[uelover]

Quote:

Uelover: tenso just emailed me regarding the shipping cost - 48 sgd.

Good news!

 

[firefire]

hi!
 
just registered specially for this thread, seems there are people who appreciate sony sq and are using walkman z too, that's really cool!
 
JUST ONE BURNING QUESTION / CONCERN!
 
does anyone who's using a walkman z now, has any idea if sony plans to update every walkman z to ANDROID 4.0 ICE CREAM SANDWICH?!

 

[robiceli]

I see many people are interested in the new Z (including me, of course) but after reading a few posts from those who already own the Z, now I really don't know..
The question(s) for you guys who already own the new Z and/or owned the X series as well;
 
- how is the sound of the Z compared to the X series? (sound played back with Sony's own media player on the Z and not played back with PowerAmp, PlayerPro or similar music apps from the Market).
- leaving the OS, the bigger screen and Sony's new UI aside, is there any real reason to upgrade from the X? I mean I know the Z looks so damn good and I am sure it's nicely build and feels great in hands but what I really want to know is how it sound compared to the X. The sound guys, the sound!  
 
I currently own the X1060 which I treasure because it sounds so good but still I am tempted to purchase the new Z once it will be available in my country. I'm also interested in the new Xperia S smartphone from Sony which, from what I've read and see in some early reviews, has Sony's trademark EQ with Clear Bass and other sound enhancers and goodies from the Sony department so now I don't know which one to go with..decisions, decisions. Both devices look good, both devices run on Android and both (the Z and Xperia S smartphone) will be available from march in my country so I still have some time to decide.
 
Still I wish some of you guys could give some clear answers to my questions asked above.
 
Thanks!

 

[underhysteria]

The xperia arc s has average sq.. its meant to be a phone anyways . Feel free to google translate some of the jap sites for comparisons. The reviews have been positive so far.

 

[underhysteria]

fortisflyer: Not only sony but other brands as well. The walkman series is already topping their sales chart surpassing apple products so japan probably doesnt have to rely heavily on other regions for its sales. Look at the shure 535 reds! Its one of their best selling products and yet they dont plan to distribute it worldwide.

 

[robiceli]

Quote:

The xperia arc s has average sq.. its meant to be a phone anyways

. Feel free to google translate some of the jap sites for comparisons. The reviews have been positive so far.

The Xperia Arc S has the same HW as the Xperia Arc. The CPU is the only difference between those 2 models. I own the Arc and it sounds OK'ish paired with the Sennheiser IE8 IEMs and PowerAmp player. Now the new Xperia S I mentioned earlier, which is the latest flagship from Sony (not Sony Ericsson) - that's a different story. This model has all those Sony goodies inside like an adjustable EQ and Clear Bass. I think this will sound near as good as their Walkman line. Sure it can't sound as good because there's no X-master chip - if that matters in any way.
 

 

[firefire]

as someone who has had previous experiences with ipod touch and iphone, i can say without question that walkman z has far superior sound quality, at first i thought it would not be worth upgrading my walkman x1050 for but i was wrong, walkman z does seem to sound louder and clearer, which leads me to believe that the hardware has indeed been upgraded...
 
u know people? i think the smaster mx is to be credited for such good sound...
 
as far as i am concerned, sony has not seemed to integrate their s-master digital amplifier into any of their xperia smartphones, which i find truly confounding given that they've included bravia display and exmor r camera sensor...
 
PEOPLE! anyone know anything? please share... will walkman z be updated to android 4.0 ICS ?  
 

 SUCH BOOMING CLEAR BASS LOVE WALKMAN Z!

 

[robiceli]

So it does sound better than the X..just as I thought.  It's probably because the S-master MX chip. If that's the case, I think will upgrade to the Z once it becomes available in my country.
As for the OS - I am sure Sony will upgrade to ICS later this year. They also confirmed that they'll update their 2011 and 2012 Xperia line to ICS in Q2 so I don't see why they wouldn't update the Z which runs on the same OS.

 

[FortisFlyer75]

Quote:

fortisflyer: Not only sony but other brands as well. The walkman series is already topping their sales chart surpassing apple products so japan probably doesnt have to rely heavily on other regions for its sales. Look at the shure 535 reds! Its one of their best selling products and yet they dont plan to distribute it worldwide.

Yes, this does happen with other brands, I am just more annoyed with Sony as it has been so long awaited sine the X series for it's replacement that happens to be android to come along and when it does they shaft us! I will likely end up importing one in the end once my bitterness cools down over the matter of principle with Sony's poor product marketing as after all I doubt there is another dap sub £300 out there that will sound as good especially if it is an improvement over my cherished X series SQ.
 
I used to have the old Shure SE530's and adored them until I had the dreaded cable faults (hence the new gen with detachable cable), I think with the 535 reds maybe it is because it is limited edition that has restricted it to been sold in all territory's? though there should still be no excuse for this and they should make them available for at least a distributor to make available in your country.  I am sure it would not hurt Sony to at least ship a certain percentage of their 32gb & 64gb Walkmans to the Singapore market as also the 64gb made available to Europe & USA, after all how many more sales they could get if they did this to those territories they don't currently offer these to, baffles me to no ends. 
 
Maybe one day Sony will see sense and we will all be happy : )
 


Quote:

as someone who has had previous experiences with ipod touch and iphone, i can say without question that walkman z has far superior sound quality, at first i thought it would not be worth upgrading my walkman x1050 for but i was wrong, walkman z does seem to sound louder and clearer, which leads me to believe that the hardware has indeed been upgraded...
 
u know people? i think the smaster mx is to be credited for such good sound...
 
PEOPLE! anyone know anything? please share... will walkman z be updated to android 4.0 ICS ?  
 

 SUCH BOOMING CLEAR BASS LOVE WALKMAN Z!

Is all of the above based on all settings off i.e. clear bass, dynamic normalizer, EQ's etc? 
 
I to have the X series which I treat like a faberge egg with it been obsolete until I eventually get the new Z, I do also wonder how much of an improvement the new MX amp would be over the X series original S master amp. 
 
Can you elaborate on where the Z improves over the X in terms of SQ?
 

 

[FortisFlyer75]

Also...... can any  Z owners clarify what playback time they are getting from their Z Walkman compared to the Sony spec which is meant to be 20 hours.
I noticed and I am hoping it is a typo but the Sony website has it as only 14 hours continuous music playback! 
 
I know it is running android with a bigger screen but it is one of the few worries I have with this new Z with it only be 20 hours and I will be using wav files only which saps the battery even more. 
I just wished Sony made a pledge to themselves to never drop below 35 hours like most of their previous gen walkmans regardless of technology crammed inside. 
 
Feel free to clarify what settings are in use on your Z in current set up to give approx idea with what battery life you may manage to get ......

 

[Artmuzz]

I see Argos in the UK have the new Sony Z series Walkmans for sale in their catalogues but its only online only.

 

[firefire]

 
Quote:

Is all of the above based on all settings off i.e. clear bass, dynamic normalizer, EQ's etc?
 
I to have the X series which I treat like a faberge egg with it been obsolete until I eventually get the new Z, I do also wonder how much of an improvement the new MX amp would be over the X series original S master amp.
 
Can you elaborate on where the Z improves over the X in terms of SQ?
 

 even without settings walkman z sound pure enough, the sound is so clear and loud there's simply zero distortion and very low noise... once dynamic normalizer is applied music seems to get even louder not sure why... but i realize the clear bass seems to have been improved over walkman x in that it sounds even deeper and clearer... overall i suppose walkman z does sound better than walkman x in every sense...
 
i sure hope that ics becomes available to walkman z it would be a waste for such a good dmp to rot running on an outdated software... the interface doesn't seem to be as advanced as the sony ericsson xperia, for example there's no pinch zooming on the home screen, apps can't be rearranged in any order, and the widgets don't seem to be the same as sony ericsson xperia... weird but has any of you guys noticed so...? anyone with xperia...? seeing the difference...?

 

[FortisFlyer75]

Quote:

 
 even without settings walkman z sound pure enough, the sound is so clear and loud there's simply zero distortion and very low noise... once dynamic normalizer is applied music seems to get even louder not sure why... but i realize the clear bass seems to have been improved over walkman x in that it sounds even deeper and clearer... overall i suppose walkman z does sound better than walkman x in every sense...
 

Thanks for those observations, intriguing..... 

 

 
 

 

[underhysteria]

When i first held the walkman Z, i was immediately silenced by its built quality. It is the most solid pmp device ive ever hold up to date. It puts shame to the samsung galaxy series while making the cowon feel like a plastic toy. This dual core device is HUGE with a screen size of the galaxy s2 with a design similar to the xperia arc S. The walkman Z is very smooth to play with and handles apps just like any other android devices. No problems with wireless connectivity and the poweramp plays lossless files flawlessly. More of the UI will be uncovered in my review in a couple of days time.
 
 

 

 

 

 

[jerry cornelius]

Looking forward to your review of the UI.I currently own an x series &love it's SQ & build quality.I agree that the samsung feels cheap and plastic (something that puts me off a device).I'm still undecided on purchasing this Z series as my main priority is the SQ.Speaking as someone who's never owned an android device I'm not sure if I need all those 'bells &whistles'.
I'm chomping at the bit to see one in the flesh & if it feels as good as it looks I may just take the plunge.