Sony has new headphones, MDR-1R - Page 97

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tyll Hertsens 

 

Work is ongoing for the InnerFidelity graph tool. 

Nice!

The right side creaks whenever I put it on or move and I just bought these yesterday. :(

Quote:

Originally Posted by McNuggetsPie 

The right side creaks whenever I put it on or move and I just bought these yesterday. :(

my pair doesn't... maybe you can have yours replaced?

Plastic on plastic creaks. Find the spot and put a small drop of silicone lubricant. Problem solved.

I was finally able to satisfy my curiosity to hear the MDR-1R by making a special trip to the Sony store in downtown Philly this morning.  These are general impressions from less than an hour of listening, so please take with the obligatory "grain of salt". Parking was $16, but that is cheaper than return shipping.  Comparing to M-100 and what I remember from my time with the M4U2, the forward mids of the 1R jumped out right away.  While I thought detail was good, I was thinking while listening that, if vocals are this much out front, they need  even MORE detail to take advantage of their presence.  I don't listen with lossless or FLAC files.  I use Apple Plus (256K), so perhaps lossless files would provide more detail, but I prefer the signature of my M-100 for most music and am even willing to acknowledge that is may be due to laid-back mids on M-100 being more forgiving.  Highs extend further with the 1R, but I still find the M-100 smoother and more enjoyable with more prominent bass that I prefer.  Bass presence is there with 1R, but coming from M-100, I was missing it with some tracks.  I would equate the difference in midrange presence between M-100 and 1R to equal the difference in bass between 1R and M-100. 

I also feel the 1R has as much extension in the high end compared to the M4U2, but the M4U2 provides a smoother, more natural presentation overall than the 1R.  However, I consider the highs of the 1R superior to both Momentum and Amperior which I found to be somewhat harsh.  1R is also more detailed than Amperior; comparable to Momentum. 

All five of these have a strong bass presence to varying degrees.

For what it's worth, here is my attempt at objectivity, ranking for overall listening enjoyment IMO with all genres:

1. M4U2

2. M-100

3. MDR-1R

4. Momentum

5. Amperior

Here is my ranking based on personal taste:

1. M-100

2. M4U2

3. MDR-1R

4. Amperior

5. Momentum

While I have no reason to buy my third choice, I feel MDR-1R is a worthy entry in this category and a solid performer, especially if you are a midhead looking for something closed and portable.   They also take the #1 spot for comfort as they are spacious and light with a gentle clamping force, yet they don't fly off if I shake my head.
 

EDIT:  While at the Sony store, I also A/B'd the XB500 (which is on clearance for $50) and the MDR-V6.  As impressive as the bass was on the XB500, there is NO WAY I could enjoy listening to music through them.  The veiled highs are a dealbreaker and I wouldn't even pay $50 for them.  On the other hand, I was impressed with the MDR-V6 for the price.  While it didn't match my preferred sound signature as I am sensitive to bright highs, the highs extend MUCH further than the MDR-1R with good detail and no significant sibilance.  Of course, mids are more forward, but with respectable detail. They are much weaker on the low end compared to the MDR-1R, so if you tried the MDR-1R and thought the highs didn't extend far enough and you are not a basshead, save $200 and check out the MDR-V6.

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Originally Posted by Craigster75 

I I don't listen with lossless or FLAC files.  I use Apple Plus (256K), so perhaps lossless files would provide more detail

Very nice impressions. They are laid back and not everyone after that signature.

The one thing I want to point out is that they scale tremendously with the good source. I have office setup Stello DA100->Gilmore Lite and Chord DAC64->GS-1 at home and there is quite a big difference in what I hear in one setup versus another. The more resolving the source the better they sound.

Sometimes I do wish though that bass had better control and more texture like on K271S, but afraid you can't have your cake and eat it as that would require losing some bass volume. Taping bass ports makes them sound thinner, not sure that I like that but it does make everything tighter, haven't tried foam yet.

Thanks for the input on 1R Craigster! After seeing the FR graph on innerfidelity I kinda lost interest seeing how they are quite rolled-off in the subbass area and it's peaked around 100Hz which is a bit too high for what I'm looking for.

I guess it's down to M4U 1 or M100 for me, I have trouble finding M4U 1 so far in europe, seems only a few places carry them so far.

Oh well I'm gonna stick to Q40 as long as I still keep enjoying them as much as I do. If I switch headphone I also have to spend some time get used to the sound signature of the headphone before being able to master hardstyle tracks nicely again (need to listen to a lot of retail tracks so I get a sense of how it should sound like on that particular headphone)

Just in case anyone was searching for a nice hard-shell case, the small Hippocase from Jaben (barely) fits the MDR-1R.

Quote:

Originally Posted by RPGWiZaRD 

Thanks for the input on 1R Craigster! After seeing the FR graph on innerfidelity I kinda lost interest seeing how they are quite rolled-off in the subbass area and it's peaked around 100Hz which is a bit too high for what I'm looking for.

 

I guess by page 97 FR graph preferences are getting changed. Kidding, kidding.

http://www.head-fi.org/t/625015/sony-has-new-headphones-mdr-1r/90#post_8667620

Quote:

Originally Posted by RPGWiZaRD 

Thanks for the input on 1R Craigster! After seeing the FR graph on innerfidelity I kinda lost interest seeing how they are quite rolled-off in the subbass area and it's peaked around 100Hz which is a bit too high for what I'm looking for.

 

I guess it's down to M4U 1 or M100 for me, I have trouble finding M4U 1 so far in europe, seems only a few places carry them so far.

 

Oh well I'm gonna stick to Q40 as long as I still keep enjoying them as much as I do. If I switch headphone I also have to spend some time get used to the sound signature of the headphone before being able to master hardstyle tracks nicely again (need to listen to a lot of retail tracks so I get a sense of how it should sound like on that particular headphone)

Yes, the MDR-1R are not basshead worthy, but are certainly not bass-light.  The M4U1 (based on my experience with the M4U2 unamped + E11 on bass boost #2) is basshead worthy with EQ as they can produce a powerful mid-bass punch.

Amps do not only provide the power to make the drivers work but also alter the sound while doing so. So most headphones will have their sound affected by amping, better or worse.

Quote:

Originally Posted by DeStRuCtEd 

Just in case anyone was searching for a nice hard-shell case, the small Hippocase from Jaben (barely) fits the MDR-1R.

 

Nice nice! does it have inner pockets for the cables?

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Originally Posted by d marc0 

Nice nice! does it have inner pockets for the cables?

It does have a velcro zippered pouch that would fit the stock cable.