Gonna be a very exciting week for me!
Traded up to an Aeolus Camphor Burl Open, and a buddy coincidentally is giving me his Verite Open to burn in for a month because his wife won’t let him use his open backs as much 
First-time ZMFer here, and can’t wait to see why Zach’s stuff is so well renowned!
I guess the ZMF thread is not the place to bring up EQing as it would not be popular or needed in this application. The musician in me though does see a need for it in the creation of music but should end there or at the very least fix a bad recording but with services like Tidal and FLAC files this is becoming less common. Depending on my mood in the past I have given my music a bass boost as I enjoy a big bottom at times but only slightly as it can be overdone and become muddy. Artists today have already gone through the EQ process and you should listen to it as close as possible to how it was intended, allowing only slight variations in choice of DAC, headphone, and SS/tube amps to “color” the sound.
There is no as the artist intended. It literally doesn’t exist for anyone other than the artist.
Many performers – especially those in electric, loud genres – have pretty awful hearing from being on stage. Pete Townsend of The Who in particular is known for his hearing loss. So, intentions do indeed come from people with terrible high-range hearing and it may sound awful to others. Studio engineers can also suffer per spending all day, every day listening to music.
Your particular frequency sensitivities may be sharply different than the music creators’ sensitivities too.
The bottom line is to enjoy music how you enjoy it.
““Now, like many other aging rockers, the multi-talented artist and musician suffers from hearing loss. In Townshend’s case, perhaps this seems somewhat ironic considering one of his epitomizing works, the rock opera “Tommy,” about a deaf, mute and blind boy. Yet, the British rocker doesn’t blame his years of destroying instruments and performing in clubs as the cause of his hearing loss. Instead, Townshend cites his years spent listening to headphones in the studio”” .HearingLife hearing care: Hearing tests & Hearing aids
Hearing damage can be sudden or cumulative, and all exposure adds up over the years. When you notice it’s already too late.
Headphones may have been the main cause, but standing on stage in front of amp stacks and exploding drums wouldn’t have been helpful either.
@NickZ - That’s why I stated as close as possible as we can never get inside an artist’s head and become their ears of course.
Got that right, mine was caused by playing in bands in my youth and then drag racing for a $$ hobby. People especially the young always think they know best, I know I did, I’m 68 now and the damage was done a long long time ago. I remember my parents telling , "you are going to hurt your ears if you keep that up. " Yep they were right yet again.
Let’s walk through it.
The artist is in the studio with the engineers working away to create the mix. They play the track and the artist says “Yes! That’s it!” You have the moment of intent.
What is this intent based on? What the artist heard was the track played through the studio electronics, on the studio speakers in the acoustic environment of the studio.
If you wanted to approximate what the artist heard you would have to recreate the acoustic environment of the studio on your headphones.
Or the artist was listening on headphones. In that case you would have to make your headphones sound like the headphones the artist was listening to.
Whatever is coming out of your headphones is almost certainly not what the artist was listening to when they declared their intent.
It follows that you would have to modify the playback on your end if you want to attempt to recreate what the artist heard.
Since you are almost never going to know the acoustic environment the artist was in you won’t be able to recreate it.
So, let the idea of artist intent go and listen in whatever way brings you the most enjoyment.
We are getting way off track here as the discussion was over whether EQing was something one did to alter the sound of the music while listening. I was stating or paraphrasing that it is not needed unless your recording of said music was not to your liking otherwise you should listen to it as it was recorded(intended)…or not. Its your choice which we can all agree on. No right or wrong, just a means to an end which is enjoyment of music.
Time for a new/no wife… 
Headphones may have been the main cause, but standing on stage in front of amp stacks and exploding drums wouldn’t have been helpful either.
Think you might be on to something
The Who’s claim to noise fame is also something of a cautionary tale. On May 31, 1976, 75,000 people packed into Charlton Athletic’s football ground in London to see a line-up that included Lowell George and Little Feat. The headliners were The Who and, on a rainy night, their performance was measured at 126 decibels – and that from a distance of 100 feet from the speakers. The Who set a world record that stood for eight years. Alas for band members Peter Townshend and Roger Daltrey , years of being one of the loudest bands in the world left them with severe hearing problems. Daltrey, who admits he’s now “very deaf”, said, “If only we had known when we were young.” Townshend later helped establish the charity HEAR (Hearing Education And Awareness For Rockers).
And exploding drums happened because Keith Moon was a loon:
The comfort of the suede strap is like none other, luxury! However, the bit of cushion can cause a tight fit when being used with a Co-Pilot pad. Thus, I might prefer the lambskin strap when being used with a Co-Pilot pad, which provides enough cushion and weight distribution for me. I can’t speak to use with the Pilot.
I just received the Be2 lambskin pads. The quality of the leather seems to be more premium (including thicker) than the Auteur, Universe, and Eikon lambskin pads. What I didn’t previously realize is that the Be2’s foam/fabric section that covers the driver is noticeable thicker than all the other pads I’ve tried. Maybe that partly influences how the Be2 pads are brighter than the other pads (Verite pads may have the same feature, but I don’t have direct experience). Setting aside sonics, I personally prefer the minimum amount of material between ear and driver.
Yeah, if you’re going to use a co-pilot pad, take the headstrap off. You lose yolk adjustment range with any of their add-on headband pads, especially the regular pilot pad.
I found the be2 and Verite pads to be more veiled due to the thicker backing. Definitely liked the universe more. (Verite Open)
I’m experiencing the same thing man. For VC, Auteur lambskin might be my favorite pads. But it might be dependent on what else is in the chain - Universe lambskins sound pretty awesome right now.
I got their replacement suede strap and band and it worked great for me (I was already pretty much on the shortest adjustment and this moved the cups one or two notches down.
I think this may be even more important for the co-pilot as I think it is thicker than the pilot pad. I have the co-pilot and I go strapless.
I removed the strap for the pilot pad and attached it to the steel headband. This is how Zach recommended when I asked over email. I think it works great - comfortable and much less slippage.