We have the same ideology. I too have thought about owning the VC again as I truly enjoyed it. I ended up choosing the Diana Phi over it but might end up buying the VC or its successor again. Its Mids to me were soo good, but my music preference then was more upbeat so the Phi won in my book. The ZMF ideology to me is what is so attractive, lifetime support with the product and a very transparent company. Feels like home.
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Love the B2 with my pendant amp. And the VC and VO are both tremendous, but I listen to my Aeolus headphones the most. As you can guess (lol) I’m a big ZMF fan. I’m going to get a new DAC soon, but I think the B2 is a really great DAC. It may not have top tier resolution but it is so engaging that for the price point is really impressive.
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If anyone is willing to loan a VC with a potential for sale, I’m in the market. I’ve never heard one, currently own a pair of Eikons.
I’ve done all of the reading on the differences between the two and I have a good idea of what I’d be giving up in exchange for what the VC brings to the game. In the end the proof is in listening for oneself so here I am. Wood and color does not matter, well, yeah nothing stabilized and I’d like the new style headband.
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You got something against stabilized, huh!?!
I’m kidding, I know some people prefer the classic wood styles.
I think @Towa might have considered selling his at one point of time
Also word on the stabilized, it’s like if you want it to have pretty colors buy a plastic headphone. The beauty of wood headphones is that they are natural etc
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I’m with you.
I figured that the tactile feeling of the wood would suffer from it.
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So much this. I think my aeolus is the most beautiful headphone I have, even if the sound is out-beautified by other headphones lol. When I get a ghallarhorn it’s gonna be the normal ‘dusk’ version with that awesome dark wood and not the limited blue one.
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Word dude, i mean the blue one looks beautiful for sure but if we go all out on these wooden headphones might as well get one of the natural ones. As everyone loves to point out too, if you consider the boutique factor of ZMF into their price it only makes sense to get something as natural as possible. Even if theres very unnatural technology crammed into it lol
Having my padauk auteur back in the day made me get pieces with padauk accents around the house. I love the natural wood look
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Ehhh, I am a wood lover but if all wood finishes were clear we would be in a much more boring world. A lot of wood aging can also be from the clear tinting more amber over time. Imagine all those sweet guitars without even tobacco and cherry burst finishes. I think most of the stabilized finishes were done pretty tastefully and works to show off the quirks of the wood selection.
Yeah but most of the ZMFs are finished anyway. I assume the stabilized are maybe a different resin which is more plastic but still its not a natural oil type finish.
Padauk is a gorgeous wood varying from deep orange to a rich red brown. Decently hard with an open grain. I used it for a few guitar necks and outside of it needing a little more time to shape, i really liked it. It took well to an oil finish and it popped the wood luminesce well.
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There’s so many types of wood out there, I disagree for that reason. And nice finishing accentuating the grain etc. I don’t think you really need to add extra colors. Of course that’s just personal opinion
Stabilizing involves putting a piece of wood in a container of epoxy under a vacuum, for an extended period (days), it fills the voids in the material.
In the other places I’m familiar with it, it’s usually done before machining, so it isn’t coating the wood, there would still be plenty of wood present in the feel, my concerns having owned IronWood ZMF’s would be about weight.
Could even be a positive for sound, but I assume the effect is at best subtle.
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What would really rock my boat from an artistry standpoint would be some inlay… that I’d swoon over.
Imagine your VCs inlaid with a rosette like this?
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That would be super sick indeed! Or even having your name written there! Oooof! Will kill resell like crazy tho lol
Hmm, I was wondering why some of the pieces, which were less knotty and just figured maple where in need of being stabilized. I assume there was a big block that was stabilized and when cut those pieces Just didnt have any major “flaws”
Rhe desert Ironwood VO was actually a favorite of mine from the looks. It was almost an impulse buy.
Well… Why not? Depending on how thick the back is, it can be done. Even think of some MOP inlays.
Not much thickness needed.
Edit: Have ZMF make their circle logo mop inlay on the back of their closed offerings. Fin.
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I’d bet he cuts the blanks first then stabilizes those, even with the size of the blanks, it’s probably a long process to get good penetration.
I had 3 sets of ZMF headhones here at one point including a pair of IronWood VC’s, the VC’s were 250g heavier than the Eikons (Camphor), and more than that over the Aeolus (Camphor Burl).
It really surprised me how noticeable it was, and it’s something people buying ZMF’s should be aware of.
I never really found the VC’s uncomfortable, but the Eikons were more comfortable, largely because of the weight difference.
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Oh i dont doubt it. There is a reason its called ironwood. Drop a piece of cedar or basswood and it will dent, drop the ironwood and it will dent what its dropped on.
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nope not once. 
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