[zach915m]

I’m curious what percentage of ZMF buyers change pads?

Seems like you’d have to buy them all to know which sounded best to any given listener. The complexity of the combinations feels daunting, if you account for pad options, headphone, music genre and mood, as indicated above.

Is there a pad kit that you can request to try before you buy? That would be the best way to know which pads to purchase in addition to the defaults.

There's typically 2/3 pad types per headphone that are recommended and most users have a specific type they like the most, like Be2 for example. Then one set of lambskin and a hybrid or suede version are good to have.

 

[goldwerger]

I’m curious what percentage of ZMF buyers change pads?

Seems like you’d have to buy them all to know which sounded best to any given listener. The complexity of the combinations feels daunting, if you account for pad options, headphone, music genre and mood, as indicated above.

Is there a pad kit that you can request to try before you buy? That would be the best way to know which pads to purchase in addition to the defaults.

the second chart on this page, where you can select the model right below it, will show the relative profile of each pad per that model:

https://www.zmfheadphones.com/zmfpads

 

[Roasty]

for the Cocobolo atrium.. what are the chances of getting a set that look relatively similar to the pics on the zmf website? ie deep reddish brown with nice grain patterns. has anyone received a set as such?

I know the website pics are taken with nice lighting and in a proper setting, and I'm keen to pull the trigger, but just wanna keep my expectations in check.

 

[zach915m]

for the Cocobolo atrium.. what are the chances of getting a set that look relatively similar to the pics on the zmf website? ie deep reddish brown with nice grain patterns. has anyone received a set as such?

I know the website pics are taken with nice lighting and in a proper setting, and I'm keen to pull the trigger, but just wanna keep my expectations in check.

The chances are good if you leave notes at checkout. Do be advised that we are cutting into new slabs of cocobolo right now though and there will be variance. Also, if we do have to wait until a set of wood comes to meet specific orders can take longer to fulfill.

As usual with non custom LTD and/or stock orders, we cannot send pictures of individual sets of wood to each potential owner.

 

[9bphillips]

I’m curious what percentage of ZMF buyers change pads?

Seems like you’d have to buy them all to know which sounded best to any given listener. The complexity of the combinations feels daunting, if you account for pad options, headphone, music genre and mood, as indicated above.

Is there a pad kit that you can request to try before you buy? That would be the best way to know which pads to purchase in addition to the defaults.

There are a few pads for each ZMF headphone that seem to vibe best with most ppl. If you search on this thread or Verite thread you will notice that. There are several pad reviews on all the threads. You can also ask specific questions about what pad would be best for what you are looking for. For my Atrium I use Be2 suede and universe lambskin which is stock pad for Atrium. For my VC I use Auteur lambskin and universe lambskin. I have tried a few more but those were pretty obvious they were the best pads for my ears. On my VC I used the Auteur lambskin for months and then got an itch to swap to Universe lambskin for a little. I haven't had the Atrium long so I have been swapping between the Be2 and Universe every couple of days. It doesn't take me but about a minute or two to swap both pads. Its pretty quick and easy imo.

 

[erics75]

What do you think of the mz2 vs other amps you've tried w/ the atrium?
I just blindly bought a mz3 and I'm hearing it's not as tubey. I want it on my desk right next to me so the heat considerations made me lean that way but I hope it's not too clinical

For the Atrium specifically the MZ2 is my preferred amp. It’s a bit more neutral sounding than my Kenzie amps but that’s why I like it. The Atrium to me is darker sounding and pairs nicely with something close to neutral. That being said it’s not as neutral as most solid state amps. It has a touch of warmth to it and that wonderful holographic stage tubes are known for. It’s very musical and engaging, and enhances the atrium’s strengths while minimizing its weaknesses.

The Kenzie based amps are very good with the Atrium but are on the slower, and more euphonic side, and really double down on the warm dark nature of the Atrium. It was a bit too much of a good thing. I was left craving more speed and air overall, which is what the MZ2 brings.

For my preferences, the MZ2 synergises extremely well with the Atrium. I don’t feel it’s clinical or unengaging at all.

 

[Andrewteee]

There's typically 2/3 pad types per headphone that are recommended and most users have a specific type they like the most, like Be2 for example. Then one set of lambskin and a hybrid or suede version are good to have.

Based on the recommendation chart, I ordered the Lambskin Universe as the alternate pads with my Atrium.

 

[Thaddy]

Guys - all these headphones are made from pure cocobolo. We have always allowed anyone to write in with wood preferences if they want and we always try to follow them, but these are not custom headphones. Let me repeat this, these headphones are made one at a time, with premium solid wood that we have on hand, but they should not be considered custom, meaning if you get it, and you didn't ask for something specific, we simply cannot accommodate requests to remake every headphone that doesn't suit your personal preferences. If you need something specific you need to write it before we go through the effort of making a headphone from scratch and not after you get it in hand. This is not our responsibility. I will copy and paste what is written on our cocobolo page below, and we have other info about the variance of wood written on our site.

The gentleman who felt like he couldn't see the purple in his headphone was offered a replacement, but he also stated to me he didn't know what stabilized wood was and that he didn't know he was buying stabilized wood. I'd really recommend emailing us before hand, reading the product page, and then also emailing us if there's anything your unsatisfied with before coming on here to poll the public.

Lastly, if you need something super specific until we do offer custom headphones for a higher price, I would recommend waiting for our semi regular releases where we picture each headphone one by one, stabilized and other variants.

Thank you in advance for your cooperation!

From the cocobolo page: This batch of Cocobolo is sustainably harvested to promote the continuance of beautiful species of wood like Cocobolo. Predominantly this batch of wood is brick red, with some sets that are darker and lighter, as natural variance is normal within Cocobolo. We finish these with a gloss lacquer to highlight the depth of color that Cocobolo possesses.

I can't speak for others and their aesthetic preferences and choices, however in my case I knew cocobolo has quite a bit of variability in color. There are some chassis colors that look better with the brick red cocobolo, and others that look nicer with the chocolate/blonde color. I felt like the all black chassis would look best with both variations, since, as a customer, I have no way of knowing what I'll get (which is part of the fun). However if I ended up with a wood and chassis combination that wasn't what I expected, I wouldn't expect ZMF to go out of their way to make things right. I'd pony up the money for a new chassis.

In my original statement I didn't mean insinuate that ZMF did something wrong. I think the onus is on the customer to choose carefully, especially with the LTD releases. It's not ZMF's job to read a customers mind regarding specific variations of wood and how they pair with chassis selections. As a matter of fact, all three of my ZMF headphones are from LTD releases and I fully understood I was getting something unique, and chose my options accordingly.

 

[9bphillips]

Based on the recommendation chart, I ordered the Lambskin Universe as the alternate pads with my Atrium.

The universe lambskin is the stock pad I thought?

 

[heliosphann]

The universe lambskin is the stock pad I thought?

Yes

 

[9bphillips]

This may be a stupid question but how does everyone weigh their headphones? I didn't know if a normal bathroom scale would even register with something as light as headphones.

 

[GenEricOne]

This may be a stupid question but how does everyone weigh their headphones? I didn't know if a normal bathroom scale would even register with something as light as headphones.

Kitchen scale.

 

[heliosphann]

This may be a stupid question but how does everyone weigh their headphones? I didn't know if a normal bathroom scale would even register with something as light as headphones.

Kitchen scale or a shipping scale work best. Usually bathroom scales won't be accurate enough for lower weight.

 

[geoffalter11]

Hi there

I think you meant “could” see purple. Not understanding the usage of the word “felt” when the word purple was inscribed on the owner’s card. Thankfully the headphones have been adopted by a new loving owner and all is well.

I also did not state that I didn’t know what stabilized wood “was”, by definition, more so that the product description led me to believe that some, not all, of the Hot Cups were stabilized. Upon reading it again, I can see how it could be interpreted both ways. A higher resolution photo (with more realistic lighting…yes I know, beating a dead horse here) would’ve been worth a thousand words on the product page.

Lastly, as I expressed to you in our email exchange, the limited drops do not leave enough time to email support, wait for answers, etc. before placing an order…unless by some chance the color you wanted was not snatched up in the first minutes of the sale. There are better ways to handle this and I’m confident ZMF will get there as their small business growing pains settle.

The universe lambskin is the stock pad I thought?

It is what came on the pair I am using. Be2 were the secondary.

 

[Andrewteee]

The universe lambskin is the stock pad I thought?

Ah, that wasn't clear when I ordered, or at least when I selected it as the alternate pad it did not inform me that I was already getting those. Maybe I'll contact ZMF and ask to switch out the alternates. I assume they won't send two pairs of the same pad.

According to the chart on the Atrium page, the Suede Universe pads are the other recommended pads.