[carboncopy]

Nice bespoke move on the different grilles. Haven’t seen that before.

It’s just the reflection Both grilles are black

 

[Skyediver]

It’s just the reflection Both grilles are black

Ah, got it. Silly me!

 

[MrBasseyPants]

Ah, got it. Silly me!

I thought the same thing.... it would certainly be a very bold choice if the colors were different.

jc

 

[Little Bear]

Hopefully you all can help me find an amp to try with the Verite. I’m new to the forum and new to high end headphones. I recently moved from a larger place to a much smaller studio apartment and had to sell my audio gear. I had Quested studio monitors that I really enjoyed. I’m trying to find a similar experience in my new apartment with headphones. Here’s what I’m looking for:

1. Detailed timbre. I think that is the word for it but I’m new here and may not be using the words correctly. What I mean is that I love it when I hear a note and have a full picture of the entire instrument. When the acoustic guitar plays, it’s like I can tell it’s a prewar Martin D28 and the front of the body has bowed out and the finish has worn off under the strings. When a male vocalist sings, I can almost tell how long it’s been since he shaved.

2. Black background. I love putting on an exceptionally produced album in high resolution like Michael Jackson’s Bad and just settling into the inky depths.

3.Cool running. Since a headphone amp will be close to my head, I don’t want one that puts off a lot of heat.

It’s been fun to read, and impressive to see how much knowledge has come together on this forum. Hopefully you all can give me some good ideas for amps to try with the Cerite.
BB

My strong recommendation is to drop requirement #3. First place, a headphone amp can be any distance from your head that you like. I've used amps that were more than 20 feet away from my listening chair. Even if you're only 3 feet away, you're not going to notice any heat unless you put your hand close to the amp.

Second reason is, 99% of the really good amps out there are either tube amps or pure class A solid state. Both tubes and class A solid state operation are notoriously HOT running. You can't get away from this. If you stick to this requirement you'll be eliminating virtually all of the best amp choices out there.

 

[BravoBravo]

I've used amps that were more than 20 feet away from my listening chair.

Thanks for the reply. I didn’t even consider that. I was always trying to reduce the length of my cable runs for loudspeakers, especially if it carried amplified signal. But that is probably less of an issue for tiny headphone transducers. That setup would require a DAC with nice volume control, which is probably easier to find.

 

[endre83]

Anyone tried Trafomatic Head 2 with ZMF headphones?

 

[dbowden10]

Thanks for the reply. I didn’t even consider that. I was always trying to reduce the length of my cable runs for loudspeakers, especially if it carried amplified signal. But that is probably less of an issue for tiny headphone transducers. That setup would require a DAC with nice volume control, which is probably easier to find.

RME ADI-2 DAC has a remote which I find pretty convenient

and it fits in my bookshelf with my WA2!

 

[BravoBravo]

it fits in my bookshelf with my WA2!

Great setup! I am looking forward to the day I have something like that. Maybe I am overly concerned about heat from amplifiers, but when I see that metal rack over those big exposed tubes, I think the DAC is getting barbequed! But obviously this setup is working well for you, I must be overly concerned.

 

[Traiguen]

I have been wondering what it would be like to listen with a Verite on a Turntable compared to my usual source Qobuz... anybody has that kind of setup to share his/her experience?

 

[SmashBruh]

The Verite is such a funny headphone. I thought for sure that I had settled on my favorite pads and "that was that"; but recently I switched from the Universe pads to the Verite ones... And wow! I can't believe I didn't enjoy this sound before! There's so much air and it brightens my cocobolo set up juuuust enough for my tastes. True, you lose the fun staging and the bass is less thunderous, but I think I finally properly understand why Zach chose the two pads he did to include with the Verite. The sounds from both are truly complimentary!

I find it absolutely amazing that even after over a year of ownership I'm the Verite can still surprise me.

 

[wishbon3]

The Verite is such a funny headphone. I thought for sure that I had settled on my favorite pads and "that was that"; but recently I switched from the Universe pads to the Verite ones... And wow! I can't believe I didn't enjoy this sound before! There's so much air and it brightens my cocobolo set up juuuust enough for my tastes. True, you lose the fun staging and the bass is less thunderous, but I think I finally properly understand why Zach chose the two pads he did to include with the Verite. The sounds from both are truly complimentary!

I find it absolutely amazing that even after over a year of ownership I'm the Verite can still surprise me.

Only thing holding me back is the bass, I appreciate bass more than brightness. Sucks cause I would love both, heh.

 

[SmashBruh]

Only thing holding me back is the bass, I appreciate bass more than brightness. Sucks cause I would love both, heh.

I felt the exact same way before! This isn't the first time I've swapped the Verite pads in (you'll find I've posted about my preference for one v the other in this thread in the past) but it is the first time I've wanted to keep them in for a significant period of time. Perhaps, after a year, the novelty of the change in sound has made me more appreciative of the differences? I don't know. But I'd encourage you not to write the Verite pads off too quickly! In the future you may find they surprise you much in the same way they've surprised me.

 

[wishbon3]

I felt the exact same way before! This isn't the first time I've swapped the Verite pads in (you'll find I've posted about my preference for one v the other in this thread in the past) but it is the first time I've wanted to keep them in for a significant period of time. Perhaps, after a year, the novelty of the change in sound has made me more appreciative of the differences? I don't know. But I'd encourage you not to write the Verite pads off too quickly! In the future you may find they surprise you much in the same way they've surprised me.

So, I tried Verite pads with one of my playlists, and I still like Universe, as it just has the "thump" I prefer.

The Verite pads sounded great on my more relaxing tracks, but overall.... Universe for me!

 

[nwavesailor]

Perhaps I missed it the final post, but there was a member who did a comparison of many ZMF pad versions.
I thought the actual comparisons were complete and it just needed to be written up.

 

[Skyediver]

I wonder if anyone's landed on a small group (say 1-2) additional pads beyond the 2 that come with the Verite that can extend the sound sig versatility of the cans? I have no desire to become a victim of analysis paralysis but within reason, it seems a bit of pad-rolling can be another true feature of ZMF headphones. Reading the website the BE-2 seems to be a natural (not sure about which covering to choose though...), but was curious if there's another 1-2 option that's jumped out to others, recognizing that it does come down to personal preference.