ZMF Auteur - An open back ZMF

I've just created a scatter plot between hardness and density of various woods used in zmf headphones. All figures were drawn from the most recent updates in the wood database (created and operated by Eric Meier) :https://www.wood-database.com/



In general, the harder the denser. But not perfect correlation -- the graph points out some variation, too.

Want to collect all zmf LTDs if I'm rich enough.. sadly not.

 

There is definitely something special about African blackwood. First ZMF headphone I owned was a Blackwood in Blackwood (felt the need to clarify). Later on I snagged a purple heart Blackwood and there was a immediate difference in sound. The Blackwood blackwood had more timbre and significantly more impact. I will never sell my Blackwood blackwood.

And I am still pissed about missing out on an eikon in Blackwood in ZMF's last sell. I'd buy an atticus or eikon in a heartbeat if they were ever put on sale.

Bocote is another great timbre wood with increased sense of impact.

 

Aeolus+Auteur suede perf is good.

Not sure if many have tried that combo

 

From this graph, I would expect Auteur Blackwood and Teak to be ... as far apart as the same cans in two different woods could be.

 

Speaking of African blackwood (ABW), I noticed that it was listed on CITES appendices, which mean trades across countries might be banned or possibly limited. Travelling with products for personal uses might be ok though. See this for more: https://cites.org/eng/app/appendices.php

My interpretation is that (1) probably it's not very likely to see zmf ABW products again (no ABW verite, no ABW aeolus, etc etc); (2) current ABW headphones would become 'unobtainium' as time goes (de-facto OOP); and (3) I was lucky to snag it!

 

So I can read through the lines and you are obviously saying that I should buy the Blackwood Auteur that is posted on ebay right now.

 

@jazztherapist

Yes I was joking about buying a percieved soon to be rare headphone that is 1,000 bucks overpriced.

I don't think it is going to affect the price because of the custom nature of ZMF headphones. 100 Blackwood Autuers vs a limited run of 15 black limba or 5 Easter Island toromiro. I doubt if its going to be as polarizing in price or demand as the 4 vs 6 screw HE6 where there is a clearly a sound difference. Like Zach has stated, some people percieve it more than others. I believe the prices will also be offset by future ZMF headphones that will sound better than the different wood types of older headphones.

 

Maple would be near the lower left, correct?

 

Largely, yes. But there is a variation.Depending on specific species, maple can be regarded either hard or soft. See this: https://www.wood-database.com/wood-articles/differences-between-hard-maple-and-soft-maple/



So, except hard maple (scientific name=Acer saccharum), I think most maples are around silkwood and campher.

Also interesting. lol

 

Different question:

Does the density of the maples also vary? As much as hardness? Meaning is Hard Maple twice as dense as Silver Maple or Box Elder?

 

I can see how my remarks could be linked to yours, but I didn't actually think you were serious. ;-) If money were no object, I'd own every open model in every wood because I find them that seductively collectible. And from my perspective, the entire ZMF dynamic line is limited as multiple stock woods have changed. I would think anyone seriously interested in something approaching ABW sound should consider the Cocobolo Auteur still available on the site.

I was taking issue more with a sense that @Vtory was playing both sides of the field a bit, but I'm teasing him more than throwing down in any serious way. I love the intensity and granularity he brings ... it grows the hobby. I do think appeals to "normalcy" and "sanity" on a forum, even one as thoughtful and rigorous as SBAF, are questionable and perhaps a bit navel gaze-y. But I also recognize that appeals to its special character are a part of how community coheres and I'm glad to be a part of this one.

 

Waterfall (CSD) measurements posted: https://www.superbestaudiofriends.o...ions-and-measurements.5338/page-4#post-257805

I didn't think woods had measurable difference. A bit surprised.

From the linked article:


Yeah, it seems to vary species to species.

 

One-week impressions

When I had Teak Auteur in the house, my upper bound of technical references was HD800 and Utopia. And my overall take was (1) neutral-ish but still pleasing tonality and (2) decent technicalities. With later auditions of Ziricote Aeolus and Pheasantwood Verite along with some totls like Susvara/Ether 2, I thought Auteur still held its value in tonality and tone, but not as technical as competitors.

Yes, this time new autuer screwed my personal ranking entirely. With the current specific combination with DSHA-3F and US pads, bio-cellulose could enjoy its potentials much more than before. I also think the current dac (x26) is playing an important role but it seems to work independently from the rest of the rig, as opposed to closely interact.

Hate to say this. But tonality-wise super hd600 and super elex are the best ways to describe what I hear and feel. Much better and righter bass and midrange than those two. No high mid fucked like the two. And more generous and smoother responses on the treble. My timber perception mostly reiterates perceived tonality, too. It's still a bit north to what I would regard ideal. But as a complementary headphone to verite (building), not much to complain. Moreover, I can still roll ear pads.

Transients are much better than hd600 (and hd650 kiss by extension) and hd800 (amped by 3F), but they couldn't reach to the level of elex -- and from this, I infer utopia still beats in speed and fast transient in busy passages. Also I remember verite (amped by bw) better rendered leading edges.

I have never thought auteur was particularly good at resolving plankton and reproducing fine volume gradations. It always had a little blurriness. There was some info I could hear only with either utopia or hd800 -- note that these two differ in resolving power by frequency as hd800 better for high mid and treble and utopia better for midrange. Verite enabled me to hear everything without compromises. And.. auteur (of this wood), with the aid of 3F, almost did the same job. Honestly, I am asking this question to myself twice an hour: "Heck, do I really need verite?". That good.

Like I posted, auteur made of this wood is very heavy (1.26 lbs). Regardless, it damn effortlessly passed so-called "Awake at 4am" test. It ongoingly ruins my life cycle and productivity.

 

@Vtory

Thanks for all of these impressions. I confess to being a bit lost on to what precisely you attribute your experience of ABWA as clearly superior to TA (if I'm understanding you correctly). Is wood the only different variable and you were able to compare with same amps, sources etc over same period of time?

 

Same time no (as usual)
Same source no (X26 vs ADI-2)
Same amp no (DSHA-3F vs Black Widow, but I'm also testing with DX3, which can be representative for lesser rigs)

My take

• I am pretty comfortable about how X26 and ADI-2 DAC perform (differently) and each affects overall sound. That said, even after adjusting such difference subjectively, there remains a significant difference across woods.
• DSHA-3F's competitive benefit varies across headphones. And doubtlessly synergistic with my auteur. Then the next question becomes whether the synergy varies across woods. I bet I would prefer blackwood. As a data point for internal adjustments, I used dx3 for indirect comparison. To me my auteur with DX3 still did several things better than loaner auteur (with adi-2 dac) from the memory, if not substantial. Feel free to regard 3F>BW>DX3 at least for zmf. Also note that I couldn't feel much gap in most criteria between dx3 and adi-2 dac.

Yet not very sure which of hard wood or blackwood-dependent character is more attributable. Will try to explore this once I have another different hard wood auteur in the house, which is roughly scheduled later this year.

 

When I was comparing Auteur with Verite, the Verite's biggest advantage was the extremely precise imaging, while the Auteur had a more natural timbre. Does a harder wood on the Auteur dial in the imaging?

 

The answer is yes. Yes you do. Don'l pull a @jexby and deny yourself the speed of Verite because you're insecure or fearful. Be more man than him. Then again - one of my guiding principles for such decisions, is 'don't be like @jexby'.

Sorry, carry on. Good stuff.

 

Not entirely. But somewhat does so. US pads also help that too.

I know what you mean. And that's consistent what I felt with verite loaner.
I can hardly complain about sheer imaging my auteur is drawing. But that's probably 65% attributed to the dam.
(guessing 65% due to amp, 20% due to pads, and 15% due to wood)

Of course verite's unique 3d presentation ignored. That's just irreproducible with autuer.

Plus, I haven't yet heard verite+3F, which I expect much better than the previous audition.

 

Verite + 3F is an awesome pairing. 3F keeps an iron grip on Verite's drivers ,and presents a tonality that NEARLY masks the very slight beryllium sheen.

 

Confirmed. Awesome pairing. That is all, carry on.