[Damz87]

+1 on Kann Alpha

 

[GiullianSN]

+1 on Kann Alpha

Would you recomend Alpha over Hiby R6/R8 overall?

 

[Damz87]

Would you recomend Alpha over Hiby R6/R8 overall?

Hey mate haven’t tried the R6 or R8 unfortunately!

 

[GiullianSN]

Hey mate haven’t tried the R6 or R8 unfortunately!

My bad... I thought you had the R8.

 

[newworld666]

I still have the R6 Pro, M11, WM1A and the Kann Alpha.. only the Kann Alpha can really drive power demanding headphones... The IER-Z1R is not that difficult, but working nice with it like with WM1A.

 

[VancityDreaming]

These last days I am using A&K Kann Alpha (Streaming Synology NAS & Qobuz) beside my WM1A (1Tb SD) with the IER-Z1R ...
Kann Alpha is far more powerful than WM1A and can drive very easily the Z1R.. it's worth to give a try.

More powerful, but does it sound better?

 

[newworld666]

More powerful, but does it sound better?

Compared to the WM1A's sound ? Nope !!!! And there are some annoying little limitations too with playlists that modern players can handle nowadays .. but nothing as portable as the WM1A can sound as good as the WM1A

But :
-> streaming is there and rather efficient, though also some limitations too (One-way Bluetooth only, not handling correctly SD cards for cache, some cuts,etc ) . (With WM1A streaming can be done but is a bit tricky with a smartphone via BT connection)
-> power can handle more demanding headphones (Heddphone by Hedd and Z7M2 in my case), till now, I didn't find a way to compensate this with the WM1A.

 

[VancityDreaming]

Compared to the WM1A's sound ? Nope !!!! And there are some annoying little limitations too with playlists that modern players can handle nowadays .. but nothing as portable as the WM1A can sound as good as the WM1A

But :
-> streaming is there and rather efficient, though also some limitations too (One-way Bluetooth only, not handling correctly SD cards for cache, some cuts,etc ) . (With WM1A streaming can be done but is a bit tricky with a smartphone via BT connection)
-> power can handle more demanding headphones (Heddphone by Hedd and Z7M2 in my case), till now, I didn't find a way to compensate this with the WM1A.

Look into Mr.Walkman's firmware for the WM1A if you haven't already. I'm out of this hobby with my ierz1r and wm1a. I have a minor itch with wanting to try out the UM MEST though haha.

You can connect your wm1a as a dac amp with your phone via usb dongle, and then stream to your heart's content.

 

[newworld666]

You can connect your wm1a as a dac amp with your phone via usb dongle, and then stream to your heart's content.

It's what I am doing via BT ... More convenient... wmport is a definitely annoying format.

 

[VancityDreaming]

It's what I am doing via BT ... More convenient... wmport is a definitely annoying format.

I have the es100, and its similar when listening over bluetooth compared to wm1a. Ive heard good things about the quidlex 5k also

 

[newworld666]

I have the es100, and its similar when listening over bluetooth compared to wm1a. Ive heard good things about the quidlex 5k also

I own both too .. es100 and qudelix 5k ... es100 is a bit obsolete now, for these last months, I enjoy a lot the qudelix 5k, it is a convenient dual connection BT and it became my favourite dongle with my rather sensitive Beyerdynmic Xelento (best IEM for lying down and fall asleep).

For my IER-Z1R, which I use for long or overseas travel, I still prefer the WM1A connected via BT to my smartphone (not in planes of course)...
I will continue to explore the Kann Alpha to see if it can replace the WM1A, though I am not really sure after 1 week intensive use it can do it, as the WM1A stays with a very impressive sound (with MrWalkman firmware).
At least the Kann Alpha can easily replace my M11 or R6pro connected to a Xduoo XD05+ for my Z7M2 and my Heddphone to be free at office or home.

 

[Damz87]

Out of the DAP’s/sources I’ve got, my order of sound preferences with the Z1R are:

1. Sony DMP-Z1
2. Sony TA-ZH1ES
3. iBasso DX220 Max
4. AK Kann Alpha
5. Sony WM1Z (with Mr. Walkman FW)
6. Sony ZX507
7. Lotoo Paw S1
8. Sony A105
9. iPhone dongle

I’m about to pull the trigger on an AK SP2000 so I’ll report back on that pair up, but reading through the SP2K thread, lots of folks have mentioned it being an excellent match for Z1R.

 

[nieveulv]

Just wanted to put a note out there about power to drive these... I have a Tempotec Sonata HD Pro ($40 amp/dac, $60 w/ mfi certified) that measures supremely well per ASR, and at 63 mw @ 33 ohms it drives these pretty well. At least I don't feel it's giving anything up to a mojo which was measured 410 mw @ 33 ohm (~8x the power) before clipping, which lays waste to what it seems many DAPs do on balanced. Compared to the mojo, not only does it sound similarly full, but it sounds cleaner/more incisive in the way you might expect a much better DAC to perform.

From the Sony DAPs I've seen measured there, they are very poor on the unbalanced outs, about half the amount of power as this thumb-drive type DAC, so I wonder if that is part of the reason the ZR1s are seen as hard to drive? That's similar performance to an Apple dongle (31 mw @ 33 ohms) and using mine I do hear a notable step down in audio quality.

FWIW, driving the Sonata from my iPhone I'm roughly at 33-50% of the total volume depending on the material, guestimate landing somewhere in the 82-85 dB area.

EDIT: on closer listening, I stand corrected. The mojo is definitely fuller on some tracks that I can hear. It looks like I'll be reverting to using the mojo, which I haven't used in years.

You were saying the mojo sounds fuller on "some" tracks....does it mean for alot of music, the tempotec can actually be equal or better than the mojo?
Wondering how a dongle like the ibasso dc04 with Output Power: 195mW @ 32Ω balanced can drive the ier-z1r for a very simple portable system
Anyone tried this combo yet?



iBasso DC04 — HiFiGo

 

[bobeau]

You were saying the mojo sounds fuller on "some" tracks....does it mean for alot of music, the tempotec can actually be equal or better than the mojo?
Wondering how a dongle like the ibasso dc04 with Output Power: 195mW @ 32Ω balanced can drive the ier-z1r for a very simple portable system
Anyone tried this combo yet?



iBasso DC04 — HiFiGo

I’ve gone back and forth on this... the Sonata seems cleaner sounding, but bass can be mushy and the top end recessed on some tracks - in a way that sound is a bit disjointed, which seems like a lack of power. The mojo is more cohesive and powerful but not as smooth.

That dongle could work quite well. For my use I need something that can use my iPhone as a source.

 

[Vu Chau]

The iPhone (12) dongle can do lots of good here. I use it regularly with my IER-Z1R for pop music. It can forward a lot of solid bass response (but lacking a little bit of warmth/airiness around the mids). I think that's one of the possible explanations for people saying the IER-Z1R has a V curve / thin mids.

Does anyone here use foobar2000 on their DAP? I have a nicely-configured foobar2000 EQ preset that I'd like to use in my next DAP. That's actually one of my hesitations for not jumping to the WM1A directly, seeing it uses Sony's OS and player and I'd be forced to use whatever Sony provides.