[Feilong4]

Long time since I've posted here but I feel compelled to write.

I finally reached my endgame headphones a few years back; the MDR-1A, so naturally I was excited to hear about the MDR-1AM2, and as soon as they went on sale for £150 (the same price I paid for my 1A) I got them, expecting improvements all round, with the intention to sell the MDR-1A soon after, easiest purchase decision ever!

But I have now returned the MDR-1AM2 and will be keeping my MDR-1A. Why?


The MDR-1AM2 are simultaneously better and worse than the MDR-1A. By far, my biggest disappointment is actually with Sony.

Only owners of the MDR-1A are going to know this, but all things considered, I feel they have predominately focused on making the new version cheaper, not better.

Just from visuals, anybody could tell that the 1AM2 is made with less parts - which I don't have a problem with actually, but then they go and make the carrying bag fabric instead of pleather, it's a laughable downgrade and it sets a really bad first impression. But the fact they had the nerve to raise the price as well, is unforgivable.

Then I got an amazing balanced cable with the 1AM2, that I can't even use... so effectively I lost a cable as part of the purchase.

So the optics or the extras aren't great, but that isn't what will made me return anything. It's that Sony fixed the one thing that made me pick the MDR-1A in the first place - the sound.


Here's what I think the key changes are:

The resonating chamber is smaller on the 1AM2 - bass has lost its depth and slam, supposedly the bass is tighter but this difference wasn't perceptible. The sound is less exciting and the fun of the 1A has been traded for balance. Reminds me why I dislike the Sennheiser Momentum 2.0.

The midrange has been brought forward slightly, okay, but it further reduces ability to run the 1AM2 louder without fatigue. I would still choose this signature over Sennheisers mind.

No perceptible difference in highs, no perceptible difference in transparency. I thought this was an improved driver, 2 years of further development?


What do I think the 1AM2 do better than the 1A?

They are even lighter! and just as comfortable (although the ear-pads still need modifying for extra depth). Seriously though, 1AM2 wins the contest for the highest SQ in the lightest circumferential headphones available.

There's no more squeaking, and the pleather on the ear cups now extends over the edges, which prevents scratches when placing the headphone down on a desk. Altogether the 1AM2 feels more robust for travelling - not that I consider any over-ear headphones fit for travelling.



Even with it's flaws, the previous 1A is still the champion for me. It's now exceptional value thanks to the price reduction and I would urge everybody getting the 1AM2 just to buy those instead, while you can.

Even without the value argument, I would still pick the 1A because I will not accept the newer 1AM2 being less enjoyable, just to solve a few negligible issues with the old model.



If Sony continues this direction to further mature the MDR-1 range over the next few years, they are entering a competition which they will lose. They will be on the muddy side of the critical balanced centrists. Whereby they should be positioning themselves as the highest quality consumer sound signature.

To those with a taste for balanced headphones... are you really going to shortlist Sony? or go straight to Audio-Technica or AKG? Sony might be pushing their sound signature into a balanced segment, but it will never be as transparent as others with their (correct) fixation on bass feel. Balanced sound is not what I bought these for.

I think your points are fair.

I thought the amount of accessories are very sparse. I'd gladly have them take away the balanced cable for a hardshell or even softshell carrying case like the one that comes with the Momentum M2. At full retail price, just a carrying bag is pretty disappointing.

I had the 1A to briefly compare with the 1AM2 and immensely preferred the 1AM2 because I like a more balanced sound.

The earpads are also a fair bit bigger on the 1A and go around my ear. The earpads on the 1AM2 touch the edges of my ear, but since the material is so soft I don't mind it. The 1AM2 is noticeably smaller and slimmer, and look less bulky on my head. I think the material choices on the 1A are more confidence inducing than on the 1AM2 - even then, it still feels very durable on the 1AM2.


Blue - 1A, Green - 1AM2

 

[Kabonfaiba]

I've never owned a 1R.

I was aware of it before I brought my 1A years ago and I probably discounted it because of not enough bass extension. The fact that a lot of reviewers who previously owned the 1R were disappointed by what Sony did with the 1A, played a major part in swaying me to decide to test the 1A in the first place.

I'm not familiar with the technicality behind different driver coatings but it seems like that could play a role. Tbh I think the largest change in sound difference between the MDR-1A and the 1AM2 is caused by the change in chamber size. I would say improvements on the 1AM2 driver probably made it more analytical than musical. A middle ground between the 1R and 1A.

The next level on my journey is probably the Meze 99, Fostex TH-610 or Denon AH-D7200.

The next level for people like Feilong4, might be something like a Shure SRH1540 - if I had to take a guess!

We have owners wanting different directions from the same headphone, hence the reason I blame Sony - who can't decide what they want the MDR-1 range to be.

 

[Feilong4]

The next level for people like Feilong4, might be something like a Shure SRH1540 - if I had to take a guess!

Possibly. I haven't tried an SRH1540, but I've read that they're pretty bassy. I've modded my MDR-1AM2 to reduce the bass to my liking so that may put more into perspective of what I like.

 

[sidecross]

I like the inclusion of the 4.4mm balanced cable as this is what I choose to use; buying a balanced cable post purchase would be much more than a hard case.

I am using a Fiio q5 and ordered am3b amp as I am upgrading to the 4.4mm for my balanced cables. My ears or subjective listening appreciates balanced cables.

 

[Feilong4]

To add onto my post of mods a couple of pages back, I made another revision to my mod. My previous mod although nice is just sounds a bit too overdamped and flat for on-the-go.

No problem, thanks for reading!

I'll have instructions for those interested here in this post.

Edit: I just realized I used the word "you/your" a lot when writing this, but I mean that towards anyone attempting the mod. Didn't want to sound too mean!

First off, just note that do this at your own risk. If you've modded before, this is a pretty simple mod and requires no soldering. Just don't accidentally poke the drivers nor pull the internal wiring too much.

To add on to what I mentioned in my other post above, the mod consists of a handful (or 0.5 grams) of Twaron angel hair damping material; 2 Koss Porta Pro earpad right up against each driver rear; and 2 Sony urethane rings placed around each driver on the front. The Sony urethane rings are used in Sony's studio monitors (MDR-V6, MDR-7506, etc.). The Twaron angel hair would help control earcup resonance which would show up as a bump at 5 kHz (or at least I think) and dampen the bass some, the Porta Pro earpad also helps dampen the bass and is placed right behind the driver - blocking the sound port and only letting some air through, and lastly the Sony urethane rings help tame the treble.

1. Firstly, remove the earpads. The earpads are attached via clips so they pop right off at the "seam" or crack where the arrow is pointing.



2. You can attach the Sony urethane rings here at this step or near the end of the mod. I would recommend doing it here as it acts as a barrier for the 3 screws you will be pulling out (so that it won't accidentally drop into the diaphragm/driver). The arrow points to the Sony urethane ring. There are little adhesives at the bottom of the rings so they stick right on. You can probably make your own though results may vary. You can buy them from a Sony parts site, but the price is a bit ridiculous (4.80 USD a piece + shipping IIRC). They definitely do help a LOT though. You can get the urethane rings here. Just type in "7506" under "Model Prefix starts with". The product description will be "RING URETHANE" and the part number is "211314901". Edit: Actually, if you click on hyperlink in the part number within the quotations, it'll take you straight to the part needed.



3. The screws are under the thin piece of damping material approximately in the circled location. Lift it up a bit and take the screws out. Just standard Phillips screws. Careful not to accidentally drop the screws into the driver.



4. The whole entire front baffle comes right off from the earcup cavity. Carefully lift the front baffle out. Careful not to yank and snap the internal wiring.



5. Place the Koss Porta Pro pad right against the driver - you can get from Amazon here. I have the little flaps on the pad towards the driver though not sure if it matters. The red arrow indicates the pad. The green arrow indicates the bass port that the edges of the Porta Pro pad will sit right against.



6. Place the Twaron angel hair damping material (the yellow stuff) within the earcup cavity - I'm not sure where my buddy got it from but I think you can get that here. I just realized now that it's very expensive :O I gotta really thank them now! Be sure to compress the material slightly to allow yourself to put the screws back into the threads - otherwise, it'll be very tough to screw them back up. A buddy of mine sent me these and pre-measured them since the material is supposedly very dependent on its mass - I don't know too much about the material so I'm inclined to believe him. You will need 2 blobs of the material measuring 0.5 grams - if you have a micro scale, that'll work perfectly; if not, I'd just get a handful of 2 blobs of similar looking mass. Oh and also, don't breathe in the fibers.

As for alternatives, I'm not 100% sure what will replicate the same or similar results but I'd try cotton stuffing they use for stuffed animals.



7. Put the front baffle back over the earcup cavity and screw them back up. Make sure there's no fibers from the Twaron angel hair sticking out; not required but it just looks better not seeing any yellow fibers sticking out Check the top port for any fibers sticking out as well. If there is any sticking out, unscrew the front baffle back off and poke the fibers back in with a toothpick or a thin object.

8. If you're satisfied with the results, just repeat the steps for the other side. The other side is just a bit trickier since there's more internal wiring to deal with. Otherwise, it's the same thing.

I think that's pretty much it!

The steps are still the same but leaving out the Twaron Angel hair damping material and adhering a cut piece of a foam slab onto the earcup. The foam that I'm using has adhesive on it already.

I took out the Twaron Angel hair damping material and stuck on some thin foam slabs with adhesives onto the earcup. It seems to have brought up the treble just a bit - it seems to be consistent in my measurement trials but I didn't notice the tiny boost in treble.

I kept the Koss Sporta Pro earpad right next to the driver - the earpads needs to be held on tight by the screws otherwise the bass won't change all too much. There should be a bit of resistance for 2 of the screws as it will be digging into the Sporta Pro earpad. I have a tiny bit of blu-tack right on the stem of the bass port, though I'm not sure how much is affected by this since there's still the fabric covered port next to the stem of the bass port.

I kept the Sony urethane ring around the driver which again helps smoothen out the treble.




Blue - stock, Green - previous mod, Red - current mod


I like the headphones so much that I made a custom cable for them!

 

[Meshaboo]

Hi everyone!!

I read through this entire thread a few days ago and I'm so happy to say that I now own these babies!


First impressions:

1. They look gorgeous! Looks premium to me, but I could understand why others may have expected something more "classy" using different materials.

2. YES, they are EXTREMELY LIGHT!!!!!!!!!!!!!! WOW

3. THEY DON'T CLAMP MY HEAD and I actually have NO discomfort wearing my glasses with these. Tis a miracle because I've never had headphones that provided me this. So comfy!

4. Sounds pretty great out of the box, but I sure as heck ordered me the Meze 99 earpads for just in case, since I listen to mostly neo soul/hip hop and desire clean and deep bass. I actually REALLY like how I can kind of nestle my ears within the stock pads due to their shape. That's because I have smaller ears, though. The backs of my ears are oh so slightly touching the pads.

5. The 3.5mm cable looks well built and it's the nicest cable I've ever gotten with my headphones.


I only wish they folded up to be much more compact and that there was a hard case included. I purchased the case that a few of you recommended on Amazon... it sucks that I had to shell out another $50 for these headphones for ear pads and a case, but I got them at a bargain at $198.

Adding to that, the smooth traction of the adjustable band is bittersweet... I love how easily it moves, but I hate how easily it moves! If you catch my drift.

I also recently purchased the Cayin N3 and a majority of my iTunes library is AIFF. I'm slowly but surely making my way up to having a decent audiophile set up. So glad I have two hi-res audio tech. For a second, I thought about getting a DAC for my Macbook Pro, but then I remembered my N3 can also serve as a DAC!! Yay me The only other thing I need to start researching is a decent OTG device I can use with the N3.

Oh, just one more thing - I own the Brainwavz Hybrid earpads from when I had my V6. I may test them out on the 1am2 later today. I'll keep you all posted!

***EDIT***

Can anyone recommend a great 4.4mm to balanced 3.5mm adapter? I really want to use the balanced cable. I did see the Sony MUC-M12SB1cable being suggested on another site, but can’t find much more info that actually explains WHY I should get it.

Wanted to follow up on my post.

Still love these! Haha. I think the isolation is good for me, at least. I’m actually more for being able to hear my environment to some extent, because I live in a city and work in NYC and would love to hear just in case something wild is going on in the streets or in the subway.

I’ve worn them on the bus and train and also while sitting in the living room with the tv on and my mom talking loudly on the phone. I only had my Cayin N3 at 50 volume on Ldb and I couldn’t hear anything!! That was pretty amazing to me.

I also love how much quality and dynamic I can hear when listening at low - moderate volume. I can still hear/feel the bass and it has just as great an impact and clarity as if it were louder. I’ve never had that kind of experience in any headphone I’ve owned!

 

[sidecross]

I appreciate the change to 16 ohms from the mdr-1a 24 ohm specification.

 

[sergeant blackburn]

Using a somewhat newly acquired 1AM2 out of a pretty new ZX300 and I love this damn headphone. I loved it so much it made me buy a Z7M2 at nearly full retail. I used the Z7M2 for a month and sent it back today. I like the sound of the 1AM2 much better. I love the powerful bass and in your face sound signature of the 1AM2, the Z7M2 was too spacious for me and made the sound come off as dull.

if you love engaging bass so much, listen to mdr-1A. you might just send your 1Am2 back

 

[FrankieZappa]

I appreciate the change to 16 ohms from the mdr-1a 24 ohm specification.

How come?

 

[sidecross]

Easier to drive even with my iphone se.

 

[RyanM]

I've never owned a 1R.

I was aware of it before I brought my 1A years ago and I probably discounted it because of not enough bass extension. The fact that a lot of reviewers who previously owned the 1R were disappointed by what Sony did with the 1A, played a major part in swaying me to decide to test the 1A in the first place.

I'm not familiar with the technicality behind different driver coatings but it seems like that could play a role. Tbh I think the largest change in sound difference between the MDR-1A and the 1AM2 is caused by the change in chamber size. I would say improvements on the 1AM2 driver probably made it more analytical than musical. A middle ground between the 1R and 1A.

The next level on my journey is probably the Meze 99, Fostex TH-610 or Denon AH-D7200.

The next level for people like Feilong4, might be something like a Shure SRH1540 - if I had to take a guess!

We have owners wanting different directions from the same headphone, hence the reason I blame Sony - who can't decide what they want the MDR-1 range to be.

I would be very careful about with regards to the Meze 99 Classics/Neo - if you can try it first that would be ideal. I have the Neo's and saying that the bass is laughably bloated is, er, an understatement. It's to the point where they are damaging to your ears at any reasonable volume, without immediate EQ. Also, if you EQ you'll need to know what you're doing - the recommended EQ by Metal571 does - where he suggests flooring 300 makes the 99's sound anemic IMO. There's also some issues with the treble - it could be my ears - as I may be sensitive in a peaked region, but they cause my tinnitus to flair up and my ears to ring. Aside from that though, the treble is grainy in direct comparison to the MDR-1A (first gen). I find the tuning of the MDR-1A to be much, much better. As is the comfort.

Back to the subject - I'll throw some thoughts on the MDR-1A. I'll put them in this thread as the phones are so similar to the M2 and this thread is active.

- the pad swap with the Meze pads is not necessarily an improvement. I found that the sound changes for the worse. Firstly, the mids are pushed back and the precision of the treble tuning is changed. Additionally, the midbass is altered, but the midbass was never a dislike for me, so the alteration is not my cup of tea. The comfort is not improved IMO either. The Sony pads are softer, but depending on the size of your ear, yes, your lobe my be on the pad, but with the clamp force and the plushness of the pad, it only should become an issue after several hours of use. The Meze pads work for bigger ears, they are more firm and they change the sound enough that they present a completely different sound altogether. Whether you like it or not will depend on you and your ears of course. I didn't, but, I am not trying to discount anyone's findings. Anyways pad swapping is fun.

- I also just wanted to mention that using extra fine graphite lubricant is the only solution for a creaky MDR-1A or M2 for that matter. Someone mentioned this in one of these threads sometime ago and it's an awesome (but messy be careful!) fix.

 

[Venture Guy]

@Feilong4 brilliant modding efforts inspired me to give it a shot. I had some Dynamat Extreme laying around, and being a lazy man, I thought I would start with that. I used two pieces that are about 1.25 inches square. I cut slots for the cables and stuck them inside the back of the back of the cups. An amazing improvement! It really tones down the back wave reflections of the bass and mids. There is a slight mid bass hump which I toned down by inserting some speaker wool in the port holes. The nice thing is that you can get at the ports without opening up the cups. A small amount fixed that. I need to order the foam rings. One question for @Feilong4: When you order the rings from Sony, do you need to order two or do you get a pair with the part number you list?

 

[Feilong4]

@Feilong4 brilliant modding efforts inspired me to give it a shot. I had some Dynamat Extreme laying around, and being a lazy man, I thought I would start with that. I used two pieces that are about 1.25 inches square. I cut slots for the cables and stuck them inside the back of the back of the cups. An amazing improvement! It really tones down the back wave reflections of the bass and mids. There is a slight mid bass hump which I toned down by inserting some speaker wool in the port holes. The nice thing is that you can get at the ports without opening up the cups. A small amount fixed that. I need to order the foam rings. One question for @Feilong4: When you order the rings from Sony, do you need to order two or do you get a pair with the part number you list?

Thanks!

The rings are priced for each so you would have to order 2 of them.

 

[nogarder]

A simple question, if they had a similar price, 1A or 1AM2 and why?

Is one more comfortable than the other?

Comment that I would not make any changes/mod.

Nor will I use any DAC, only smartphone or Asus Xonar , fundamentally at home as headset

Thank you

 

[PaganDL]

Hi @nogarder,

Have never tried 1A but own 1AM2, I use this as among my reference headphones, by all reports, 1AM2 is better model but as never heard the 1A, can't comment how far this is true but from a design standpoint where comfort are concerned, 1AM2 is so light, it 'floats' when worn but is secure enough not to move unless one is a headbanger but all headphones do that but that's another story entirely.

Last thing, ridiculously easy to drive no problem.

Hope you have a great day !