ZMF Headphones - Bokeh Closed

currently my go to laid back is the ZMF Bokeh Closed - though i might considering getting a 6xx again in the future

1. ZMF Bokeh Closed - for me the best Closed back next to the E3 (on my wishlist) 2. Hifiman He1000v2 - bought open box from hifiman for 900€, a steal for that price 3. Meze 109 Pro - find one b stock (like new) for 500€, totally love them 4. Audeze LCD X - quality build and almost perfect with EQ, without it they are just “meh..” 5. Audeze Maxwell - 300€ for this headphone/headset is a steal 6. Moondrop x Crincecle Dusk DSP - my first real IEM and totally happy with them in the office 7. Bose QC Ultra - my on the way/travel go-to headphone. 8. Focal Clear OG - currently on the seeling List - because I just dont get them - not sure if mine broken or just not my type

All so true what you've said here. And oh wait until you get something like a Hifiman Sundara and pair it with a decent DAC. It blows your socks off. The soundstage, imaging, dynamics, clarity is mind boggling. I could not believe what I was hearing. It changed music for me. Sorry about the long upcoming audio journey of mine, but feels like a good space to be able to share my journey as well. I hope I don't come off as snobbish, I have fairly high end gear now. 😅 Now a few years down the line, now my product owned line up is as follows (in chronological order of purchase): ATH-AR3BT (On a trip to Japan, M50 was all the rage, thanks to MKBHD) Sony WF-1000XM3 (refurbished, first foray into TWS, wanted something for general sports, cycling etc) FiiO K3 (Was using BT on the AR3BT for CS:GO first, realized the latency is probably holding me back, plugged in 3.5mm on my laptop, realized it was broken - audio on one side only, so got a dac with a volume knob, initially didn't realize the sound difference between bluetooth and the DAC and panicked that I wasted 8k, until I heard it and could never go back) Hifiman Sundara (Had been exploring audio till I landed on audiophile territory and read plenty about it, initially it sounded meh but when I listened over a few days, it was just OMFG what sorcery is this. This experience made me fairly confident that burn-in is real, whatever people might have to say) Moondrop Aria (read reviews that it sounds similar to the Sundara in a relatively budget category and wanted something portable. Well no, not similar as such but a fantastic warmly tuned IEM, eventually also tried out the SpinFit CP-1, great pairing, opened up the sound even more, better soundstage) Shanling UA2 (wanted an ESS DAC that I can use with the IEM, mainly for travel, that ESS sharpness pairs surprisingly well with the Aria, not so much with the other devices I own, haven't really tried much with the AR3BT) QAcoustics 3020i + SMSL AO200 (Entered speakers territory with a speaker amp, never heard speakers so good and so holographic) 2x QAcoustics QB12 (Well, explored sub bass territory, placed an order, found another place cheaper and ordered from there as well, couldn't cancel first order, ended up with two subs, not that I regret it) E70 Velvet (Moved the speakers to my TV, and needed a DAC there, beautiful AKM chipset DAC, very very smooth and non-fatiguing sound, yet retaining all the nuances in audio) Sony WF-1000XM5 (XM3 started glitching out, one side randomly stopping to work, XM3 also had a poor mic setup, saw good reviews for these and got them. Quite good compact tws with okay sound - spinfit w1 does help the sound a lot, but reduces noise isolation) Edifier MR4 (A smaller active speaker for my office desk, conmected to line out of my K3. While it doesn't come close to the QAcoustics, I was surprised how good these Edifiers can be in a near field listening setup, good soundstage, not the same level of clarity and holographicness, but very crisp and even sounding, good bass without a subwoofer) Cayin RU7 (wanted to know what the R2R buzz is about, this is however 1 bit, not multibit, and by far the most impactful in terms of sound presentation, all the notes are so much, more present and wider. And the soundstage expanded further. The difference in sound is insane, and became my go to for the Sundara) Focal Auditor ASE-165 (got a new car with shit speakers unfortunately, this was the cheapest and easiest drop in replacements for my speakers without needing an amp immediately, pretty good for the price! Lot of clarity in the sound in my car now) ZMF Bokeh Closed (wanted a closed headphone that could do something the Sundara did for me, since I now share my office space with my wife. Not exactly how I imagined it, but ended up liking it a lot, fun and immersive sound, some tracks can literally tickle the ears. This pairs again really well with the K3. I tried the NPR audio quality test - paired with the RU7, finally could pick up the differences in uncompressed and mp3 files. Couldn't do that on the Sundara)

ZMF Bokeh Closed for me. I kept hearing how warm it was (which is why I bought it, so it could be my antithesis to my HE1000se) and nobody talked about how much detail there still is. It’s such a fun headphone, very open sounding for a closed back so soundstage is fine, imagine is great, but you never feel fatigued. The headband lives up to the hype ZMF has earned around it. I have a review coming up on it. Close second would be the HE1000se though, just never realized how much detail there is, how big the soundstage and the sound can feel, and how holographic and laser sharp imaging can be in songs until you hear those.

If you’re willing to EQ for impact the Arya is a good bet. Clear MG probably better tuning for you out of the box. Bit of a left field suggestion but check out the ZMF Bokeh Closed. Seems to fit your criteria. Not sure about shipping/pricing to the EU though.

I have the Closed X and love them. They are the DCA model with less forward upper mids, so they will sound more like the Arya than the Clear with vocals. They aren’t as bright as the Arya but still plenty of treble for my ears. The bass is fine in quantity but lacks the feeling of punch that the Clear or even the Arya have. The bass is a bit softer feeling. I sometimes add a bit of bass with EQ. The sound in general is sort of “damped” like a studio monitor in a treated room. They are very comfortable and reasonably lightweight. The sound isolation is pretty good. I’ve cycled through a bunch of closed backs to see if I like anything better and haven’t found anything yet (though I have the ZMF Bokeh Closed for a very different flavor).

Tied for first (still own): Dan Clark Closed X and ZMF Bokeh. Second (sold): SJY Closed Carbon Third (sold): Fostex TH-X00 Purpleheart

Bokeh is good. Colored sound compared to Closed X. Punchy and fun, I love it with anything that gets my toes tapping and prefer the Closed X with everything else.

The horizons are excellent I have a pair myself I switch between them and my Zmf bokeh closed back for music I also have the Sjy Starry night v2s and, Umi which are my favorite open backs.. I personally don't like the focal at all except for the radiance but everyone has different perspectives.

Depends on which one you're talking about the Starry night v2s are more neutral and more open but lack the tactility and presence completely different tuning The Umi are slightly warmer and open back so much wider soundstage but no where near as much tactility as the bokeh although more similar tuning wise The horizon closed carbon is more similar tuning wise to the starry night v2s but with way better bass response deeper and more visceral than the Starry night v2s the other difference is they are better soundstage wise then the Starry night v2s I like all of them for different reasons ig At least for me there's nothing currently on the market that beats the bokeh for pure physicality and tactility across the entire frequency response it's just incredibly lush and textured and super dynamic

Also a big fan of DCA. I have a Noire X which pairs great with my ZMF Bokeh Closed. The Noire X is great for more analytic detail with nice extended bass, and the Bokeh compliments it perfectly for me sounding more warm, immersive, and natural timbre.

I love using my ZMF Bokeh closed or Audeze LCD-2F for metal. It sounds great with the Fiio FT1 as well.

I have the ZMF Bokeh closed, is it worth getting the auteur to complement them?

My ZMF Bokeh Closed will have to be pried out of my cold dead hands.

I think best bet would probably be ZMF Bokeh they are super easy to drive have a 3.5mm straight to your laptop or even phone with a small dongle if needed. They will eat your $1000 budget through. Or you can get 6xx or 650 with a small dongle all will be under $500.

I think you would love the Audeze LCD-XC, they are closed-back and they are exceptional, but they are heavy. You can, however, modify the headband or get their carbon fiber headband. I think you would also like the ZMF Bokeh. I personally think these two headphones are the best value closed-backs for the money. I have the Sony MDR-Z1R and they're my number one closed-backs but they're more expensive. For your amp/dac, get the Burson Audio Playmate or Burson Funk and you will have all the power you need as well as some upgradeability to the opamps. Burson makes exceptional opamps and will absolutely blow you away. This is my personal opinion as I have actually listened to the hardware mentioned above aside from the Burson playmate/Funk, but I owned the Burson Soloist 3XP and 3XP GT which are the big brothers. If you wanna go "bit" cheaper, maybe the DCA Noire X. I recommend these headphones solely based on your music preferences since they're similar to mine.