ZMF Atticus Review (Headphone)

[don'ttrustauthority]

It's just the English language, and the fact that "stock" implies unmodified. People talk about stock / modified & aftermarket in car domains, and I'm sure in other domains. Stock means unadulterated and as the manufacturer intended. I'm not really gonna give you a dictionary definition, if you require one then you must have a very difficult life understanding the world.

Stock implies unmodified, it doesn't imply there is a single standard configuration, which was your assertion. Funny that you don't want to rely on the dictionary definition, since you were criticizing someone for using the word incorrectly.

 

[don'ttrustauthority]

Do you know what irony is?

I don't bother with irony we are talking about value for headphones that cost more than most people in the world make in a month? Year?

 

[Robbo99999]

Stock implies unmodified, it doesn't imply there is a single standard configuration, which was your assertion. Funny that you don't want to rely on the dictionary definition, since you were criticizing someone for using the word incorrectly.

(I didn't say that)
https://www.audiosciencereview.com/...mf-atticus-review-headphone.24191/post-816639

 

[ShiZo]

Jeez... I cant tell you how many times this headphone was suggested to me.

Pic depicts me looking for a good closed back headphone with good FR.

 

[Fritz-Kola_Enthusiast]

Jeez... I cant tell you how many times this headphone was suggested to me.

Pic depicts me looking for a good closed back headphone with good FR.

Greetings, the K371 is the cheapest option to get a closed back with good FR (Imma just assume you are a Harman kinda guy).
Then there is also the Aeon 2 Noire, should you fancy a more exquistite build and higher levels of comfort. Their FR looks really rather good, compared to all the other "high end" closed backs.

 

[yywxx]

I cannot comment on the Atticus, having never listened to it. I do however own both the HD6XX and the ZMF Auteur. I enjoy both, but just finished an "experiment" after switching my amp to the Singxer SA-1. As Amir's testing of this amp demonstrated, the best potential from this amp is realized from XLR, so I used the HD6XX with XLR cables by Periapt and the Auteur with XLR cables from Hart Audio.

The first week I made myself listen exclusively with the HD6XX. I was very impressed with the experience. They are such a bargain in terms of price / performance.

I then switched to my Auteur. Though I freely admit this is purely my subjective listening, I can tell you the difference was apparent. I won't gush with audio speak verbiage. I'll just say that I absolutely love the sound, it is simply on another level to my ears. This is without doing any EQ and using the Auteur pads (it also came with ZMF Eikon pads). Though irrelevant to sound, I do also admire the appearance and craftsmanship.

I hope that Amir is able to review the Auteur at some point.

View attachment 135619
P.S. - forgot to mention that I do EQ the HD6XX based on the reviews.

Would you say that the Auteur pairs well with the Singxer SA-1? I own a pair of Auteurs as well and am looking to upgrade my amp, probably to either the Singxer SA-1 or the Topping A90, and was wondering which would be the better choice.

 

[don'ttrustauthority]

Jeez... I cant tell you how many times this headphone was suggested to me.

Pic depicts me looking for a good closed back headphone with good FR.

Dan Clark Audio Aeon RT.

 

[don'ttrustauthority]

Would you say that the Auteur pairs well with the Singxer SA-1? I own a pair of Auteurs as well and am looking to upgrade my amp, probably to either the Singxer SA-1 or the Topping A90, and was wondering which would be the better choice.

I enjoy listening to music with the Jotunheim 2 and Auteur very much. If you want clean, neutral sound it's a can't miss. I prefer tubes with the Auteur.

 

[Robbo99999]

Dan Clark Audio Aeon RT.

(only with EQ, it's well off from decent without EQ for most people, but by measurements and subjective experience stellar once EQ'd).

 

[Celty]

Would you say that the Auteur pairs well with the Singxer SA-1? I own a pair of Auteurs as well and am looking to upgrade my amp, probably to either the Singxer SA-1 or the Topping A90, and was wondering which would be the better choice.

For my tastes, the Auteur / SA-1 is an excellent pairing. Certainly all the power you need with lots to spare, dead silent black background, superb dynamics, and as Amirm notes - the lowest distortion he has measured. I don't know what you are considering upgrading from, but for me I was using the Monolith THX 887.

That is a great THX amp, but for my ears, the SA-1 is an upgrade with my Auteur as well as my HD6XX. Describing the differences in sound leaves behind the objective measurements to personal impressions - not the emphasis of this forum - but I hear all the detail of the 887 with somehow a "smoother" or more "natural" presentation.

The Auteur is great without EQ, but lately I have enjoyed a slight tweak to bring it a tad closer to Harmon curve, as I posted here:
https://www.head-fi.org/threads/zmf-auteur-thread.862918/page-341#post-16441359

 

[AVKS]

(only with EQ, it's well off from decent without EQ for most people, but by measurements and subjective experience stellar once EQ'd).

Going to disagree with pretty much all of this, particularly the 'most people' blanket. It does benefit from EQ but is still very listenable without.

 

[Robbo99999]

Going to disagree with pretty much all of this, particularly the 'most people' blanket. It does benefit from EQ but is still very listenable without.

If a headphone's frequency response differs from the Harman Curve by a large degree then the research shows that "most people" don't like it as much. That's one of the ways they arrived at the Harman Curve, a combination of measurements to create a curve that was to try to simulate more closely good speakers in a room combined with some tweaking from preference studies. So it's pretty reasonable to state that most people wouldn't find a headphone enjoyable if it varies greatly from the Harman Curve. You're obviously still entitled to your own listening impression of the headphone when it's at stock without EQ, but that doesn't mean by extension that everyone or most other people will have the same listening impression. However, with regards to Harman Curve and the Harman research it is possible to start using words like "most people" as it's part of the science.

 

[AVKS]

If a headphone's frequency response differs from the Harman Curve by a large degree then the research shows that "most people" don't like it as much. That's one of the ways they arrived at the Harman Curve, a combination of measurements to create a curve that was to try to simulate more closely good speakers in a room combined with some tweaking from preference studies. So it's pretty reasonable to state that most people wouldn't find a headphone enjoyable if it varies greatly from the Harman Curve. You're obviously still entitled to your own listening impression of the headphone when it's at stock without EQ, but that doesn't mean by extension that everyone or most other people will have the same listening impression. However, with regards to Harman Curve and the Harman research it is possible to start using words like "most people" as it's part of the science.

I understand the research - the Harman Curve is based on preference, not potential enjoyment. To attempt to claim that most people won't enjoy something or find it 'decent' if it's not on the curve is an inaccurate representation of the research conclusion, particularly for a headphone like the AFC RT that generally tracks it for much of the spectrum.

 

[Shazb0t]

I understand the research - the Harman Curve is based on preference, not potential enjoyment.

Lol, what?

 

[yywxx]

I enjoy listening to music with the Jotunheim 2 and Auteur very much. If you want clean, neutral sound it's a can't miss. I prefer tubes with the Auteur.

Yes, I've heard that tubes work quite well with the Auteur too. I'm also considering one of the Feliks audio tubes, but I feel that I should get a solid state as it would be a more versatile pairing if I get a planar to complement my Auteur in the future. Unfortunately I live in an area where Schiit products aren't readily accessible so my main considerations for SS are topping, singxer, smsl etc.

 

[yywxx]

For my tastes, the Auteur / SA-1 is an excellent pairing. Certainly all the power you need with lots to spare, dead silent black background, superb dynamics, and as Amirm notes - the lowest distortion he has measured. I don't know what you are considering upgrading from, but for me I was using the Monolith THX 887.

That is a great THX amp, but for my ears, the SA-1 is an upgrade with my Auteur as well as my HD6XX. Describing the differences in sound leaves behind the objective measurements to personal impressions - not the emphasis of this forum - but I hear all the detail of the 887 with somehow a "smoother" or more "natural" presentation.

The Auteur is great without EQ, but lately I have enjoyed a slight tweak to bring it a tad closer to Harmon curve, as I posted here:
https://www.head-fi.org/threads/zmf-auteur-thread.862918/page-341#post-16441359

Thanks for the detailed description! I'm quite sold on the Singxer for now - I'm upgrading from the ifi Zen which doesn't seem to measure well according to Amirm, so I hope that the Singxer would marked improvement

 

[AVKS]

Lol, what?

The research is based on head-to-head comparison of what people may prefer more (which likely equates to enjoying more overall) but does not say that 'most people' don't/won't/can't enjoy non-Harman tunings, which is what the original post I responded to was claiming. It's a pretty clear distinction.

From Sean Olive himself:

"In conclusion, this headphone study is one of the first of its kind to report results based on controlled, double-blind listening tests [2]. The results provide evidence that trained listeners preferred the headphones perceived to have the most neutral, spectral balance. The acoustical measurements of the headphone generally confirmed and predicted which headphones listeners preferred.

...

It is important for the reader not to draw generalizations from these results beyond the conditions we tested."

https://seanolive.blogspot.com/2013/04/the-relationship-between-perception-and.html?m=1

 

[don'ttrustauthority]

The research is based on head-to-head comparison of what people may prefer more (which likely equates to enjoying more overall) but does not say that 'most people' don't/won't/can't enjoy non-Harman tunings, which is what the original post I responded to was claiming. It's a pretty clear distinction.

From Sean Olive himself:

"In conclusion, this headphone study is one of the first of its kind to report results based on controlled, double-blind listening tests [2]. The results provide evidence that trained listeners preferred the headphones perceived to have the most neutral, spectral balance. The acoustical measurements of the headphone generally confirmed and predicted which headphones listeners preferred.

...

It is important for the reader not to draw generalizations from these results beyond the conditions we tested."

https://seanolive.blogspot.com/2013/04/the-relationship-between-perception-and.html?m=1

Also there seem to be a limited pool of choices.

 

[Takanaka]

Any chance we can get a review of the Atrium? I’m quite intrigued by it but man, 2600 to 3000 dollars depending on upgrades is nothing to scoff at.

 

[solderdude]

Someone would have to buy one and ship it to Amir.