Hello, potential 507 buyer here, i have some questions i would like to ask. not sure if i can find info on the web myself specifically.
1. i currently own an Astell & Kern SR15, and id like to upgrade to something with more battery, better sound and better OS/interface. im a fan of Sony products and was wondering if this would be a good solution. i was considering the Sony NW-WM1A but when i saw that 22-pin connector i ran for the hills, doesn't seem as durable or reliable or future proof. (when i say future proof, i mean 3+ years of ownership.)
2. I do own the Sony Z7m2, and was wondering how long the ZX507 could power them for normal listening volumes on 16bit 44.1 flacs (95% of my music collection is that format specifically).
3. As i live in Canada, is there a guaranteed way to find out (markings or serial no.) if the version im getting is the Canadian one and not the EU one with volume limiter ? (will most likely be purchasing this through amazon Canada)
4. Is there a good case for this thats not an obscene amount? ive seen the leather book type case for it, but for 180$ it seems extremely unreasonable.
5. Would it, in theory, work if I used a 3.5mm (male) to USB-C (male) to connect my PS4 Pro DS4 controller headphone out, to the Sony ZX507, then connect my DT1990 Pro for example to the DAP. would it act as a mini portable dac/amp for the DS4 controller?
I recommend zx507. sound quality/price, ergonomics, powerful EQ (reset sound adjustments settings if eq is not responding).
wm1A sounds fantastic, however, it's bulky, and eq was dead and I assume I listens to EU volume capped model. I was not satisfied with bass presentation, and eq did not work.
ak sp1000m and se100. same story with dead eq, however sound of wm1A was far more superior for me (I listened those 3 dap in 1 month).
bass on zx507 especially (4,4 with mdr 1Am2) is phenomenal. u will feel subbass (particularly with eq tune). not as huge and colossal as on hd820 with proper amp, but still very impressive.
for me
I assume I did not listen to the best version of wm1A.
perhaps with newer FW, and without volume cap, and with reset of sound adjustments (eq will come back to life), wm1A will outperform zx507.
however, without that tweaks, in my opinion, zx507 clearly outperforms sound of wm1A regarding bass and is +- on par regarding mids and highs. I heard thar sound stage of wm1a was bigger than on zx507.
however now there is option of high-res streaming ON, that offers u nice 3D sound on zx507. maybe we can assume that wm1a lost its claimed advantage regarding sound stage.
about reset of sound adjustments.
I chose 1 of 3 sound presets [eq, upscaling, and other DSP] (all were empty) on zx507, and EQ died. it stopped responding. no matter how u tune it, u get from little to no responds.
reset of sound adjustment settings turned things back to normal.
by the way, that sound signature [with dead eq] may be close to wm1A, perhaps many audiophile will enjoy it.
about z7m2, they are less efficient that z1r.
I believe both will be driven quite good by 4.4 output of zx507, however, I suppose more power is required to experience the true potential of bass and sub-bass presentation capabilities of z1r and z7m2.
lowest fr are hardest to drive, as I understand.
zx507 drove hd820 very loud, however sub-bass can't reach its full potential it had shown with proper AK "wheel" DAC/AMP.
if u are not bass hungry, it's not an issue, though...