ZMF Blackwood

Surprised to see no conversation about these here, so here's my review:



Pros: Sturdy build quality, customizable sound, imaging quality, control and texture of the midbass, incredibly euphoric and well textured midrange.

Cons: Weight, comfort.

Tonal Balance: Bass heavy to neutral.

Style: Closed Circumaural

Listening Set-Up: Musicbee (WASAPI/FLAC) -> Matrix HPA-3U

Cost at Time of Review: Starts at $700


Reviewing Process
I’ve had the Blackwood for a bit over a month and during this time I’ve exclusively used them for desktop listening. I’ve primarily used them for critical and noncritical music listening, though some I’ve spent some time playing Borderlands with them. During this time I feel that I’ve become comfortable enough with the sound to share my opinion, but remember that this is just my opinion. I recommend demoing a product when available as nothing trumps experience.


Thanks to Zach at ZMF for the review loaner.


Build & Fit
Build

The Blackwood are a highly modified Fostex T50RP that feature skillfully crafted African Blackwood cups, carefully stitched cowskin pads and the plush ZMF pilot pad. The construction looks and feels top notch in every aspect - no creaks or causes for concern when handled and the overall - overall a high-end feel to the Blackwood. I have one quip and it stems from the unsmooth headband adjustment system, though it isn’t a prolonged issue as headbands are usually “set and forget”. Other than that I have no complaints thus far, it’s clear that Zach puts pride into his work.


Comfort

The African Blackwood used on the cups are stunning to look at, but unfortunately they add quite a bit of weight in conjunction with the planar drivers of the T50rp. Downward force can be a bit much at times even with the plush pilot pad, I find myself taking short breaks during extended listening sessions due to the weight. Clamping force is on the light side, not feeling secure as my HD600 despite having thick and plush leather pads. The pads are comfortable though and I have no seal issues. In-fact the isolation is rather great on the Blackwood, though the inefficiency of the drivers makes them less than ideal to lug around. The Blackwood are best suited for home listening.


Sound Quality
Disclaimer

The review will be written from the perspective of the Blackwood stock, with all bass ports open. Bass port sections will be below the main sound quality portion.


TLR

The Blackwood are a warm, detailed and highly euphoric headphone that provides a highly engrossing experience with every genre that I’ve thrown it’s way. Truly a pleasurable experience through and through from Fleetwood Mac to Daft Punk, from Rage Against the Machine to Madonna.


Bass

Using the Bass Shaker Test the Blackwood are capable of digging incredibly deep, with a focus on the sub-bass. In real world listening I find the lows to be emphasized to a modest amount which gives the Blackwood an overall warm and full tone. The sub-bass digs incredibly deep, as noted in the bass shaker test, adding a satisfying rumble in bass heavy electronic tunes. Big sub-bass presence tends to add a bit of sluggishness and there’s some here. The Blackwood performs acceptably with James Blake’s Limit to Your Love, sounding mildly bloated but controlled enough for separation between the quick bass notes.


The midbass is punchy, controlled, and extremely well textured which adds a lively low-end presence to rock and electronic tracks alike. Rage Against the Machine’s track Take the Power Back highlights just how well the Blackwood are at replicating the texture and liveliness of the bass guitar and kick drum. Warmer than neutral, but energetic and lively, the midbass is incredibly satisfying.


The low end as a whole provides a lot of energy without being overbearing and I am thoroughly enjoying Daft Punk’s album Discovery with these on my head right now. Compared to it’s sibling the Vibro, the Blackwood don’t have as much bass presence, but has a tighter and punchier bass response.


Mids & Highs

The midrange is an absolute pleasure to my ears. The tonal balance leans warm and full without midbass bleed or a sense of sluggishness, giving a sultry and euphoric tone throughout. Detail retrieval is top notch while simultaneously being forgiving to poor recordings. The bane of my musical existence is the quality of Lana Del Rey’s recordings and something with Zach’s tuning smooths out the grain present, seemingly enhancing the quality of the recording. This is something that I also noticed when listening to Lana through the Vibro and if anyone has any idea why this might be, I would love to hear your thoughts. Lastly the texture is spot on, one listen to Take the Power Back and I had chills as it felt as if I could feel the pick scraping along the electric guitar's strings. The midrange is highly engrossing and I’m not afraid to admit that I am in love with how the midrange is tuned.


It’s not all roses though, there is a mild peak in the upper midrange that adds a bit of sibilance and tizz to bright leaning recordings. Not razor sharp, but the amount of sibilance heard on Glory Box from Portishead is certainly increased compared to the HD600. They aren’t as bright or shouty as the Vibro though, Zach has cleaned that aspect up a bit.


The treble extends fully and smoothly with no audible grain. The treble is present and balanced nicely with the midrange, though air isn’t present. This is expected with a closed headphone that isolates as well as these do though.

Presentation
Soundstage width and depth are a bit more spacious than the average closed headphone, thanks in part to the huge pads, while having a bit more space than the Vibro. Imaging is the Blackwood’s strength in the soundstage, being highly accurate with games and music alike. I find a good sense of left and right, near and far and good incremental positioning in between. Instrument separation is equally fantastic, opening up space within the intimate soundstage. The combination of the imaging accuracy and instrument seperation keep the soundstage from sounding congested. There’s no mistake that these are closed headphones, though I hear no resonance or hollowness that headphones can fall victim to when underdamped.


Bass Port Options

Preface

Since it’s a bit difficult to go back and forth in a timely manner due to the nature of inserting and removing the stoppers I can not easily go back and forth between tunings. The thoughts expressed here are done by memory and could be a consequence of expectation bias. I am sharing these thoughts in good faith though and hope they are helpful.


One Port Closed

The overall sound is full and warm, though less ballsy in the sub-bass than with all ports opened. The midrange still sounds lush but sounds less engaging than all ports opened as well. The sound is more balanced, while losing some of the euphoric qualities that made me fall in love with the stock sound. Let’s just say that Run the Jewels isn’t banging quite as hard now.


Two Ports Closed

Much more balanced with a hint of warmth throughout, reminiscent of a beefier sounding HD600 in tonality. Clean and punchy bass that extends all the way down still, cleaner than with all ports open and perhaps quicker now as well. Unfortunately the midrange has a bit of grain showing through, and isn’t as clean as the HD600. Sibilance is also shown, though a step down from the Vibro. Imaging is also cleaned up as is instrument separation. Width sounds a touch larger, but depth has not changed. Overall a tuning that provides a powerful bass response while sounding fairly balanced throughout.


Three Ports Closed

Much like one port closed I’m not a huge fan of this tuning. The sub-bass clearly shows further improvement in sub-bass control and speed, but the bass seems to have lost its fullness. Clarity throughout seems increased, but the tone of the midrange sounds plasticy throughout and the overall sound comes off thin and wimpy after everything before it. Soundstage cohesion is up, as is midrange clarity, but the euphoria is all gone for me. Compared to the HD600 it’s closest in tonality, but sounds thin in comparison.


Conclusion
As of now the Blackwood are my closed headphone end-game. Tonally they reminded me a lot of the Audeze LCD-X that I demoed, and with the bass ports closed they have a tonal balanced not too far off from the Sennheiser HD600. I admit that I instantly fell in love with them from first listen, they’re one of the first headphones that I’ve listened to in awhile (other than the Vibro) that made me excited to come home and listen to old favorites as if I were hearing them for the first time. They’re not as resolving as the HD800, nor are they as comfortable as a DT770, and they have a peak in the upper midrange, but boy are they fun to listen to music with.


Hats off to Zach for another wonderful headphone.

 

Nice review! I've had the Blackwood Purpleheart Ltd. Ed. since May and love them.

From your photo, it looks like the Blackwood loaners came with well worn Cow Hide pads. Mine came with Zach's old Lambskins and Alpha Pads, and I preferred the bass response of the Alphas. I then got the new Lambskins and Cows, but I couldn't get a good seal with the Cows and the new Lambs tore during pad rolling (the Cows work great on my modified T50RP Mk3s though!).

I initially found them to be slightly mid-bass light with amazing sub-bass extension and punch, but have gotten used to the balance over time. To the extent that when I got the Cherry Omni (Asia/Europe tour unit), I found them to be a bit bloomy in the mid/upper bass and had to EQ them down in that range (80 to 180 Hz). I started out with all ports open, but have recently become more sensitive to sub-bass emphasis and put one plug in. Bass quality is great IMO with a reasonable amount of texture and detail, but that Bass Shaker Test brings out a touch of "planar bass flappiness" (Zach's term to describe planar bass vs. dynamic drivers). Maybe this is why Purrin doesn't think any of the T50RP mods have good bass.

Mids and highs are super smooth and musical for all genres as you said. I get practically no sibillance or sizzle with any but the worst recordings (Alanis Morrisette - You Oughta Know ... ouch!), but the highs are still present and detailed. Zach tunes specifically for the intended pads and has mentioned that some additional frontal damping material can be added to taste (he'll send it to you if you ask). So maybe a bit more damping would take care of this problem with your loaner pair. My Purplehearts are a bit darker than the Omnis and when I asked Zach if I could get the highs of the Omnis by removing some of the damping from my Blackwoods he replied "I'm not sure removing it on the Blackwood would make the treble sound alike the Omni , as just internally they are different, and they measure different in that area too. The Omni I was able to tune in a flatter/more linear treble because I got rid of the 8-10K peak in the T50 driver more than in the Blackwood."

Soundstage in comparison to the Omnis was narrower but deeper, in other words, the Omnis were wider and more open but shallower than my Blackwood/Purplehearts. If I recall correctly, the Blackwoods were also slightly more precise in placement, the Cherries have a bit of a looser feel to the soundstage.

I got used to the weight fairly quickly, though the Purplehearts are a bit lighter than the stock Blackwood cups. One trick is not to tip your head forward as that puts more strain on the back of the neck. With head aligned vertically or leaned back against a chair they're fine. I also use them with the Pilot pad wrapped over the Buffalo strap which makes them feel like they're floating on my head.

Workmanship on my cups was great, but I wouldn't call the construction "sturdy" due to limitations of the original T50RP slider holder assembly. I did my pad rolling the lazy way without removing the cups from the headband and accidentally levered too hard on the cup and snapped the outer slider holder. I've repaired it with hot glue for now as I live in Asia and don't want to be without them for the time required for repair. Zach seems to have added more range of motion in his latest revision, so this may not be as much of a problem for new buyers.

A great headphone, highly recommended!

 

Thank you for this review man! I'm still torn between this and the omni though. Since the TH-X00 is out now i'd be really interested to hear what you think of those compared to the blackwoods.

 

Comparing my Purplehearts with the Cherry Omnis I heard, I'd say the Blackwoods have a tighter, darker sound overall. If you prefer a brighter, livelier and more open sound, then go for the Omnis. Both are very smooth sounding with all kinds of music and sweet to listen to. I suggest talking with Zach about mid-bass (and other) tuning to suit your personal preferences.

 

Yeah it's mainly the price i'm having trouble finalizing my decision on. Especially now since the blackwoods are on sale for $529 now. If I was to pay for the omni I would most likely get the black limba wood since it's on the larger stage side but it's not as warm as the cherry, Really interested in the THx00 now though considering how popular it's gotten in such little time. Those small earpads are really turning me away though.

Have you decided on which omni you're getting yet?

 

If that was directed at me, I'm not. I'm happy with my Blackwoods. The Walnut or Blackwood Omni might suit me more than the Cherry, but the price was a consideration for me too.

At $529, I'd jump on that close-out Blackwood.

 

@gixxerwimp Thanks for your detailed impressions and kind words! So to be sure your Blackwoods are the Purpleheart version with Lambskin? I'd be interested in seeing how different the pads make a difference as well as how much different the Purpleheart is than the Blackwood.

 

Yeah that was directed at you Gixxer. Oh I thought I read you were looking into getting one awhile back, guess my memory lied to me. Yeah that close-out price is REALLY hard to pass up but i'd rather just have one headphone instead of a couple, but we'll see. Still trying to sell my PM3s so I might be able to swallow the difference if I end up buying the Blackwoods first.

 

Sorry, this thread didn't show up in my watched notifications. Just saw these replies

@keanex I have the Purplehearts and got both the old Lambskins and Alpha pads. I preferred the more extended bass response of the Alphas on my head. I later got the new Lambskins and Cowhides. Didn't notice much difference between old/new Lamb and I couldn't get a good seal with the Cows. But strangely, the Cows seal fine on the T50RP Mk3s I got later.

@MLegend I almost bought another pair of Blackwoods at that sale price you mentioned so I could have one at work and one at home, but I fought off the urge. Waiting to find out more about the TH-X00s and listen to the HD6x0s some more before I make a decision.

 

Do you have the newer blackwood with the rotating slider assembly on the cups?

 

I currently own HD650's, Blackwoods, and TH-X00's and am trying to go back and forth to figure out the differences in sound and +/- of each. Obviously the closer comparison is between the Fostex and ZMF, but I also often hear both of these compared to the HD650.

It still early in my comparison, but I am leaning toward liking the blackwoods best overall. Certainly the heaviest heaviest and I even think they are the loosest on the low end. But the ZMF's have more sub-bass, brighter top end, and as kleanex mentioned fantastic punchy mids (best Ive heard). I feel as if the other headphones are just a bit more laid back and relaxed (dynamic drivers possibly?). I also feel like they have very good sound stage for closed. I will continue to evaluate, but I am finding myself preferring different headphones for different types of music, or even when I am in different moods.

Running through a multifrost and lyr2 - plenty of power to drive the orthos.

 

I know this is a blackwood thread, but what the hell lets derail.

I'm certainly not an expert tube roller, but I think finding a good match can help alleviate that problem with the Lyr 2. I certainly felt the stock tubes had a warm gooey sound an lacked detail.

As to your comment on other amps, I had a crack w/o speedball that was my fav combo. Loved it. Loved it so much that I thought that I would wet my pants when I installed the SB upgrade. And then a pop and smoke. Its currently getting the professional help it needs. The Lyr 2 was a hold over, but I've since acquired the Blackwoods and TH-X00's which wouldn't be ideal on a OTL amp. I expect to move the proverbial furniture around once the Crack has worked out all of its issues.

PS - getting back to the blackwoods. Anyone else find them a bit fatiguing? Coming from the super light HD650's - looks like I need to up my reps on the neck curls. Might be my only complaint that isn't a nag.

 

What headband are you using? Pilot or leather strap? They were pretty comfortable for me with the leather strap.

 

I am fairly certain I am using the pilot pad. I will have to check out the leather strap.

 

I have the older version with very little range of motion at the slider attachment. I mention this above.

 

Ah I see, I wonder if the Cowhides would have fit and seal better with the newer attachment

 

I would love to be in your situation and have all three of these to compare and am very interested in what you have to say about them. I really like the bass characteristics and smooth mids/highs of the Blackwood, but am also interested in the HD650s for a more open and clear sound (as well as their low weight). I heard the 650s at a store last week and the mid-bass was a bit emphasized for my tastes, but the roll off wasn't as bad as I expected. Will have to bring my ZMFs for a comparison next time.

All the talk of the X00s also has me interested, but I did a little measurement extrapolation yesterday which suggested to me that they might have even more boosted sub-bass than the Blackwoods.So I find it interesting that you say the Blackwoods are "loosest on the low end" and "have more sub-bass", as I find them to have very tight bass with good punch and controlled decay.
http://www.superbestaudiofriends.or...-subjective-impressions.623/page-6#post-22139

The weight of the Blackwoods can be a bit fatiguing, but ...

I also find the excellent seal I get with the the Alpha Pads (and Lambskins) results in bass fatigue after a while.

Yes, I think they might. I get a good seal with them on the T50RP Mk3s, which have a much greater range of motion. But it's still strange as the shape of the pads should be pretty much the same, just the material being different.

 

Well Zach told me the Cowhides are a thicker and firmer material, so they are probably less compliant. I.e. they probably don't conform as easily to the shape of someone's head to compensate for the smaller range of motion.

 

You are likely correct on the blackwood vs the x00 low end measurement reading. Learning to read these and make useful comparisons is something I am trying to work on.

But, I hear what I hear and I think it's due to the earpads and how well they seal. I feel the blackwood cowhide pads form a better seal around my big dumb head. I also find the fostex to have less clamping pressure and sit a bit looser on my head, resulting in an airy feel. I will look into adjusting the fit or possibly swapping out pads as a solution and Im certain the sound will change