ZMF Atrium Closed

[NiGHTS4EVA]

Been meaning to post a picture of these beautiful walnut ACs. They look even more awesome in the light like this! Looking forward to comparing them to the stabilized maple version set, sound-wise, when they arrive!

The more I see Walnut the more I like it. Nice cable matching going on there!

 

[AudioDuck]

Been meaning to post a picture of these beautiful walnut ACs. They look even more awesome in the light like this! Looking forward to comparing them to the stabilized maple version set, sound-wise, when they arrive!

That is a very, very classy pairing aesthetically. Congratulations!

 

[AcousticMatt]

That is a very, very classy pairing aesthetically. Congratulations!

Hey thanks! Pretty stoked on it.

The more I see Walnut the more I like it. Nice cable matching going on there!

That's all ZMF! The 2k copper cable with the color matching matches so well with the walnut look. Do have to say, too, that the sound of the copper cable was never to my preference over the silver/copper mix, but recently I've really been loving the sound of it with the AC and Caldera.

 

[ckhirnigs113]

That's all ZMF! The 2k copper cable with the color matching matches so well with the walnut look. Do have to say, too, that the sound of the copper cable was never to my preference over the silver/copper mix, but recently I've really been loving the sound of it with the AC and Caldera.

I've also been using a 2K Copper with my AC with no complaints. I have a Verite Silver cable as well, but purely based on cosmetics I always use that one with my Meze Elite.

Here are a few glamour shots with the 2K cable visible. I’m always happy to have an excuse to post more pictures of my beauties!

 

[ctaxxxx]

I changed back to the lambskin Caldera pads tonight and I don’t find them too bass heavy anymore. Maybe the headphones have burned in some more or my brain has adjusted. In any case, highly enjoyable headphones.

You got me curious, so I swapped back to stock and now I'm feeling the same. Sounds really nice with the Mullard tubes I've got here. AC and Bokeh is satisfying all my bass needs.

 

[sp33ls]

When I first received my AC at launch, I tried the suede pads and definitely understood, but not long after went back to the lambskins and haven't looked back.

This is the same behavior I've experienced with almost every new ZMF headphone... I start with stock, swap to something that's usually tames things down, and then ultimately end up back at the stock pad.
And, break-in always takes longer than I expect... Just a few posts ago, I stated that my favorite for the VO was the Be2 lambs, but I've since gone back to the stock Uni pads and prefer them now.

My take: break-in is very real with ZMF's dynamic drivers, it's a roller-coaster ride, and your favorite pads may very well change once or twice by the time it is all said and done.

Recently had to downsize my collection and part with my lovely AO due to preferring the VO, but these Olive AC's aren't going anywhere.

The AC is an instant classic and, IMHO, belongs in the closed-back hall of fame right alongside the Sony R10.

 

[ckhirnigs113]

I made it a week and have finally started pad-rolling my AC. I was really growing to like the stock Lambskin Caldera Thins as the headphones burned in, but I wanted to see what the other pads had to offer.

I tried the Caldera Suedes first but found, for me and in my setup, they gave up too much bass vs the stock pads. I want to keep the bombastic quality of the AC in contrast to the more even-handed sound of my Meze Elite with Angled Alcantara pads. These were pretty comfortable, but not enough to tempt me to switch from the stock pads.

Next I tried the Bokeh Suedes and they were quite a bit more difficult to get on. I had to really stretch them a bit before they would fit. These brought the bass back up to a level that keeps the essence of the AC intact. The bass isn’t quite as strong as the stock pads though. I don’t love the comfort with my big ears, but I can manage.

Next up was the Auteur Suede solid pads. These were by far the most comfortable for my ears. Sadly I didn’t love the sound. I missed the more open sound of the perforated Caldera/Bokeh pads. They also didn’t take away quite enough bass to make me consider them over the stock pads unless comfort was the top priority.

I didn’t spend too much time with these alternative pads, so I may change my opinions later on. Right now I’ve got the Bokeh Suedes mounted, and they sound great. The mild bass attenuation is just about perfect for what I was trying to achieve vs the stock lambskins. I find the stock pads more comfortable, so I might go back and forth between these two for a while.

I could see someone really liking the Caldera Suedes if they want to tame a bass-heavy setup or if they just prefer a more balanced frequency response. I have my Elite for those times when I crave more balance. The AC with stock pads or Bokeh Suedes is just plain fun, so that’s what I’m leaning towards.

 

[Toonartist]

I made it a week and have finally started pad-rolling my AC. I was really growing to like the stock Lambskin Caldera Thins as the headphones burned in, but I wanted to see what the other pads had to offer.

I tried the Caldera Suedes first but found, for me and in my setup, they gave up too much bass vs the stock pads. I want to keep the bombastic quality of the AC in contrast to the more even-handed sound of my Meze Elite with Angled Alcantara pads. These were pretty comfortable, but not enough to tempt me to switch from the stock pads.

Next I tried the Bokeh Suedes and they were quite a bit more difficult to get on. I had to really stretch them a bit before they would fit. These brought the bass back up to a level that keeps the essence of the AC intact. The bass isn’t quite as strong as the stock pads though. I don’t love the comfort with my big ears, but I can manage.

Next up was the Auteur Suede solid pads. These were by far the most comfortable for my ears. Sadly I didn’t love the sound. I missed the more open sound of the perforated Caldera/Bokeh pads. They also didn’t take away quite enough bass to make me consider them over the stock pads unless comfort was the top priority.

I didn’t spend too much time with these alternative pads, so I may change my opinions later on. Right now I’ve got the Bokeh Suedes mounted, and they sound great. The mild bass attenuation is just about perfect for what I was trying to achieve vs the stock lambskins. I find the stock pads more comfortable, so I might go back and forth between these two for a while.

I could see someone really liking the Caldera Suedes if they want to tame a bass-heavy setup or if they just prefer a more balanced frequency response. I have my Elite for those times when I crave more balance. The AC with stock pads or Bokeh Suedes is just plain fun, so that’s what I’m leaning towards.

I agree, if I want more balance and big staging etc I go with the Elites. AC I love the fun of the added deep bass. The big air and soundstage of the Aegis I've been leaning towards the Auteur Suede solids at the moment but I can't wait to hear the Bokeh pads when they become available!! Cheers

 

[Kevintj604]

I made it a week and have finally started pad-rolling my AC. I was really growing to like the stock Lambskin Caldera Thins as the headphones burned in, but I wanted to see what the other pads had to offer.

I tried the Caldera Suedes first but found, for me and in my setup, they gave up too much bass vs the stock pads. I want to keep the bombastic quality of the AC in contrast to the more even-handed sound of my Meze Elite with Angled Alcantara pads. These were pretty comfortable, but not enough to tempt me to switch from the stock pads.

Next I tried the Bokeh Suedes and they were quite a bit more difficult to get on. I had to really stretch them a bit before they would fit. These brought the bass back up to a level that keeps the essence of the AC intact. The bass isn’t quite as strong as the stock pads though. I don’t love the comfort with my big ears, but I can manage.

Next up was the Auteur Suede solid pads. These were by far the most comfortable for my ears. Sadly I didn’t love the sound. I missed the more open sound of the perforated Caldera/Bokeh pads. They also didn’t take away quite enough bass to make me consider them over the stock pads unless comfort was the top priority.

I didn’t spend too much time with these alternative pads, so I may change my opinions later on. Right now I’ve got the Bokeh Suedes mounted, and they sound great. The mild bass attenuation is just about perfect for what I was trying to achieve vs the stock lambskins. I find the stock pads more comfortable, so I might go back and forth between these two for a while.

I could see someone really liking the Caldera Suedes if they want to tame a bass-heavy setup or if they just prefer a more balanced frequency response. I have my Elite for those times when I crave more balance. The AC with stock pads or Bokeh Suedes is just plain fun, so that’s what I’m leaning towards.

I've had a similar journey but my preferences have leaned toward the Caldera Suedes. I vastly prefer them over both the Caldera Lambskin and Auteur Hybrid. The Auteur Hybrid applies a hint of a cavernous timbre. It kind've reminds me a bit like the HD820's timbre but not as extreme.

The Caldera Suedes push the FR a bit more towards harmon and I absolutely love that they maintain all of the treble detail/sparkle and still have plenty of sub and mid bass.

 

[unfitstew]

I've had a similar journey but my preferences have leaned toward the Caldera Suedes. I vastly prefer them over both the Caldera Lambskin and Auteur Hybrid. The Auteur Hybrid applies a hint of a cavernous timbre. It kind've reminds me a bit like the HD820's timbre but not as extreme.

The Caldera Suedes push the FR a bit more towards harmon and I absolutely love that they maintain all of the treble detail/sparkle and still have plenty of sub and mid bass.

I will need to try the Caldera Suede pads again once I get my Redwood Burl AC. I remember it lowering the bass (which is fine with me as AC has a lot of bass), increase the upper mids a bit, but increased the lower treble (which I didn't like).

 

[Kevintj604]

I will need to try the Caldera Suede pads again once I get my Redwood Burl AC. I remember it lowering the bass (which is fine with me as AC has a lot of bass), increase the upper mids a bit, but increased the lower treble (which I didn't like).

It really depends on my source chain. On the HA-3A the treble is quite fatiguing but I prefer the AC on the Questyle. The CMA Fifteen synergises nicer with these than any of my other headphones. It's a perfect synergy pairing.

I really like the HA-3A with all of my planar's funny enough. Both of my HiFiMan's as well as the Caldera sound phenomenal on it.

 

[TommehHiFi]

It really depends on my source chain.

Agreed for the Caldera Suedes. So far I can only use my AC with Caldera Suedes when using my xDuoo-TA 30 as a tube DAC with warm NOS tubes. Otherwise I can't handle the treble spice at this point with limited brain/driver burn in. Right now I'm using lambskin universe solids I had lying around for the exagerrated bass for variety in my collection but it def takes a hit in "air" and timbre I think many could find unacceptable.

 

[unfitstew]

It really depends on my source chain. On the HA-3A the treble is quite fatiguing but I prefer the AC on the Questyle. The CMA Fifteen synergises nicer with these than any of my other headphones. It's a perfect synergy pairing.

I really like the HA-3A with all of my planar's funny enough. Both of my HiFiMan's as well as the Caldera sound phenomenal on it.

Yeah I have a Ferrum Oor now that I sold my HM1. Will have to try the Caldera suedes on it.

 

[ckhirnigs113]

When I first received my AC at launch, I tried the suede pads and definitely understood, but not long after went back to the lambskins and haven't looked back.

This is the same behavior I've experienced with almost every new ZMF headphone... I start with stock, swap to something that's usually tames things down, and then ultimately end up back at the stock pad.

My take: break-in is very real with ZMF's dynamic drivers, it's a roller-coaster ride, and your favorite pads may very well change once or twice by the time it is all said and done.

Looks my experience mirrored yours exactly. I spent a week with the stock lambskin pads before trying the other 3 types of of pads I bought with the headphones. Earlier this week, I thought I had settled on the Bokeh Suedes because they scaled back the bass just a hair from the stock lambskins, which I thought I wanted at the time.

After a few more days of burn-in I’m back to the stock lambskins again. The bass seems to have settled in to the perfect amount for my preferences, when it was just a little too much even a few days ago. On top of that, the lambskins are more comfortable to me.

I think AC owners should be sure to wait to make a final decision on pads until after at least 100+ hours of burn-in on the drivers. I’m glad I took the time to try the stock pads again even after I thought my mind was made up. Thanks for posting your experience @sp33ls. It sure helped me out!

 

[ckhirnigs113]

Hate to reply to myself, but it seems I’ve changed my mind yet again on pads for the AC. At this point I may just be confusing potential owners of the headphones, but I still thought I’d post my experience.

Last week I found myself back with the stock Lambskin Caldera Thin pads after initially settling on the Bokeh Suedes. After my AC arrived, I neglected my Meze Elite pretty much completely. Two weeks passed and I finally did a few back-to-back comparisons between the two headphones. Turns out the bass level was too much for me with the stock pads after hearing the much clearer bass of the Elite (with Angled Alcantara pads).

I decided to switch to the Caldera Suedes, which I at first thought lowered the bass level too much. In direct comparison to the Elite, the Caldera Suedes still offer a more bass-heavy presentation, though not as extreme as the stock pads. I was afraid the AC with Caldera Suedes wouldn’t be enough of a contrast to my Elite, so I overlooked them as a good option at first. Now I am happily using them and enjoying the slightly more refined bass that is a bit more articulate than the stock pads.

All of these impressions are with my specific setup, music selections, and ears, so please take it all with a grain of salt! I’m obviously the type that has trouble making up my mind. Luckily ZMF headphones offer the ability to substantially change the sound with all the different pad options, so I can always switch when the mood strikes.