ZMF Atticus
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Totally agree with @ProfFalkin, if you want to go in the direction of a warmer, richer, bassier, smoother type of complement then Atticus has one of the most unique sound signatures of any headphone. If you want to go brighter, analytical, wider, then HD800 is always a solid choice.
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Thanks. I should say that I am looking for other brands not ZMF. The ones in my radar are Arya, HD800s, HD820 and Ether2. Any comments?
There are brands other than ZMF?
I haven’t heard Arya.
Hd800(s) are a known quantity, no need to comment there.
Ether 2 I thought was ultimately… boring. It has no soul to it. This was one headphone I heard, watched the rave reviews come flowing in, and 2 months later all those reviewers had them up for sale. You do the math.
Maybe go searching for an original he-560 or one of the LFF Code 6 unicorns. I know those are fantastic. I really dislike Hifiman, but even I can’t argue those were good headphones.
Uhhh… Get a HD650 and mod the heck out of it?
Audeze LCD3?
Fostex TH-900 mk2?
I’m out of ideas. Happy holidays.
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The fcuk you say!!! What are these lesser beings you speak of?..
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Yeah, it boggles the brain.
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I find that the Focal Clear provide a very different but very satisfying sound and from my perspective, what’s interesting, is that although they sound quite different from each other, neither the Clear nor the Verite need any EQ to sound “right”, unlike the HD 800.
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Along with a few recent flagships, I’ve been interested in trying the Verite for some time. Is anyone in the Seattle area with one of these (open or closed) interested in going to a meet? If so, I’m hosting a local meet up in north Seattle the last Saturday of January and would love to see you around. This was set up as a Head-Fi meet but is open to the public.
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@Torq and @Resolve, after reading your great reviews and a few other articles on this site and elsewhere. I decided to add a ZMF Vérité LTD Purple Heart with brass grills to my collection. This will be my first ZMF headphone.
Based on the build quality comments, it reminds me of feeling I when getting a guitar from a smaller boutique builder like Novo Guitars or Collings. The sound signature feels like it picked up the best quality I am looking for from my current top three cans Ananda, Aeon Flow Open, and Elex, and not pick up some of their unwanted traits. It would be interesting to see the curve of the Ananda and Elex and Vertie for someone like me who is moving up to this level. I saw the comparison to Elex above.
I am sure it hit the level of quality finish of my Collings City Limits
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OK now it’s official. 2021 will by AMF Acquisition Year for me. The buzz is to intense to be just hot air.
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Are you buying a Harley or a bowling ball? 
I bought my first set of ZMF headphones last year. Great headphones…
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LOL I was living in fear of just THAT typo and there it goes. sigh I’ll survive 
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No worries. Couldn’t resist. 40 years ago Harley Davidson motorcycles were pure junk, and we called them bowling balls.
Welcome to the forums. I picked a set of ZMFs during the November sale. Aeolus Bubingas. Beautiful headphones. Great sound, great look.
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How would you describe the sound ? These are exactly within the price range I (1k to 3k) I deal with the most. I have of course noticed the Rise of the Woods for cans both planar and dynamic but those I have tried were closed backs of lower but relatively decent quality (for mid-fi) in the $400 to $700 bracket and very hot to wear in summer. I passed because they were bot-machined B&W or NAD style and didn’t inspire me like the ZMF do.
Yeah, unfortunately I’m old enough to recall. Not their finest hour.
They sound really good. Not sure what to compare them to, but I have three other sets headphones in the $1k -2k range, and the Aeolus belong in the club. (I’d love to get the Verite)…
Verite open-back is first on my list, appears pretty representative of the make. I love the closed backs fork the wood work but I suspect open-back might be more to my taste musically, speaking from long-term listening habits. And btw, thanks for the welcome 
Currently I have only one wooden phone that I hadn’t thought of for months, a cheap ESS AMT 422H with what looks like a paper driver that I bought out of pure curiosity for less than than $200. It’s assembled in the US from Asian parts or so I understodd since their is very little info printed on it. I won’t insult Hifiman by saying it has anything to do with China. It looks ok enough to be displayed in the back but this is not a good headphone, not even a bad headphone, it’s a horrific headphone. Closed-back walnut, can’t even wear it for more than 10 minutes 'til it gets steamy. I disagree with reviews that say bass has body unless one considers muck as “body”. Grip is loose and vinyl ear pads will slide down as soon as they get wet which doesn’t take long, leaving the heavy phones hanging more from the top of your ears than from the headband that does a good job at pulling said hair. I’ll sum it up as costume jewelry.
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We all knew what you meant.
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All those in the know here. Hello, first post!
I have a set of Verite Opens.
Currently run off a Topping D50S and a SMSL SP200. Just a bit underwhelmed with the Amp I think. DAC probably fine.
What’s an amp that pairs well with these? Keep it under $1000 I think.
Needs to be able to drive a Beyer headset too, which I think is 32 ohm.
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I think with that budget you can do some damage lol…
Schiit Jotunheim
Monoprice THX 887 (I think?!?)
Drop THX 789
Drop ZDT JR
Schiit Lyr3
Bottlehead Crack with Speedball (if ok with DIY)
Schiit Asgard
JDS labs Element/El Amp
Just to name a few I’m sure others will jump in and flesh this out further with amps I’ve missed.
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