Nice. Which DAC and amp? ZMF usually shows best with a tube amp.
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@agent_goldenfox Congratulations!! Those are beautiful! I’m curious to know how they sound different to you after they have 100-200 hrs on them. Which case did you get w/ them? How long did it take to arrive after ordering?
Enjoy!
Give it some time. Speaking as someone who came to the VO used to the Hifiman sound signature (albeit a few rungs lower on the Hifiman ladder), Verite takes some “brain burn-in” time. Once I “figured out” what Verite was all about I fell head over heels for it.
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I sold my Verite to purchase a Susvara. Then I ended up selling my Susvara to rebuy a Verite. The Verite is special in that it gives you great details without any harshness. And it may not be class-leading in any one area, but it has no weaknesses either, in my opinion. It’s a very special headphone.
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My two main cans are the VO and the Utopia, so somewhat similar distinction as to what you have.
The VO is a more atmospheric headphone that I found is more genre specific too. Outside of staging width (depending upon pads) the VO can’t keep up with the Utopia, it’s a true level below technically. I dont say this to disparage it but I found it easier to accept sonically when I accepted it as its own separate can rather than a competitor for ear time.
Having said that the Utopia gets the majority of my ear time, but the VO still has its charms when everything clicks and pad rolling is interesting.
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Those are the two phones I use as well. VO gives me more bass and a smoother treble, but I like the midrange of the Utopia better, and like you, I use it more often - they are both great headphones and sound awesome with a good DAC and amp. I do have to say that I find the fit a lot more comfortable on the Utopia - I just can’t get those ZMF’s to feel right on my head.
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DCS Bartok with the Bakoon Amp 13r(with low gain, for the Susvara I use high gain).
You mean the box in which the headphone came? It was those big plastic pelican box, pretty solid. Didn’t get the wooden box.
Yeah absolutely, going to keep the Susvara on the side until I listen to the ZMF for a few hundred hours.
Yeah this is where I am at with them. I am going to use the ZMF for most of the regular pop/rap genre on Spotify. It does much better when the music is not recorded well compared to the Susvara. I think I will use the Susvara exclusively for listening to orchestra and classical music.
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One thing to note, you don’t need to listen to them for 300 hours. The burn-in is really a break-in, as the drivers are quite stiff when new and need that time to loosen up to be more responsive. On my pair of VO, I had them running for around 16 hours a day with a break every 8 hours or so and tracked how they sounded at different points. Around the 220 hour mark they stabilized and continued to improve after. Folks will call it brain-burn, sure to an extent yes. I was not listening to them extensively throughout this process. I noticed a great start, then after 50 hours through 220 it was Jekyll and Hyde in both the bass control and mids. Enjoy the options you have, and if your ears don’t think they are right there is nothing wrong with that either.
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I just don’t know how I can keep them running, the Bakoon amp 13r gets really really hot after a couple of hours of use. Not sure how long it’s safe to keep it running at that temperature lol
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Oh don’t use that, I used an secondary laptop and had my music library on shuffle with a low volume. Literally plugged them into the headphone jack and kept them on the stand. It needs movement, how it gets that movement is not important.
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Try an AC Infinity component fan. I use an S6 on top of my GSX-mini. It only lights off when the HA needs to be cooled.
You could also use an S2 blower fan. $20 ish.
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New VO base model out today. It’s a Mahogany stained Sapele that’s offered with Aged Copper or Black hardware. Really spiffy.
If anyone knows, When they stain the cups, does ZMF finish them with a follow up lacquer, or is just the stain. I’m very tempted. Was thinking of an Auteur LTD, but this is making me think about a new set of VO. Probably with black hardware, since its 50 grams lighter.
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Agreed, the Silk wasn’t getting it for me. That stained Sapele is sharp.
The copper really pops, but 50 grams extra weight is the trade off.
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Probably a harder wood? Well worth it imo.
The weight difference is the hardware. The copper adds 50g. Weight of the wood is pretty standard.
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so sapele is no harder than silk? I’d have to check the chart.
Sapele is 1800 on the Janka scale. Silkwood is 840.
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That’s good news imo
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The website had the Sapele listed weight at 450g ±20g. Add 50g if using the copper hardware. IIRC, the Silk was 430g.
The Ironwood is 600g ± 20g
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