[goldwerger]

Change of plans, the amplifier WILL be at CanJam. Just shipped it off direct to Cali

I still hope you may show your amp at CanJam NYC..

 

[L0rdGwyn]

I still hope you may show your amp at CanJam NYC..

I'll definitely consider it, we'll see how things go in SoCal!

 

[cats4cans]

Man, I'm in the same boat. I keep acquiring ZMF headphones and I haven't sold a single one yet. Meanwhile, in the 15 years I've been in this hobby I've bought and sold headphones from many of the other popular brands (Focal, Sennheiser, Audeze, AKG, Stax, etc).

Sell your headphones? People do that? Isn’t that like selling your children? Do you check in with them later to see if they’re happy? What if the new person abuses them? Or uses them for polka?

 

[warrenpchi]

I'll definitely consider it, we'll see how things go in SoCal!

Send it to me, and I'll see that it makes it to NY... mainly by virtue of you never getting it back!

 

[rhenom]

I have to say, I don’t think it was so cool releasing the Atrium without giving ZMF’s loyal customers (of which I am one) a heads-up that there was a planar on the way. Sure, plenty of people would have bought the Atrium anyway but I have a feeling a lot of people would have held off and waited to hear reviews of the new planar before buying a new expensive flagship dynamic. I know I would have.

I think @zach915m is a standup guy and I give him the benefit of the doubt, but if I didn’t feel that way I would say the way these were rolled out feels like a cash grab.

Hard disagree with this comment. Zach doesn't owe you anything and he certainly doesn't need to publicly inform the market that he is launching a headphone 6 months down the line.

 

[L0rdGwyn]

Send it to me, and I'll see that it makes it to NY... mainly by virtue of you never getting it back!

LOL sure thing, just put it in your carry on, I'm sure TSA will be very cool with it

Hard disagree with this comment. Zach doesn't owe you anything and he certainly doesn't need to publicly inform the market that he is launching a headphone 6 months down the line.

This debate came to a close already, all was discussed and a happy ending reached, no need to open it up again IMO.

 

[warrenpchi]

LOL sure thing, just put it in your carry on, I'm sure TSA will be very cool with it

Oh I've traveled with amps, tubes, cables, and tools in Pelican cases before. Here's what you do:

1. As it passes through the scanner, make contact with the TSA imaging officer
2. Smile, do not stop smiling.
3. Do not blink, not even once.
4. Say "YUP!"

 

[rhenom]

LOL sure thing, just put it in your carry on, I'm sure TSA will be very cool with it



This debate came to a close already, all was discussed and a happy ending reached, no need to open it up again IMO.

Ok, but the comment I quoted was literally from yesterday. Not exactly ancient history.

 

[L0rdGwyn]

Ok, but the comment I quoted was literally from yesterday. Not exactly ancient history.

Nah but everyone made up and came to an understanding, so probably best not to reopen those wounds. Just my opinion of course!

 

[Pharmaboy]

Forgot about the original LCD-4. Suppose the Caldera could have clocked in closer to that and would have been very OTL friendly, but I imagine Zach and the team had a reason for the lower rating.

In my experience, pretty much all planar headphones are OTL-friendly, regardless of impedance. When you listen to one on an OTL, you don't get those wacky elevations in the bass region that dynamics experience. It has to do with planar drivers having much smaller impedance variation by frequency.

I'm not saying an OTL is the ideal amp for a planar--that would be the most powerful SS amp you can find that actually sounds good (for me that's Violectric). But it certainly won't sound "off" or bad.

 

[Pharmaboy]

I wish I lived in a state where I could legally sell my plasma.

Don't sell that TV. It's an heirloom!

 

[wkesquire]

Change of plans, the amplifier WILL be at CanJam. Just shipped it off direct to Cali

ZMF Caldera plus a new @L0rdGwyn amp at CanJam SoCal??? Why do I live in NYC?

 

[Fatdoi]

I have to say, I don’t think it was so cool releasing the Atrium without giving ZMF’s loyal customers (of which I am one) a heads-up that there was a planar on the way. Sure, plenty of people would have bought the Atrium anyway but I have a feeling a lot of people would have held off and waited to hear reviews of the new planar before buying a new expensive flagship dynamic. I know I would have.

I think @zach915m is a standup guy and I give him the benefit of the doubt, but if I didn’t feel that way I would say the way these were rolled out feels like a cash grab.

I always buy ZMF few years after each release to get my favourite limited edition woods..... you don't need to buy every ZMF as new release..... maybe wait for the dust settles and let Zach irons out any bugs on the HP as you're spending at least $3.5k.....

 

[Kevintj604]

I have to say, I don’t think it was so cool releasing the Atrium without giving ZMF’s loyal customers (of which I am one) a heads-up that there was a planar on the way. Sure, plenty of people would have bought the Atrium anyway but I have a feeling a lot of people would have held off and waited to hear reviews of the new planar before buying a new expensive flagship dynamic. I know I would have.

I think @zach915m is a standup guy and I give him the benefit of the doubt, but if I didn’t feel that way I would say the way these were rolled out feels like a cash grab.

Normally I wouldn't bother responding to a comment like this but I've seen many people weigh in their opinions and thought I'd add my own. This logic is completely preposterous. Imagine Apple announcing at an iPhone event to not buy the product because they are announcing another iPhone in the same year. Imagine Sony doing that, or Samsung, or literally any other manufacturer that makes products that people consume.

Why on earth would you think Zach should have pre-announced to the community that a product was coming out 7 months after another product was announced. They aren't even the same product. Ones a Dynamic and the other a Planar. They aren't in the same price point and aren't competing at all in the same lane.

On top of all of that he only has eight units available until November and the Atrium was announced in March. If you don't like the Atrium sell it and buy a Caldera in November or get lucky winning the lottery in SoCal with one of the handful of units available there.

Zach's given us clues all year that he has multiple things coming out. Maybe you weren't listening but most of us knew this was coming. We just didn't know the timeline.

To call @zach915m a stand-up guy and then leave a backhanded comment in the same sentence calling this a cash grab is lame.

 

[LoryWiv]

In my experience, pretty much all planar headphones are OTL-friendly, regardless of impedance. When you listen to one on an OTL, you don't get those wacky elevations in the bass region that dynamics experience. It has to do with planar drivers having much smaller impedance variation by frequency.

I'm not saying an OTL is the ideal amp for a planar--that would be the most powerful SS amp you can find that actually sounds good (for me that's Violectric). But it certainly won't sound "off" or bad.

I hope so, as my only amp. is Feliks Euforia AE (OTL) and with Auteur Classic plus another dynamic in my stable, super interested in Caldera and / or Audeze MM-500 for a contrast. I chatted with Feliks Audio cofounder earlier this week by email and he felt sensitivity was the key, such that while Susvara would be a no go (sensitivity = 86 dB), Caldera at 95 dB or possibly even MM-500 at 100dB could be driven properly. Hoping to try these combo's at CanJam, and as always ZMF's latest has me VERY interested!