ZMF November 2022 is here!!!

[joshua1122]

Looks like maple burl.

Appreciate it! Thanks for making such a lovely set – my wife is very happy with how it looks!

 

[JerseyD]

^^ they all do have the ZMF house sound … different rooms: the gameroom, the den/study, the family room, and let’s not forget the front hallway - er, Atrium… .

Same house - different rooms. Brilliant! Thinking I might like to spend some time in the atrium...

 

[omega1990]

I am fascinated by the way ZMF owners will ad more ZMFs to their stable rather than "upgrade and replace" one ZMF for another.

When I heard my DCA Ether 2, it was a clear upgrade from my DCA Aeon - and I did not feel the need to keep the Aeon any longer - bye bye.

Seems like an Aeolus or Auteur listener, for example, who steps up to an Atrium or Verite will most likely keep both - and then keep an ear out for which other ZMF they might want in the future! Confounding when people say they ALL have the ZMF house sound. I'm sure I'll "understand" better after I have had a chance to listen to more ZMF models. Thoughts?

Oh yes they are all different from one another but all have that zmf house sound. Just off the top of my head, all sorts of differences come to mind.

Aeolus- with aeolus pads, kinda sounded like the Atticus but didn't do what Atticus did as well in that way. I use lambskin perf and they sound more balanced but still warm, small stage for a zmf, debatably the zippiest of transients from a zmf. I don't know what brand of coffee Zach drinks, but it's like he poured all of it in this headphone, it's so exciting to me and is actually my favorite headphone over anything else I've heard (it just nails my prefered take on sound). It's intimate vocals always get my attention and the small stage brings its dynamic punch closer to me adding to the excitement.

Atticus- the warmest zmf I can think of. My second favorite overall headphone. Love it's midbass and musicality. Stage is also on the small side of the zmf family. It's also a smooth listen for me. My basshead headphone of choice. The way bass thumps on this makes music sound like bangers and it also has the intimate vocals like aeolus, it's like the singer only sings to me directly.

Auteur- closer to neutral with a bit of warmth. Linear bass, but presents itself as a large sized bass thump if the recording calls for it. Dynamics are very engaging on well recorded tracks. Stage is medium sized and the updated classic version I have present sounds with added distance, a little more detailed than the above 2 and has the biocellulose driver to give it a very natural timbre. My 3rd overall favorite headphone. Just makes everything sound just right to me, a goldilocks effect. Closer to me as a traditional neutral audiophile headphone but still has a bit of that zmf sound meaning it's not as colored as the ones mentioned above, but isn't as neutral as headphones from other brands. If you think from what you've read that zmf might me too warm and colored, the auteur is a friendly choice if it's your first zmf.

Eikon- I put this headphone in the category of being a fun take on a studio monitor. It shares similar sounds to the sony z1r and even the lcd 4 believe it or not. The main difference between eikon and z1r/lcd4 is that the eikon is the lushest sounding. This has debatably the most subbass in a zmf and has more treble bite than the auteur (sometimes makes me think its less forgiving than auteur). It does some chameleon effects (again studio monitor stuff) but always focuses on the music, so if another headphone is more detailed, resolving etc. the eikon still wins me over against more expensive headphones because I just get lost in the music for hours. Strangley enough its placed at the bottom of the zmf list for me. This is probably because I usually don't listen to headphones that emphasize subbass like this one and I typically prefer an emphasized midbass. So this is a darkhorse for me in that while it might be least likely picked up, I get lost in it all over again when I do listen to it.

Verite open- for dynamic zmfs, it's the fastest open back, the beryllium driver makes everything sound holographic and quick for a zmf. Stage is the widest for me, and has quite a bit of lushness to it. Before the auteur classic and atrium, the verite was the first to me that added more depth. The verite also brings me closer to the details in the recording than the ones mentioned above. It sounds like being in the front row of a performance. Punch is pretty strong on this one but gets more pronounced with thinner pads, I like using the be2 perf lambskin to bring that punch closer to me. Midrange seems to take a small step back for me from memory. Has some of its sound remind me of the aeolus, but not quite the same. This also took a little while to love becuase I felt the beryllium driver adds a metallic effect to the music (not as natural to me as the auteur/eikon/atrium biocellulose driver), but is much less present an effect than the focal stellia I had for a short time.

Verite closed- similar to the verite open but as a closed back, the sounds are to me a little more focused and it has a bit of a w-shape in signature. The widest stage for a zmf closedback. It's been a while since I last listened to it, but from memory it's always focused on the exciting parts of a recording probably as result of the w-shape. A fun balance of subbass and midbass punch.

Atrium- the most beautiful mids of any zmf I've heard (not heard the caldera yet). This is Zach trying to optimize the performance of the biocellulose driver and squeeze every last ounce of capability from it without innovating and creating an entirely new driver from scratch. My favorite zmf for male vocals. While I don't listen to female vocals on this one as much as others it has the most human like vocals out of any zmf. Dynamics are so physical and they have an addicting weight to them. Subbass is less than other zmfs but the punch is debatably the densest of the open back dynamics. Like an autuer that took a page from the Atticus for punch. Best stage depth. While the verite feels like the front row of a performance and pulls you closer to textured details, the atrium puts you in the venue where the performance takes place.

For the flagships vo, vc, and atrium I feel they are all tied so below auteur but above eikon for my tastes.

 

[No Deal]

Oh yes they are all different from one another but all have that zmf house sound. Just off the top of my head, all sorts of differences come to mind.

Aeolus- with aeolus pads, kinda sounded like the Atticus but didn't do what Atticus did as well in that way. I use lambskin perf and they sound more balanced but still warm, small stage for a zmf, debatably the zippiest of transients from a zmf. I don't know what brand of coffee Zach drinks, but it's like he poured all of it in this headphone, it's so exciting to me and is actually my favorite headphone over anything else I've heard (it just nails my prefered take on sound). It's intimate vocals always get my attention and the small stage brings its dynamic punch closer to me adding to the excitement.

Atticus- the warmest zmf I can think of. My second favorite overall headphone. Love it's midbass and musicality. Stage is also on the small side of the zmf family. It's also a smooth listen for me. My basshead headphone of choice. The way bass thumps on this makes music sound like bangers and it also has the intimate vocals like aeolus, it's like the singer only sings to me directly.

Auteur- closer to neutral with a bit of warmth. Linear bass, but presents itself as a large sized bass thump if the recording calls for it. Dynamics are very engaging on well recorded tracks. Stage is medium sized and the updated classic version I have present sounds with added distance, a little more detailed than the above 2 and has the biocellulose driver to give it a very natural timbre. My 3rd overall favorite headphone. Just makes everything sound just right to me, a goldilocks effect. Closer to me as a traditional neutral audiophile headphone but still has a bit of that zmf sound meaning it's not as colored as the ones mentioned above, but isn't as neutral as headphones from other brands. If you think from what you've read that zmf might me too warm and colored, the auteur is a friendly choice if it's your first zmf.

Eikon- I put this headphone in the category of being a fun take on a studio monitor. It shares similar sounds to the sony z1r and even the lcd 4 believe it or not. The main difference between eikon and z1r/lcd4 is that the eikon is the lushest sounding. This has debatably the most subbass in a zmf and has more treble bite than the auteur (sometimes makes me think its less forgiving than auteur). It does some chameleon effects (again studio monitor stuff) but always focuses on the music, so if another headphone is more detailed, resolving etc. the eikon still wins me over against more expensive headphones because I just get lost in the music for hours. Strangley enough its placed at the bottom of the zmf list for me. This is probably because I usually don't listen to headphones that emphasize subbass like this one and I typically prefer an emphasized midbass. So this is a darkhorse for me in that while it might be least likely picked up, I get lost in it all over again when I do listen to it.

Verite open- for dynamic zmfs, it's the fastest open back, the beryllium driver makes everything sound holographic and quick for a zmf. Stage is the widest for me, and has quite a bit of lushness to it. Before the auteur classic and atrium, the verite was the first to me that added more depth. The verite also brings me closer to the details in the recording than the ones mentioned above. It sounds like being in the front row of a performance. Punch is pretty strong on this one but gets more pronounced with thinner pads, I like using the be2 perf lambskin to bring that punch closer to me. Midrange seems to take a small step back for me from memory. Has some of its sound remind me of the aeolus, but not quite the same. This also took a little while to love becuase I felt the beryllium driver adds a metallic effect to the music (not as natural to me as the auteur/eikon/atrium biocellulose driver), but is much less present an effect than the focal stellia I had for a short time.

Verite closed- similar to the verite open but as a closed back, the sounds are to me a little more focused and it has a bit of a w-shape in signature. The widest stage for a zmf closedback. It's been a while since I last listened to it, but from memory it's always focused on the exciting parts of a recording probably as result of the w-shape. A fun balance of subbass and midbass punch.

Atrium- the most beautiful mids of any zmf I've heard (not heard the caldera yet). This is Zach trying to optimize the performance of the biocellulose driver and squeeze every last ounce of capability from it without innovating and creating an entirely new driver from scratch. My favorite zmf for male vocals. While I don't listen to female vocals on this one as much as others it has the most human like vocals out of any zmf. Dynamics are so physical and they have an addicting weight to them. Subbass is less than other zmfs but the punch is debatably the densest of the open back dynamics. Like an autuer that took a page from the Atticus for punch. Best stage depth. While the verite feels like the front row of a performance and pulls you closer to textured details, the atrium puts you in the venue where the performance takes place.

For the flagships vo, vc, and atrium I feel they are all tied so below auteur but above eikon for my tastes.

My Verite open headphones came today. What I heard instantly is exactly what is described above. I know these might change with time and I haven't heard them on the tubes yet, but I think I am going to love them.

 

[G8torbyte]

The Auteurs joined the family! These will be going to my children later so I can't say which are my favorite
They all get along well so they can lend to each other.

 

[George Hincapie]

OMG! OMG! Partial fulfillment status!



*Edit* I have tracking and they are on their way to the UK.

 

[Winturmute]

I just got a tracking number for my VCs! Woohoo!

 

[baneand]

#61 koa brass b-stock arrived - not much b-stock to them, really looking great and so much better in person than on images

 

[George Hincapie]

Ouch!

 

[tyk103]

More headphones are starting to get delivered to their new homes. Excited for everyone.

 

[Guarddawg30]

I got my Atriums on Sunday and haven't had a chance to post them yet...They were well worth the wait... @zach915m you knocked these out of the park I couldn't be any happier with them...Thank you.....
Don't hate on the Kitty Klaus place mat..The wife will not be happy

 

[Chippy1]

Hoping my atriums ship soon, all of these delivery pics are getting me excited .

Those stabilized look great!

 

[jonathan c]

#61 koa brass b-stock arrived - not much b-stock to them, really looking great and so much better in person than on images

Gorgeous!!

 

[whirlwind]

I am really enjoying looking at all the pics everybody is posting.

Congrats to everybody who got headphones, and thanks for posting pics.

Lots of killer looking headphones here

 

[Since1991]

Thanks again to the ZMF team for this beautiful headphone just in time for the holiday. I posted this in the Caldera thread, but here it is for this thread as well. I hope everyone receives their own pair in time to enjoy during the days off.