[VanHai]

A big thank you to @zach915m for responding and getting me a replacement pair so quickly!

They look amazing in person. I'm not going to comment too much on the sound but it is pretty surprising how wide the soundstage are for a closed back. They also sound distinctly different from the Utopias which i think would make them a great complement pair going forward. I look forward to switching between the two for the next few weeks. Anyways i'm a happy customer, thank you for taking care of me Zach.

Awesome, very happy that you got your replacement so fast. My pair sounds way better after 20 hours of burning in, i bet that it will sound even better after 100 hours.

 

[g0ldl10n]

A big thank you to @zach915m for responding and getting me a replacement pair so quickly!

They look amazing in person. I'm not going to comment too much on the sound but it is pretty surprising how wide the soundstage are for a closed back. They also sound distinctly different from the Utopias which i think would make them a great complement pair going forward. I look forward to switching between the two for the next few weeks. Anyways i'm a happy customer, thank you for taking care of me Zach.

Very nice! Insanely quick replacement, wow! Awesome to see that, enjoy!

 

[oldmankensey]

Testing the AC out with guitar driven/heavy music and I really, really like it. Similar to the AO, guitars are so well represented on the AC. Full sounding, raw, great separation and just real. Been going back to the epic Blackwater Park album by Opeth (20th Anniversary Edition) and really enjoying how it's being represented.

Oh…this makes me want to grab an AC

 

[SckT]

So the Olivewood AC joined me today to form the current trio.
So far very happy with the sound after only a few hours' play, but I feel there is much more to come with more burn in time.

I notice that with the thin Caldera pads, my ears touch the inside of the cup (mesh protector in the centre). I don't have particularly large ears, but I don't think I've read anywhere that anyone mentioning about this before?

 

[LXMc]

I notice that with the thin Caldera pads, my ears touch the inside of the cup (mesh protector in the centre). I don't have particularly large ears, but I don't think I've read anywhere that anyone mentioning about this before?

This is a problem I have had with numerous headphones and it's so hard to get info on it because so few people seem to have the issue. I didn't think I had larger ears, but clearly larger than average, it's always the hard ridge of cartilage on the inner part of the ear for me, moreso on the right than left.

I sold my Meze 109 Pros because, despite liking their sound, the pads were just open to the metal grate driver cover and my ears would rub against that which drove me crazy. HD6XX I noticed they do as well but they actually have a thin piece of foam covering their driver and that does just enough to soften it. When I got my Auteur Classics, with the Auteur pads I still found if I wore them more than 30 minutes, those ridges on my ear would start to get sore from pressing against the driver cover. What I ended up doing with my Auteurs was a bit random...I got ZMFs suede 6XX pads on a whim, which are thicker than the stock, and I ended up using the foam 6XX backing in-between the Auteur driver housing and the pad backing. So my ears still touch, but there's just that little bit of padding there so I can wear them for hours comfortably. I also don't notice any sound difference with them (I'm sure someone with keener ears than mine could, but I don't).

Anyway, sorry for a bit of a ramble, but I appreciate you noting this because I was almost decided on the Atrium Closed as a second ZMF and upon realizing that the stock pads are the Caldera Thins and others like the Caldera Thicks aren't recommended for their tonality, it's really shifted my focus over to the VC and it's larger variety of [thicker] pads (this isn't the only reason, but it was an incredibly tight race in my mind and I think this is probably the deciding factor).

 

[zach915m]

Use a small piece of paracord to line the inside of the pad, under the foam and on top of the black liner mesh, you can use thinner to greater thickness to move the ear a little or a lot. Once you find the right thickness you'll forget it's there, my recommendation would be using the smaller stuff as that likely will do the trick.

 

[SckT]

This is a problem I have had with numerous headphones and it's so hard to get info on it because so few people seem to have the issue. I didn't think I had larger ears, but clearly larger than average, it's always the hard ridge of cartilage on the inner part of the ear for me, moreso on the right than left.

I sold my Meze 109 Pros because, despite liking their sound, the pads were just open to the metal grate driver cover and my ears would rub against that which drove me crazy. HD6XX I noticed they do as well but they actually have a thin piece of foam covering their driver and that does just enough to soften it. When I got my Auteur Classics, with the Auteur pads I still found if I wore them more than 30 minutes, those ridges on my ear would start to get sore from pressing against the driver cover. What I ended up doing with my Auteurs was a bit random...I got ZMFs suede 6XX pads on a whim, which are thicker than the stock, and I ended up using the foam 6XX backing in-between the Auteur driver housing and the pad backing. So my ears still touch, but there's just that little bit of padding there so I can wear them for hours comfortably. I also don't notice any sound difference with them (I'm sure someone with keener ears than mine could, but I don't).

Anyway, sorry for a bit of a ramble, but I appreciate you noting this because I was almost decided on the Atrium Closed as a second ZMF and upon realizing that the stock pads are the Caldera Thins and others like the Caldera Thicks aren't recommended for their tonality, it's really shifted my focus over to the VC and it's larger variety of [thicker] pads (this isn't the only reason, but it was an incredibly tight race in my mind and I think this is probably the deciding factor).

For me, I can feel that the ridge of my ears are touching but it's not painful.
It only means that I become conscious of wearing the headphones instead of being lost in the music.
If I pull the headphones slightly forward so the back of my ears rests on the inside of the thickest pad at the back, sometimes I can get away with not really feeling it.

 

[SckT]

Use a small piece of paracord to line the inside of the pad, under the foam and on top of the black liner mesh, you can use thinner to greater thickness to move the ear a little or a lot. Once you find the right thickness you'll forget it's there, my recommendation would be using the smaller stuff as that likely will do the trick.

Right, I get what you mean. I will see if I can work with that or something similar.

Thanks for jumping in for the advice, Zach.
Much appreciated.

 

[Sahaj]

Friday music recommendation to showcase the Atrium Closed - Wederkeer by Heidevolk. The Atrium Closed adds a weight to the music that is just satisfying to the ear. You could call it a bass shelf, but it's more than that. Male vocals are on display here and in some songs might sound a little less prominent than other ZMF cans (perhaps due to the bass?), but I find things to be perfectly balanced here. There's just enough going on imaging-wise on both sides, certain singers, certain instruments, that you can pick out and listen along to certain people.

It's impressive how much detail the AC pulls out of this song while adding so much heft to the music because while mixed well, it certainly isn't some audiophile binaural mix that you would expect to sound great on anything.

 

[Monsterzero]

This has nothing to do with the AC, but I had to share it somewhere, right?!

Michelle and I finally got to see Blackberry Smoke last night. I was able to score fourth row seats at a gorgeous and intimate 1930s former Warner Brothers movie theater in Torrington, CT.

BBS sounded amazing. Charlie Starr's voice was perfect, without a hint of strain, especially for a band that tours as extensively as BBS does. They played 21 songs and for 2 hours, 11 minutes.

This was my first live show in nearly five years when we saw Judas Priest. If you're not familiar with Blackberry Smoke, they are kind of a mix of the Allman Brothers,Georgia Satellites and the Marshall Tucker Band.

 

[Rollnrock]

This has nothing to do with the AC, but I had to share it somewhere, right?!

Michelle and I finally got to see Blackberry Smoke last night. I was able to score fourth row seats at a gorgeous and intimate 1930s former Warner Brothers movie theater in Torrington, CT.

BBS sounded amazing. Charlie Starr's voice was perfect, without a hint of strain, especially for a band that tours as extensively as BBS does. They played 21 songs and for 2 hours, 11 minutes.

This was my first live show in nearly five years when we saw Judas Priest. If you're not familiar with Blackberry Smoke, they are kind of a mix of the Allman Brothers,Georgia Satellites and the Marshall Tucker Band

I'm listening to this album, just for curoisity, I didn't know the group, and just started to tap my foot and move my head

Very good rock'n roll man!

 

[Monsterzero]

I'm listening to this album, just for curoisity, I didn't know the group, and just started to tap my foot and move my head

Very good rock'n roll man!

They're mostly a word of mouth band. Too country for rock radio and too rock for country radio.

Check out their album "The Whipoorwill"
It's their best album. Not a dud on there

 

[heliosphann]

AC has been getting overtime hours after these two tracks dropped this week:


Aphex Twin - Blackbox Life Recorder 21f



The Smile - Burning Hectic

 

[OnlySoMany]

Picked these Atrium closed up at canjam Chicago. You gotta love zmf, no one else is dropping art hifi like this

 

[OnlySoMany]

Also, if anyone is a purple fanatic, I saw these at the Chicago show. Might still be available if you message them.