ZMF Headphones Auteur Classic

Stereophile were already sold by the OG, barely believing "how relaxed and unbelievably transparent" the Auteur was, as it "rendered diverse recordings at what I consider to be the highest levels of audio verity, exceeded only by the preternatural resolving powers of the HiFiMan Susvara, the Abyss AB-1266 Phi, and now, the closed version of ZMF's new Vérité headphones, which are named, simply, the Vérité Closed".

That's some illustrious company for the Auteur Classic, and the biggest card in its hand yet is the famed Atrium Damping System that made its debut on its bigger biocellulose brother, the namesake Atrium.

The patented Atrium Damping System perfectly illustrates how far up the R&D ladder ZMF have come. 

Starting with biocellulose, stiff and lightweight as a diaphragm material, this fibre also promises excellent damping. Biocellulose allows ZMF to keep the large 50mm driver under control at all times even as frequencies rise, averting any harsh intermodulation due to cone modal break-up.

The Atrium system then works hand in hand with Auteur Classic's driver. It allows ZMF to choose how little or much back-wave damping is needed from the negative impulses of the biocellulose driver, which back waves they had to keep, and which they want to get rid of, for an optimal headphone acoustic system.

An incredible amount of fine-tuning takes place selecting distances within the cup and damping material for optimal airflow. Atrium Damping was a three-year process before ZMF deemed ready to release their labour of love to the public, breathing new life into the company's quintessential model – the Auteur.

To explore different driver materials entirely, have yourself even more resolution with ZMF's Vérité, more punch with ZMF's Aeolus, or browse our other open-back options here!