Wondering what others thoughts are of the BE2 Lamskin on the VC? I've had a pair on for the last couple of weeks and find them a little bit too in your face and heavy on the treble.
Ive swapped back to the universals for the moment
I've actually been really enjoying the Be2. I have Auteur, Universe and Be2 Lambskin pads and have spent a good amount of time with each. Relatively speaking Auteur is thickest, then Universe, then Be2 and the thinnest is the Verite. You can easily tell the difference by just holding them sideways next to one another.
Some impressions...
Auteur Lambskin:
Most enveloping and easy to listen to but at the expense of both timbre and micro details. People talk about the bite of guitar being missing on these and I do agree. Same with drum strikes, they just don't pop the same as they do on the Universe or Be2. The Auteurs are the most comfortable though as your ears will likely not touch the cups. These are my second favorite pads behind the Be2s because the soundstage can be addicting. I am currently awaiting a Mogwai SE and I am curious to see if a better powered amplifier with more musicality and better tone can help the Auteur overcome some of what I feel is missing from the music with these pads out of the RME ADI 2.
Universe Lambskin:
You get more of that natural timbre that makes ZMFs sound so amazing in the form of more bite on guitars, realistic drum hits, more slam in electronic songs. Of course this comes at the expense of a smaller soundstage compared to the Auteur Lambskin. Overall this is a good middle of the road ear pad and
@barbz127 I can see what you're saying that to some listeners the Be2 may be a little bit more treble heavy, but I have only found that on some poorly mastered classical tracks.
Be2 Lambskin:
The thinnest of the three pads for me and this puts my ears closest to the driver. What I love about the Universe pad's timbre and slam applies to the Be2 as well, but with the Be2 you lose a little bit of slam and instead get this added bit of micro detail - both the little sounds you hear on recordings and also different tonality that you straight up do not hear with the other pads. And to me, that is the whole magic of having these high end headphones. The ability to hear sounds that make you say "wow I never heard that in the track before". But again, that's just me
If I could guess why there are extra micro details and separation... I think it's because the sound waves don't have space to bounce around before hitting your ears. People talk about the VC as being such a "full" sound. Which I agree with and do love about them. But I think the Be2 takes a bit of an edge off that fullness which allows some of those micro details to really come through. You do lose a little bass along with the fullness, but I add a 1 to 4 db bass shelf depending on the track and all is good. Usually for EDM or hip hop. I also think the Be2 may be more holographic than the Universe pads because of the better micro details, but the Auteurs hold the crown with regards to 3d-ness, soundstage and imaging.
Of course everyone's ears are different and I have to say that I do swap the pads from time to time as each brings their own level of enjoyment. Chrono's comparison of the pads is great and he also gives recommendations for how to EQ down the treble energy for the various pads:
https://www.headphones.com/blogs/news/zmf-verite-closed-review-1
