[yellowbirdfly]

I'll just translate what I understand from this Chinese website on the impressions of A2000Z:

[COLOR=333333]Soundstage of the A2000Z is wide, vertical soundstage is narrow, vocals placement is near, beside the ears.[/COLOR]
[COLOR=333333]Soundstage is "traditional" and does not perform well in conveying the naturalness and intricacy of larger ensembles, however f[/COLOR][COLOR=333333]or a flagship product, instrument placement and separation isn't an issue.[/COLOR]To date, the analytical capabilities of the A2000Z is the best Audio Technica has ever achieved. It has very high quality thus I speculate it is the result of the newer production units. 

[COLOR=333333]The [/COLOR][COLOR=333333]A2000Z is not as warm as the W3000 & A900XLTD but colder, with clarity outshining its performance. It does not have the piercing highs and messier details of the A2000X. [/COLOR][COLOR=333333]Very good treble extension, smooth and transparent, without sibilance. Compared to the[/COLOR] [COLOR=333333]W1000Z[/COLOR][COLOR=333333], the highs are more extended and concentrated. [/COLOR][COLOR=333333]IMO it performs best in midrange. Simply put, it has thickness and concentration. Vocals on the A2000Z is bright and highly concentrated, not flavorful like the AD2000X but has qualities more similar to AD1000. [/COLOR][COLOR=333333]Bass quantity is light, non intrusive, deep and tight. It can be said that its ba[/COLOR][COLOR=333333]ss quantity sounds balanced out like its predecessor.[/COLOR]
 
[COLOR=333333]Overall it performs excellently on Japanese female vocals and smaller ensembles. [/COLOR][COLOR=333333]The A2000z is a classic piece of Japanese headphone, smooth and elegant, not energetic like the Sennheisers, colored like the Beyerdynamics. [/COLOR]

Thanks for the translation! Matches with my impressions of the A2000Z that I heard at Canjam.

 

[yellowbirdfly]

Having heard the A900Z, A1000Z and A2000Z at Canjam, the A1000Z is the one that stood out the most for me. It sounds absolutely killer paired with the AT-HA22TUBE amp. Extremely tight and textured bass, intimate, clear and engrossing mids and sparkly but smooth treble. Spacious and airy for a closed headphone. Very balanced and musical with excellent clarity across the board. Probably one of the best sound I've ever heard from a closed AT headphone, even rivalling their open backed ones. Will be looking to acquire this (and the amp) soon.

 

[James Shoegazer]

Having heard the A900Z, A1000Z and A2000Z at Canjam, the A1000Z is the one that stood out the most for me. It sounds absolutely killer paired with the AT-HA22TUBE amp. Extremely tight and textured bass, intimate, clear and engrossing mids and sparkly but smooth treble. Spacious and airy for a closed headphone. Very balanced and musical with excellent clarity across the board. Probably one of the best sound I've ever heard from a closed AT headphone, even rivalling their open backed ones. Will be looking to acquire this (and the amp) soon.

So how did the A1000Z differentiate between the a900z and a2000z?
Regretted not turning up for CanJam  How was it like ? 

 

[yellowbirdfly]

  So how did the A1000Z differentiate between the a900z and a2000z?
Regretted not turning up for CanJam  How was it like ? 

The A900Z was a clear tier lower than both - Bass was muddled, mids recessed. Didn't give it much time before I put it down.
 
The A1000Z and A2000Z were very close in terms of sound quality. With my FiiO X7, the differences are slight, the A2000Z being more laid back, wider and overall more refined. However, the A1000Z clearly pulls ahead when paired with AT-HA22TUBE. There is surely some magic going on with this combo. While the A2000Z also sounded quite good on the amp, it just doesn't have the synergy the A1000Z has with the amp.
 
The Canjam was certainly fun, there were many people and lots of things you can try. Having so many people with the same hobby and passion in one place was an amazing experience! 

 

 

[silver8ack]

It's A990Z, not A900Z, right?  At least on the audio-technica site, that's how it is.
 
Anyway....I emailed ATUSA to see when they the A990Z would be available stateside.  They said the first shipment is going through quality control now and *could* ship by week's end.
 
Edit: Now I'm confused.  Are they using different model numbers in different regions now?  Is the A990Z the same as the JP A900Z??!

 

[doco]

so do you guys think we could see another refresh of the AD open air series this year just like from the previous trends?

 

[yellowbirdfly]

It's A990Z, not A900Z, right?  At least on the audio-technica site, that's how it is.

Anyway....I emailed ATUSA to see when they the A990Z would be available stateside.  They said the first shipment is going through quality control now and *could* ship by week's end.

Edit: Now I'm confused.  Are they using different model numbers in different regions now?  Is the A990Z the same as the JP A900Z??!

AFAIK, it's known as A900Z in Japan and A990Z anywhere else. They should be the same exact headphone.

 

[yellowbirdfly]

so do you guys think we could see another refresh of the AD open air series this year just like from the previous trends?

Unlikely, traditionally there is several years gap between the release of a new A-series and a new AD-series, and the new A-series was only just released. But who knows, they may surprise us this year...

 

[silver8ack]

AFAIK, it's known as A900Z in Japan and A990Z anywhere else. They should be the same exact headphone.

Ok cool, thanks.

Anyone have any comparisons of the A900X vs A990Z?

 

[silver8ack]

Oohhh Amazon has the A900X as 'discontinued by manufacturer'. Must be getting close.

 

[silver8ack]

I can't believe they don't adopt the ability for the ear cups to tilt on the 1000/2000. I was prepared to get the 1000 when available but I don't think I will with that cup design. I have to use some hair bands on my ad900x and I'd rather not have to deal with seal issues on a closed can. I have a fairly small head. This pisses me off.

 

[RUGAL76]

still no review on the 990z? I wonder if its worth off the 100$ extra face to the a900x before buying it.

 

[balaste]

Has someone compared the A900Z with the classic one ? 
 
I have the first one which I find very comfy !

 

[silver8ack]

It's looks like the A990Z has an msrp of what the a900x is going for street price. I'm not sure I understand that but the msrp is $80 less for the new model. I hope that doesn't mean it's inferrior in some way. Maybe AT is just passing on the production line savings to us.

But dang I really wish there was more info like when the freak these will be available.

 

[RUGAL76]

The a990z is available since february in france, but only one online retailler and perhaps in audio technica shop in paris (too lazy for the trip) and no word about it, i wish to buy it since the day one but the fear to learn he is just equal to the a900x or not worth of the 100€ supp hold me back.

But i don't think it s a lesser tier than the a900x based on id msrp, is japanese launch price was around that same for the a900z. The a900x can be found by japan import around 150€/160$ when a local retailler sell it between 340-400(europe).

I read a little review on reddit of the a900z but the reviewer never got the a900x to compare but it make me notice one thing, the frequencies of the a900z up to 40kHz where the a990z up to 42kHz can it make a real différence between the two ?