INTERVIEW: ZACH & BEVIN MEHRBACH OF ZMF AUDIO

My research brought me to the website of ZMF headphones and their unique and quite gorgeous headphones that are handmade and constructed of different types of premium, kiln-dried hardwoods, various stains, and metals. The ZMF headphones are also tunable via different types of earpads of which there are a number of options. The top headphone in the ZMF line is the Limited Edition Véríté African Blackwood. The entry level ZMF is the Atticus.

ZMF was founded and is run by Zach and Bevin Merhbach. Who are Zach and Bevin? I’ll let them tell you in their own words.

“Zach is the founder, President and designer of ZMFheadphones. Zach's love for individually crafted items started with a love for vintage and modern hand-built acoustic guitars, and he translated many of those ideas over to our headphones.”

Bevin is the saintly partner of Zach, Co-Owner of ZMF and longstanding HR/PR/QC representative who maintains order, in the face of ever menacing entropy.

After reviewing the ZMF Atticus and learning more about this ‘Mom & Pop’ manufacturer of high-end headphones based in the US, I wanted to interview them. Despite their incredibly busy schedules, Zach and Bevin happily agreed to the review.

INTERVIEW

Zach, Bevin, as I mentioned this will be more of a personal interview of the both of you as opposed to a technical interview. The purpose, of course, to get to know the two of you and how ZMF came to you.

The questions

Kermit: Well, first I’d like to set the tone in that I’d like this to be a review about the two of you and not about the tech and manufacturing, but the personal. As I believe the personal drives everything else and especially so in a business. Zach, Bevin were are you both from?

Bevin Mehrbach: I’m from Connecticut.

Zach Mehrbach: I’m from New Hampshire.

Kermit: Was their music in your homes? Record Player? CD player? If not how do you think that affected you?

Zach: My father and I bonded over 60’s Blues, Rock—Jimi Hendrix, John Mayall—Buddy Guy and Muddy Waters when I was a very young. And my fascination with music and guitar took off from there. My father is a dedicated artist/painter who spends countless hours in his art studio. He has a sizable CD catalogue which he plays as he paints. My father had a pair of Sony 7506s that were a prized possession. And he always took such great care of his gear. I was also trying to get as much time listening with his headphones that I could. My mother is a dancer who trained at the Tisch School of the Arts at NYU. Music was also an integral part of her craft and it was clear, early on, that she enjoyed it and that it inspired her very much. The exposure to the music led me to take guitar lessons when I was 12.

Bevin: My father is a professional musician who spent 9 years touring with Arlo Guthrie. He was a pit musician in many Broadway Musicals, and has performed on stages from Carnegie Hall to The Grand Old Opry. My mother had a children’s band that released many records. She spent the weekends playing gigs all through my upbringing. I grew up in a very musical household which had a room dedicated to music called “the music room.” It housed a piano, a pedal steel guitar, a heap of guitars and recording equipment.

Kermit: It seems that you both lived in very rich musical and creative environments. Beautiful. How did music affect your early life? Was there a family member or another person, who inspired your love for music, performing?

Zach: I grew up without mainstream TV until I was in his teens. I spent the majority of my ‘formative years’ listening to radio and music. My father had a very large collection of CDs, which in many ways had become my own, at least for listening. I also lived close to Dartmouth College (New Hampshire) where I would attend concerts at the Hopkins Center for the Arts or “The Hop” as it was called. There I listened to an incredibly diverse range of music/genres from delta blues to non-pop music, etc.

Kermit: I’m where you were then, completely without TV. What were your very first systems then? How did you listen, in terms of Digital or Analog? How did it make you feel?

Bevin: My first ‘system’ was a Sony Walkman that played cassette tapes. After that I graduated to a Sony discman for CDs.

Zach: My first system was an old receiver with a headphone output that my father gave me. It was from the 70’s and as it was new, I'd have to ask my dad every time I wanted to use it. The first “proper” hifi system I had was the OG Schiit Mjolnir and a LYR 1 from Schiit that I got after I'd been modding the t50’s for a while. I also used IEMs a lot in grad school, like the Westone UM2 and Heir audio IEMs when the Wizard was at the helm.

Kermit: What musicians did you admire then, enjoy, love when you were younger? Why?

Bevin: I was very immersed in 90’s hip hop. I was enthralled with the work of the Fugees and followed the solo careers of each of the members. Other artists that I liked were Tupac, Notorious BIG, Puff Daddy and Ma$e, Dr. Dre & Snoop, Jay-Z and the Rockafella ensemble, Nas, The Ruff Ryder establishment with DMX, and Eve, etc.

Zach: Kenny Wayne Shepherd, Tim O’Brien, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Bryan Sutton – they just emoted through their playing and were also technically capable.

Kermit: That first Fugee album was incredible. It’s one of my favorites too. What was the most memorable epiphany that’s come from listening to music or turning a good friend or a significant other on to music? Or playing music for people?

Bevin: “Music is not heard, it’s felt.” I don’t know who said it, but when you feel the music, you have approached the true magic of what music is.

Zach: For me always having fun playing old time music with people and then listening and understanding how different instruments blend together is a true joy.

Kermit: I agree, music for me is also very much felt. Zach, I imagine that knowledge gained from playing music and then consciously listening to its various relationships has been very helpful with the tuning of your headphones. Tell me, what catalyzing event put you on the road to high-end audio?

Zach: I was in grad school at the time and I had to do a tremendous amount of writing, so I looked for something to balance, to keep my mind relaxed, free, and yet still contemplative.

Bevin: I had used sub-par but accessible personal audio equipment for quite a bit of time. When I heard what Zach’s gear was able to produce, I realized how amazing the experience was and wanted to support this endeavor.

Kermit: How did ZMF begin and what were your initial motivations?

Zach: I began ZMF modifying T50 RP headphones and learning the ins and outs of acoustic design. Once I had a real mastery of the design of the T50RP headphone, I began work on creating his own proprietary headphone design from the ground up. I also had a strong interest in acoustic instruments, notably, acoustic guitars. I studied their construction and decided that I wanted to use wood as a medium for my design of the headphone cups and the inner baffle assembly as well.

Kermit: Biggest mistake you ever made, personally and then with ZMF? And what did you learn from it?

Zach: We have learned a lot with ZMF. It began as an enthusiast side project and not a business, so there was lots to learn along the way. It has been a continued evolution of growing and reflecting. It is hard to say anything was an obvious mistake, as there was value in all of the learning curves. The most notable lesson has been that collaboration is such a valuable way of working and that challenges are often best solved with a few minds at work.

Bevin: I would also say that Zach and I do our best work when we compromise or collaborate on a solution to something. Handling a problem, a trouble, or worrying by oneself can be very isolating. Having a supportive team or partner to dialogue with is always a more successful and healthy way to address a challenge.

Kermit: Working together in a collaborative environment is certainly key and as you both, no doubt, work so close and live together, I imagine it mandatory. And true, there are no mistakes, really. What do you believe sets ZMF apart from the other high-end audio retailers/manufacturers?

Zach: ZMF is unique in that our headphones are all hand constructed and finished with real wood. We don’t use veneers, our baffles are wooden, and the entire process starts from blocks of lumber that we CNC. We have been obsessive in our tuning and R&D to try to achieve a presentation of music that sounds natural and live. We have a lot of experience both playing and being around live music and want to capture that lush and enthralling experience in our headphones.

Kermit: I have to say that your headphones are gorgeous, truly and the pictures, though good, still don’t do them justice. What is ZMF’s driving philosophy, its goals for the future?

Zach: Our goal has always been to put out headphones that we personally love. We use really high-quality materials: wood, metal, and leather and are always focused on getting better- reinvesting into our company and our headphones.

Kermit: Opening the case that the Atticus came in stimulated multiple senses. The sense of smell via the fragrant camphor wood that was intoxicating. The sense of sight via the exceptional woodworking and construction, which is of heirloom quality. And then the sound came later, after burn-in which motivated one of our highest awards. The music that the Atticus renders is incredible and rich and immersive. The love for what you both do truly comes out via your headphones and the music that they bring. Bravo. I’ll bring this part of the interview to a close with a question on ethos and philosophy. Tell me, what is ZMF’s overall ethos.

Zach: Our overall ethos is to think of any future ZMF owner as making something for ourselves or a family member. Make it quality. Try to make it something they will love and be excited by. In the shop we make headphones for people, not for the shelf of a store. I know we all feel a huge element of pride in hoping what we have made is giving someone a joyful experience and bringing them closer to their music.

Kermit: Okay. What is/are your current reference systems or your best high-end system of all time? Why?

Zach & Bevin: Current favorite amp of all time is also my newest, it’s a custom made amp by L0rdGwyn on head fi, and uses 45 tubes and 5687 tubes. It as a super deep and wide sound, with lush midrange and nice full impact. It works great with ZMFs. For solid state I have always loved the ECP Ravenswood amps and also the JDS Labs Element. The Pendant comes in at a close second to the custom 45 amp for tube amps.

Kermit: What are your five favorite albums and five movies of all time and why? Is art a part of your lives?

Zach: Ben Harper album: Fight for Your Mind. Second choice for a more current album—The Duhks—self titled album. Movies – have fond memories watching Donnie Darko and Clueless as a kid, and then Freaks and Geeks is my favorite TV show of all time. Favorite recent movie is probably Night Crawler or Drive, at least from the last 10 yrs.

Bevin: Joni Mitchell Album: Blue. Modest Mouse Album: The Moon and Antarctica. Pixies Album: Surfer Rosa. Fugees Album: The Score. Kanye West Album: The Life of Pablo. Movies: The Squid & The Whale, Garden State, Contact, Aladdin, I am Sam.