, it is beautiful , while being a bit subtle looking.

Then add the aged copper rods and grills and it becomes elegant.

 

[bpiotrow13]

Video just went live
ZMF Atrium headphones the new TOTL

Thanks for that, especially for comparison to VO. That part with showing on a chair is (absolutely seriously) meaningful

 

[soundchaos]

As always, the beauty matches the wonderful sound.

The aged cherry wood looks wonderful as it has gotten darker with time, it is beautiful , while being a bit subtle looking.

Then add the aged copper rods and grills and it becomes elegant.

Those are stunning! Will definitely be getting the aged option when I order

 

[jnak00]

I need to stop looking in this thread. My wallet and wife will kill me otherwise

 

[DeweyCH]

Picture on a beautiful New England spring day!

 

[jgwtriode]

ZMF Atrium: Initial Impressions (Part I)​

Fun Fact: For better context and perspective, up until relatively recently, the Atrium was known informally as the “Auteur 2.”

By now, you’ve seen @zach915m’s introduction to Atrium above, so there’s no need to re-hash that. We’ll soon be back with a deeper dive into Atrium’s development later, including detailed coverage of the new patent pending Atrium Damping System, and measurements as well.

Having said all that, I’ve been waiting almost two years to talk about Atrium, so let’s go!

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Associated Equipment​

• Qobuz/TIDAL via MacBook Pro
• Chord Hugo2
• Kimber Kable Silver Streak RCA
• McIntosh MHA200
• Kimber Kable Axios Cu Balanced

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Sound Quality​

If I had to un-pack and distill Atrium’s sound signature into a single word, that word would be analog. That will make much more sense by the time we get to the end of my impressions, but please do keep it in mind to help guide your understanding as we move forward.

NOTE: The following impressions are based on the default ear pad option, ZMF’s Universe Pads.

Sub-Bass & Bass​

Though not as seismic as that of the Auteur’s, the Atrium’s sub-bass is nonetheless thoroughly satisfying. Low-end extension is excellent, and the Atrium’s updated driver seems to exhibit both poise and control, affording us a deep and clean sub-bass response. There’s no hint of driver break-up in the low-frequency rumbles that punctuate the intro of The Crystal Method’s "Busy Child”… Nor does the sub-bass hit, that lands in the third measure of the bridge in Beck’s “Dark Places”, go by unnoticed, as it tends to do in typically “neutral” headphones.​

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The Atrium’s mid-bass response is smooth and velvety — fluid with a touch of warmth — and neither excessive nor anemic. Unlike many of the new flagships released in the past year, I found it engaging straight-out-of-the-box, with no compensatory EQ or bass boost needed. It sounds and feels right as-is.​

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With Thievery Corporation’s “Lebanese Blonde” that translates into a continuous and unrelenting bass line that is sultry, even sweltering at times, but never downright oppressive. With Marvin’s Gaye’s “Sexual Healing” that means true heartbeat-altering thumps, and not half-hearted thuds that sound dead on arrival. And as soon as its bass drop lands, Doja Cat’s “Say So” pushes you into its flirtatiously alluring groove, effortlessly.​

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Just remember that it’s not planar bass. So if that’s all you’ve ever known, or what you’ve long since grown accustomed to, it won’t be as textured as you’re used to. But overall, The Atrium’s low end is about as good as I’ve ever heard from a dynamic driver headphone.​

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Mid-Range​

Of all the tuning choices Zach Mehrbach made during Atrium’s development, there are two that I have become most enamored with. The first of which was his decision to unabashedly not cave in to current mid-range trends.​

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Atrium shuns the ubiquitous, but highly annoying, over-emphasis of upper mid-range (presence range) frequencies, that so much “neutral” gear has these days. In addition, it sounds remarkably linear throughout the entire mid-range - which is to say that lower-mids weren’t scooped out - granting vocals (and certain instruments) fullness and body, while preventing sibilance and keeping fatigue at bay.​

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I found Atrium’s mid-range presentation to be particularly agreeable for tracks from a wide range of genres, really anywhere vocal content is king… from singer-songwriter tracks like Father John Misty’s “To S.” and Rumer’s “P.F. Sloan”… to hip-hop and rap tracks like Stetsasonic’s “Talkin’ All That Jazz” and Killer Mike’s “Untitled (feat. Scar).”​

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Instrumentally, I appreciated Atrium’s mid-range for properly rendering the multitude of heavily synthesized sounds in Autechre’s “Montreal” - much of which resides primarily in the mid-range. And here’s a big one for me: Atrium preserved all of Ennio Morricone’s bittersweetness, while eschewing the shrillness of John Barry.​

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The upper mid-range is still present of course. The delicate cymbal work that makes Taylor Eigsti’s “Get Your Hopes Up” is not lost. The unavoidable muted sibilance from a closely-mic’d Karen Carpenter is retained in The Carpenters’s “Touch Me When We’re Dancing.” We’re certainly not being deprived of an upper mid-range. It’s just not hogging center stage like the audio equivalent of lens flare.​

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Speaking of sibilance, I was thrilled to find that two of my favorite tracks are now listenable without EQ: Ride’s “Twisterella”; and Sugar’s “If I Can’t Change Your Mind” (or really anything that Bob Mould has touched). In my opinion, both of those were produced poorly, with wince-inducing upper mid-range spikes, which the Atrium mitigated well.​

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Highs​

The Atrium’s highs extend out in what I call an even and easy taper - which is to say that they drift off into the ether very gradually. It’s a very natural ebb where the highs don’t sparkle and blind you like audiophile pixie dust, nor do they fall off a cliff plunging you into darkness.​

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Please note that, if you have any appreciable high-frequency hearing loss, the Atrium is not for you. You’re going to perceive its highs and top end as being dark and rolled-off. For example, if you’re smitten with the high-frequency response of Sennheiser’s HD 800, Focal’s Utopia, or any number of Fostex/Denon flagships, then the Atrium is not the droid you’re looking for. But if your high-frequency hearing is relatively intact, Atrium will sound just right to you.​

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Detail & Resolution​

First and foremost, I am a detailhead. I began my journey with the trope of hearing (and not being able to unhear) details in music that I’d never noticed before. And that particular facet has been the primary high that I’ve chased for well over a decade. It’s why I like stats in general, and it’s why Audeze’s LCD-5 is my current reference.​

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That said… no, the Atrium is not as resolving as I might personally prefer. Don’t get me wrong, it’s fine. I can still hear the drum kit being set up in the background of Cameron Graves’s “Adam & Eve”. It’s just not obvious and in-my-face, and thus not the particular flavor of coloration that triggers those eargasms for me.​

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Staging & Imaging​

Now we get to the second facet of Zach’s Atrium tuning, with which I’ve become enamored, soundstage. In the days ahead, as more impressions and reviews come out, you’re going to be hearing quite a bit about Atrium’s staging - and for good reason, because it’s to die for.​

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It’s not preternaturally wide, like that of Sennheiser’s HD 800 - but that’s okay because nothing is, not even real life. Nor is it psychoacoustically deep like certain Ultrasone models can be (assuming you’re a part of the human population for which S-Logic has an audible effect). What it is, at least to my ears, is undeniably expansive and spherical.​

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Not only is it gorgeously wide laterally-speaking, but there’s fantastic depth moving forward, and even a fair amount of rear distance being conveyed. And to top it all off, those distances were uncannily proportional for me. It wasn’t so much of a soundscape before me, as a sound sphere that I resided within.​

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Sense of scale was decidedly out-of-head and grand with the NY Philharmonic’s rendition of J.S. Bach’s Mass in B Minor (BWV 232: IV), Alan Gilbert conducting. And I was thrilled to hear the audience hooting behind and above me with “I Am A Man Of Constant Sorrow (Live)” by Alison Krauss & Union Station.​

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Those two tracks do a particularly brilliant job of illustrating Atrium’s staging, but in truth, there were many tracks that benefitted, even highly-produced studio recordings. I’ll touch upon those impressions in a separate follow-up, as they are highly subjective and (in all probability) very psychoacoustically personalized to me.​

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Ear Pad Options​

As many ZMF headphone owners can attest, their headphones can undergo dramatic sound characteristic changes, depending on which pads one has opted for. In addition to ZMF’s Universe Pads, which came pre-installed on the Atrium as a default option, I was also fortunate enough to try their Auteur pads and their Be2 pads with the Atrium.

Auteur Pads:​

While I’ve liked Auteur pads in the past, that was when they were seated on Auteurs. On Atrium, I’m forced to confess that, I found them somewhat less enjoyable.​

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The Auteur pads rolled-off extension at both ends of Atrium’s frequency response, with the majority of that roll-off being at the top, which had the net effect of giving the Atrium a significantly darker tone. In addition, the Auteur pads reduced the overall soundstage, though curiously, elements imaged wider within that diminished stage, which made a few tracks sound as if staging was expanded.​

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As I stated before, I was personally not a fan of these changes. However, should you find the Universe pads not you your liking, preferring a darker and more intimate presentation, then the Auteur pads are what you’re looking for.​

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Be2 Pads:​

ZMF’s Be2 pads are quite different altogether. Generally-speaking, they make Atrium’s frequency response sound more linear, more neutral, and much more akin to that of a studio-monitor’s response curve.​

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There seems to be small increase in low-end response, though this is so low as to be more felt than heard. At the same time, there is a non-trivial increase in upper-mid-range and high frequency response — such that Atrium sounds far more energetic in the presence range, and even offers up sparkly highs where it didn’t before.​

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I can see how many a traditional audiophile would prefer this over the Universe pads… but I didn’t. For me, the Be2 pads made the Atrium a less-relaxing listening experience, even a bit shouty at times, and just plain gave me a sense of agita.​

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To be continued…​

Great review thanks