If you truly prioritize chill/laid-back with comfort, you cannot go wrong with Audioquest Nighthawks (if you can still find them). Very comfortable, really good bass slam. They are fun, but polite. You can wear them all day.
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Yeah like others have said, I would not call the Auteur laid back and the verite c is definitely not either. I have not heard it myself but the Aeolus is suppsoed to be the most chill and laid back in the ZMF line and Iāve heard it works really well with both SS and tube amps.
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Wondering if some Auteur owners can shed some light on a few questions, Iām kinda feeling around in the dark here, forgive me if this is a bit vagueā¦
Iāve had a love/hate relationship with some recently picked up Elexās and i think iāve given on the idea of keeping them. I LOVE the way they sound (more on this in a sec), but theyāre just to uncomfortable, the hotspot is killinā me which makes the whole thing tough to enjoy.
For context, my baseline here is a pair of DT1990s, and a pair of LCD 2Cs.
I love the energy of the Elex, it just feels like a āsit upā headphone. Especially coming from the 2C, thereās just so much verve and excitement in the sound; I love it. Itās got some punch in the bass dynamics, but without clouding up the lower mids, or getting too wooly down there. Iām also a big fan of the slightly more forward vocals, female vocals especially seem to pop on these, which just adds so much life to a lot of music; especially garage and indie punk stuff (Snail mail, Brooke Bentham, Wavves, that whole vibe). The highs are fine, nothing to write home about, not in the way, but not recessed. I definitely appreciate some of the āairā in the 1990, but I donāt miss the ~8k spike they have.
I reached out to Zach and he said this sounded more like a job for the Auteur than the Aeolus. But before i went and pulled the trigger I wanted to see if anyone had a similar move from a mid-fi dynamic (or even specifically an Elex/Clear) to the Auteur, or how they contrast to an Arya.
Iāll be driving these off a Matrix Mini Pro i 3, and a Drop CTH w/ gold lion tube.
While iām totally happy to pay what it costs to have these kind of higher end cans, especially when youāre talking about something as bespoke and handcrafted as a ZMFā¦This will be nearly double the most Iāve spent on a single set of headphones before, so Iām trying to do a bit more background here before going for it.
First question is or may be. Open or closed back preference ? Secondly I have the Elex and also have my Auteur but only for 24hrs so I am still learning it. I also have the Aeolus as well. All the Zmf cans are super comfortable and if by chance you might get said hotspot then they do have the pilot pad for purchase. I also have the Eikon and Atticus for the closed back side of things. All are different in their own way but all at least for me are supremely comfyā¦ What amp are you pushing things with ?
Nice, glad to hear theyāre comfy! Matrix Mini Pro i 3, and a Drop CTH for amps.
I prefer open, I have a pair of Sony Z7s that kind of cover me on the closed side, and itās not like Iām going to take ZMFs out and about 
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Yeah understoodā¦ Well ? I wish I had more time with the Auteur to better help and I am sure someone with more experience will pop up, Even with my short time I can confidently say I prefer the Auteur to the Elex. Does not mess with the sound, Very revealing and sweet sounding is what I would call it.
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Think the Elex has a more in your face sound, more punchy and dynamic. To me the Auteur sounds more natural and warm and spacious, particularly with live music. So depends on the genre u like, I think comfort wise zmf > focals but focals i find very comfotable anyway
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I couldnāt ever imagine taking my Zmfās outside either I couldnāt imagine them being accidentally dropped or something like that
Yeah i donāt think i could do it but part of me loves the idea of getting some monster DAP and just walking around town with Susvaras or LCD3s or something.
āOh these? These are just my Abyss 1266s, gotta get off though, this is my stopā
with enough determination anything is portable
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The abyss 1266 rip when it has no clamp and they go flying through the bus drivers windshield under heavy braking.
Good news is the build is indestructible and would be fine
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I would be more concerned about whatever they hit than the 1266 themselves.
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How do you like the Auteur on your G111 amp?
I no longer own a G111. But I like it a lot on all of my amps. But it does sound best on my Quicksilver Headphone Amp.
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Got my Auteur in Wenge around 2-3 weeks ago. Had to make an account to rave about them a little bit (excuse my lack of images, I am under new user restrictions)!
A little bit about me. I am a full-time Graduate Student under an RA (So make very little money). With the pandemic, music became a much larger part of my workflow. I had originally used a Sennheiser Hd 58x and Schiit Fulla 2, which I had for a few years. The long and short of it is that I was looking for a direct upgrade. I got the Auteur because I wanted to not have to purchase another upgrade any time soon. Presently I am running the Auteur single ended out of an Asgard 3, fed by a Motu M4.
Everytime I sit down to work I am floored by how amazing these are. I often get distracted as the music jusr feels so real. I just want to sit back and relax. So in some ways I have to listen to less music to get my work done, lol.
One question I had was about pad swaps. I got the Eikon Suede as a secondary pad option. The sound changes a lot in a way that I canāt really describe. Like the soundstage gets smaller, but the presentation feels more diffuse. So I have to turn up the volume to get the levels of the vocals to match. I initially didnāt like them compared to the Auteur Lambskin pads, but I spent a few days with them and they are quite enjoyable! I just wish I knew exactly what was going on so I could explain it. Does anyone have measurements they could share?
Anyway, theyāre awesome and Iāma keep them 'till I die. 
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According to the ZMF site, the Eikon pads are warmer than the default Auteur pads. More lush and fuzzy, maybe losing some detail retrieval, but gaining someā¦ pleasantness in the treble or mids maybe? I donāt know, just guessing based upon the diagram.
How is the comfort of the Auteur? The weight? Coming from the 58x, a light Sennheiser, do you notice the headphones on your head overly much? If you wear glasses, does it both you at all to wear glasses while wearing the Auteur?
With the Auteur vs. the 58x, also, would you say you routinely notice new things in the music you are listening to, or is it moreso just a refinement across the board of the sound?
Like you, Iām considering buying top tier or class so as not to be left guessing about it and make several purchases in rising increment of quality/price before then. Saves me time and money, I figure. Also like you, I use headphones while I work basically throughout the day.
Enjoy! Glad youāre happy.
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But at the same time, Suede is somehow supposed to be more neutral than Lambskin. I donāt wear glasses, so thatās not an issue. Weight is a tad more than I am used to, but itās not at all a problem if you wear them for a few hours. I wouldnāt do 8+ hours straight though. If youāre like me, and work in 2-3 hour chunks with 5 minute stretch breaks every 30-45 minutes then you should have no issue.
If you have a VR headset, do NOT use these with them. They donāt clamp enough to stay on your head if you whip it around that fast. I use the sennheiserās for that.
Detail is definitely way up! It feels like I can hear everything. Like nothing at all is lost. This also means that most of my music library sounds like a dumpster fire. Most of the music I own is shared with my family, and I took that iTunes library and uploaded it to Google Play (R.I.P). Re-downloading this library caused a lot of the files to undergo additional compression, so I can hear the generational artifacting. Not fun.
But on the music I have acquired since, they are absolutely stellar! Canāt find even a single complaint.
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What would you say is the better headphone for electronic - whether expansive, atmospheric and ambient electronic music, or more trebly synthy electronic music - the Auteur or the Aeolus?
Hmmmm.I own both and that is a good question as it depends on what you are driving them withā¦ For the majority I prefer the Auteur but occasionally for specific music it is the Aeolus. Tubed I say Auteur for sure ā¦ SS COULD be the Aeolus but once again not alwaysā¦ Sorry as this probably does not help at all.
