[OnlySoMany]

Custom shop possibilities. It’s an interesting idea. In a way every headphone is already a one off because of the uniqueness of wood grain. Some materials might require more of a learning curve than would be reasonable unless it was a fun project. (In general when working with titanium, if you can find something else that works, use it instead.)
I was wondering how inlays might affect the acoustics of cups. There is already a CNC process so it could be as simple as bow ties to stabilize cracks or decorative. Some kintsugi (gold repair) cups to salvage and elevate cups that break in process might be incredible too. But that is also a new skill set. Lots of ideas. Collaborations with other makers and artists to put their spin on a ZMF cup might be neat too. Enameled miniature paintings on cups or, stained glass, or just custom artwork grills. Maybe after Zach finishes Bokeh Open he’ll have some spare time to make some new magic happen. We’ll just have to wait and find out.

He is quite the wizard, just when you think he's done it all another thing comes rolling down the line threatening our wallets

 

[idairyou]

The only reason I was suggesting that is due to the possible extremely limited availability of this type of set, and rarity of materials. Almost as a way of saying thank you to their returning customers. Not to lock people out just for the purposes of doing so.

I could not get behind this kind of gatekeeping either. I own 5 pair of ZMFs, and if something like this happened when I only owned 1 pair of ZMFs, I would still only own 1 pair of ZMFs out of principle. If you have the funds to buy something ultra rare and expensive you should be allowed to buy it. The price alone is enough of a gatekeeping tool.

My opinion Zach does not need to make any kind of 'thank you' product to his customers. He says thank you by selling his products below what other sells their equivalent quality products for and because of that every ZMF punches above its price point.

Zach says thank you to us by running a small/medium size business with integrity, crafting beautiful looking and beautiful sounding products with a lot of passion, and last but not least he engages with his customers that goes above and beyond.

 

[OnlySoMany]

I could not get behind this kind of gatekeeping either. I own 5 pair of ZMFs, and if something like this happened when I only owned 1 pair of ZMFs, I would still only own 1 pair of ZMFs out of principle. If you have the funds to buy something ultra rare and expensive you should be allowed to buy it. The price alone is enough of a gatekeeping tool.

My opinion Zach does not need to make any kind of 'thank you' product to his customers. He says thank you by selling his products below what other sells their equivalent quality products for and because of that every ZMF punches above its price point.

Zach says thank you to us by running a small/medium size business with integrity, crafting beautiful looking and beautiful sounding products with a lot of passion, and last but not least he engages with his customers that goes above and beyond.

I disagree. I think you can control it best if you give first rights to their best customers vs whoever has the most money outright at that moment. Otherwise it just becomes a wallet waving fest.

And this doesn't mean you wouldn't buy more sets, or that they wouldn't make more beautiful sets. Let's say that you owned 5 sets. And someone else owned 10. Would you really be that salty if they gave first dibs to the other person, who had contributed more to ZMF than you had? That mad over one set going to someone else?

Another point would be no one would even know what they were "missing out" on.

If someone had a lot of sets, and they went to them first, then I would have no right to say anything about it. As they contributed more to their success and business than I had. And they could also refuse them with a right of refusal and they would be offered to the next person.

But we can agree to disagree. I can see your point and appreciate your well thought out reply! I think there is space for both models to coexist without affecting anyone negatively.

My post was not to say "they should do it exactly like this" it was more to say here is an example of an idea I was thinking about. As I said, I have no affiliation with ZMF, and no skin in the game. It was just an idea to take a very small number of sets to another level of customization and value.

 

[AnyDave]

So I had a thought tonight and I'd love to get others opinions on this as well.

I was wondering if there would be any interest in a "ZMF Signature Series". The basic idea would be:

1. Extremely rare and valuable woods. Usually with only a few being available instead of hundreds. Like less than 3-5 for each wood type.
2. Resin or stabilized possibilities?
3. Packed with all extra bells and whistles such as all suede, bb straps, bundled with matching resin or stabilized saliere stands, etc. Raw or polished Titanium/magnesium chassis, etc. Rare leather combinations, exotic materials (alligator /ostrich) or textured leathers. (I have no idea, just thinking out loud.)
4. Signed by all involved zmf craftsman on inside pad mount surface.
5. Reserved for zmf owners who already have more than one or two sets. Kind of like how high end Ferrari cars work, where they reach out to you when they are releasing a limited production run. Or a right of refusal agreement with their customers?
6. Updated pricing on any of these to make it worth ZMF's time to do all this.
7. Also, maybe a personalized laser cut grille design for open models? Probably a bit of a reach but it never hurts to ask!

Any thoughts on this anyone? Also, what would make it cooler?

I am in no way affiliated with ZMF headphones, it was just an idea I had to create some truly wild sets that added an extra layer of ownership to the experience.

If it's a dumb idea, let me know that too. I can take it.

This kind of reminds me of the PRS Private Stock guitars. I think the most challenging thing would be sourcing exotic chassis materials in extremely low quantities That's a recipe for really high raw material costs. I'm not saying it's impossible, but that's my first thought when looking at this.

That said, there are many things here I think are pretty cool.

 

[chrisnyc75]

So I had a thought tonight and I'd love to get others opinions on this as well.

I was wondering if there would be any interest in a "ZMF Signature Series". The basic idea would be:

1. Extremely rare and valuable woods. Usually with only a few being available instead of hundreds. Like less than 3-5 for each wood type.
2. Resin or stabilized possibilities?
3. Packed with all extra bells and whistles such as all suede, bb straps, bundled with matching resin or stabilized saliere stands, etc. Raw or polished Titanium/magnesium chassis, etc. Rare leather combinations, exotic materials (alligator /ostrich) or textured leathers. (I have no idea, just thinking out loud.)
4. Signed by all involved zmf craftsman on inside pad mount surface.
5. Reserved for zmf owners who already have more than one or two sets. Kind of like how high end Ferrari cars work, where they reach out to you when they are releasing a limited production run. Or a right of refusal agreement with their customers?
6. Updated pricing on any of these to make it worth ZMF's time to do all this.
7. Also, maybe a personalized laser cut grille design for open models? Probably a bit of a reach but it never hurts to ask!

Any thoughts on this anyone? Also, what would make it cooler?

I am in no way affiliated with ZMF headphones, it was just an idea I had to create some truly wild sets that added an extra layer of ownership to the experience.

If it's a dumb idea, let me know that too. I can take it.

So, 1) I think this is a really cool idea, but also 2) I think this is sort of what the limited edition program already is. I can tell you from personal experience if you just wait and watch, sooner or later your dream ZMF will become a Ltd Ed release. And that is just SOOOOOOOOO satisfying.

 

[ckhirnigs113]

I think the upcoming custom shop Zach has mentioned will serve this purpose nicely. Of course it would be cool if there were super rare/exotic material choices when ordering a custom ZMF. Anyone would be welcome to spend as much as they wanted on a one-off headphone.

I’m not a fan at all of the idea of Zach and the ZMF team choosing their “best” customers based on the number of their previous purchases, and then giving them access to exclusive stuff. That sounds like a good way to alienate a lot of folks. It’s just not a good business practice unless the end goal is to simply make as much money as possible from your most affluent customers. To me at least, that doesn’t sound like ZMF at all.

 

[cinnamonmilk]

Has anyone had their Stabilized Atrium Opens ship yet? Just curious, since it seems that the ZMF team is going through these by headphone model.

My Atrium Closed from this stabilized set just shipped, and I'm really excited to give them a listen - Especially since I just started playing around with tubes.

 

[rgs9200m]

Has anyone had their Stabilized Atrium Opens ship yet? Just curious, since it seems that the ZMF team is going through these by headphone model.

My Atrium Closed from this stabilized set just shipped, and I'm really excited to give them a listen - Especially since I just started playing around with tubes.

In the past when you ordered a new headphone to-be-built, ZMF would send updates on the progress of your headphone building process so you could have some idea of how far along things were going. The status update would include which stage was completed. Have you heard anything so far? (I'm not sure if this still happens.)

 

[cinnamonmilk]

In the past when you ordered a new headphone to-be-built, ZMF would send updates on the progress of your headphone building process so you could have some idea of how far along things were going. The status update would include which stage was completed. Have you heard anything so far? (I'm not sure if this still happens.)

In my experience, the stabilized sets don't receive any updates since it's only the QA process left in between purchase and shipping.

 

[rgs9200m]

In my experience, the stabilized sets don't receive any updates since it's only the QA process left in between purchase and shipping.

OK, I didn't know that since I have never ordered a stabilized one. I wonder if anyone has heard any feedback on the Caldera Closed sets.

 

[idairyou]

OK, I didn't know that since I have never ordered a stabilized one. I wonder if anyone has heard any feedback on the Caldera Closed sets.

I know they had some of the burnt ash models ready to ship day one. In the Caldera closed thread one person posted they got their burnt ash already.

I ordered the LTD Shedua, within 45min of the sale page going live, and I don't expect an update email for at least another week to let me know what stage the order is in.

 

[ng5921]

@AnyDave @zach915m

Will the ZMF Aegis ship with/in a Seahorse case?

 

[mattiastomas]

Will the ZMF Aegis ship with/in a Seahorse case?

No. Zach mentioned in the Aegis thread that it does not.

https://www.head-fi.org/threads/zmf-aegis-official-thread.972476/post-18102559

You can see a sample packing here

https://www.head-fi.org/threads/zmf-aegis-official-thread.972476/post-18102784

 

[ng5921]

No. Zach mentioned in the Aegis thread that it does not.

https://www.head-fi.org/threads/zmf-aegis-official-thread.972476/post-18102559

You can see a sample packing here

https://www.head-fi.org/threads/zmf-aegis-official-thread.972476/post-18102784

Ah thank you. I should have used the search function, apologies

 

[chrisnyc75]

In the past when you ordered a new headphone to-be-built, ZMF would send updates on the progress of your headphone building process so you could have some idea of how far along things were going. The status update would include which stage was completed. Have you heard anything so far? (I'm not sure if this still happens.)

That was a thing a few years ago before ZMF blew up into the behemoth that it is today. I don't think Zack & co could support that level of personal service with the volume of sales they have now. Today, you get an estimated delivery time and you just have to wait. And by "wait" I mean post here every day about how excited you are about your soon-to-arrive new toy.