[JoelWilcox]

I just bought the ibasso 300. Was going back and forth between r8 and maybe r6 to be more portable and the 300 seemed to get a little better review than r8 (or at least equal) for far less. I ended up going wirh thr Mest mkii as well. Hope it lives up to the hype!

I doubt you'll be disappointed. What tipped it for me was interchangeable amps (I'm using amp12 in a Line Out configuration) and the parametric EQ. Seemed well-priced vs the competition. So the Mest joins a Z1R?

 

[gerelmx1986]

Holy crap! $8500 for a desktop dac!

Yes that price makes me cry lol because i want one so bad

 

[cat3600]

Yes that price makes me cry lol because i want one so bad

When I bought mine last year I had buyers remorse for a good few months as it was my first step into a headphone gig I was only into home hi-fi but slowly started appreciating the DMP its truly a marvelous piece of audio gear

 

[JoshG1217]

I doubt you'll be disappointed. What tipped it for me was interchangeable amps (I'm using amp12 in a Line Out configuration) and the parametric EQ. Seemed well-priced vs the competition. So the Mest joins a Z1R?

No, Z1R at the moment. I messaged everyone hear that had one for sale, but didn't get any replies. Weird. z5 and Clairvoyance have been my previous favs, so I think I would like the Z1r. Currently bidding on a set on ebay for $1000. I can't keep both though. I do well, but that's just too much to spend on headphones.

Can I pick your brain on DX300? Do you use line out to speakers? What's the value of the different amp? Someone else told me the dx300 won't drive the Hifiman HE6 SE v2 I have on order. Does the amp module pump out more power?

Thanks!

 

[JoelWilcox]

No, Z1R at the moment. I messaged everyone hear that had one for sale, but didn't get any replies. Weird. z5 and Clairvoyance have been my previous favs, so I think I would like the Z1r. Currently bidding on a set on ebay for $1000. I can't keep both though. I do well, but that's just too much to spend on headphones.

Can I pick your brain on DX300? Do you use line out to speakers? What's the value of the different amp? Someone else told me the dx300 won't drive the Hifiman HE6 SE v2 I have on order. Does the amp module pump out more power?

Thanks!

Hey, Josh. How about posting these questions in the DX300 thread? I can reply to you there but, more important, so can other DX300 users. https://www.head-fi.org/threads/iba...gb-rom-new-firmware-09-29-21-1-04-305.943221/ Cheers.

 

[gerelmx1986]

No, Z1R at the moment. I messaged everyone hear that had one for sale, but didn't get any replies. Weird. z5 and Clairvoyance have been my previous favs, so I think I would like the Z1r. Currently bidding on a set on ebay for $1000. I can't keep both though. I do well, but that's just too much to spend on headphones.

Can I pick your brain on DX300? Do you use line out to speakers? What's the value of the different amp? Someone else told me the dx300 won't drive the Hifiman HE6 SE v2 I have on order. Does the amp module pump out more power?

Thanks!

IMO the IER-Z1R is what the Z5 should have been, iswhat i wanted to achieve with Z5.

 

[JoshG1217]

IMO the IER-Z1R is what the Z5 should have been, iswhat i wanted to achieve with Z5.

Well, I may end up with both.

 

[JoshG1217]

So I bit thr bullet and got both the mest mkii and the Z1r. I'm a moderate sony fan of. Z5 has been my favorite and the first iem that I thought didn't sound like trash. Little did I know at the time how important the right tips were. I also have the Wfxm4 and think they are great, but the aonic 50 is a noticeable improvement, which got me started down this road. Not sure if I'll end up keeping both, as spent a lot between these, the dx300, the he 6se and the ifi blu go, but really looking forward to trying it all out.

 

[xjaynine]

So I bit thr bullet and got both the mest mkii and the Z1r. I'm a moderate sony fan of. Z5 has been my favorite and the first iem that I thought didn't sound like trash. Little did I know at the time how important the right tips were. I also have the Wfxm4 and think they are great, but the aonic 50 is a noticeable improvement, which got me started down this road. Not sure if I'll end up keeping both, as spent a lot between these, the dx300, the he 6se and the ifi blu go, but really looking forward to trying it all out.

If you enjoyed the Z5, I think you'll like the Z1R, provided you can get a good fit / seal.

The IER inherits the smooth and relaxed signature that the Z5 is known for, and adds refinements to detail retrieval, layering. I feel that the IER's soundstage is not as wide as the Z5's but it makes up for it with additional height.

I also think the highs on the IER are brighter too which adds to the sense of crisper details and definition.

 

[Neweymatt]

So I bit thr bullet and got both the mest mkii and the Z1r. I'm a moderate sony fan of. Z5 has been my favorite and the first iem that I thought didn't sound like trash. Little did I know at the time how important the right tips were. I also have the Wfxm4 and think they are great, but the aonic 50 is a noticeable improvement, which got me started down this road. Not sure if I'll end up keeping both, as spent a lot between these, the dx300, the he 6se and the ifi blu go, but really looking forward to trying it all out.

Well played!

I've had my eye on MEST Mk2 for a while, I'll be keen to hear your impressions vs the Z1R...

 

[JoshG1217]

Well played!

I've had my eye on MEST Mk2 for a while, I'll be keen to hear your impressions vs the Z1R...

I'll definitely post some! I'm pretty picky. I definitely like wide stage and effective bass, which is why thr Z5 were my early favorites (and dt 1770 for an overear, though the bass was too loose). Dx300 comes tomorrow, mest Monday and z1r Friday, so I'll definitely post something next weekend.

 

[gerelmx1986]

I am predicting that @JoshG1217 will keep the Z1R

 

[geordieman]

I'll definitely post some! I'm pretty picky. I definitely like wide stage and effective bass, which is why thr Z5 were my early favorites (and dt 1770 for an overear, though the bass was too loose). Dx300 comes tomorrow, mest Monday and z1r Friday, so I'll definitely post something next weekend.

I think you might be right I have done a similar thing.

I have a ibasso DX300 but with amp 12 both the Mest mkII and Z1R cost the same amount as the Sony was second hand but barely burnt in. I gave both of them a month using stock cable and tips on both. Sold the Mest after a month. (I might try the Custom at some point but not now)

Main reason was finding a tip on the Mest was hard with the ones supplied, one would sound great say with Metallica then I move to classical and the sound was poor. Change tips, Clasical sounds good but not rock or electronic music. I do have a vast collection of tips and went through a lot of them with the Mest, comfort was great but never found a happy spot at all with the tips. If you look at the last few pages on the Mest forum Tips take up a large amount of time.

The Sony stock cable stock silicone played with the sizes and bang everything to me sounded great. I must say I think I am lucky as I find the Sony comfortable to wear.

I gave them both a good try for a month, this was not an overnight decision and it came down to this- The Sony IER Z1R made the hair on the back of my neck stand up and the Mest never did and I think at the end of the day this is what this hobby is all about IMHO

On a side note I have now moded my amp12 with the Whitigir Amp12 EX mod and the synergy with the Z1R is now phenomenal (this can be found on the DX300 forum)
Thank you all for your help in this journey.

 

[JoshG1217]

I think you might be right I have done a similar thing.

I have a ibasso DX300 but with amp 12 both the Mest mkII and Z1R cost the same amount as the Sony was second hand but barely burnt in. I gave both of them a month using stock cable and tips on both. Sold the Mest after a month. (I might try the Custom at some point but not now)

Main reason was finding a tip on the Mest was hard with the ones supplied, one would sound great say with Metallica then I move to classical and the sound was poor. Change tips, Clasical sounds good but not rock or electronic music. I do have a vast collection of tips and went through a lot of them with the Mest, comfort was great but never found a happy spot at all with the tips. If you look at the last few pages on the Mest forum Tips take up a large amount of time.

The Sony stock cable stock silicone played with the sizes and bang everything to me sounded great. I must say I think I am lucky as I find the Sony comfortable to wear.

I gave them both a good try for a month, this was not an overnight decision and it came down to this- The Sony IER Z1R made the hair on the back of my neck stand up and the Mest never did and I think at the end of the day this is what this hobby is all about IMHO

On a side note I have now moded my amp12 with the Whitigir Amp12 EX mod and the synergy with the Z1R is now phenomenal (this can be found on the DX300 forum)
Thank you all for your help in this journey.

There you go. I don't want to keep both because of sheer cost, but we will see. I knew if I didn't get both to compare, I would always wonder and I want this to be my endgame purchase. I don't have a legit closed back though, so whichever I end up selling may go toward thr Camofire audio cascade as I have read good things about it.

Looking forward to comparing!

 

[falcon1125]

Yin Yang

side note: curious to listen to MKII as well but i dont plan on cheating on this one yet. Try to hold onto the marriage as long as I can. (Of course the main reason is budget )