[idletime1213]

I am very very close to biting the bullet on these. Some more positive reviews and it's a lost cause.

 

[Zuglufttier]

I got mine yesterday and like the sound very much. I also like the construction, small, very light and good looking. For my ears well worth the 500$ tag. At least I don't know another closed headphone around that sounds better and offers a bit isolation.

 

[khaos974]

Well, I bit the bullet yesterday, and I have not been disappointed with the sound sound so far.
 
Quote:

I am very very close to biting the bullet on these. Some more positive reviews and it's a lost cause.

 

[kiertijai]

Dear Magic12Kenneth,
   I do have a chance to listen to all 3 headphones that you mentioned : the sony R10 bass heavy version, the HE6 and the Sony MDRZ1000
   I still think the sony MDR R10 is the king of dynamic headphone.  The sound signature is somewhat similar in the treble and midrange between
the Z1000 vs R10 .  However I should say that the R10 has a better overall performance in almost everything especially the bass.  The bass in
the Z1000 is not comparable to the R10 , it has a lot of bass quantity and impact but sometimes bloated and seem to be out of control .  However
I have to admit that the Z1000 may not have adequate burn in.  At first the bass was very boomy and bloated, however after burn in  it is getting
better but still a distance away from the R10.   The Z1000 sound signature is different than the HE6 and I should say I prefer the HE6 more than the Z1000.
The Z1000 has a richer , nice treble and midrange.  I should say it's between the LCD 2 and the HE6.  The treble in HE6 is more extended and the
midrange has more detail and has a bigger soundstage.  The Z1000 bass has more impact but the bass of HE6 is of more dynamic and controlled
while there is not the same control in the Z1000.  The Z1000 has more isolation than the HE6 due to its closed design.
    I enjoy listening the Z1000 driving directly from the ipod but better with portable amplifier e.g. Iqube V2 and SR71B (unbalanced) and it is of
lighter weight and easier to carry around.  To use HE6 we need a very powerful amplifier like the ZDT although the SR71B can drive it adequately with the
balanced output.  The HE6 is heavier and not easy to carry around.  I dare not carry the R10 outside my home because it is very expensive  but it is also
light weight and easy to carry around.  The R10 is  easier to drive than the HE6 but I have never used it with the portable amplifier and I think I will
try the R10 one day with the SR71B

 

[idletime1213]

It's quite unfair to match up the Z1000 with the R10, when almost no headphone can stand up to it.
 
But it's nice to hear that they share at least some similarities.

 

[kiertijai]

I also think that comparing the Z1000 with the R10 is unfair because the price difference is almost 8-10 fold (5500$ vs 500+S)
and the R10 has been there for a long time and is more than proven.
I do think the Z1000 is also a very good buy because it is suitable to all kind of music except for classical.  The sound signature is
very good  with good bass although I would like it to have more control for bass.  Some said that the treble is too bright or sibilant
but I didn't find that at all especially when comparing the Z1000 with the Grado HF2 which I also consider a fun headphone with almost
the same price.  The Grado HF2 has a very bright treble and some may call that sibilant and it takes a very long time to burn in.

 

[magic12kenneth]

kiertijai, thanks for the nice comparison. For the price point, this will be a great overall performance for a closed headphone. It might be what I'm looking since it meets two of my requirements: comfortable fit, good audio quality without using an amp. What is the reason that this headphone does not suit for classical music? It is the soundstage and imaging? From Headfonia's review of Sony MDR-EX1000, it's imaging is not well focus.
 
 
Sony can really make a cheaper and version of R10 if they really wanted to since they have the resource specially the engineering and technical advance from other competitors. For example, how Westone fix all the flaws of the Westone 3 in their Westone 4 and their new custome ES5. 
 
 
I was really hoping the new polymer driver will make a great closed headphone between dynamic vs ortho headphone with their engineering expertise.
 
Ken

 

[HiFlight]

I find that the performance of my Z1000 with classical music very much depends upon the album qualities  such as venue, mastering, mixing, etc.  I have some binaural classical recordings of very high quality that sound superb.  I also have some recordings that sound mediocre, but they also sound poor on my other phones as well.   I don't find that the performance of the Z1000 is sub-par when listening to well-recorded classical performances.  I do find that the Z1000 can reproduce the ambiances of the recording venue very accurately. 
 
While I would hesitate to say that the Z1000 is the equal of my K1000 or HE-6, I do find it a very competent all-arounder that I enjoy very much and doubt that I could find a phone at this price point that is more versatile or better-sounding. 

 

[kiertijai]

I think it's the problem with the soundstage and too much bass.
The soundstage is not small especially when driven with an amplifier, but there may be a problem
when you use with the ipod.
I should say that the soundstage is not its strong point comparing to the HE6 or  even the LCD2

 

[khaos974]

I'm going to say the problem is soundstage, it's smaller than I would like it to be. Small but relatively accurate, with a little impression of depth.
Mind you, IMHO, real life >>>> speakers >>>>>>>> Akg K 701 > Z1000, it's not like I can't live with it.

 

[spartan123]

been reading this thread for awhile.   Will still love my SA5k's and be very happy....

 

[svyr]

been reading this thread for awhile.   Will still love my SA5k's and be very happy....

i just sold my SA5000 and I expect it to be apples and oranges to Z1000 on its way. SA5000 is not unlike my SR-507 system - mostly neutral with a somewhat rolled off bass and slightly bumped highs (sr-507 has better bass and slightly more even highs, but that's not the point). Z1000 descriptions sound very different

 

[sokolov91]

Quote:

Quote:

been reading this thread for awhile.   Will still love my SA5k's and be very happy....

i just sold my SA5000 and I expect it to be apples and oranges to Z1000 on its way. SA5000 is not unlike my SR-507 system - mostly neutral with a somewhat rolled off bass and slightly bumped highs. Z1000 descriptions sound very different

Aww man! The SR 507 sounds like the SA5K? I was hoping to get a budget STAX that wasn't rolled off in the bass by 30 dB...

 

[svyr]

Aww man! The SR 507 sounds like the SA5K? I was hoping to get a budget STAX that wasn't rolled off in the bass by 30 dB...

lol, my bad. edited the above. forgot to add that the lower bass on SR-507 is a lot less rolled off (read: good). at the same time, SA5000 are very good value...(aside from the bass and slightly less peaked highs, for $300 you can't go wrong with them if relatively neutral sound is what you want)...

 

[magicalbanana]

Hey guys, Im not a very analytical audiophile or a sound engineer but this is what I think.
 
my very brief impression on the z1000 comparing to the audio technica ath-es10 and the denon d5000s (which are the headphones I have):
 
es10 = icy sound that makes me feel like you are listening in a concert hall made of ice.
 
d5000 = warm and deep that makes me feel like I am getting enveloped in music and floating in the sound.
 
z1000 = small soundstage but very accurate and clear with an emphasis on the treble part of the sound spectrum.
 
To me the z1000 feels like a very analytical headphone (a reference headphone in a studio) and it would be nice for people trying to get the details out of a song. The headphones feel pretty tough and are very comfortable on the head. The design is actually not too bad even though it looks kind of funky in pictures.
 
In conclusion, I know I can not compare the d5000s to the z1000 because they have totally different characters but I prefer the d5000 over the z1000 just because I enjoy the feeling I get listening to the denons. On the other hand, the Denon requires an amp to make it sound wonderful but the z1000 sounds pretty awesome without one so that is a win for the Sonys.