Hi,
Back in the 80s my uncle owned a company that designed and built trade show displays, and when I was in NY in grad school I worked with him, assisting in projects, some visuals, etc.
One of his clients was Sony so he was able to buy gear for himself at a special discount, so he purchased what was then a very elite line of gear, one of the best TVs made, it had the CRT tube system separate from the electronics, power supply, etc.. and very high definition at the time. I think it was several grand. Limited edition, the set tended to pop up in the homes featured in Architectural Digest. I do remember a Sony seminar I attended on it, and the White Paper that introduced the technology, much of which became standard in years to come. I always thought he was the only home in Brooklyn to not only know about the unit, but to own one! Sony was very proud of their work which really was at the forefront of the industry, and the headphones were meant to match the advances in the set. I believe it was part of the "Pro Feel" component TV line, but his unit was an even more limited version if memory serves me correctly. It was the best TV I'd ever seen, and I used to visit my cousin who worked at CBS with these incredibly expensive, calibrated systems, and my uncle's system was better. I know there are still folks using them!
When he purchased the TV, one it shipped with what we were told were a special, not easily available set of limited edition headphones, and in our case it was the Sony DR-Z6. it might have been a free premium, because he wasn't into headphones, so not sure that he would have paid extra for them, or they might have been a gift from the Sony execs we worked with. Because I was sharing a loft in the city and headphones would allow me to listen to CDs (yup, the early Magnavox, actually Phillips, fantastic unit that around $150, which I still have and modified the jacks and internal op-amps... great tweak!) he gave me the headphones which I have and take good care of. Part of the TV unit's design was audiophile grade audio, with jacks to supply your stereo. If memory serves me right, the TV didn't have speakers, so needed outside audio. I think they had a matching system, but not sure. So, the headphones were sort of matched to the system, and meant to demonstrate just how good the audio was.
So, to answer your question, a) they are rare, b) they are kinda heavy, c) they are quite good.
I was looking for a cable and found my pair a few minutes ago, so will crank em up and listen. I'm curious to see how they compare to the headphones I review now. My recollection is that they were very accurate, flat, but somehow not exciting. But, I've always found Sony headphones to feel that way. At least the good ones are great, solid, studio mastering phones, but for music, it always felt something.. not sure what... was missing.
(Since I first wrote this post, I've been listening to them and they are really good! Wow.. funny how time and memory shift things. Nice aural space, instruments are well defined, and they don't feel that heavy. And best of all, the bass is very clean, and subtle. Wow.. 30 years old, and able to compete with brand new supposedly higher tech units!)
This was the Sony of the almost hand-built CD decks time, when their high-end products really were high-end products, with a great deal of pride from the engineers. Because my uncle's company designed the CES exhibits, we had the chance to meet with the engineers, etc. Since my uncle's job wasn't to understand the technology, the engineers loved the opportunity to show off to a young budding audiophile (me!) so found their work fascinating. At the time I had Koss 4As, and Senheisers, etc.. but had never really talked with the guys who made them. You can find speaker engineers on every street corner, but headphone folks tend to be a bit more hidden! So, I found it quite cool, and was thrilled when my uncle George gave me the phones.
Not sure if any of this helps, but it is my history with them.
Curious to hear other's impressions of the DR-Z6.
Harris
