Exactly! This was my issue with the original Magni 3. The sound was congested with a hardness to the upper frequencies. It was unbearable.

Purchased my HD650 off Amazon in 2013. Until 2 months ago it was largely relegated to a desk drawer. I was never satisfied with it's presentation of music. But I recently gave it another try and it to my surprise it sounds incredibly fluid and organic. The only thing that changed was my...

You shouldn't make such assumptions. The Z7MK2 is still listed on the Sony USA website and Sony's main Japanese website. The UK website is also missing recent products such as the MDR-MV1 open back headphone. It's doubtful Sony would discontinue a product without there being any news on a...

What are you yammering on about?

My last two pictorial posts are intended to demonstrate the respect that the Sennheiser HD600 headphones commanded among engineers, composers and conductors within the rarefied domain of classical music. There may be more expensive, if not better, headphones on the market today but the HD6x0...

Photo: composer Arvo Pärt and conductor Kristjan Järvi on the set of a Sony project to record the composer's orchestral music. Both wearing the HD600. Photo from 2010.

First Photo: the late American composer George Crumb (1929-2022) reviews a score during a recording session at Swarthmore College in Pennsylvania while wearing a pair of HD600. Second Photo: Crumb wears a pair of HD600 during a recording production with Bridge Records.

What you need to do is search Sony Encompass for the part numbers. Each ear pad, left and right, have a unique part number. In recent years Sony discontinued the original ear cushion parts and reissued new part numbers. Sony Encompass will have the new numbers. Then you have to do some more...

That's money down the drain. Discreet opamps are the ultimate snake oil.

Some of my best listening experiences have come while laying down. While the music plays my mind can drift off into a space somewhere in-between full consciousness and sleep. Distractions are minimal and the music is the focal point. Occasionally, it can be transcendental.

The OEM batteries were not that great. I had two of them and they had to be retired even sooner than the aftermarket batteries.

The speaker analogy is on point. The original Z7 had two strategically placed ports on along the sides of the earcups. Reminds me of a typical speaker's design.

I always avoid the official app and use Bubble or UAPP as the frontend.

I rather discover new music on my own rather than leave it up to an algorithm that has the pitfalls of circular logic and relies and solidifies group-think.

I still marvel at how beautiful music sounds out of this phone when paired with a pair of Sony Z7 headphones. The Sony high end headphones are synergistic match for the V20.

A pair of HD800 headphones and other Sennheiser equipment being utilized in the studio by audio engineer Morten Lindberg of 2L (Lindberg Lyd), a Norweigen based audiophile music label. Seated to the left is composer Maja S.K. Ratkje who is wearing a pair of HD700...

This is a great time to order genuine OEM replacement ear cushions for the Z7 from Japan. The Japanese Yen has been in free fall for several months and now trades at levels not seen in nearly 20 years. I was able to order a pair for about $60 including shipping through ZenMarket. The price for...

Has anyone found a suitable replacement battery pack for the NX4? I'm also curious what connector type is shown in @sinquito's photo. It looks like a standard 2 pin JST connector. But they come in various sizes as the following image illustrates:

Been 5 years since I purchased my Z7. The cushion material in the headband has undergone some compression. The headphone still feels comfortable atop my head. I wonder how long the headband can reasonably last. One thing I notice is that the solid portions of the headband which are right and...

Does anyone know what Japanese website (s) sell replacement parts for the Z7 such as the headband?

I wonder how Tidal can afford to offer their lossless service for $1 for 90 Days through Bestbuy. Nowadays, the promotion runs every other month. I mainly use Qobuz but keep rolling these $1 Tidal subscriptions, one after another, to fill in catalog gaps.

Has anyone here found an alternative to the A5? I've given up on the search. When Topping released the NX7 last year it looked promising but an Amazon customer left a devasting critique of the device. These days my mobile listening is mainly through some Sony Bluetooth headphones with LDAC...

Yes, it was the e-Onkyo acquisition news. I'm hoping that this could help improve global access to music from Japanese labels. Many of them don't distribute or stream internationally.

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I think I read somewhere recently that Qobuz is planning to sell or stream DSD files (DSF/DFF).