Crosszone CZ-1
Mar 9, 2017 at 5:35 PM Thread Starter Post #1 of 31

Piotr Ryka

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No one writes about them, whereas they are one of the best, maybe the best of all dynamic headphones. Greatly analog and incomparable rich sound from both channels in every ear.

I know that Polish is not popular, but I have no time to translate my own review. Maybe Google translator will be helpful, maybe someone buy them.

http://hifiphilosophy.com/recenzja-crosszone-cz-1/
 
May 12, 2017 at 10:55 AM Post #4 of 31
no need for a long write up, but if you can compare it to an audeze headphone it would be great, in terms of sound stage bass mids and highs, like few words on each segment
and can the KANN drive the crosszone in your opinion
 
May 15, 2017 at 6:04 AM Post #5 of 31
no need for a long write up, but if you can compare it to an audeze headphone it would be great, in terms of sound stage bass mids and highs, like few words on each segment
and can the KANN drive the crosszone in your opinion

Comparison? Very difficult thing, because Crosszone sound is deeply different than in any other headphone. More dens, with more sources and stereophony. You need some very detail and keen source, like AK380 (with AMP module preferably) or Audio Research CD-9, some dCS etc; and good, strong headphone amplifier. When this, you have the most loudspeakers-like and analog sound possible with headphones, but – notice – not such "direct" like with AKG K1000, Stax SR-009, Ultrasone Jubilee, Fostex TH900 and others pure-sound headphones.
 
Sep 19, 2017 at 5:36 AM Post #6 of 31
Hey guys, I had the rare opportunity to try out the Crosszone CZ-1 recently at a hi-fi store while visiting Tokyo last week. (it was the E-earphone shop Akihabara location, and I can't recommend this headphone / earphone shop enough!!! It's like a year-round CanJam there with many things you won't see otherwise, lets you try anything and is worth going to Japan just for it... as well as for the headphones at Yodobashi.)

The Crosszone is a very different animal indeed. My impression is that it seems to be built around natural organic sound with emphasis on soundstage above all. Its' multiple angled drivers in each channel deliver a sound so lifelike and huge that I think of the Out Of Your Head software from Darin Fong Audio, or perhaps the HD-800 with a binaural recording. Thus being said however, I don't see this is much of a contender for other top headphones such as LCD2, Hifiman's offerings, etc., etc... the Crosszone would be in its' own category for probably enjoying movies and field recordings or classical. IMHO, it doesn't excel at things like dynamics, bass definition and details, but instead gives you a fairly lifelike, spacious experience.

I compared it to another closed-back I can trust for reference sound, the Sennheiser HD-280, of which to me had nothing in common with the Crosszone. The reference sound of the HD-280 (like the HD-380 and Focal Spirit Classic) is articulate, proper and detailed with bass that's weighty yet not overdone. The Crosszone OTOH, struck me as just spacious and lifelike. I also noticed a fairly substantial design flaw in terms of a proper 'bass seal' on the Crosszone. While it's super comfortable and has an adjustable headband, no matter which way I adjusted the headband fit even on its' tightest setting, I could not get a good enough seal to hear a proper amount of low-end. Putting pressure on both cups with my hands manually however, revealed the Crosszone does indeed have some amazing bass definition - however in order to hear it properly you'll need either an immensely wide head, or some re-working of the headband design. Also I noticed that something sounded somewhat off-kilter in the mids tonality, perhaps from multiple drivers overlapping too much on certain frequencies.

My results may be different than others, especially considering on that particular day I didn't happen to have my DAP with me, using just the small FiiO E6 amp with my cell phone with a few reference tracks I'm familiar with. However ultimately things like tonality and bass seal do not change when moving up the amp ladder. Due to issues with bass, PRaT, detail and tonality, I may only recommend this headphone to perhaps a movie or classical fan, however I strongly recommend Crosszone rework the headband and sound signature to get the ball rolling better with their products. Overall a very fascinating sound and astonishing build quality nevertheless.
 
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Sep 19, 2017 at 9:15 AM Post #7 of 31
inserting a few pics since it wasn't done yet

review_160808_hv1607_195_cz-1_01.jpg

review_160808_hv1607_195_cz-1_02.jpg

photos courtesy of Stereosound.co.jp
 
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Sep 19, 2017 at 11:07 PM Post #10 of 31
I demoed this hp at canjam it was paired with a dac-amp I am not familar with. They only have a few Japanese songs for demo which I am not familar with too. The price set at that time is around 2k. General impression is the comfort is top notched and the sound is rather slow and mushy. I believed it is using 3 beryllium plated drivers (not pure beryllium), similar to the ones sold in Aliexpress or cheaper Chinese online store at <50USD a pair.
I find the design rather intriguing. Perhaps it will be helpful if some explaination is given on why most of the drivers are blocked, except for that 23mm driver. I will think that blocked drivers tend to have more sound reflections, and given there are 3 drivers, in which 2 of them are almost totally blocked, how does this work?
If you are interested in promoting this pair, you can send a pair to innerfidelity for Tyll to review.
 
Dec 18, 2018 at 12:00 PM Post #14 of 31
I took a few more photos of CZ1 during my review of Feliks Echo :)

Feliks_Echo-Tube-AMP-OTL-Amplifier-Headphone-AMP-Review-Audiophile-Heaven-Photo-59.jpg


Feliks_Echo-Tube-AMP-OTL-Amplifier-Headphone-AMP-Review-Audiophile-Heaven-Photo-73.jpg


Feliks_Echo-Tube-AMP-OTL-Amplifier-Headphone-AMP-Review-Audiophile-Heaven-Photo-60.jpg

hi, plz words are needed to understand this headphones, can you please tell how it sounds in comparison to audeze lcd headphones

info on this headphone is barely found
 
Dec 18, 2018 at 9:51 PM Post #15 of 31
hi, plz words are needed to understand this headphones, can you please tell how it sounds in comparison to audeze lcd headphones

info on this headphone is barely found

Sure, I'm here to help!

I will be posting an in-depth review on them, but let's start with my first impressions:

- CZ1 is fairly hard to drive, so you'll need some power for them. They are not high impedance, but they are low senstivity.
- The build quality is excellent, they are very sturdy, and the earpads are really soft. Everything feels premium, and they feel well built.
- The comfort is actually one of the most surprising things, for a new product, and for something that is quite heavy on paper (almost as heavy as LCD-MX4 on paper!), they are really comfortable, feel very light, the padding is soft, both in the headband, and on the earpads, and the whole headphone feels just really nice. There's nothing I can complain about when it comes to comfort! The earpads have a very different mechanism from most headphones, instead of being adjustable in the headband, the cups swivel outwards, making those stay at juuust the right amount of pressure to stay fit, but to be really comfy. If your head is very large, so they become. Also, the earpads are really spacey, they have a lot of space, even for the largest ears in the world.
- There are multiple drivers inside to simulate soundstage in a larger size. To their defense, this works better than advertised, what you get is a HD800 Huge soundstage, but with much better instrument separation and instrument definition. I am pleased with it.
- So, the main direct comparative headphone is HD800S, and CZ1 feels like someone really wanted to like HD800S, but felt they were a total letdown for their price, and for actually listening to music. To explain, HD800 can be a great headphone, because it is clear, analytical, detailed, wide, and airy, but it is also pretty harsh, peaky, thin, and fatiguing
- Here, CZ1 is also a bass-light headphone, but with a much more gentle midrange than HD800S, a thicker, deeper, quicker bass than HD800S, less peaks, but with similar bright treble , but which is never harsh, rather being simply well expressed, and just as comfortable and wide.
- CrossZone never implies that CZ1 is any similar to HD800S, and it really isn't that similar, this is just a personal observation, because, in all fairness, itr is more of a headphone of its own. Kinda like how a well balanced flagship should sound like, wide, airy, well separated, dynamic. This being said, they are on the neutral - light side, so not a lot of bass (nowhere near LCD-2 or 4Z levels of bass), and they aren't thick or lush, CZ1 is what HD800S should have been,
- CZ1 is not overly analytical, just like a flagship should, it presents details in an organic way, without exposing the details in a way that's fatiguing, imagine they sound exactly like you'd expect a Japanese Headphone to sound like, gentle, detailed, airy, well separated, everything that high-end should be is there.
- The main complain I do have about them, and which I think you will have, is how hard they are to drive. This ain't a joke, and they require some power to reach their absolute best, but man, do they sound good when they reach that point .
- The package is also a but frugal, nothing fancy, just the headphgones, a storage box with a really nice material, and two cables.
- All in all, those are an excellent purchase, and if you can hop in the massdrop 1K USD deal, it is something I wouldn't miss, if you were looking for a HD800S headphone, but better made in terms of how things are presented. Where HD800S was still too harsh, too mature, too bright, too hot in the treble, and too lean in the bass, CZ1 is juuust right in every of those chapters.
- The bass may not be the fastest out there, it is not a very tight bass, more like a natural to slow one. The overall sound works well for metal music, but slower music may comliment them a bit better.
- Please ask if you have any questions until I finish my review (planned among the next 2-3 reviews actually)

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