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ZMF Bokeh Headphone Review

Rate this headphone:

  • 1. Poor (headless panther)

    Votes: 12 7.5%
  • 2. Not terrible (postman panther)

    Votes: 55 34.2%
  • 3. Fine (happy panther)

    Votes: 77 47.8%
  • 4. Great (golfing panther)

    Votes: 17 10.6%

  • Total voters
    161
^ I can sum it up to this

This visual allure of this significantly improves listening experience. We’re the same on that regard.

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For some of us there’s enjoyment in both.

I was fully onboard with getting the most transparent gear and EQing everything to Harman in the past, and that can absolutely sound excellent.

More recently I’ve embraced trying out a subjective experience where I’m not focused on transparent gear or worrying about EQ.

I have a subjective setup with a Schiit Yggdrasil OG and Folkvangr running very tubey NOS Western Electric tubes, and while I’m sure that setup measures very poorly it does sound amazing and very engaging with my ZMF Verite Closed and Auteur.

I also have an objective setup with an RME ADI-2 DAC and a Schiit Midgard, and using the Oratory1990 Harman EQ profiles with LCD-5 that’s a completely different and completely transparent and low-distortion experience that’s also very engaging.

I’ve been spending more time with my subjective setup lately because it’s newer to me and has a bit of that new toy appeal, but I also love the tinkering aspect of it.

Changing out the tubes in the Folkvangr can change the sound considerably (probably moreso than in most tube amps due to its design) and changing out the pads on the ZMF headphones can have a huge impact on the sound as well.

There’s something satisfying about finding that magical synergy of the right set of tubes and the right set of pads that just makes everything suddenly click and just sound transcendent.

I'm the same way. It's why I own tube amps and SS amps like the Benchmark HPA4. But I've always loved tube amps, going back to my teenage guitar playing days. I still have way more tube guitar amps than hifi amps.
 
These are one of my favorite pairs of headphones. I find them more enjoyable than the stealth with a lot of music, but obviously not as transparent. The fuller bass, the slight treble lift and a sense of pretty open space plus the feeling of the headphones hugging my head are the main reasons, plus it is far prettier.

Plus side of the Bokeh is that it sounds fantastic with portable gear. Particularly good match with n3 pro.
 
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Seems nice enough, does very well with EQ, and looks like something that would merit an "A+" in shop class. Still wish the distortion was lower at 114 db. As a closed back, not as good as the E3 or even the LCD-XC, and the Audeze is better looking, IMHO. It's fine.
Sorry, what headphones are the E3?
 
Late to the discussion about the Harmann reference curve.
I've long disputed that curve. It is completely unnatural. It may have been arrived at by averaging the preference of a group of people. But these people do not represent humanity and audiophiles.
Most disagreeable is the rise in the FR in the 3-6kHz region.
This is the region our ears are most sensitive already. So raising the FR in that region makes for a less natural sound, and to my ears, piercing.
Do yourself a favour and play sine waves at different frequencies with decent quality headphones and identify which frequencies sound strongest.
 
Late to the discussion about the Harmann reference curve.
I've long disputed that curve. It is completely unnatural. It may have been arrived at by averaging the preference of a group of people. But these people do not represent humanity and audiophiles.
Most disagreeable is the rise in the FR in the 3-6kHz region.
This is the region our ears are most sensitive already. So raising the FR in that region makes for a less natural sound, and to my ears, piercing.
Do yourself a favour and play sine waves at different frequencies with decent quality headphones and identify which frequencies sound strongest.
I’m not against the Harman Curve, and I’ve enjoyed headphones EQ’d to it, but it’s a preference curve and not everyone will enjoy it, and there’s nothing wrong with having another preference.

I do think it’s good for listening at lower volumes, it’s almost a built-in loudness curve. It’s also different from EQing a speaker to the same curve since the HRTF changes how you hear it vs speakers in an open room.

I have noticed that if I listen to a headphone that follows the curve closely and then listen to a headphone that’s depressed in the 3-6khz region that headphone sounds dead and stuffy for a bit. If I give my ears a couple days break and then go back to that headphone suddenly it sounds right again.
 
I do think it’s good for listening at lower volumes, it’s almost a built-in loudness curve.
I agree.
it’s a preference curve
But many people call it a "reference curve". It's not that the Harmann HRTF curve is optional, but that many in the hi-fi industry give it benchmark status, including Amir (no offence).
The old Fletcher Munson curve is a much better benchmark. Being old doesn't make it wrong.
From Wikipedia "The report states that it is fortunate that the 40-phon Fletcher–Munson curve on which the A-weighting standard was based turns out to have been in agreement with modern determinations"
 
I agree.

But many people call it a "reference curve". It's not that the Harmann HRTF curve is optional, but that many in the hi-fi industry give it benchmark status, including Amir (no offence).
The old Fletcher Munson curve is a much better benchmark. Being old doesn't make it wrong.
From Wikipedia "The report states that it is fortunate that the 40-phon Fletcher–Munson curve on which the A-weighting standard was based turns out to have been in agreement with modern determinations"
I think Harman is a good reference for comparison.

Whether you care for it or not, ifs a known entity. If you have measurements of a bunch of headphones compared against the Harman curve that curve provides a reference both for how they sound in relation to that curve and to each other.

A lot of reviewers have their own custom curves that they compare things to, and that makes it harder to make comparisons between different headphones measured by different reviewers.

If everyone used the Harman curve as a point of reference, not necessarily as a target that has to be followed, it would at least make comparisons across different reviewers and publications easier.
 
Is there data somewhere that shows how the Harman Curve and preferences generally change based on the volume/dB level played to the user?
It is intuitive that preference changes with volume level; the human ear is less sensitive to the audible frequency extremes at lower db levels.

tl/dr; I cannot answer your question.
 
Late to the discussion about the Harmann reference curve.
I've long disputed that curve. It is completely unnatural. It may have been arrived at by averaging the preference of a group of people. But these people do not represent humanity and audiophiles.
Most disagreeable is the rise in the FR in the 3-6kHz region.
This is the region our ears are most sensitive already. So raising the FR in that region makes for a less natural sound, and to my ears, piercing.
Do yourself a favour and play sine waves at different frequencies with decent quality headphones and identify which frequencies sound strongest.
I agree. Moondrop Variations, so highly praised and put on top of Crinacle's IEM ranking list was so harsh to me I literally could not listen to rock and metal.
 
The problem with IEM's is insertion depth as well as seal. Ear-canal dimensions/shape matters a lot so while measurements on specific fixtures with certain insertion depths and 'ear canals' may well measure great the real world usage may differ. This is not a Harman target 'issue' though but personal issue.

Of course, equal loudness contours also is a factor (listening SPL) as well as personal preference (incl. type of music).

Harman target is nothing more than a guideline that seems to satisfy the majority of listeners. Does not mention SPL, recording tonal balance, and personal preference regarding tonal balance. As a lot of people will not fall in the 'majority' there will be lots of people that may prefer something different from what measurements on some fixture suggest.

It is a good thing that there are manufacturers that have a deviating tonal balance from Harman target when they do not (want) to resort to EQ and may satisfy their own preference.
 
I bought a pair of headphones from ZMF, 16 hours after buying them I cancelled the order and they charged me a 10% restocking fee, they are usurers.
 
I bought a pair of headphones from ZMF, 16 hours after buying them I cancelled the order and they charged me a 10% restocking fee, they are usurers.
It's right there on their purchase terms, bolded on their site so appearing bolded below.

"For headphones that are cancellable or returnable, the return/cancellation fee is 10% of the total price of the headphone and accessories including cables. "

 
I bought a pair of headphones from ZMF, 16 hours after buying them I cancelled the order and they charged me a 10% restocking fee, they are usurers.
Hey Carlos - I looked into the order and we refunded everything but the transaction fee. This is our policy for orders that get cancelled within 72 hours, after that it would be 10% because we've usually already machined the cups for the order.

Here's the Shopify screenshot showing that we refunded all but the transaction fee, the transaction fee is the difference between the "Captured Amount" and the "payout" amount. So we only refund the payout amount since we aren't willing to lose the transaction fee for indecision. Looks like in this case it's $25.68 which equates to 2.3% of the original transaction.

I do really appreciate you considering our headphones though thank you!
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I do really appreciate you considering our headphones though thank you!

Nice reply Zach :D , let’s hope Carlos can manage to sit down after you skelped his arse for telling porkies
 
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