Hi! My comparisons that I described in that post were comparing just the DAPs alone. Those are my impressions of each of them in a nutshell.
To elaborate a bit, here are my thoughts on each of them:
IEMs paired: Annihilator ‘23, APX SE, Tia Trio.
Listening was done using USB DAC mode from PC, and streaming tidal directly from DAP (except GT2).
DX340
Massive, holographic soundstage, super detailed, spacious, airy, incredible note separation, lots of note extension in the highs, yet still plenty of weight in the mids. Mids are juicy and delicious, in a liquid way, but not as full as WM1ZM2 or GT2. Sony does mids best, IMO. The 340 does highs extremely well, but still somehow offers a pretty smooth presentation overall. It’s incredible how each individual note just has tons of air and space. Bass is tight and there’s plenty of it to satisfy my preferences. No bass bloat, no bleed, no mudiness in the mids, no fatiguing brightness in the highs. This is a super resolving and energetic, yet still very musical DAP. Plenty of power to drive any IEM. In super gain mode, this drove my Anni 23 amazingly well. Almost as well as GT2-Tsuranagi. I would call this one vibrant, liquid, crisp, and almost effervescent, if I can be liberal with my food-wine comparisons. Details galore. If that’s your thing, then this is it. If analog, thick, warm, more musical, euphoric sound is your thing, then read on.
LPGT2
Huge soundstage, stunning harmonics, with lots of note weight, making it seem more realistic and powerful. Beautifully resolving, silky, slightly warm, honeyed and analog sound, with tremendous rendering of details. But in a smooth, welcoming way. The massive amount of detail is never too much, and never fatiguing. This is a reference sound for sure, but done in a slightly muscular way. Sounds thicker than DX340, not as airy and spacious, yet still offers all the resolution and detail. Mids are just right, they’re forward, but not as full and euphoric as WM1ZM2. Guitar, piano and bass notes have great weight and extension. The bass goes deep, is full, tight, controlled and has a crap ton of slam, which I love. It has more slam and backbone than the 340 or WM1ZM2. The GT2 is like liquidy honey…rich and satiating, but not too thick. I thought it was a bit thick at first, coming from the 340, but as I listened more and my brain adjusted, I realized that the biggest difference is that the notes don’t float in the air as much as the 340. The GT2 doesn’t have that effervescent sort of thing I described above. But if analog, detail and overall resolution are your thing, this one is it. GT2 upsamples to 32-bit/384kHz PCM and can also convert PCM to DSD and vice versa. Lots of options to suit your taste. I find DSD to be warm and too smooth for my taste so I opted not to convert.
WM1ZM2
Thick, warm, buttery, syrupy, very analog, euphoric presentation of music. I finally understand why people love this DAP so much. The mids are its special sauce I think. It doesn’t have the power of the 340 or GT2, and doesn’t have Line Out, so keep that in mind if you want to use an amp at home. Highs are not the highlight, no pun intended. They are featured in a very warm and smooth way. Details are there, but not the focus. The soundstage is more intimate and not holographic. I felt the bass was plentiful for most, but was softer and more pillowy than the other two DAPs. I miss that hard slam of drums and the hard groove of driving bass lines. Maybe because it doesn’t quite have the power to drive the Annihilator. I felt this with the APX SE and Tia Trio as well though, and both are pretty easy to drive. Usually Trio bass is super tight, impactful and slams hard, but I didn’t get that with the Sony. There was plenty of bass, but it was presented in a softer way, especially compared to GT2.
If analog, vinyl sound, warm, thick and buttery sound are your thing, then this one is for you.
I hope this helps. Feel free to PM me if you want more info.
Apologies for any typos. It’s late.
