[oatp1b1]

Would the Bokeh be a good step up from the E-MU Teak? I've only found one comparison in the thread, so would be interesting to hear if there are others who have heard both of them.

 

[YtseJamer]

My ears touch the driver so I've been wanting a thicker pad.

It seems like you're having a little trouble with your pads. Just a heads up, make sure the thicker part goes behind your ears and the stitching lines up with the cable connector. Oh, and before you pop them on, make sure both sides have the thicker part at the back of the ear cups. Hope that helps!

 

[MacMan31]

It seems like you're having a little trouble with your pads. Just a heads up, make sure the thicker part goes behind your ears and the stitching lines up with the cable connector. Oh, and before you pop them on, make sure both sides have the thicker part at the back of the ear cups. Hope that helps!

I have done all that. I think I'm just used to thicker pads on other ZMF phones.

 

[RoThe]

Are you referring to the BE2 suede solid pads? I've been wondering about other pads myself. What about the Caldera Lambskin thick? My ears touch the driver so I've been wanting a thicker pad.

I tried the Caldera Thick pads on the Bokeh today, they sound good but it makes the Bokeh definitely brighter/shoutier I'd say.
They aren't actually shouty but it goes a bit more in that direction. I also think it sounds a biit less clean.
But definitely worth a try, if you try I would also recommend getting a solid mesh, it fits better with the pad I found.

I took some measurements with my MiniDSP Ears with different pads and meshes. As described in the manual: Volume equalization at 300Hz, HEQ calibration file.
Don't take them too seriously as it is a cheap rig and positioning the cups in different ways on the rig always changes the sound a bit, I took 4 measurements with slightly different positioning and generated the averages.
Maybe it helps a bit to see differences at least.
I attached the REW file as well. I cannot attach .mdat files on headfi, so you'd have to change the file extension from .txt to .mdat

Bokeh measurements with Protein Pads (Burst Mesh), Hybrid Pads (Burst Mesh), Caldera Lambskin Thick (Burst and Solid Mesh)

Bokeh with Protein Pads in comparison to the Caldera Open in stock configuration

 

[MacMan31]

I tried the Caldera Thick pads on the Bokeh today, they sound good but it makes the Bokeh definitely brighter/shoutier I'd say.
They aren't actually shouty but it goes a bit more in that direction. I also think it sounds a biit less clean.
But definitely worth a try, if you try I would also recommend getting a solid mesh, it fits better with the pad I found.

I took some measurements with my MiniDSP Ears with different pads and meshes. As described in the manual: Volume equalization at 300Hz, HEQ calibration file.
Don't take them too seriously as it is a cheap rig and positioning the cups in different ways on the rig always changes the sound a bit, I took 4 measurements with slightly different positioning and generated the averages.
Maybe it helps a bit to see differences at least.
I attached the REW file as well. I cannot attach .mdat files on headfi, so you'd have to change the file extension from .txt to .mdat

Bokeh measurements with Protein Pads (Burst Mesh), Hybrid Pads (Burst Mesh), Caldera Lambskin Thick (Burst and Solid Mesh)


Bokeh with Protein Pads in comparison to the Caldera Open in stock configuration

I have both driver mesh options as I got the tuning kit with my Bokeh. It also comes with three sets of pads. One set I have not tried yet. I also have not swapped the driver mesh yet. I can't really say anything bad about how they sound. They are very good. But finding a good fit with headphones is often a struggle for me for some reason. I've had a good variety of headphones over the years. Same goes for earphones/IEMs. I don't like those ear tips sticking in my ear so the only ones that really work for me on the go are the Apple AirPods (3rd gen).

 

[lauthoerer]

Just a heads up, make sure the thicker part goes behind your ears and the stitching lines up with the cable connector. Oh, and before you pop them on, make sure both sides have the thicker part at the back of the ear cups. Hope that helps!

I’m only at the very beginning of my ZMF pads journey, but also a bit confused as to the directions given. Obviously, the thick part goes behind the ears - however, doing this means that the seams do NOT align with the cable jacks!? Is it my head shape?

 

[spittis]

I’m only at the very beginning of my ZMF pads journey, but also a bit confused as to the directions given. Obviously, the thick part goes behind the ears - however, doing this means that the seams do NOT align with the cable jacks!? Is it my head shape?

If you swap the left and right pads - do the seams align with the jacks now? Anyway, I don't think having them aligned is important, what matters is that the thick part is behind the ear.

 

[LXMc]

I’m only at the very beginning of my ZMF pads journey, but also a bit confused as to the directions given. Obviously, the thick part goes behind the ears - however, doing this means that the seams do NOT align with the cable jacks!? Is it my head shape?

The Caldera & Bokeh pads are the ones that orient with the seam towards the cable jacks - older pads that fit all the other full-size (non-caldera) models the seam orients towards the front.

 

[LXMc]

I have both driver mesh options as I got the tuning kit with my Bokeh. It also comes with three sets of pads. One set I have not tried yet. I also have not swapped the driver mesh yet. I can't really say anything bad about how they sound. They are very good. But finding a good fit with headphones is often a struggle for me for some reason. I've had a good variety of headphones over the years. Same goes for earphones/IEMs. I don't like those ear tips sticking in my ear so the only ones that really work for me on the go are the Apple AirPods (3rd gen).

I feel you on the fit difficulties - I've got larger ears and have found in most cases my ears are gonna touch the driver housing in some capacity. I almost prefer if the pads are a bit smaller and press against my ears versus just having a small bit touching which is more distracting and annoying, but I need to put some thin foam (I use the foam backing for the sennheiser 6xx series) behind the pad to cushion them.

 

[Pharmaboy]

Would the Bokeh be a good step up from the E-MU Teak? I've only found one comparison in the thread, so would be interesting to hear if there are others who have heard both of them.

I heard the Bokeh at CanJam NYC--show conditions made it difficult to perceive the real nature of that sound. But I hope to soon have a loaner/review pair IMS, and "all will be revealed."

But a general comment: I owned an E-Mu Teak at one time and was very impressed with its sound, particularly the bass. I sold it only because the comfort with stock pads was quite bad (at least for me), and all my pad-rolling experiments failed.

As for ZMFs, I've heard them all; currently own 4; owned 3-4 others. I suspect pretty much any ZMF headphone would be a real upgrade to the E-Mu Teak, good as its sound is. To give just one example of a closed back: the ZMF Eikon (was discontinued, now coming back) had some of the most impactful, dynamic sound I ever encountered. The entire bass range was a revelation, as was the epic soundstaging. It's a more exciting headphone overall than the Teak, but it's hard to argue with excitement, plus it scales like mad on different DACs and amps.

ZMFs cost a multiple of the Teak, but every one I own, owned or heard is totally worth that cost.

 

[MacMan31]

I feel you on the fit difficulties - I've got larger ears and have found in most cases my ears are gonna touch the driver housing in some capacity. I almost prefer if the pads are a bit smaller and press against my ears versus just having a small bit touching which is more distracting and annoying, but I need to put some thin foam (I use the foam backing for the sennheiser 6xx series) behind the pad to cushion them.

It's not just about the pads. I've had numerous headphones that are just too big for my head. Even at the smallest headband adjustment the ear cups will be too low on my ears. It's as if the headband is too long.

Also speaking of the headband. My Bokeh headband seems to have a bend at the very top that is very prominent. It's not noticeable when just looking at it but I can feel it when I touch the top of the headband. Is the band just one piece of medal from ear to ear? I don't want to break the headband trying to "fix" it.

 

[LXMc]

Also speaking of the headband. My Bokeh headband seems to have a bend at the very top that is very prominent. It's not noticeable when just looking at it but I can feel it when I touch the top of the headband. Is the band just one piece of medal from ear to ear? I don't want to break the headband trying to "fix" it.

It's a singular piece of spring steel and you can definitely bend it around a bit to improve your fit (ZMF youtube has a video or two on this). Too big altogether is a bit tougher to fix - hopefully the upcoming suede version adds a little extra bulk, as it does with the full-size headband. When I changed my Auteur from the leather to suede strap I had to adjust the rods out a notch or two.

 

[oatp1b1]

I heard the Bokeh at CanJam NYC--show conditions made it difficult to perceive the real nature of that sound. But I hope to soon have a loaner/review pair IMS, and "all will be revealed."

But a general comment: I owned an E-Mu Teak at one time and was very impressed with its sound, particularly the bass. I sold it only because the comfort with stock pads was quite bad (at least for me), and all my pad-rolling experiments failed.

As for ZMFs, I've heard them all; currently own 4; owned 3-4 others. I suspect pretty much any ZMF headphone would be a real upgrade to the E-Mu Teak, good as its sound is. To give just one example of a closed back: the ZMF Eikon (was discontinued, now coming back) had some of the most impactful, dynamic sound I ever encountered. The entire bass range was a revelation, as was the epic soundstaging. It's a more exciting headphone overall than the Teak, but it's hard to argue with excitement, plus it scales like mad on different DACs and amps.

ZMFs cost a multiple of the Teak, but every one I own, owned or heard is totally worth that cost.

Excellent, thanks for the general comment. Generally speaking for ZMF - Is the treble as good as the bass? I really like the treble energy on the Teaks so I become a little hesitant when reviews of most/all ZMF headphones praise how smooth and dark they are which to me is the opposite of what I'm after. I mostly listen to classical music so having a laid back/deemphasized treble would be non-ideal.

 

[spittis]

Excellent, thanks for the general comment. Generally speaking for ZMF - Is the treble as good as the bass? I really like the treble energy on the Teaks so I become a little hesitant when reviews of most/all ZMF headphones praise how smooth and dark they are which to me is the opposite of what I'm after. I mostly listen to classical music so having a laid back/deemphasized treble would be non-ideal.

Some ZMF headphones are pretty dark sounding with certain pads. I would not consider the Bokeh dark though, at least if you remove the mesh and use hybrid/suede pads, it's quite energetic up top in that configuration.

 

[Pharmaboy]

Excellent, thanks for the general comment. Generally speaking for ZMF - Is the treble as good as the bass? I really like the treble energy on the Teaks so I become a little hesitant when reviews of most/all ZMF headphones praise how smooth and dark they are which to me is the opposite of what I'm after. I mostly listen to classical music so having a laid back/deemphasized treble would be non-ideal.

Interesting question. I found the treble on the E-Mu Teak much better than it was on the same-Fostex-frame TX-00 mahogany, which sounded bright and grainy to me. The Teak's treble (upper mids up to treble) were slightly north of what I prefer, but they had real tonal beauty & accuracy, thanks to that great biocellulose driver. I categorized the Teak's treble as very nice, in the "it hurts so good" neighborhood.

Knowing you value the Teak's treble makes it easier to recommend specific ZMFs:

1. Auteur (original): a bit more honesty in the treble than I like, but more tonal accuracy and range than the Teak. However, the bass isn't quite equal to the Teak's
2. Auteur Classic: things I didn't care for in the OG Auteur definitely improve here, w/still accurate but less intrusive upper mids & treble; better bass; and amazing soundstaging, thanks to the ADS (Atrium Damping System). This one also has a biocellulose driver
3. Eikon original: I owned a padauk version (stunning wood) and loved the sound: authoritative, sparkling upper mids/treble, epic bass, all the way down to sub-bass, and way better soundstaging than any closed back I've heard. It also has a biocellulose driver. You'd probably like this headphone. In addition, the dynamics are really something to experience (thrilling sound)
4. Eikon(ic): This reissued Eikon is said to have a somewhat improved version of the OG Eikon's driver. Assuming it sounds anything like the original, you'd probably like this one.
5. Caldera Open: The only planar on this list & it costs significantly more than the others. But it's one of the best headphones (if not the THE best) I've ever heard, with lights out, accurate bass, big, expressive mids, truthful upper mids and treble, and unprecedented soundstaging for a planar, courtesy of the ADS. This TOTL headphone's sound can be readily "tuned" via choice of screens (covering the driver) and earpads. If you're interested in this one, check the lengthy Caldera thread on Head-Fi.

I don't think you could go wrong with any of these 5.