[Pharmaboy]

Open question to you and all takers!

what are proper cables? What % of the HP cost would/should you pay for a set of “proper” cables? I’ve been seeking this number and their abilities for some time.

Also, I do require a 3m cable or I won’t use my HP, hetting old,,,,er,,, has a “few” drawbacks! LOL

I found just about the best, most rational approach to cables when buying any ZMF headphone is to start w/a 3M length of Zach's OFC cable. It's his midrange option, a few steps above stock & a step below his or others' higher priced options. I purchased 2 of them, use them all the time. They accomplish exactly what I needed: a useful better-than-stock cable I can switch among my 4 audeze/ZMF-style headphones. When you purchase any ZMF headphone, you can get the OFC cable at a significant discount at the same time (1/3 to 1/2 off the usual price). A very good deal.

I also have a very nice (sonically and physically) upgrade cable that's a little better than the OFC: ForzaAudioWorks HCP Noir (2M + a SE-to-balanced "pigtail"). It's slightly better than the OFC and significantly better than stock. There are others that are as good if not a little better (Norne cables; Lavricables). I stopped at the ForzaAudioWorks because I didn't want to drop >$500 on a cable. But if that doesn't bother you, I've heard the flat-out best is the Lazuli (copper) or more expensive Lazuli Reference (copper/silver). Hansotek has written about those...

 

[LCMusicLover]

...Do that right and to my mind the cable won’t really make a difference, as long as it’s well made, oxygen free and well shielded.

Indeed I would agree with all that...but cables do make a difference...

As I mentioned, opinions vary.

 

[wazzupi]

I’m using a Mytek Brooklyn first gen. (Balanced duel mono 800mA preamp with 6 watt HP amp)
Are you familiar with it?

I heard some mytek including the brooklyn at canjam NYC this year. But not too much.

 

[novisnick]

My DAC/AMP is an OPPO Sonica mostly rebuilt by Ric Schultz at EVS! Additionaly he rebuilt the output stage and turned it into a Class A high output current gain stage!

It started life as about the least expensive decent implementation of the 9038 and I have listened to it through 3 itterations of changes. Each one substantially improving upon the next.

I could speculate all day about how it compares withy Yggy and Brooklyn etc.etc.etc. I don't really know! I can tell you that it is so far beyond a stock OPPO sonica you would find it hard to
believe.

I throws an immense, in all dimensions, layered soundstage. Tonally it is far more musical and engaging than stock, notes bloom and flow. PRAT is wonderful. Bass is solid extended and textured! There is no hardness or brightness. It is exceedingly neutral while remaining very musical. It changes drastically relative to the quality of recordings. Devastating on DSD's. Mostly Blue Coast and some OPUS 3! I use the on board digital volume control. I adjust output using JPLAY's bit perfect stepped output. Runs in 6db increments. That allows me to minimize Bit loss by keeping volume control as close to 0 as possible. Carbon Fiber cable has about a 1.5 to 2db loss compared to Silver Gold cable!

One of the real shocks was finding a USB cable that sounded better than running any of my cables including it with an LPS 1.2 and Uptone Iso REGEN! That made a hell of a difference especially in terms of PRAT and musical enjoyment. The Iso Regen/LPS 1.2 was pretty damn good but taking it out of the system and just running the Black Magic USB was a substantial improvement! FWIW the Iso regen is a good bit better than the Galvanic 3.0 with Iso disabled on REGEN. Tried it both ways. Also in my system the best result of that combo was running Galvanic after the regen. Go figure that??????. Also the Galvanic pulls a substantial amount of current so running it before REGEN I could not switch in the inline filter in the JCAT Femto USB(which definetly sounds better but limits current to the next device inline).

Its amazing how the sound just got so much better by optimizing isolation of all the components in the system including the SSD drives and even the LPS 1.2 that drives my JCAT Femto USB card. People don't tend to believe that the computer would be affected this much...but it is. It's not hard to hear the difference. Isolating LPS 1.2 is subtle but its still there. SSD drives would shock you! All conections are liquid graphene enhanced.

I get frequent snickers from various folk on this and another notable sight....but my System sounds insane and I am beyond pleased with it!

There is an overly longwinded explanation. ooooooppppssss! LOL. Its all in good fun...its only audio after all....not politics or religion. HaHa!

Happy Listening!

Speaking of throwing money, Im somewhat familiar with a NAA, I went with the sotm sms-200 Ultra SE! What a great investment! Imvery familier with your snicker, most dont have a clue about the clearity and inriched SQ of our systems . I have a Pink Faun galvanic isolator before the ethernet input to the Ultra and then the Ultra has an advanced word clock, the Ultra feeds my Brooklyn which has duel mono DACs and is balanced. It too has an internal galvanic isolator.
Don’t need an amp as the balanced out HP amp is 6 watts.
I feed 5 amps to the Ultra using a sps-500 SMps and the Brooklyn DAC has an external sBooster to supply it. No power drain from either of these devices as a Mac Minimsupplies the Roon player and Tidal. External Hard drive with my music fed over the network.

Love it all, Brooklyn feeds line out to my tubes and speakers or ZMF Auteurs HP.
I’d just like to hear other DACs but ive realized I’d need a HP amp too! Where does it end damn it?!

 

[ProfFalkin]

I think half this thread should be moved to the DAC section.

 

[jgwtriode]

Speaking of throwing money, Im somewhat familiar with a NAA, I went with the sotm sms-200 Ultra SE! What a great investment! Imvery familier with your snicker, most dont have a clue about the clearity and inriched SQ of our systems . I have a Pink Faun galvanic isolator before the ethernet input to the Ultra and then the Ultra has an advanced word clock, the Ultra feeds my Brooklyn which has duel mono DACs and is balanced. It too has an internal galvanic isolator.
Don’t need an amp as the balanced out HP amp is 6 watts.
I feed 5 amps to the Ultra using a sps-500 SMps and the Brooklyn DAC has an external sBooster to supply it. No power drain from either of these devices as a Mac Minimsupplies the Roon player and Tidal. External Hard drive with my music fed over the network.

Love it all, Brooklyn feeds line out to my tubes and speakers or ZMF Auteurs HP.
I’d just like to hear other DACs but ive realized I’d need a HP amp too! Where does it end damn it?!

Wow I am impressed...serious stuff...I wouldnt even know where to begin with that! Which is why Im pushing USB.

Anyway I doubt it ever ends. I suspect that is the nature of the beast!

The Verite does seem to be a substantial jump in technology over the Auteur! I love my Auteur Blackwoods...but
Improved Bass, transient attack and an electrostatic-like holographic soundstage l..as well as more detail...

And you know Zach will painstakingly tune the hell out of it....or more correctly the heaven into it!

I was planning on an after Christmas AC line conditioning upgrade and repowercabling...but that will wait.

I'm stuffing the piggy bank as best I can to make it by the deadline for preorder of those lovely polished Steel Pheasentwoods

You know thats apparently the wood that hawaiians use to make the best Ukeleles. How can anyone possibly resist that!

Whats a couple thousand plus compared to all of that????

Happy Listening!

 

[novisnick]

Yes. Sabre 9018-based — do you find it at all bright? I’m just curious, since so many talk about the ‘Sabre glare’ (kinda like the ‘Sennheiser veil’.) I haven’t heard any thing like that out of my Sonica DAC (before or after EVS mod).

No, I’ve found no Sabre glare at all. The implementation of the quad DACs were done properly. The sound is more pleasing, leaning away from the Sabre and more towers a Burr-Brown in many ways.

 

[wazzupi]

No reviews i see..

 

[LCMusicLover]

No reviews i see..

Final tuning not complete. There's actually a bunch of noise over that -- should Zach be circulating pre-production/prototype units and using feedback to finalize the tuning? Personally, I think it's great, and consistent with his overall approach. I just wish I wasn't so remote and could participate.

So it makes sense that there are no formal reviews yet. That said, pre-orders start in less than 9 days, so there may not be any reviews by then. Yoda says: "Unfortunate, that is."

 

[ProfFalkin]

No reviews i see..

Final tuning of the headphone hasn't hit many reviewer's hands yet. The pre-production version I had was sent back to have adjustments and final tuning applied. Should have a final version in hand soon - tomorrow hopefully. I bet you'll see some pretty good reviews from people before pre-orders start on the 16th.

 

[LCMusicLover]

Final tuning of the headphone hasn't hit many reviewer's hands yet. The pre-production version I had was sent back to have adjustments and final tuning applied. Should have a final version in hand soon - tomorrow hopefully. I bet you'll see some pretty good reviews from people before pre-orders start on the 16th.

So the tuning is final now? That's great news. I (and many others) look forward to reviews. Of course my wallet is hoping you all think it sucks

 

[wazzupi]

Final tuning of the headphone hasn't hit many reviewer's hands yet. The pre-production version I had was sent back to have adjustments and final tuning applied. Should have a final version in hand soon - tomorrow hopefully. I bet you'll see some pretty good reviews from people before pre-orders start on the 16th.

Great news !

 

[ProfFalkin]

So the tuning is final now? That's great news. I (and many others) look forward to reviews. Of course my wallet is hoping you all think it sucks

It's better than air. Life is not worth living without Verite. If you don't buy one, you'll get cancer.

Seriously though, if he tweaked the thing I think he tweaked, it's going to be a seriously awesome headphone. I'll go into the specifics once I can review the final version.

 

[jgwtriode]

Of course it will be....would not expect anything less of Zach! The Verite will be ridiculous good and worth
every penny because frankly Zach wouldn't put his name on it if it were not!

Happy Listening!

 

[lithiumnk]

Any comparison to audiotechnica adx5000 and utopia will be of great help.
Planning to buy a flagship dynamic.
Thanks