[Slim1970]

Great, thanks! That echoes what I have heard from many sources.



Excellent analysis. I agree with everything you said, especially about what I interpret as the Arya's more analytical distant "cerebral" approach not being the best for heavy rock/metal or genres that can benefit from some warmth, weight, fleshing out of the sound, or romanticism. I do like to listen to metal/rock with the Aryas, I don't think they sound bad at all (they at least sound good with this material), but I do think they sound better with metal/rock/pop that has some electronic instrumentation like 80's synths or the new 2000's wave of these sorts of genres. More organic 60's/70's rock, or 90's alt/grunge doesn't sound as "natural" or right in comparison.

I'm not worried about finding ultimate clarity or micro detail (if I was, I would have gotten the HD800), I just don't want to spend a lot on a headphone that I ultimately find too unresolving no matter what other strengths it has. What I'd like is simply a can as hi-fi as the Arya, just with a different tonality or sound signature for contrast and certain genres or moods, just like how I alternate between the more clear and crisp Gilmore Mk2 amp and warmer and "thicker" Woo Audio WA6 depending on genre and mood (both great amps). The Auteur seems to be this.

I'm convinced: I will order the Auteur soon and will report my findings after I spend some time with them. This might be late Aug. given the time frame on orders. Thanks all!

The Auteurs are great at making 60's/70's rock, 80's metal and 90' grunge a lot more listenable. Their tonality and sultry midrange adds some much needed body to those genres of music especially on tube amps. The Auteurs will match the detail retrieval of the Arya's and present music in a totally different manner from them. I think are exactly what you are looking in a complementary headphone to the Arya's

 

[LCMusicLover]

The Auteurs are great at making 60's/70's rock, 80's metal and 90' grunge a lot more listenable. Their tonality and sultry midrange adds some much needed body to those genres of music especially on tube amps. The Auteurs will match the detail retrieval of the Arya's and present music in a totally different manner from them. I think are exactly what you are looking in a complementary headphone to the Arya's

Auteur deliver rhythmically driven music beautifully. 'Rhythm of the Saints', pretty much anything by Afro-Celt Sound System, Talking Heads...and of course...Grateful Dead!

 

[PoSR77]

Congrats on the decision! Glad I could help. I look forward to hearing your impressions. Also... Just FYI, ZMF offers a 14 day return policy with a 10% restocking fee for all STOCK wood headphones. So worst case scenario: you hate them, return them, and eat the %10 restocking fee. That's not bad for being able to try these out, since they're almost impossible to audition.

I got the Aryas awhile ago and was hoping they could be "end game" all rounders. Personally I listen to speakers more than headphones so I don't need "headphone perfection".

But while I was stunned at how good the Aryas sounded (and still am) as they are the first $1000+ cans I've ever had, right away I did notice some of the issues I have mentioned above. I figured I'd try my first all tube headphone amp, the WA6, to help try to "warm" up the sound, as well as the RME dac to try to EQ the sound more to my liking, but neither has worked to my complete satisfaction so I'm now doing what I thought I had to all along: try a different headphone completely. This echoes my experience with speakers: there's only so much you can do with the gear behind them to alter the sound. If a speaker/headphone just overall sounds a particular way, it's not going to radically change with different gear.

I should have mentioned that even before the Covid, where I live has no good options for headphone auditions. So I do have to buy blind, but that's not too big of a deal. I figure that if, after a few months, I find a headphone just isn't for me, I could always sell it back anyway. I don't think 2 weeks is enough time to decide, unless I simply don't like the sound signature much at all from the start, then going by past experience, that's not going to change, no matter how much "burn in" time is allocated.

Thanks again, and these will be by far the most aesthetically appealing headphones I have ever owned (approaching the aesthetics of high end speakers with that nice wood!).

 

[LoryWiv]

I got the Aryas awhile ago and was hoping they could be "end game" all rounders. Personally I listen to speakers more than headphones so I don't need "headphone perfection".

But while I was stunned at how good the Aryas sounded (and still am) as they are the first $1000+ cans I've ever had, right away I did notice some of the issues I have mentioned above. I figured I'd try my first all tube headphone amp, the WA6, to help try to "warm" up the sound, as well as the RME dac to try to EQ the sound more to my liking, but neither has worked to my complete satisfaction so I'm now doing what I thought I had to all along: try a different headphone completely. This echoes my experience with speakers: there's only so much you can do with the gear behind them to alter the sound. If a speaker/headphone just overall sounds a particular way, it's not going to radically change with different gear.

I should have mentioned that even before the Covid, where I live has no good options for headphone auditions. So I do have to buy blind, but that's not too big of a deal. I figure that if, after a few months, I find a headphone just isn't for me, I could always sell it back anyway. I don't think 2 weeks is enough time to decide, unless I simply don't like the sound signature much at all from the start, then going by past experience, that's not going to change, no matter how much "burn in" time is allocated.

Thanks again, and these will be by far the most aesthetically appealing headphones I have ever owned (approaching the aesthetics of high end speakers with that nice wood!).

We will look forward to your impressions and pics!!!

 

[Maelob]

Thanks again I think I will pull the trigger on the auteurs -

 

[Maalis]

Has anyone compared Blackwood Auteurs to Cocobolo ones? They are both quite a lot harder than teak(1,070 lbf), blackwood being 3,670 lbf and cocobolo 2,960 lbf on the Janka scale but I'm not sure about other differences between the two.

 

[Midship]

ZMF Auteur are high up on my must buy list.

Truly can't say enough good things about the Auteur, in terms of the sonic or aesthetic qualities. A must hear headphone for enthusiasts, and one that will be perfect for many preferences (mine included).

 

[sionicmatrix]

Currently looking into getting the auteur but not sure how it compares to the LCD-3 which I currently own.
What are people's thoughts on the two when placed side by side?
Curious to hear some opinions before I pull the trigger (the auteur is simply too gorgeous to not have)

 

[Preachy1]

Your last 9 words!!!!

 

[ashwinvyas1981]

Hi Folks,

I recently acquired the ZMF Auteurs (Cocobolo Ltd edition) & will be going through this thread slowly . Initial impressions, I am just loving the tonality of these....

 

[Speednut]

Big thanks to @zach915m for a quick fix of my Auteurs, and fast shipment back to me. It took about 3 days from the package was received by Zach, until I had the headphones back with me here in Europe. That's fast service.

I really missed the sound of these

 

[zach915m]

Big thanks to @zach915m for a quick fix of my Auteurs, and fast shipment back to me. It took about 3 days from the package was received by Zach, until I had the headphones back with me here in Europe. That's fast service.

I really missed the sound of these

Gotta love DHL! So glad we can serve EU customers so well now. They look great!

 

[Noahdvs88]

Been quietly enjoying the auteur for the past few months... What an incredible set of headphones. I'm now using the perf suede hybrid auteur pads which are also awesome, I much prefer the comfort of these compared to the stock perf lambskin. I didn't notice much of a change in sound though, maybe ever so slightly more open sounding due to the seal being different. Zach also sent me a suede strap and headband for free (I have yet to put those on) which was awesome!

 

[Liu Junyuan]

Been quietly enjoying the auteur for the past few months... What an incredible set of headphones. I'm now using the perf suede hybrid pads which are also awesome, I much prefer the comfort of those compared to the perf lambskin. I didn't notice much of a change in sound though, maybe ever so slightly more open sounding due to the seal being different. Zach also sent me a suede strap and headband for free (I have yet to put those on) which was awesome!

Are they the universe perforated suede hybrid pads, by chance? Interesting that you did not notice a change in sound.

 

[Noahdvs88]

Are they the universe perforated suede hybrid pads, by chance? Interesting that you did not notice a change in sound.

They're the auteur perf hybrids, my bad. The only difference vs the stock lambskin auteur pads is the top covering material is suede