ZMF Verite Open
- Thread starter heliosphann
- Start date
no thanks
+1
This is as close to my experience as I've read between these 2 headphones. Both are awesome IMO, close in technicalities, but enough difference to stand out from each other.
I am going with Verite Open. I decided its final. I can get the Atrium at some point after. Separation and layering with slam is exactly what i need
My promised Caldera First Impressions is finally done... which includes compairons to the Vérité Open:
https://www.head-fi.org/showcase/authors/goldwerger.546676/reviews
Happy reading
https://www.head-fi.org/showcase/authors/goldwerger.546676/reviews
Happy reading
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Well done! An enjoyable read, and very informative.My promised Caldera First Impressions is finally done... which includes compairons to the Vérité Open:
https://www.head-fi.org/showcase/zmf-caldera.26159/
Happy reading
dingeth
Head-Fier
Hi All
I've got upgraditis again, and was looking for some advice from existing ZMF owners. I currently have the Focal Clear (OG) as my daily, and I really enjoy the tonality, punchiness, and versatility of them as I tend to listen to a wide variety of genres. I find the comfort great on the Focals as well, as the weight is not too bad. I had the LCD2C's previously, and the weight on those did get to me after about 2 hours. (I think 500g is just about the upper limit of what I'd consider comfy for prolonged periods of time)
I am, however, looking for a bit of a change, and I figured that the ZMF Verite Open or Atrium might be a nice alternative, without sacrificing too much in terms of a solid tonality (I do occasionally use EQ, but would prefer that the stock tonality is good as well).
So basically, what I'm after is something with good punchiness and clarity, but with added detail and space (soundstaging on the Clears are ok, but not the widest. That said, soundstage is not really the priority). Something I can enjoy for hours without any fatigue (the Clears do occasionally cause some fatigue over time, depending on the genre I'm listening to) is generally what I have gathered from reading reviews of ZMF headphones.
For those that have listened to both, what would the recommendation be? And would it be a worthwhile upgrade in terms of technicalities etc., or a bit of a side-grade at this level?
The other alternative would be to maybe stick to what I know, in the sense of chasing an OG Utopia instead.
P.S., I would likely be looking at chasing a used pair in either case, so the used prices of the ZMF's would be closer to the price of a used Utopia (around the $2000 mark).
Thanks in advance
I've got upgraditis again, and was looking for some advice from existing ZMF owners. I currently have the Focal Clear (OG) as my daily, and I really enjoy the tonality, punchiness, and versatility of them as I tend to listen to a wide variety of genres. I find the comfort great on the Focals as well, as the weight is not too bad. I had the LCD2C's previously, and the weight on those did get to me after about 2 hours. (I think 500g is just about the upper limit of what I'd consider comfy for prolonged periods of time)
I am, however, looking for a bit of a change, and I figured that the ZMF Verite Open or Atrium might be a nice alternative, without sacrificing too much in terms of a solid tonality (I do occasionally use EQ, but would prefer that the stock tonality is good as well).
So basically, what I'm after is something with good punchiness and clarity, but with added detail and space (soundstaging on the Clears are ok, but not the widest. That said, soundstage is not really the priority). Something I can enjoy for hours without any fatigue (the Clears do occasionally cause some fatigue over time, depending on the genre I'm listening to) is generally what I have gathered from reading reviews of ZMF headphones.
For those that have listened to both, what would the recommendation be? And would it be a worthwhile upgrade in terms of technicalities etc., or a bit of a side-grade at this level?
The other alternative would be to maybe stick to what I know, in the sense of chasing an OG Utopia instead.
P.S., I would likely be looking at chasing a used pair in either case, so the used prices of the ZMF's would be closer to the price of a used Utopia (around the $2000 mark).
Thanks in advance
johnnypaddock
100+ Head-Fier
In your situation I'd recommend the VO with a lightweight wood. The detail is right up there with Utopia and the technicalities overall are better than the Atrium. I found that VO with be2 pads produce a similar sound signature to the Utopia, just slightly warmer with better bass response. Then for a more relaxed presentation the Universe pads are warmer with a huge 3D/holographic soundstage, extremely non-fatiguing and comfortable. You can also find some insane deals on used VO's right now.
I love the Atrium as well but in a different way. Less resolution, slower transients, more mid-bass quantity but not as tight or nuanced, less sub-bass. More of a neutral presentation that goes well with all genres of music. Really nice tonality that I like a lot with live music and acoustic recordings especially.
Tchoupitoulas
100+ Head-Fier
@johnnypaddock's advice is spot on. I can add a few additional points as I had the Clear for a couple of years and at the same time as the Vérité. I've also heard the Utopia and the Atrium in my system, each for more than a week.
(For reference, my gear consisted of such DACs as the Bifrost 2 and Gungnir A2 multibit and, for amps, the Stratus, Phonitor X, Mjolnir 1, SW51+ and Massdrop Cavalli Tube Hybrid. My Vérité have the Universe pads.)
I wanted to upgrade from the Clear to a pair of headphones with better resolution and staging. I opted for the Vérité as it kept the Clear's punchiness and versatility and because the changes in tonality were appealing to me. The Vérité has better bass, as in it's more robust, possibly deeper, but also more textured and tonally rich. The slightly laid back tuning was also appealing, and while I found the treble to be a bit crystalline and hard at times on the Clear (this was amp dependent), this wasn't an issue for the Vérité, although the Vérité was more fatiguing for me with the wrong amps than the Clear. I'm sensitive to too much emphasis in the upper mids and lower treble. Warmer DACs and amps worked better for me with the Vérité than the Clear - again, for my preferences.
The Vérité also shares many similar qualities with the Clear - the incisive, snappy attack in the transient response, although the Vérité has better, more lingering decay (I think, this could be a faulty recollection), and something of the clean, clear almost transparent presentation. There's more warmth to the Vérité but it's not an especially colored sound, whereas the Atrium does have a warmer, more analogue and colored but less pristine, clear, and snappy sound. The Atrium's leading edges (i.e. attacks) are more rounded and softer, and the Atrium, while plenty resolving, is significantly less so than the Vérité or the Utopia. The Vérité and Clear trade blows for imaging but the Vérité has better layering and separation, it doesn't suffer from the microscopic presentation, and it offers much more of a sense of openness and spaciousness.
In terms of resolution, the Vérité is a significant step up from the Clear. It quickly became apparent to me that the Vérité is a totl headphone in comparison to the Clear. The same can be said, of course, for the Utopia. The Utopia does indeed share many of the same qualities as the Clear, again with superior technicalities like resolution. The Utopia's bass isn't as robust as the Clear's (or the Vérité's). As a result, the Utopia has more of a kind of reference/neutral presentation. It's quite punchy but less so than the Clear, at least from memory. Please note that I didn't have the Clear and Utopia at the same time, so this is going off memory. The Utopia has a slightly more open and spacious soundstage than the Clear but it's still closer to the Clear than it is to the Vérité, which is significantly more spacious.
I can't add much of value to what @johnnypaddock wrote about the Atrium except to say that it has a decent amount of emphasis in the upper mids/lower treble (where, exactly, I'm not sure), which meant that I preferred its tuning with the solid mesh and the Universe pads, which made for a darker tuning. You do have the options of pad and mesh rolling, which could dial in the tuning closer to your preferences, but the Atrium does have a more markedly different sound to the Clear than do the Vérité or the Utopia.
Since you're buying used, I'd suggest getting both the Vérité and the Utopia and then selling which ever you like the least. Good luck!
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Haven't heard Atrium so take my opinion with a grain of salt here, owned a Verite though.
Everything about the VO's bass apart from say the last word in macro dynamics is superior to the Clear's. You'll hear actual texture, extension, you'll feel more tactility to the transients and with great quantity and instrument timbre to go along with it. Clear has it on overall macro dynamics from bass up to upper mids at least. Staging on VO is plenty wide enough, separation, layering, imaging all steps above too. Sounds sometimes place behind your head. And yeah what Johnny said if you're buying used get the lightest weight possible, I think it should definitely be possible to get a VO under 500g with black grills and rods in silkwood or the like.
Only caution with VO is the upper midrange dip into the 5k or 6k peak (wherever you hear it). That's honestly not gonna work with everything making it less versatile than your Clear already, but I had no issues with that on recordings/genres with softer instruments and transients that didn't pop out and trigger it in a bad way, that said it was kind of selective. Mids and treble on VO still more textured than Clear and that tactility carries over to that range too.
Listen to O Dia, A Noite by Egberto Gismonti on Qobuz
For those of you with VO's check out this track for that snappy tactile and weighty sense to the percussion in the low end, match made in heaven.
Utopia is same tuning as Clear with much better technicalities. I'd say they're more balanced overall across different types of music but with worse timbre for acoustic music if that matters to you. (It did to me)
Folks have reported less treble peak issues on Atrium than Verite which is probably what would make it an easier recommendation instead being more balanced and neutral by comparison.
helljudgement
500+ Head-Fier
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I agree with what @johnnypaddock is saying regarding why sonically VO over Atrium. I'll also add the VO is about on par in terms of speed and resolution as the Utopia and has a wider staging than the Utopia. The Atrium comes within reaching distance of the VO in terms resolution and depending on who you ask is potentially the widest sounding ZMF but lags behind in speed, microdynamics, layering and separation. Definitely far from slow and sedated but it won't sound as snappy as the Clear and VO. It does however reproduce some of the best bass texture and can slam harder than any of the headphone stated above and having a noticeably lusher tone no doubt in part due to it's biocell drivers. Both are pretty genre agnostic but...
ZMF is selling some b stock Verite later this month and should come under 2k so that should make it real easy for you.
dingeth
Head-Fier
Thank you all for the detailed responses and sharing your impressions, really is very much appreciated. Will def take a look at the b-stock sale to see if I can get lucky. Hopefully it's not like Audeze where it's only available in the US and Canada though...
heliosphann
Headphoneus Supremus
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I wouldn't sleep on the Auteur Classic. It's more in line with the sound you're looking for, especially coming from the Clear. That being said, the Atrium is a force to be reckoned with and is always hard not to recommend.
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A lot depends upon what amp you're planning on using w/ any ZMF you might choose. An amp that rocks the Clears might not necessarily rock the VO.
My buddy @Bob454 loves his Clears+Mojo 2, and while I have not heard the Mojo 2, I'm venturing a semi educated guess that the Clears will sound better out of the Mojo 2 than the VO will.
