[jinxy245]

@audio duck,yes that is the auteur I got in the profile picture.
I'm attaching a photo, I just noticed that I haven't inserted any.
Thanks for the compliment .

I am not a fan of Eq.
I think headphones should be able to deliver what the listener expects.
I put up with the filters from the dacs and sometimes they can be helpful.

I had the same problem when I got the Euforia with Lcd 2C and it was really due to the stock tubes where the bass was already anaemic.
It's not that bad with the Auteur.

What comes to mind is that maybe I need to get used to the sound a bit more.
Some people have reported that they had a hard time at the beginning and then all of a sudden it worked.

Of the 115 hours of burn that it has been through, I have only listened to it for maybe 15 hours.
That is perhaps still too little.
Maybe there is still something that could be done with one or the other tube.

Maybe the dac has become the weakest link in the chain, I thought of that.
With the Lcd2C it might have been fine, but now with the Auteur on the Euforia it's something else again.
With the Singxer Sda 2C, it could be undersized in certain areas, I would imagine.

But I also agree that the bass is very natural.
Sometimes it could be a bit more, I think.
With other music genres it fits perfectly, even R&B it does its job really well most of the time and has already brought great moments of happiness.

Next week it will have its first 200 hours on it and then I'll see how it goes.

Thank you for your support,.

Amazing looking headphones, and nice photos!

It's a bummer that they're not clicking for you. Another idea would be to try them on a decent Solid State amp if you have access.

I love the tube sound myself, but I've found it's more of a challenge to get bass slam with tubes. It's definitely possible, but I think it's easier with SS. Going with SS for rap and similar music could be a workable solution, of course YMMV.
(Edit: keep in mind I'm not that familiar with the Feliks amps, so others with more experience there might be more helpful)

Best of luck...

 

[AudioDuck]

Thanks for the photos, what a lovely color combination! Pretty unusual as well, I don’t think I’ve seen a pair like before and they look great.

One thought on the DAC/source (without meaning to cause you to spend more money!): Perhaps an R2R DAC would be worth considering? Denafrips, Metrum, Schiit, and others make good options. I’m speaking from experience with ZMFs and a Feliks Echo, and the Schiit Gungnir multi-bit is a great match.

A more reasonably-priced alternative would be the Schiit Bifrost 2 or Bifrost multi-bit, or I think the Denafrips Ares II I could be similar in price.

 

[Deleeh]

Yes, I have already tried that on the Singxer.
The Euforia easily blows away the integrated amplifier.
I have noticed that I have more bass with the Euforia than with the Singxer.

I think it's already locked in on me.
This is definitely one of those headphones you want to keep and not pack up and send back.

It might be too much for my brain at the moment, my own euphoria, the expectation, the burn in.
I think once all that wears off you'll think how could you complain, that's a good thing.
But it's not even grumbling, it's more like a statement that you haven't understood yet.

And the Zmf sound is already something different compared to what you have heard before, what you can buy on the market.
With the Lcd 2C back then, I learned to listen and thought I could do that now.
With the Auteur it's a whole other level and maybe a process to overcome before you find it good/perfect.

At least that's my guess, please correct me if I'm wrong.

 

[jinxy245]

Yes, I have already tried that on the Singxer.
The Euforia easily blows away the integrated amplifier.
I have noticed that I have more bass with the Euforia than with the Singxer.

I think it's already locked in on me.
This is definitely one of those headphones you want to keep and not pack up and send back.

It might be too much for my brain at the moment, my own euphoria, the expectation, the burn in.
I think once all that wears off you'll think how could you complain, that's a good thing.
But it's not even grumbling, it's more like a statement that you haven't understood yet.

And the Zmf sound is already something different compared to what you have heard before, what you can buy on the market.
With the Lcd 2C back then, I learned to listen and thought I could do that now.
With the Auteur it's a whole other level and maybe a process to overcome before you find it good/perfect.

At least that's my guess, please correct me if I'm wrong.

That sounds perfectly plausible to me. We all have a different path on our audio journey, and it sounds like you're warming up to what you have. I usually do feel it's best to give new components some time to acclimate yourself to the changes, good for you.

 

[AudioDuck]

All three are terrific with Auteur. I experience slightly more there-ness using the WA2 versus the WA6 / WA6SE. Due to absence of output transformer? . Due to tube rectification for each channel rather than shared for both channels? . Due to use of various 12AT7 / ECC81 versus 6SN7 or 13DE7 in the WA6 or WA6SE? .

Hi Auteur fans,

I must share my excitement with like-minded music fanatics enthusiasts- I came across a gently used Woo Audio WA2 and it will take the place of my beloved Feliks Audio mk I Echo.

Everything I’ve read about the performance of ZMFs with the WA2 is excellent, and it sounds like it is a great fit to my tastes and a final stop on the OTL tube path.

As my solid state amp is a Violectric V200 that also both does quite well with ZMFs and my Focals, the WA2 will be a great complement to the V200.

And yes, @jonathan c , credit where credit is due- I seem to be walking somewhat in your footsteps…

 

[jonathan c]

Hi Auteur fans,

I must share my excitement with like-minded music fanatics enthusiasts- I came across a gently used Woo Audio WA2 and it will take the place of my beloved Feliks Audio mk I Echo.

Everything I’ve read about the performance of ZMFs with the WA2 is excellent, and it sounds like it is a great fit to my tastes and a final stop on the OTL tube path.

As my solid state amp is a Violectric V200 that also both does quite well with ZMFs and my Focals, the WA2 will be a great complement to the V200.

And yes, @jonathan c , credit where credit is due- I seem to be walking somewhat in your footsteps…

To add icing to a wonderful cake, going ‘whole hog’ in the process, consider a Synergistic Research Purple fuse for the WA2: 5x20mm size, T 3.15A. [T = timed, slow-blow]. Even LVB would be able to hear the difference…. ZMFs will sound like never before!

 

[jonathan c]

Hi Auteur fans,

I must share my excitement with like-minded music fanatics enthusiasts- I came across a gently used Woo Audio WA2 and it will take the place of my beloved Feliks Audio mk I Echo.

Everything I’ve read about the performance of ZMFs with the WA2 is excellent, and it sounds like it is a great fit to my tastes and a final stop on the OTL tube path.

As my solid state amp is a Violectric V200 that also both does quite well with ZMFs and my Focals, the WA2 will be a great complement to the V200.

And yes, @jonathan c , credit where credit is due- I seem to be walking somewhat in your footsteps…

…thank you & I will pass on tea in the Sahara with you…

 

[AudioDuck]

To add icing to a wonderful cake, going ‘whole hog’ in the process, consider a Synergistic Research Purple fuse for the WA2: 5x20mm size, T 3.15A. [T = timed, slow-blow]. Even LVB would be able to hear the difference…. ZMFs will sound like never before!

Thanks for the tip! Do I need to crack the case to replace the stock fuse? I don’t see a way to access it on the back panel.

Once I get used to the amp’s sound, I could definitely replace the fuse.

I also have some great tubes for the 6922 sockets- matched pairs of NOS Amperex White Shield 7308s, Philips NOS Miniwatts, and Mullards. The 7308s are my faves, but I might try the others first.

The seller has also included USN Tung-Sol 7236s to replace the stock power tubes, too- so I think I’m in good shape tube-wise for a while.

I understand the rectifier tubes don’t make a lot of difference to the sound compared to the power tubes and driver tubes… anyway, I’m hijacking the string- I’ll stop there.

 

[jonathan c]

Thanks for the tip! Do I need to crack the case to replace the stock fuse? I don’t see a way to access it on the back panel.

Once I get used to the amp’s sound, I could definitely replace the fuse.

I also have some great tubes for the 6922 sockets- matched pairs of NOS Amperex White Shield 7308s, Philips NOS Miniwatts, and Mullards. The 7308s are my faves, but I might try the others first.

The seller has also included USN Tung-Sol 7236s to replace the stock power tubes, too- so I think I’m in good shape tube-wise for a while.

I understand the rectifier tubes don’t make a lot of difference to the sound compared to the power tubes and driver tubes… anyway, I’m hijacking the string- I’ll stop there.

See PM

 

[jonathan c]

ZMF Auteur + WA3 (TS 5998 / Brimar CV455s) + MFSB (Love Is The Message, Philadelphia Freedom) = rollicking good time…:

 

[SmashBruh]

Yes, I have already tried that on the Singxer.
The Euforia easily blows away the integrated amplifier.
I have noticed that I have more bass with the Euforia than with the Singxer.

I think it's already locked in on me.
This is definitely one of those headphones you want to keep and not pack up and send back.

It might be too much for my brain at the moment, my own euphoria, the expectation, the burn in.
I think once all that wears off you'll think how could you complain, that's a good thing.
But it's not even grumbling, it's more like a statement that you haven't understood yet.

And the Zmf sound is already something different compared to what you have heard before, what you can buy on the market.
With the Lcd 2C back then, I learned to listen and thought I could do that now.
With the Auteur it's a whole other level and maybe a process to overcome before you find it good/perfect.

At least that's my guess, please correct me if I'm wrong.

Since you're using a Tube amp have you tried rolling in different tubes?? Often that can make a huge difference, especially in a more neutral headphone like the auteur!

 

[Deleeh]

Since you're using a Tube amp have you tried rolling in different tubes?? Often that can make a huge difference, especially in a more neutral headphone like the auteur!

Hello,
yes
I have tried.
I am still looking for the right tubes I have in the drawer.

Currently I have 7236 Tungsol's with 6SN7 Fotons from the 1950 series in it.
They also offer a very good bass performance and macrodynamic.
So far, it's the best I've found that harmonises quite well together.

And the burn in is slowly coming to an end, I'm at 175h.
In any case, something has changed compared to the first hours, I had not expected so.

But of course it has its limits when we talk about bass.
For everything else it's really good, but for hip hop it has to give way to other headphones.
For my taste, it's not enough and not it' s domain, and it's better.
For R&B it's still sufficient enough and I would say that's where its limit lies.

Otherwise, it's a damn good headphone, I must say.
The way it presents the stage, reproduces the instruments and vocals always blows me away.
Beautifully authentic and open with a lot of room to breathe and this relaxation always invites you to enjoy.
Strangely enough, it sounds better at medium volume, when you hear a song loud, you automatically turn it down for the next one and continue to enjoy it.

After Burn in I'll try the Eikonpads. With another tube where I think it could fit where the stage expands, let's see if that fits.

 

[LCMusicLover]

Hello,
yes
I have tried.
I am still looking for the right tubes I have in the drawer.

Currently I have 7236 Tungsol's with 6SN7 Fotons from the 1950 series in it.
They also offer a very good bass performance and macrodynamic.
So far, it's the best I've found that harmonises quite well together.

And the burn in is slowly coming to an end, I'm at 175h.
In any case, something has changed compared to the first hours, I had not expected so.

But of course it has its limits when we talk about bass.
For everything else it's really good, but for hip hop it has to give way to other headphones.
For my taste, it's not enough and not it' s domain, and it's better.
For R&B it's still sufficient enough and I would say that's where its limit lies.

Otherwise, it's a damn good headphone, I must say.
The way it presents the stage, reproduces the instruments and vocals always blows me away.
Beautifully authentic and open with a lot of room to breathe and this relaxation always invites you to enjoy.
Strangely enough, it sounds better at medium volume, when you hear a song loud, you automatically turn it down for the next one and continue to enjoy it.

After Burn in I'll try the Eikonpads. With another tube where I think it could fit where the stage expands, let's see if that fits.

I've been reading about your Auteur journey -- interesting, so thanks for the posts. Couple things:

- Frankly, I wouldn't point to Auteur first if asked for a ZMF can for hip hop. Probably Aeolus, and then Atticus. The more neutral tuning of Auteur means it probably can't produce as much bass as you're hoping for.
- Curious what cans you prefer for hip hop? I assume your Denons, and then the Audeze, or maybe vice versa.

Eikon pads will give a bit more bass and soften the highs a bit. It's a pretty noticeable difference -- not night-and-day, but definitely there.

I stuck w/ the Auteur perf lambskins for a long time as the Eikon lambskin detracted from the highs and detail more than I liked. But then I got some suede pads, and ended up liking the Eikon suedes best of all (5) pads I've tried -- Eikon & Auteur perf lamb, E & A perf suede, and Universe perf suede (which I didn't like at all on Auteur). The Eikon suede pads add bass, but do less 'damage' to the highs. I haven't swapped away from them in months.

To my ears, amp swaps make more difference than DAC swaps to the Auteur sound. For example, I hear more powerful bass out of the amp section of my Audio-gd Master 11 which has a powerful Class A amp section than from my at-least-as-powerful Chord TT2. And swapping tubes in my Liquid Platinum makes a big difference as well. Open, airy, neutral/bright sound with Brimar CV-2492 tubes, and a warmer, bassier sound with Siemens CCa tubes. Same kind of change from DSHA-3F w/ amorphous core transformers vs nickel transformers.

Point being that Auteur is a bit of a chameleon with different amps.

I've had a number of different DACs, and I can't say I've heard nearly as much sonic difference from those swaps. DACs I've used include A2 Yggy, A1 & A2 Gumby, Sonica Dac, Soekris 2541, Denafrips Aries & Pontus, plus various all-in-ones (Hugo 2, TT2, Audio-gd Master 11). Honestly, I hear more sonic variation from cable swaps or pad swaps than from DAC swaps. Of course all those DACs are quite good, so one wouldn't expect huge variation anyway.

Hope some of that helps.

 

[kid vic]

Hello,

I'm coming back to the forum because there's something that's still bothering me.

I've had it running for a week now, and it's taken me about 115 hours.
It's been a good hike so far as it didn't get much music last week compared to now.
The bass has definitely improved and is less slim.
I only tried the Eikonpads for a short time to get an impression.

But what keeps me going is that the Auteur is fantastic with R&B, Rock and Pop and other genres.
In Hip Hop, the bass really lacks the pressure that one knows from Hip Hop, deep, wide.

Is that still due to the burn in where it needs to be or more to the tuning?
It can and does deliver bass, but with this style of music it seems to me that it can't really cope.
Otherwise I am quite satisfied with what I have heard.

I wouldn't be angry if it just had a borderline bass point, but I would know that another headphone like the Aeolus might be better suited for that in the near future.
It wouldn't really be anything new for me because I came from the Lcd2C, which also had a bit of a bass limit when listening to hip hop, but everything else was strangely better.
Nevertheless, the Auteur is and remains a very good upgrade to the Lcd 2C.

Having owned the Auteur, Atticus and currently owning the Eikon, I have noticed that some fan descriptions of ZMF bass can be a bit overzealous. I have found that ZMF is a bass neutral or linear brand and for the most part, bass extends evenly from the midrange down; however, ZMF fans tend to describe the bass in monstrous terms like "earth-shattering" or "all-encompassing." I suspect that maybe that description was what you expected. It's not that the bass is bad or lacking, it's just proportionate as opposed to properly bass-heavy (IMO); it would be nice if we could use similar terminology when describing things but half of terminology comes down to opinion and one persons "adequate and neutral" is another persons .

I would say that if you find the bass on both the LCD2 and the Auteur to be less in quantity than desired, the Aeolus probably won't give you the quantity you desire either. This is particularly true if the bass quantity you want is something comparable to Sony's consumer line of headphones or Beats by Dre. Unfortunately, you might not be able to get those quantities without some level of bass boost like tone controls, EQ, or IFI's bass boost on their amps. Generally, absolute quantity of bass is traded for higher quality, full frequency reproduction in hi-fi headphones.

 

[AudioDuck]

It's not that the bass is bad or lacking, it's just proportionate as opposed to properly bass-heavy (IMO)

Very accurate. The overall balance of frequencies is what I value in the Auteur (and Eikon).

Generally, absolute quantity of bass is traded for higher quality, full frequency reproduction in hi-fi headphones.

Exactly- the *quality* of the bass in ZMFs is what I appreciate most. Texture, delineation between notes, speed, impact (when needed/appropriate)- all top-notch.