[ProfFalkin]

Hi
I am considering my first zmf headset and I hesitate between aeolus and auteur, verite is too expensive for me.
I have some hifiman ananda, grade gs3000e and fostex th900.
My favorite signature is Hifiman Ananda.
I have had clear, arya, among others and ananda is still my favorite.
I think that both zmf must be a little warmer than ananda and surely a more similar auteur.
I have a feliks audio expressive mark 2 tube amp that should work very well with them.
I also had campfire audio cascade, the aeolus signature I see similar but more balanced with much less midbass and subbass
Cheers

So are you looking for something more like the Ananda then? It wasn't clear to me from your post what you're after exactly.

If yes, Auteur. If no... ??

Aeolus != Cascade. Cascade is a bass cannon. Aeolus is not, imo.

 

[jaker782]

Hi
I am considering my first zmf headset and I hesitate between aeolus and auteur, verite is too expensive for me.
I have some hifiman ananda, grade gs3000e and fostex th900.
My favorite signature is Hifiman Ananda.
I have had clear, arya, among others and ananda is still my favorite.
I think that both zmf must be a little warmer than ananda and surely a more similar auteur.
I have a feliks audio expressive mark 2 tube amp that should work very well with them.
I also had campfire audio cascade, the aeolus signature I see similar but more balanced with much less midbass and subbass
Cheers

If you prefer the Ananda and are looking for something similar, I'd choose the Auteur over the Aeolus. It is more neutral with amazing sub-bass. Aeolus has a mid-bass bump that is fun, but you may feel is too much coming from the more neutral Ananda. Between those two, there are really no bad choices.

 

[LogicalDisconnect]

Has anyone had the opportunity to compare the current limited edition Wenge with the Teak? I demo'd a pair of Teak which I really enjoyed, more than my Verite which I'm now selling, but now trying to decide between the Teak and Wenge. What I particularly enjoyed about the Teak was the midrange tonality / timbre.

 

[spittis]

Hi
I am considering my first zmf headset and I hesitate between aeolus and auteur, verite is too expensive for me.
I have some hifiman ananda, grade gs3000e and fostex th900.
My favorite signature is Hifiman Ananda.
I have had clear, arya, among others and ananda is still my favorite.
I think that both zmf must be a little warmer than ananda and surely a more similar auteur.
I have a feliks audio expressive mark 2 tube amp that should work very well with them.
I also had campfire audio cascade, the aeolus signature I see similar but more balanced with much less midbass and subbass
Cheers

The Aeolus is almost as different as you can get from the Anandas sound signature IMO among open headphones. Spacious and neutral vs warm and fuzzy.
I briefly had the Aeolus and the Ananda has been my "main" headphone for a long time.
I have a pair of Wenge Aueturs incoming but haven't heard them yet so cannot comment on the differences there. I'd say the Auteur is a more "safe" choice for you though.

 

[Kike6685]

Hi
I like headphones with midbass, I had cascades and I really liked them. The only thing that his midbass hump was too accentuated, although with cloth pads it was controlled. I think that aeolus could be similar but more refined and controlled I will also love it. I compare aeolus / atticus with cascade with cloth pads, cascades as standard, they are not similar, I know it.
Anandas has a little subbass lack but works very well to eq. With my ifi idsd micro idsd signature with xbass activated they sound great, tonally perfect and with remarkable resolution, for me if they had the resolution of utopias they would be absolutely perfect. For me they are an excellent allrounder. Maybe th900 are better at edm and hip hop and grado gs3000e at rock and jazz, but ananda sounds 8.5 all in all genres. The only problem that they don't work well with my tube amp and I want some headphones that sound good on it, that's where zMf comes into play
I think that for low, low and medium I would like both zmf, (auteur and aeolus). I am more concerned about the treble of both, I would not like them to sound veiled.
Recently I had a few days, focal clear again and I did not like them, I did not remember them like that, they seemed too boring and much narrower and with less serious than ananda. In demanding subjects in subbass like ost pail runner 2049, they clipped, I find it embarrassing in a headset of that price. 2 years ago I had elear and same failure.
The zmf that I bought, I would use them mainly in my tube amp, feliks audio espressivo mark ii with electro harmonix tubes, quite neutral, they give a little more body than the ifi micro idsd, but the highs are almost the same, a little softer.
Also say that I have a GS3000e grade, their mids and highs are magnificent too, with guitars, in jazz, classical and soft rock they sound great.
Your problem,? The subbass is minimal, they can't be an allrounder for me with that non-existent subbass.
I enjoy a lot with clean subbass like anandas or th900s
I think I have already described my tastes with more precision hehe.
I listen to everything a lot of rock, 80's music, pop, ost, electonic and classical and jazz less frequently.
Thank you all very much for the advice given and the ones you can give me, greetings

 

[jaker782]

Hi
I like headphones with midbass, I had cascades and I really liked them. The only thing that his midbass hump was too accentuated, although with cloth pads it was controlled. I think that aeolus could be similar but more refined and controlled I will also love it. I compare aeolus / atticus with cascade with cloth pads, cascades as standard, they are not similar, I know it.
Anandas has a little subbass lack but works very well to eq. With my ifi idsd micro idsd signature with xbass activated they sound great, tonally perfect and with remarkable resolution, for me if they had the resolution of utopias they would be absolutely perfect. For me they are an excellent allrounder. Maybe th900 are better at edm and hip hop and grado gs3000e at rock and jazz, but ananda sounds 8.5 all in all genres. The only problem that they don't work well with my tube amp and I want some headphones that sound good on it, that's where zMf comes into play
I think that for low, low and medium I would like both zmf, (auteur and aeolus). I am more concerned about the treble of both, I would not like them to sound veiled.
Recently I had a few days, focal clear again and I did not like them, I did not remember them like that, they seemed too boring and much narrower and with less serious than ananda. In demanding subjects in subbass like ost pail runner 2049, they clipped, I find it embarrassing in a headset of that price. 2 years ago I had elear and same failure.
The zmf that I bought, I would use them mainly in my tube amp, feliks audio espressivo mark ii with electro harmonix tubes, quite neutral, they give a little more body than the ifi micro idsd, but the highs are almost the same, a little softer.
Also say that I have a GS3000e grade, their mids and highs are magnificent too, with guitars, in jazz, classical and soft rock they sound great.
Your problem,? The subbass is minimal, they can't be an allrounder for me with that non-existent subbass.
I enjoy a lot with clean subbass like anandas or th900s
I think I have already described my tastes with more precision hehe.
I listen to everything a lot of rock, 80's music, pop, ost, electonic and classical and jazz less frequently.
Thank you all very much for the advice given and the ones you can give me, greetings

It sounds like you are looking for something closer to the Ananda that would be a good pairing with your tube amp. And you value sub-bass over mid-bass. If so, the Auteur is your headphone.

 

[Kike6685]

It sounds like you are looking for something closer to the Ananda that would be a good pairing with your tube amp. And you value sub-bass over mid-bass. If so, the Auteur is your headphone.

Thanks for your help.
It seems that zMf auteur will be chosen.
As you see it vs ananda in:
Subwoofer extension, midbass impact, resolution and soundstage?
Cheers

 

[spittis]

Any thoughts/experiences on Valhalla 2 vs Feliks Audio Echo for the Auteurs? Purely for trying out a tube amp when I get the headphones, to complement my SS-amp.

 

[jaker782]

Thanks for your help.
It seems that zMf auteur will be chosen.
As you see it vs ananda in:
Subwoofer extension, midbass impact, resolution and soundstage?
Cheers

Sorry, somehow I missed this. It has been awhile since I've heard the Ananda, but I would say the Auteur bets it handily on sub-bass extension, mid-bass impact, and resolution. Ananda *might* best it in soundstage as it is not huge on the Auteur, but larger than average for sure. Ananda might sound more open as the Auteur is technically a semi-open design.

I might actually have an Auteur for sale in a few days if you are interested.

 

[robo24]

Any thoughts/experiences on Valhalla 2 vs Feliks Audio Echo for the Auteurs? Purely for trying out a tube amp when I get the headphones, to complement my SS-amp.

I haven't found the Valhalla especially great with the Auteur or any ofter ZMFs. It's fine, just nothing special, and takes a bit of money to get tubes and adapters to transform it well. Haven't heard, but just from reading all the ZMF forums across here and other sites, the Echo seems universally loved with ZMFs.

 

[jaker782]

I haven't found the Valhalla especially great with the Auteur or any ofter ZMFs. It's fine, just nothing special, and takes a bit of money to get tubes and adapters to transform it well. Haven't heard, but just from reading all the ZMF forums across here and other sites, the Echo seems universally loved with ZMFs.

While I haven't heard either of these amps, if reading impressions counts for anything, I would echo (see what I did there) the above and say the Echo is the better amp for ZMF dynamics. I keep reading the Valhalla, while good, is more neutral and drier, especially compared to something like the Feliks stuff. Again, I haven't heard either amp, so feel free to ignore my input.

 

[Barnstormer13]

Any thoughts/experiences on Valhalla 2 vs Feliks Audio Echo for the Auteurs? Purely for trying out a tube amp when I get the headphones, to complement my SS-amp.

Cant speak to the Echo, but for the Auteur I wouldn’t recommend the Valhalla 2. The Auteur isn’t particularly fast or dynamic and neither is the Valhalla. It will work fine, but you would do better with a faster, harder hitting amp IMHO.

 

[shafat777]

Cant speak to the Echo, but for the Auteur I wouldn’t recommend the Valhalla 2. The Auteur isn’t particularly fast or dynamic and neither is the Valhalla. It will work fine, but you would do better with a faster, harder hitting amp IMHO.

I second that I ve had the pleasure of running my auteurs using a valhalla 2 for 3 days and it didnt sound dynamic at all, IMO. Its a good amp, dont get me wrong but its not meant to be paired with a zmf can. On the other hand, it sounded excellent with my focal clear and Hd660s. Like many others have said, the zmf cans love OTL tube amp. Anything from Feliks Audio (echo, elise or euforia), Liquid platinum (cap modded if possible), Bottlehead amps. These amps + killer tubes + any zmf of your liking = bliss. Cant go wrong with any of these and there are many, many more out there that will pair really well with your zmf headphone.

 

[afilen]

I second that I ve had the pleasure of running my auteurs using a valhalla 2 for 3 days and it didnt sound dynamic at all, IMO. Its a god amp, dont get me wrong but its not meant to be paired with a zmf can. On the other hand, it sounded excellent with my focal clear and Hd660s. Like many others have said, the zmf cans love OTL tube amp. Anything from Feliks Audio (echo, elise or euforia), Liquid platinum (cap modded if possible), Bottlehead amps. These amps + killer tubes + any zmf of your liking = bliss. Cant go wrong with any of these and there are many, many more out there that will pair really well with your zmf headphone.

One of the stock tubes broke on my Liquid Platinum - any recommendations for a new pair at a reasonable price?

 

[jonathan c]

The headphone amplifiers which, to my ears, are synergistic matches to the ZMF Auteurs are (alphabetically): Bottlehead Crack 1.1 (speedball + mega-capacitors), Liquid Platinum (with external LPS and 12AU7 tubes), Violectric V280.