[Casey’sToneQuest]

This is great to hear, my biggest worry was a lack of treble presence.


Same here, just shipped!bummer

One thing I forgot to mention in my previous post, and it's that with the Bokeh, all music no matter the genre sounds sublime. . .and with the Atticus, it's more hit or miss within a few specific genres.

The Bokeh is truly something special.

Oooooo so excited! Hopefully mine ships next Friday

 

[masmole]

My Bokeh didn't ship yesterday, so I just drove to ZMF HQ in Chicago and got 'em!

Just kidding, Zach was nice enough to invite me to pick up my headphones and give me a quick tour of where the magic happens at ZMF

I ordered an Atrium as my first pair of ZMF several weeks ago during ZMF November and then a Bokeh shortly after. Since I was local, Zach offered for me to drop by and pick them all up. Yesterday (Friday) was the day. This turned out to be very convenient because I live in the area and work just a short 5 minute drive to ZMF.

Got to meet Zach, Bevin, and the rest of the crew at ZMF. Great people doing great things! I had a quick glimpse of the magic at work... the artistry of crafting these headphones, QC testing, and packing it all up for fulfillment. It's no wonder people in the community are so enamored with their ZMF headphones - not only do they sound great, but I got the sense that a lot of love goes into the work that happens behind the scenes at ZMF and that translates to the final product. So much going on in a such small-ish space, but somehow didn't feel chaotic because the whole team at ZMF seem to work like an efficient well-oiled machine. Zach was saying that they're soon relocating to a new larger space, which I'm sure will be much needed.

Zach also let me listen to some unique pieces of gear and chatted a bit about some upcoming stuff... makes me even more excited for what's to come!

I won't even talk much about my new ZMF gear just yet, apart from them already sounding stellar out of the box, without any break-in yet.
So far, the Bokeh sounds lovely yet hits hard with the WA22 and I'm quite amazed the Atrium can be driven so well from just the RU7 plugged into an iPad. The finish and workmanship on both the Bokeh and Atrium stabilized are stuff of dreams. What a time we are in to have such gems that sound as good as they look!

Out of the box, my wife much prefers the sound of the Bokeh over the Atrium... she listens only to hip hop, rap, pop fwiw.
I am in love with the sound of the Atrium Open, even just sitting on my couch just connected to my iPad+RU7... I listen to all sorts of stuff, but mostly Jazz and Blues. Bokeh is so much fun with EDM and pop music for sure, and even some Metallica. Kinda reminds me of Meze 109 Pro, though I haven't gotten around to A-B them back to back yet to see if they're actually that similar. Together the Bokeh and Atrium's different sound signatures seem to complement each other well across many genres. Extremely happy with these.

Thanks Zach, Bevin, and team ZMF for having me over.

 

[Casey’sToneQuest]

My Bokeh didn't ship yesterday, so I just drove to ZMF HQ in Chicago and got 'em!

Just kidding, Zach was nice enough to invite me to pick up my headphones and give me a quick tour of where the magic happens at ZMF

I ordered an Atrium as my first pair of ZMF several weeks ago during ZMF November and then a Bokeh shortly after. Since I was local, Zach offered for me to drop by and pick them all up. Yesterday (Friday) was the day. This turned out to be very convenient because I live in the area and work just a short 5 minute drive to ZMF.

Got to meet Zach, Bevin, and the rest of the crew at ZMF. Great people doing great things! I had a quick glimpse of the magic at work... the artistry of crafting these headphones, QC testing, and packing it all up for fulfillment. It's no wonder people in the community are so enamored with their ZMF headphones - not only do they sound great, but I got the sense that a lot of love goes into the work that happens behind the scenes at ZMF and that translates to the final product. So much going on in a such small-ish space, but somehow didn't feel chaotic because the whole team at ZMF seem to work like an efficient well-oiled machine. Zach was saying that they're soon relocating to a new larger space, which I'm sure will be much needed.

Zach also let me listen to some unique pieces of gear and chatted a bit about some upcoming stuff... makes me even more excited for what's to come!




I won't even talk much about my new ZMF gear just yet, apart from them already sounding stellar out of the box, without any break-in yet.
So far, the Bokeh sounds lovely yet hits hard with the WA22 and I'm quite amazed the Atrium can be driven so well from just the RU7 plugged into an iPad. The finish and workmanship on both the Bokeh and Atrium stabilized are stuff of dreams. What a time we are in to have such gems that sound as good as they look!


Out of the box, my wife much prefers the sound of the Bokeh over the Atrium... she listens only to hip hop, rap, pop fwiw.
I am in love with the sound of the Atrium Open, even just sitting on my couch just connected to my iPad+RU7... I listen to all sorts of stuff, but mostly Jazz and Blues. Bokeh is so much fun with EDM and pop music for sure, and even some Metallica. Kinda reminds me of Meze 109 Pro, though I haven't gotten around to A-B them back to back yet to see if they're actually that similar. Together the Bokeh and Atrium's different sound signatures seem to complement each other well across many genres. Extremely happy with these.


Thanks Zach, Bevin, and team ZMF for having me over.

Wow amazing!! I’m very excited to join the ZMF fam finally, Zach appears to be the real deal doing real great work for the love of it. Stoked

 

[Odin412]

The Bokeh is a more exciting listen if you will, with stronger punch and impact and a tighter sound overall top to bottom, and the Atticus is smoother and more open sounding. The bass is stronger, goes deeper and is more impactful on the Bokeh, but not quite as detailed and nuanced in the middbass as the Atticus. The mids are more even on the Bokeh and I can hear more nuances and little details better as a result. The vocals are different between the two, being more floaty and smooth on the Bokeh, and they are a tad more forward and "raw" sounding on the Atticus. I actually love the vocals on both headphones, and it's tough to pick a winner there. As for the highs, they are more present on the Bokeh, yet still don't ever get harsh. I feel overall the Bokeh has better balance and extension top to bottom, and more unique staging and better layering thanks to the ADS (Atrium Damping System), and the Atticus is more open and "flavored" with more peaks and valley's in it's FR and it sounds more laidback overall. That's just some off the cuff stuff of what has really jumped out so far, and I have only had 2 weeks with the Bokeh now, so I am still learning what it's all about and how it fully compares to my Atticus. That being said, I already know the Atticus and Bokeh are different enough that both are staying in my collection. The Bokeh is more balanced/analog and dynamic/exciting sounding, and the Atticus is more flavored sounding with it's peaks and valleys, and more laid-back/open sound overall. I can listen to either one happily all day long.

For reference, the Bokeh has the Hybrid Pads and Titan Mesh installed, and the Atticus has the stock Ori Lambskin Pads.


I truly feel that if you are a fan of the ZMF house sound, the Bokeh is definitely a must have.

Thanks for sharing! I really enjoy my Atticus and I'm glad that you're enjoying your new Bokeh. When I listened to the Bokeh at CanJam SoCal I thought that the treble was maybe a bit too prominent for my taste but my tinnitus was acting up that day so my listening impressions were unreliable. Based on your impressions the Bokeh sounds like an excellent headphone - very tempting indeed.

 

[Alenotta]

My Bokeh didn't ship yesterday, so I just drove to ZMF HQ in Chicago and got 'em!

Just kidding, Zach was nice enough to invite me to pick up my headphones and give me a quick tour of where the magic happens at ZMF

 

[Wes S]

Thanks for sharing! I really enjoy my Atticus and I'm glad that you're enjoying your new Bokeh. When I listened to the Bokeh at CanJam SoCal I thought that the treble was maybe a bit too prominent for my taste but my tinnitus was acting up that day so my listening impressions were unreliable. Based on your impressions the Bokeh sounds like an excellent headphone - very tempting indeed.

No prob! The Bokeh actually didn't wow me at first listen this past CanJam Dallas, due to hearing them in show conditions and with the Protein Pads only. However, once I heard them with my own gear and the Hybrid Pads, they have since become my favorite headphone and new daily driver. I bet you just might love them too in your own environment, and with 3 pad options and 2 different types of mesh, one can really fine tune the sound to their liking.

 

[Wes S]

So perfect!

 

[zach915m]

No prob! The Bokeh actually didn't wow me at first listen this past CanJam Dallas, due to hearing them in show conditions and with the Protein Pads only. However, once I heard them with my own gear and the Hybrid Pads, they have since become my favorite headphone and new daily driver. I bet you just might love them too in your own environment, and with 3 pad options and 2 different types of mesh, one can really fine tune the sound to their liking.

We showed a different version at each canjam as I was working on finalizing things and getting feedback, and then the tuning system made everything more confusing. So anyways sorry about that but yes the final form is quite malleable.

 

[donpablo]

How is soundstage of Bokeh compared to Auteur/Auteur-Classic? Is it a huge difference or rather minor? I know Bokeh is closed back, but many writing here that they have decent soundstage so Im curious cause had opportunity to listen Auteur Classic and loved their spaciousness.

 

[Ridewave]

Would this be worth getting or saving up for an atrium closed? I thought the atrium closed was pretty versatile and could handle death core breakdowns as well as hip hop.

 

[kumar402]

Would this be worth getting or saving up for an atrium closed? I thought the atrium closed was pretty versatile and could handle death core breakdowns as well as hip hop.

Flagship headphones are worth it only if you have a chain to extract maximum out of them. In fact higher end headphones may perform poorly and may exhibit the deficiencies in your system

 

[Ridewave]

I know. I take the cycling approach to audiophile gear. Get the frame(headphone ) upgrade around it.

 

[avin13]

I know. I take the cycling approach to audiophile gear. Get the frame(headphone ) upgrade around it.

That was my train of thought going into this hobby 6 months ago. headphone > amp> dac. For me personally I figure it be best to be patient save up for x months and head straight to "end game" territory.

 

[StokeNewingtonJohn]

The Bokeh is a more exciting listen if you will, with stronger punch and impact and a tighter sound overall top to bottom, and the Atticus is smoother and more open sounding. The bass is stronger, goes deeper and is more impactful on the Bokeh, but not quite as detailed and nuanced in the middbass as the Atticus. The mids are more even on the Bokeh and I can hear more nuances and little details better as a result. The vocals are different between the two, being more floaty and smooth on the Bokeh, and they are a tad more forward and "raw" sounding on the Atticus. I actually love the vocals on both headphones, and it's tough to pick a winner there. As for the highs, they are more present on the Bokeh, yet still don't ever get harsh. I feel overall the Bokeh has better balance and extension top to bottom, and more unique staging and better layering thanks to the ADS (Atrium Damping System), and the Atticus is more open and "flavored" with more peaks and valley's in it's FR and it sounds more laidback overall. That's just some off the cuff stuff of what has really jumped out so far, and I have only had 2 weeks with the Bokeh now, so I am still learning what it's all about and how it fully compares to my Atticus. That being said, I already know the Atticus and Bokeh are different enough that both are staying in my collection. The Bokeh is more balanced/analog and dynamic/punchy sounding, and the Atticus is more flavored sounding with it's peaks and valleys, and more laid-back/open sound overall. I can listen to either one happily all day long.

For reference, the Bokeh has the Hybrid Pads and Titan Mesh installed, and the Atticus has the stock Ori Lambskin Pads.


I truly feel that if you are a fan of the ZMF house sound, the Bokeh is definitely a must have.

Thanks very much, Wes S. That's super helpful.

 

[Wes S]

That was my train of thought going into this hobby 6 months ago. headphone > amp> dac. For me personally I figure it be best to be patient save up for x months and head straight to "end game" territory.

Going straight for "Endgame" territory doesn't always yield success. I have found it is actually better to work your way up the ladder, and that way you learn what you like and don't like and know what to look/listen for when it finally comes time to move up to TOTL level gear. Lots of different flavors at the top. . .