LCMusicLover
Headphoneus Supremus
I'll be interested to hear your opinion on those two. To me, the Universe made Auteur 'less special' -- took some energy away and constricted the headstage. Your ears/my ears of course
ZMF Auteur Thread
- Thread starter PacoTaco
- Start date
Would love to hear what other people are using as well. Currently have a SMSL SU-9 paired with a Drop THX 789/Vali 2. Been hearing that proper tube amp is the way to go, also down for other recommendations!
Hifiearspeakers
Headphoneus Supremus
I'll be interested to hear your opinion on those two. To me, the Universe made Auteur 'less special' -- took some energy away and constricted the headstage. Your ears/my ears of course
I have yet to hear any suede pad for my Auteur or Verite that sounded better than the leather. They are extremely comfortable though.
Has anyone tried the BE perforated leather pads on the Auteur?
THX amps are not that great pairing with ZMF cans. They sound lifeless IMO. You'd have better luck with a GSX-mini or Burson amp if you wanna stick to a solid state amp. If you want to go tube, try a Hagerman Audio Tuba amp. If you want OTL, Feliks audio has some great budget OTL amps like Echo or Espressivo. Bh crack can also sound wonderful with ZMFs if you pair it with a decent pair of tubes.
I use a Little Dot MkVIII which actually sounds phenomenal when connected via balanced from my DX7 Pro.
I've been eyeing the Echo and this may the time to jump on one. Gonna have a look at the Seller's forum and see! Thank y'all for the recommendations
You can also try the Hagerman Audion Tuba amp. Its a great match with ZMF cans. Since its not OTL, it will also work wonders with your other headphones as well. Just an alternative to the echo. Also cap modded Liquid platinum with some Sylvania tubes are also good matches with ZMF.
Also, which Burson would you recommend?
if you want just an amp, then go for the Soloist 3xp. otherwise Conductor 3xp or 3xr if you can afford one.
ATTENTION !
My Eikon Perf Suede pads just arrived. Will post impressions in a few hours. I am also gonna compile my pad impressions for all pads used for far with the Auteur. Stay tuned !
My Eikon Perf Suede pads just arrived. Will post impressions in a few hours. I am also gonna compile my pad impressions for all pads used for far with the Auteur. Stay tuned !
jonathan c
Headphoneus Supremus
Is it us or the pads which should stay tuned?
Both. Hopefully i dont have to re-tune my Auteurs with these pads LOL.
HEAR YE ! HEAR YE !
The time has come for me to regale you good folks with yet another pad review for our beloved ZMF Auteur. This time, its an Eikon Perforated Suede pad that will get the spot light. I feel like i should mention that ZMF doesn't necessarily recommend suede pads with the Auteur, and tbh i used to agree. However, recently i came into posession of a Auteur perf suede pads that impressed me enough to give the eikon suede a try. Additionally, I am currently using a Auteur hybrid (suede, lambskin) pads on my VC and the suede compliments the sound signature really well. In order to get the complete picture about pad rolling with the Auteur, I have copied my post from before and added to this as well as added my impression of the new Eikon Perf Suede pads at the end. All of my impressions are based on purely listening and are done using a Feliks Audio Elise and ZMF 2k copper cable. All opinions are of my own.
Auteur Perf Lamb: Stock pads. Best soundstage of all the pads that i own and its also the highlight of this pad. Wide sound field with a hint of 3d soundstage. Probably best sparkle in the high end. Lots of airy smooth treble. Mid range is also slightly forward. Voices get the most preferential treatment. Auteur pads brings out the voices and places them in front of the face. This pad is lacking a little in the low end. There's bass, however its not punchy enough for me. There are good amount of sub bass but it lacks the intensity and as a result, the bass is a lttle overtaken by the beautiful mid and high range. These were my default pads for the longest time. It works great with warm amps and solid state amps like my GSX-mini but the low end with my Elise OTL amp leave a little to be desired.
Auteur Perf Suede: These are the newest pads that i came into possession. I got these solely after reading this forum. These are comfy !!! I had little to no idea about the sound signature of these pads. Using the same amp and listening to the same songs, I noticed that these are very similar to the Auteur lamb pads previously mentioned. That's to be expected though. They sound decent. The suede brings the same sparkle that was missing in the Eikon pads. The wide soundstage is also back. the mids, however are a little recessed, which i believe some people would love and enjoy because the other two were mid range heavy and these pads brings the highs and mids on the same page. The voices are directly in line with the instruments. The music sounds lateral rather than 3d or holographic. Unfortunately, the low end is where this pad falls a little short. bass is no longer punchy but there's plenty of rumble to go around. Mid bass has a little slam. This pad mimics its lambkin sibling in almost all the aspects. But here's the thing, whats surprising is that these pads sound glorious with my GSX-mini. While with the Elise OTL, the bass was stationed in the back, the Mini brings it out to the front and these pads sound excellent. Still not on the same level on authority as the EIkon pads but its a decent improvement.
Eikon Perf Lamb: 2nd stock pads. Slightly narrower sound stage than the auteur pads (my only gripe). Feels a little congested. Due to the smaller opening of the pads, these tame the treble ever so slightly to a more neutral level. The treble lacks the amount of air and sparkle that the auteur pads provide and I actually like it. However, the low end is where this pad really shines. I would say that these pads probably has the same amount of actual bass as the Auteur pads, but its definitely more controlled and punchy. Mid bass is phenomenal. Sub bass is plenty and not bloomy and definitely doesn't not bleed in to the mid range. Male voices (deeper voices) have the depth unlike the other two pads. Mid range is just like the auteur pads with the voices appearing slightly forward. If you have a neutral or slightly brighter amp, these pads should help with possible treble harshness.
UPDATE
Eikon Perf Suede: These are the latest pads that ive tried with my Auteur. Before this, I was using Eikon Perf lambskin pads due to the punchy bass slam that the auteur lambskin pads lacked. Since this pad has the exact same spec as its lambskin brother, I was a little skeptical about its performance. One of the drawbacks of the Eikon pad was its narrow soundstage and less airy highs. Here's what i found. The suede eikon pads maintained the same amount of bass as the lambskin, however, the bass is a little toned down. Its not as punchy or slammy. Rather, its gentle, smooth and transient. It blends well in the background most of the time but depending on the track, it can come forward and thrown in a punch when needed. The suede material completely eliminates any low end reverb inside the canals and actually separates the different types of bass (mid bass, sub bass, deep male vocals, bass instruments etc). As a result, you can almost pick the part of the low end you want to focus on and it will all be there. But that's not even the best part of these pads. The treble is actually !!! The airy treble is back, yall. At least to some extent. Its no auteur treble, but fairly close. Where there's air, there's sparkle and you can find both with this pad. IMO, these pads have a V shaped sound and the Auteur being a mid/vocal heavy can, these are matched really really well. Almost a neutral sounding hp now, which can be good or bad based on your preference. Unlike the lambskin eikons, these don't push the mids forward, rather keep them in line with the rest of the sound. Overall, I am very pleased with how these sound. Ive only listened to these for about 4 hours so the initial impression is that I think we have a winner here. But there's more......
Last night, i realized that the bopp mesh on my auteur was actually ripping the cloth of my pads while i try to slide or adjust them on the cups so i decided to take them out. They are secured with 4 screws that hold the metal mesh and an actual plastic grill (like Verite) together. And since it was so late, my noggin was filling up with crazy ideas. I decided to try all of my pads without the bopp mesh. This is what i found....HOLY SOUNDSTAGE !!!!! I think removing the mesh added at least a few inches of distance on each side of my head. The Eikon pads were both very wide, almost auteur like. Even more air and sparkle. The Auteur pads were even wider. However, the treble sounded a bit harsh. it overpowered the mids and the low end. The high end was way forward, almost in front of the face while the bass was gasping for attention in the very back. So i decided to put the mesh back on and all is well on this side of the Mason-Dixon line. You guys can give this a shot, at your own risk. Zach doesn't recommend this since this mesh was installed to control the treble.
Thats it folks, I think my pad rolling experience has come to an end. After 8 months of owning the Auteur, I have finally found the sound signature that suits me that this headphone can produce. Between the aforementioned 4 pads, I believe one will find a suitable sound. Depending on their amps, these 4 pads should cover all if not most bases. Ive read that some peeps are trying Universe perf lamb pads but I think i ll stick to the Auteur and Eikon variant pads for now. Maybe in a few months I will give those a shot as i do have a pair laying around somewhere in my apartment. Hope this help. Please feel free to comment and ask questions. I would be delighted to answer. Until then....Cheers
Best
The time has come for me to regale you good folks with yet another pad review for our beloved ZMF Auteur. This time, its an Eikon Perforated Suede pad that will get the spot light. I feel like i should mention that ZMF doesn't necessarily recommend suede pads with the Auteur, and tbh i used to agree. However, recently i came into posession of a Auteur perf suede pads that impressed me enough to give the eikon suede a try. Additionally, I am currently using a Auteur hybrid (suede, lambskin) pads on my VC and the suede compliments the sound signature really well. In order to get the complete picture about pad rolling with the Auteur, I have copied my post from before and added to this as well as added my impression of the new Eikon Perf Suede pads at the end. All of my impressions are based on purely listening and are done using a Feliks Audio Elise and ZMF 2k copper cable. All opinions are of my own.
Auteur Perf Lamb: Stock pads. Best soundstage of all the pads that i own and its also the highlight of this pad. Wide sound field with a hint of 3d soundstage. Probably best sparkle in the high end. Lots of airy smooth treble. Mid range is also slightly forward. Voices get the most preferential treatment. Auteur pads brings out the voices and places them in front of the face. This pad is lacking a little in the low end. There's bass, however its not punchy enough for me. There are good amount of sub bass but it lacks the intensity and as a result, the bass is a lttle overtaken by the beautiful mid and high range. These were my default pads for the longest time. It works great with warm amps and solid state amps like my GSX-mini but the low end with my Elise OTL amp leave a little to be desired.
Auteur Perf Suede: These are the newest pads that i came into possession. I got these solely after reading this forum. These are comfy !!! I had little to no idea about the sound signature of these pads. Using the same amp and listening to the same songs, I noticed that these are very similar to the Auteur lamb pads previously mentioned. That's to be expected though. They sound decent. The suede brings the same sparkle that was missing in the Eikon pads. The wide soundstage is also back. the mids, however are a little recessed, which i believe some people would love and enjoy because the other two were mid range heavy and these pads brings the highs and mids on the same page. The voices are directly in line with the instruments. The music sounds lateral rather than 3d or holographic. Unfortunately, the low end is where this pad falls a little short. bass is no longer punchy but there's plenty of rumble to go around. Mid bass has a little slam. This pad mimics its lambkin sibling in almost all the aspects. But here's the thing, whats surprising is that these pads sound glorious with my GSX-mini. While with the Elise OTL, the bass was stationed in the back, the Mini brings it out to the front and these pads sound excellent. Still not on the same level on authority as the EIkon pads but its a decent improvement.
Eikon Perf Lamb: 2nd stock pads. Slightly narrower sound stage than the auteur pads (my only gripe). Feels a little congested. Due to the smaller opening of the pads, these tame the treble ever so slightly to a more neutral level. The treble lacks the amount of air and sparkle that the auteur pads provide and I actually like it. However, the low end is where this pad really shines. I would say that these pads probably has the same amount of actual bass as the Auteur pads, but its definitely more controlled and punchy. Mid bass is phenomenal. Sub bass is plenty and not bloomy and definitely doesn't not bleed in to the mid range. Male voices (deeper voices) have the depth unlike the other two pads. Mid range is just like the auteur pads with the voices appearing slightly forward. If you have a neutral or slightly brighter amp, these pads should help with possible treble harshness.
UPDATE
Eikon Perf Suede: These are the latest pads that ive tried with my Auteur. Before this, I was using Eikon Perf lambskin pads due to the punchy bass slam that the auteur lambskin pads lacked. Since this pad has the exact same spec as its lambskin brother, I was a little skeptical about its performance. One of the drawbacks of the Eikon pad was its narrow soundstage and less airy highs. Here's what i found. The suede eikon pads maintained the same amount of bass as the lambskin, however, the bass is a little toned down. Its not as punchy or slammy. Rather, its gentle, smooth and transient. It blends well in the background most of the time but depending on the track, it can come forward and thrown in a punch when needed. The suede material completely eliminates any low end reverb inside the canals and actually separates the different types of bass (mid bass, sub bass, deep male vocals, bass instruments etc). As a result, you can almost pick the part of the low end you want to focus on and it will all be there. But that's not even the best part of these pads. The treble is actually !!! The airy treble is back, yall. At least to some extent. Its no auteur treble, but fairly close. Where there's air, there's sparkle and you can find both with this pad. IMO, these pads have a V shaped sound and the Auteur being a mid/vocal heavy can, these are matched really really well. Almost a neutral sounding hp now, which can be good or bad based on your preference. Unlike the lambskin eikons, these don't push the mids forward, rather keep them in line with the rest of the sound. Overall, I am very pleased with how these sound. Ive only listened to these for about 4 hours so the initial impression is that I think we have a winner here. But there's more......
Last night, i realized that the bopp mesh on my auteur was actually ripping the cloth of my pads while i try to slide or adjust them on the cups so i decided to take them out. They are secured with 4 screws that hold the metal mesh and an actual plastic grill (like Verite) together. And since it was so late, my noggin was filling up with crazy ideas. I decided to try all of my pads without the bopp mesh. This is what i found....HOLY SOUNDSTAGE !!!!! I think removing the mesh added at least a few inches of distance on each side of my head. The Eikon pads were both very wide, almost auteur like. Even more air and sparkle. The Auteur pads were even wider. However, the treble sounded a bit harsh. it overpowered the mids and the low end. The high end was way forward, almost in front of the face while the bass was gasping for attention in the very back. So i decided to put the mesh back on and all is well on this side of the Mason-Dixon line. You guys can give this a shot, at your own risk. Zach doesn't recommend this since this mesh was installed to control the treble.
Thats it folks, I think my pad rolling experience has come to an end. After 8 months of owning the Auteur, I have finally found the sound signature that suits me that this headphone can produce. Between the aforementioned 4 pads, I believe one will find a suitable sound. Depending on their amps, these 4 pads should cover all if not most bases. Ive read that some peeps are trying Universe perf lamb pads but I think i ll stick to the Auteur and Eikon variant pads for now. Maybe in a few months I will give those a shot as i do have a pair laying around somewhere in my apartment. Hope this help. Please feel free to comment and ask questions. I would be delighted to answer. Until then....Cheers
Best
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Or....we both are.
You're welcome. I've been meaning to do this for a long time. Zmf headphones and pads have numerous combinations that can sometimes be a bit overwhelming. I am just trying to help some current and future Auteur peeps help decide in their pursuit of musical perfection.
I think my next write up will be about VC pad rolling
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