[Dobrescu George]

I made a video unboxing and first impressions / short review on Sonoma Model One

 

[Dobrescu George]

I have posted my in-depth written review about Sonoma Model One. It is a pretty interesting system, and I had a lot to say about it, also compared it to 4 other setups, all flagships, and all good contenders, some of them even considerably less expensive than M1.

https://www.audiophile-heaven.com/2020/06/long-live-queen-sonoma-model-one.html

 

[vcoheda]

good read. thanks for posting. i am very happy with my M1 and think it is a great all-in-one system. interesting photos as well.

but is this part accurate. if i am using the analog setting and a separate DAC, the M1 still employs DSP.

+++

Something that is slightly less known about Model One is that it employs DSP, and heavy amounts of it, to make it sounds the best it can. Any Analog signal input is converted to digital via a top-end ADC or Analog to Digital converter. Then, there's a good deal of DSP going on before the DAC, then two ESS flagship DACs convert the signal from digital to analogue. This means that there's no way to bypass the internal processing, which is not so bad, considering that the final sound is quite good. The only downside to this entire approach is that you can't really use any other energizer / amplifier / DAC than what is already built in.

 

[Dobrescu George]

good read. thanks for posting. i am very happy with my M1 and think it is a great all-in-one system. interesting photos as well.

but is this part accurate. if i am using the analog setting and a separate DAC, the M1 still employs DSP. has the company confirmed this.

+++

Something that is slightly less known about Model One is that it employs DSP, and heavy amounts of it, to make it sounds the best it can. Any Analog signal input is converted to digital via a top-end ADC or Analog to Digital converter. Then, there's a good deal of DSP going on before the DAC, then two ESS flagship DACs convert the signal from digital to analogue. This means that there's no way to bypass the internal processing, which is not so bad, considering that the final sound is quite good. The only downside to this entire approach is that you can't really use any other energizer / amplifier / DAC than what is already built in.

Always happy to provide a high-quality in-depth review!

 

[sanjeewasam]

I have posted my in-depth written review about Sonoma Model One. It is a pretty interesting system, and I had a lot to say about it, also compared it to 4 other setups, all flagships, and all good contenders, some of them even considerably less expensive than M1.

https://www.audiophile-heaven.com/2020/06/long-live-queen-sonoma-model-one.html

Thank you very much for the review. I wished you have include Arya in the comparison too. Anyway great job

 

[vcoheda]

i found this info from Tyll's review:

"Once inside the box all signals are routed to a DSP for tuning and correction. Digital signals can be sent pretty much directly to the DSP; analog signals are first digitized by a multi-channel 32bit/384kHz AKM ADC chip. Separate channels are used for the high and low level analog inputs and optimized for expected voltages. The digitized signals from the analog inputs are then sent off to the digital signal processor (DSP) if selected. Digital signal processing (DSP) is employed for three reasons: volume control; corrections to linearize driver performance; and equalization to achieve a target frequency response. ... An important note here: As I said the Model One is quite sensitive to analog input levels and the user needs to be sure to stay within the operating envelope. Max voltage RMS on the high level input (RCAs) is 2.1Vrms and 850mVrms on the low level (3.5mm jack) input. If you exceed these levels you will run into trouble. ... I found using the digital input delivered the better quality listening experience; the haze was a little more noticeable on the analog inputs."

Based on this, seems like the digital connection would be preferred. that's what i use now although i previously used the analog.

 

[sanjeewasam]

i found this info from Tyll's review:

"Once inside the box all signals are routed to a DSP for tuning and correction. Digital signals can be sent pretty much directly to the DSP; analog signals are first digitized by a multi-channel 32bit/384kHz AKM ADC chip. Separate channels are used for the high and low level analog inputs and optimized for expected voltages. The digitized signals from the analog inputs are then sent off to the digital signal processor (DSP) if selected. Digital signal processing (DSP) is employed for three reasons: volume control; corrections to linearize driver performance; and equalization to achieve a target frequency response. ... An important note here: As I said the Model One is quite sensitive to analog input levels and the user needs to be sure to stay within the operating envelope. Max voltage RMS on the high level input (RCAs) is 2.1Vrms and 850mVrms on the low level (3.5mm jack) input. If you exceed these levels you will run into trouble. ... I found using the digital input delivered the better quality listening experience; the haze was a little more noticeable on the analog inputs."

Based on this, seems like the digital connection would be preferred. that's what i use now although i previously used the analog.

May be that is why M1 does not respond to EQ becuase DSP does correction to bring to Harmon Target level?. I wrote to the CEO of SA and ask if they would consider making an app where user change select from predefines DSP settings optimised for pop, rock etc etc as M1 does not respond to EQ as other DAC/AMPS and Headphone set ups and it is not possible to make one parrent that work well across all types of music. I got the response that in M1 it is not possible to provide a selection but they could flash a different DSP settings via firmware upgrade. I think the new model does allow this.

 

[Dobrescu George]

May be that is why M1 does not respond to EQ becuase DSP does correction to bring to Harmon Target level?. I wrote to the CEO of SA and ask if they would consider making an app where user change select from predefines DSP settings optimised for pop, rock etc etc as M1 does not respond to EQ as other DAC/AMPS and Headphone set ups and it is not possible to make one parrent that work well across all types of music. I got the response that in M1 it is not possible to provide a selection but they could flash a different DSP settings via firmware upgrade. I think the new model does allow this.

Oh, having such a feature would be pretty awesome!

I mean, even if they would just give us the ability to edit the DSP, then give us the ability to flash our own firmware with DSP, that would be really awesome.

Thank you very much for the review. I wished you have include Arya in the comparison too. Anyway great job

Thank you very much for your kind words!

Arya is similar to M1, except that Arya has a wider soundstage, and M1 has more treble quantity. Comfort better on Arya in general, because M1 has a high clmaping force.

 

[Pfnerch]

I have posted my in-depth written review about Sonoma Model One. It is a pretty interesting system, and I had a lot to say about it, also compared it to 4 other setups, all flagships, and all good contenders, some of them even considerably less expensive than M1.

https://www.audiophile-heaven.com/2020/06/long-live-queen-sonoma-model-one.html

thanks for the review but the headphones are not made out of plastic they are made from Magnesium(it’s a metal) and titan. I don’t know why you think they are made from plastic. that’s not true.

 

[Dobrescu George]

great

thanks for the review but the headphones are not made out of plastic they are made from Magnesium(it’s a metal) and titan. I don’t know why you think they are made from plastic. that’s not true.

The creaking sound felt like plastic (?)

I tried to catch it on video to explain what I'm talking about.

Good to know it is not plastic though, I will try to mention that when I mention sonoma in the future

 

[Pfnerch]

The creaking sound felt like plastic (?)

I tried to catch it on video to explain what I'm talking about.

Good to know it is not plastic though, I will try to mention that when I mention sonoma in the future

I know what you mean. I had that noise in the beginning too but after 7 month of use(every day 3-5 hours) they are silent know. warwick acoustics chooses Magnesium because it’s a very light metal. the complete headphones are made out of magnesium and on top the stabilizing and internal steel band is additionally titanium-coated to minimize sliding friction.

 

[Enstage]

thanks for the review but the headphones are not made out of plastic they are made from Magnesium(it’s a metal) and titan. I don’t know why you think they are made from plastic. that’s not true.

The creaking sound felt like plastic (?)

I tried to catch it on video to explain what I'm talking about.

Good to know it is not plastic though, I will try to mention that when I mention sonoma in the future

Just got my own pair of them, the headband feels like plastic, whereas the cups themselves feel like some type of metal. Can confirm there is a plastic sounding creak that comes from the headband...

 

[sanjeewasam]

Oh, having such a feature would be pretty awesome!

I mean, even if they would just give us the ability to edit the DSP, then give us the ability to flash our own firmware with DSP, that would be really awesome.



Thank you very much for your kind words!

Arya is similar to M1, except that Arya has a wider soundstage, and M1 has more treble quantity. Comfort better on Arya in general, because M1 has a high clmaping force.

Sorry to ask about Arya again. You said it is similar yet you only use HE6SE in your comparison. Is this because you consider HE6SE is the hifiman flagship based on cans you you have heard/reviewed or becuase you do not have Arya to do the comparison? I think others reuqsted comparison to Arya as it is HE1000 replacement (kind of). As I cannot demo Arya I asked Minidisc Australia that carry both units I asked to give me feedback to make a decision (I mainly asked it against HE1000 or Arya as sucessor) and response was "I took some time to do some listening on it this morning versus the Hifiman Arya with both the internal DAC and a Chord Qutest, and hopefully I can give you some insight. My memory served me right: in general I find Hifiman headphones to have a slightly dry sound in the upper midrange that gives vocals some really nice texture and detail, while in comparison the Sonoma is smoother in this region. This isn't to say it is a great deal warmer than a typical Hifiman - high frequency extension is very good on the Sonoma - but it does not have the same "crispness" to the highs that the Hifiman does. Personally I like this aspect of the Sonoma because it can sound very clear and natural without being abrasive. It depends on you whether you would consider this more or less distracting, depending on how you like your details presented in music.

In terms of sound staging, I think the Hifiman has the Sonoma beat. This is because the assembly of the Sonoma seems to give it a slight "cupped hands" sound to the soundstage that closes it in a little, whereas Hifiman designs are more open and tend to sound less closed in. "

Much appreciate your thoughts. I have had HE1000v1 powered by Auralic Aries Mini+ LPS-> Veolitric V281 AMP+V850 DAC and my memory says M1 has much better dynamics, clarity and sometimes base impact too (may not be quantitiy) where as better mids and soundstage in HE1000 did hooked me on to it as all sting gitar music and some vocals sounds great. Also I thought in terms of musicality or listenability in long time HE1000 was better. However M1 may be slightly smoother (aspect that tell you that generally it is a better gear). Any comments appreciated

 

[Dobrescu George]

Sorry to ask about Arya again. You said it is similar yet you only use HE6SE in your comparison. Is this because you consider HE6SE is the hifiman flagship based on cans you you have heard/reviewed or becuase you do not have Arya to do the comparison? I think others reuqsted comparison to Arya as it is HE1000 replacement (kind of). As I cannot demo Arya I asked Minidisc Australia that carry both units I asked to give me feedback to make a decision (I mainly asked it against HE1000 or Arya as sucessor) and response was "I took some time to do some listening on it this morning versus the Hifiman Arya with both the internal DAC and a Chord Qutest, and hopefully I can give you some insight. My memory served me right: in general I find Hifiman headphones to have a slightly dry sound in the upper midrange that gives vocals some really nice texture and detail, while in comparison the Sonoma is smoother in this region. This isn't to say it is a great deal warmer than a typical Hifiman - high frequency extension is very good on the Sonoma - but it does not have the same "crispness" to the highs that the Hifiman does. Personally I like this aspect of the Sonoma because it can sound very clear and natural without being abrasive. It depends on you whether you would consider this more or less distracting, depending on how you like your details presented in music.

In terms of sound staging, I think the Hifiman has the Sonoma beat. This is because the assembly of the Sonoma seems to give it a slight "cupped hands" sound to the soundstage that closes it in a little, whereas Hifiman designs are more open and tend to sound less closed in. "

Much appreciate your thoughts. I have had HE1000v1 powered by Auralic Aries Mini+ LPS-> Veolitric V281 AMP+V850 DAC and my memory says M1 has much better dynamics, clarity and sometimes base impact too (may not be quantitiy) where as better mids and soundstage in HE1000 did hooked me on to it as all sting gitar music and some vocals sounds great. Also I thought in terms of musicality or listenability in long time HE1000 was better. However M1 may be slightly smoother (aspect that tell you that generally it is a better gear). Any comments appreciated

What volumes to you listen to?

I use HE6SE mainly because it has better overall detail than Arya, so I relied on it to be more reference, but Arya is more musical and more enjoyable in the long run

Between the two, I would say that Arya has larger stage, M1 has a different presentation to stage

Arya has more space in general

M1 has a quicker sound, more revealing, I did not quite ctach on that HIFIMAN being drier up top, but now that I think about , it is true, just no the first thing that comes to mind when hearing them. M1 is indeed, quick, revealing but musical.

The only downside is that M1 is quieter at maximum, because with what setup you have there, you could drive Arya much louder.

 

[sanjeewasam]

What volumes to you listen to?

I use HE6SE mainly because it has better overall detail than Arya, so I relied on it to be more reference, but Arya is more musical and more enjoyable in the long run

Between the two, I would say that Arya has larger stage, M1 has a different presentation to stage

Arya has more space in general

M1 has a quicker sound, more revealing, I did not quite ctach on that HIFIMAN being drier up top, but now that I think about , it is true, just no the first thing that comes to mind when hearing them. M1 is indeed, quick, revealing but musical.

The only downside is that M1 is quieter at maximum, because with what setup you have there, you could drive Arya much louder.

Thank you so much for the response. I do not lisen at high volume (M1 9.30-11.30 have not go beyond that in long listening sessions at all). With HE1000 and V281 which is a powerful amp I would have stayed around 10 o clock too.