[Cheradenine]

Btw; the Sony's were on sale for $229, picked them up, also had a $30 BB coupon..
To tell you how good these are, the last thing I needed was more headphones.

I like the 1AM2 a lot, its not easy finding a wired headphone with decent bass at it's price. I use mine with an IFI HipDac for listening to bassy electronic music like techno, its a lot of fun and no need for the bass boost button.

 

[ops V]

In my opinion, the Sony MDR-1AM2 are quite interesting headphones for portable use at a reasonable price. They are light and comfortable and don't require much amplification. They already come with a pretty decent balanced cable. And the last cherry on the cake - they sound more expensive than their price.

 

[MrNailhead]

^nicely done "Not so Fat Head"! I got mine around spring of 2019 - got them off eBay for like $150 - didn't fully realize how good of a deal it was - I think it was an open box store demo or something - came with the standard and balanced 4.4 cable and the soft carry case - never have had a single problem out of them - still use them pretty regular - I think they are an amazing set of headphones, especially for the price I paid, lol.

 

[haziee]

Can anybody here help compare the 1am2 to the b&o h6 2nd gens? Really curious which one is better in terms of sound

 

[Nuhapaatti]

Anyone got any luck finding replacement pads for the 1AM2? Can't get them shipped here to EU from Japan (if there's any left what so ever). Sony won't answer my tickets and I wouldn't like to change the sound signature by buying some 3rd party pads (though if someone has some intel about good replacement pads, I might consider). Love these cans so much and would like to have some fun times from time to time (most of the time I listen my music with R70x which is good cans too but very flat and MDR-1AM2's isn't that huge leap but just the spice I some times miss but the pads are so flaked down that cannot use them anymore).

 

[OCC7N]

Could these Sonys beat Sennheiser HD569 in sound quality?

It seems they are more portable which is a plus for me

 

[Cheradenine]

Could these Sonys beat Sennheiser HD569 in sound quality?

It seems they are more portable which is a plus for me

I think they mdr-1am2 is intended for the portable devices that many people are using for music but, they're not compact, the earcups swivel inwards making them more flat but, they don't fold which probably makes them more durable. They're absurdly light and build quality seems very good, it only has metal were its really necessary, they're nicer than they look in pics. The build seems quite similar to the mdr-m1st studio headphone.

Isolation isn't their strong point, they don't seem to leak much but they let more noise in than some other closed backs I've used. Those got hot quickly though and weren't great for long use. I can wear the mdr-1am2 for a long time with no discomfort or sweaty ears.

I use mine once or twice a week for several hours, I mostly use IEMs. I listen to various types of electronic music, most of it very bassy, they're ideal for it. I was very surprised at the bass power, I don't think there are many decent wired headphones in this price range that can deliver such big bass without extra gear and EQ software. The overall sound is not exactly the same but is like the xba-n3 though more bassy and a little warmer.

I haven't heard the hd569, I imagine that the Sennheiser isolates better. I also use a hd25 with an IFI Go Blu as a very durable lightweight set up for on the go. Its a great sounding headphone, more of an aggressive, in your face type of sound, the bass boost on the Go Blu really improves the fun, its too much with the mdr-1am2.

I have IEMs that need more power than the mdr-1am2 which is generally a good thing but, with some desktop amps it may be tricky to get the volume low enough unless you reduce the source volume. With the HipDac it goes from silent to as loud as I want it with a very short turn of the knob. Its nice to have two cables, I usually only use balanced with things that need the extra power and the mdr-1am2 doesn't need it though I like the chunky 4.4mm plug. I can't say for sure if I've noticed a difference in sound quality with balanced, to test it properly and be sure that a difference isn't just due to slightly increased volume, is a big chore to set up and I don't care enough to bother.

 

[OCC7N]

I think they mdr-1am2 is intended for the portable devices that many people are using for music but, they're not compact, the earcups swivel inwards making them more flat but, they don't fold which probably makes them more durable. They're absurdly light and build quality seems very good, it only has metal were its really necessary, they're nicer than they look in pics. The build seems quite similar to the mdr-m1st studio headphone.

Isolation isn't their strong point, they don't seem to leak much but they let more noise in than some other closed backs I've used. Those got hot quickly though and weren't great for long use. I can wear the mdr-1am2 for a long time with no discomfort or sweaty ears.

I use mine once or twice a week for several hours, I mostly use IEMs. I listen to various types of electronic music, most of it very bassy, they're ideal for it. I was very surprised at the bass power, I don't think there are many decent wired headphones in this price range that can deliver such big bass without extra gear and EQ software. The overall sound is not exactly the same but is like the xba-n3 though more bassy and a little warmer.

I haven't heard the hd569, I imagine that the Sennheiser isolates better. I also use a hd25 with an IFI Go Blu as a very durable lightweight set up for on the go. Its a great sounding headphone, more of an aggressive, in your face type of sound, the bass boost on the Go Blu really improves the fun, its too much with the mdr-1am2.

I have IEMs that need more power than the mdr-1am2 which is generally a good thing but, with some desktop amps it may be tricky to get the volume low enough unless you reduce the source volume. With the HipDac it goes from silent to as loud as I want it with a very short turn of the knob. Its nice to have two cables, I usually only use balanced with things that need the extra power and the mdr-1am2 doesn't need it though I like the chunky 4.4mm plug. I can't say for sure if I've noticed a difference in sound quality with balanced, to test it properly and be sure that a difference isn't just due to slightly increased volume, is a big chore to set up and I don't care enough to bother.

Thank you really much for the useful information. Is it really bassy? how about mid tone?

 

[dougms3]

Thank you really much for the useful information. Is it really bassy? how about mid tone?

Sony house sound is V shaped, warm, bassy, recessed mids and a tad bright.

I would say that they're pretty good for the price point but the issue is that the bass is quite loose and boomy and the treble is a bit peaky. I think these issues can be easily resolved with light mods. I find that plastic and thin metals tend to cause resonance. Plastic in particular vibrates alot and causes peakiness in higher frequencies and loose, muddy bass.

Also its not good if you have large ears like me. The foam material that sony uses on the pads creates nasty hot spots that was unbearable for me. The sony z7m2 has the same material on the earpads and I swapped those out immediately. Unfortunately, the pads on the 1am2 can't be swapped out so easily.

My opinion is that sony makes excellent drivers but the tuning seems incomplete, they could make it better but I feel like they make sure it doesn't so that it doesn't compete with other products in their lineup. Its really amazing that the driver can produce as much bass as it does for that size and with so little air space in the cup.

 

[Cheradenine]

Thank you really much for the useful information. Is it really bassy? how about mid tone?

Everyone has different ideas about bass, what some people describe as bass heavy, others may find bass light. Its not all sub bass which I think is a good thing, people seem to shy away from mid bass but a lot of music has very little sub bass in it so may sound feeble without decent mid bass, maybe its a fad. I listen to some electronic music that is barely audible with neutral headphones, its not composed or mixed for them, nor is a lot of modern music.

The mdr-1am2 has bass well covered. I use a variety of moderately priced IEMs known for decent bass like the Final E5000, Sony xba-n3, xba-a2 & a3, JVC ha-fx1100 and Campfire Audio Honeydew and others, the mdr-1am2 bass is in roughly the same territory for power. With the HipDac I can only take a few seconds with the bass boost on, its ridiculous but is a giggle. To be clear, I also enjoy classical, jazz and some rock music with it, its not like a stunt or gimmick bass were you just get a very loud one note drone, if there is very little bass presence in a track you don't get big bass, if there is a lot of it you really get a lot and it has good texture and tone.

I only recommend it to people who want a prominent bass sound or a warmish lightweight headphone that needs very little power.

 

[FYLegend]

Sony house sound is V shaped, warm, bassy, recessed mids and a tad bright.

I would say that they're pretty good for the price point but the issue is that the bass is quite loose and boomy and the treble is a bit peaky. I think these issues can be easily resolved with light mods. I find that plastic and thin metals tend to cause resonance. Plastic in particular vibrates alot and causes peakiness in higher frequencies and loose, muddy bass.

Also its not good if you have large ears like me. The foam material that sony uses on the pads creates nasty hot spots that was unbearable for me. The sony z7m2 has the same material on the earpads and I swapped those out immediately. Unfortunately, the pads on the 1am2 can't be swapped out so easily.

My opinion is that sony makes excellent drivers but the tuning seems incomplete, they could make it better but I feel like they make sure it doesn't so that it doesn't compete with other products in their lineup. Its really amazing that the driver can produce as much bass as it does for that size and with so little air space in the cup.

I generally find Sony's house sound more like an "n" shape in that it is rather warm with a rolled off , and this still held true for their 1000X lineup up until the XM4.

There were quite a few users who complained that the MDR-1A and MDR-1R sounded too dark and bloated in the midbass. At the same time there were also quite a few users who enjoyed their sound and were quite disappointed when the MDR-1AM2 was made to be more V-shaped. According to measurements the 1AM2 has deeper-reaching sub-bass than its predecessors, but compared to the bloaty mid-bass, it's not as apparent for everyone to hear. I came from the Audio-Technica MSR7 which broke down and was hoping for something with deeper bass but the same level of detail and was quite happy with the 1AM2 (though its V-shaped tuning is perhaps more comparable with the ATH-M50x). Looking back I do find it hard to justify the 250$ price point though and it being inflated to 400$ CAD today.

Before the 1AM2 the MDR-100AAP was the first real deviation for Sony with a brighter treble and a W-shaped signature (lower mids having a peak), though I still found its treble a bit too rolled off for my liking (I was very much into Audio-Technica's house sound at the time). Not sure if the future h.ear on headphones followed that though.

 

[OCC7N]

I got a very good deal on these headphones and I am thinking of parring them with Cayin RU6.

Hows that idea?
- I really need a good cheap portable setup

 

[digitalreferee]

I just came in possession of a cheap pair of the previous model to these, the MDR-1R. They are in pretty good condition and work great, but the pads are flaking hard at the moment. So I've got two questions: first is are the 1AM2 pads compatible with the 1R? And second is is it possible to get original 1AM2 pads from Sony or are there good aftermarket replacements that don't alter the sound too much?

 

[IXOYE]

The most boomy and bloated headphones I ever heard, I can't understand how anyone can like these, I sent them back to Amazon day after I got them.

 

[dougms3]

The most boomy and bloated headphones I ever heard, I can't understand how anyone can like these, I sent them back to Amazon day after I got them.

Agree that its boomy and bloated in stock form.

It can be significantly improved with some mods though.