[LanaBennett]

I want an upgrade to my HD650s. Make no mistake, it's not that I'm not satisfied with them. I'm going to keep them forever. Much preferred them to the HD600.

I love the bass, the warmth, and how forward and lush vocals sound. It just feels very enveloping, like a rich velvety hug if that makes sense.

I don't mind warm and darker sound signatures. Detail resolution doesn't have to be top notch Utopia level or anything like that. Sure, I was more increased detail and quality over the HD650 while still retaining the heart and soul of what makes a 650 a 650. Also, I do prefer open backs to closed backs so I am looking for an open back.

I am considering the ZMF Verite and Auteur. I hear the Auteur is more lush with vocals, but, also hear that the Verite is warm and has that quality I crave, too. Might be all the different pad options that lead people to draw different conclusions on those.

Thought that the Meze Empyrean would fit the bill but ultimately ended up returning it due to it being a bit muddy, bloomy, and vocals did not seem like the star of the show to me.

Thinking maybe one of the ZMFs would fit the bill for me but can't be too sure. Also wondering if the Meze Empyrean that I got was off due to the FR sounding a bit weird. Going to upgrade my amp and dac to something better so maybe improvements in my chain would fix those issues if I were to try it again.

Want something that slams and punches as hard as a 650 or a bit harder without compromising the whole FR and muddying it up.

For example, when I listened to the HD600 and 650, the 650 was the clear winner. I guess I like that bit of warmth while the rest of the FR remains fairly neutral with no weird treble spikes or fatigue up top.

Budget is around the price of a ZMF Verite or Auteur. I don't mind if detail retrieval is not on Utopia levels because I kind of want something to sink into my chair with and relax with. Highly detailed cans sort of make it hard to relax because all the fussy details and flaws in the music has me trying to find well recorded music that they will sound good on.

The LCDs are a tad heavy for me. I know that ZMFs are also heavy but I can deal with it because they're lighter than the LCDs and I can tolerate the LCDs, I'd just rather have something slightly more lightweight, which ZMFs are. Leaning towards the Auteur at this point due to how people describe it as a vocal focused headphone that some even call a direct upgrade to the 650s but have also heard that the right pads on a Verite can slam and be very warm and lush sounding, too.

Any help recommended.

 

[Monsterzero]

The closest headphone to what you are describing is indeed a ZMF,but not any that you mentioned. You should consider the Atticus or Aeolus. Both use the same driver. One is open,the other closed.


Midbass galore with a warm,musical sound. Pretty forgiving of poor recordings,which is where the Auteur and to a greater extent, the Verite open or closed,"fail".

I own currently or in the past all of the ZMF dynamic headphones except for the Eikon. All have great mids so you cant go wrong there. To be clear the Verite closed is the best headphone ive ever heard and would typically suggest you get that,but it can be pretty brutal on bad recordings.

 

[gimmeheadroom]

The LCD-2C is warm and romantic and cheap for how good it is. The bass slams. The vocals are not forward but they are still great for vocals. Benefit is you don't need much amp.

For the 300 ohm dynamics including the HD 650 you already have you're going to need a good amp to get the best out of them.

 

[techboy]

Your issue isn’t your 650. It’s your upstream gear.

650 only sounds like a mid range can with mid range gear. With higher end gear, you’ll hear it as a high end can.

Upgrade your upstream gear. There is no other headphone like 650/600.

 

[techboy]

I want an upgrade to my HD650s. Make no mistake, it's not that I'm not satisfied with them. I'm going to keep them forever. Much preferred them to the HD600.

I love the bass, the warmth, and how forward and lush vocals sound. It just feels very enveloping, like a rich velvety hug if that makes sense.

I don't mind warm and darker sound signatures. Detail resolution doesn't have to be top notch Utopia level or anything like that. Sure, I was more increased detail and quality over the HD650 while still retaining the heart and soul of what makes a 650 a 650. Also, I do prefer open backs to closed backs so I am looking for an open back.

I am considering the ZMF Verite and Auteur. I hear the Auteur is more lush with vocals, but, also hear that the Verite is warm and has that quality I crave, too. Might be all the different pad options that lead people to draw different conclusions on those.

Thought that the Meze Empyrean would fit the bill but ultimately ended up returning it due to it being a bit muddy, bloomy, and vocals did not seem like the star of the show to me.

Thinking maybe one of the ZMFs would fit the bill for me but can't be too sure. Also wondering if the Meze Empyrean that I got was off due to the FR sounding a bit weird. Going to upgrade my amp and dac to something better so maybe improvements in my chain would fix those issues if I were to try it again.

Want something that slams and punches as hard as a 650 or a bit harder without compromising the whole FR and muddying it up.

For example, when I listened to the HD600 and 650, the 650 was the clear winner. I guess I like that bit of warmth while the rest of the FR remains fairly neutral with no weird treble spikes or fatigue up top.

Budget is around the price of a ZMF Verite or Auteur. I don't mind if detail retrieval is not on Utopia levels because I kind of want something to sink into my chair with and relax with. Highly detailed cans sort of make it hard to relax because all the fussy details and flaws in the music has me trying to find well recorded music that they will sound good on.

The LCDs are a tad heavy for me. I know that ZMFs are also heavy but I can deal with it because they're lighter than the LCDs and I can tolerate the LCDs, I'd just rather have something slightly more lightweight, which ZMFs are. Leaning towards the Auteur at this point due to how people describe it as a vocal focused headphone that some even call a direct upgrade to the 650s but have also heard that the right pads on a Verite can slam and be very warm and lush sounding, too.

Any help recommended.

Auteur isn’t warm/dark. It’s more on the neutral side. Probably a bit brighter than 600.