Sony MDR-Z7M2 Headphone Thread
Aug 20, 2019 at 11:52 PM Post #796 of 2,440
Unfortunately, the Z7M2 didn't do anything for me.

The TH-X00 Ebony (or the Mahogany, they sound nearly identical) would definitely be my pick over the Z7M2.

And then get some Dekoni Hybrid pads and Attenuation rings, and they will blow the Z7M2 out of the water! :L3000:
 
Aug 22, 2019 at 8:26 AM Post #797 of 2,440
Unfortunately, the Z7M2 didn't do anything for me.

The TH-X00 Ebony (or the Mahogany, they sound nearly identical) would definitely be my pick over the Z7M2.

And then get some Dekoni Hybrid pads and Attenuation rings, and they will blow the Z7M2 out of the water! :L3000:

Well now, I casually listened to the Z7M2 a week ago and I was seriously impressed, almost buy them on the spot. If the Ebony are even better than that; better bass, highs, then I should just stop perusing and get the Ebony right away.
 
Aug 22, 2019 at 12:25 PM Post #798 of 2,440
Well now, I casually listened to the Z7M2 a week ago and I was seriously impressed, almost buy them on the spot. If the Ebony are even better than that; better bass, highs, then I should just stop perusing and get the Ebony right away.
By all means, buy what sounds good to you.

Actually, one thing that I've learned in this hobby is that brief first impressions are rarely 100% accurate. So what I always recommend is to start with a headphone that you already know that you like (like the Z7M2), and then as budget allows, buy a second headphone that you are interested in, live with them both for a while, and then keep the one that you like best.

By having the two headphones side-by-side for an extended amount of time, you can know exactly how they compare to each other.
 
Aug 22, 2019 at 4:16 PM Post #799 of 2,440
By all means, buy what sounds good to you.

Actually, one thing that I've learned in this hobby is that brief first impressions are rarely 100% accurate. So what I always recommend is to start with a headphone that you already know that you like (like the Z7M2), and then as budget allows, buy a second headphone that you are interested in, live with them both for a while, and then keep the one that you like best.

By having the two headphones side-by-side for an extended amount of time, you can know exactly how they compare to each other.

It's simply not possible for me to get both and return either of them, return policies here for stuff like headphones are less than...generous. No one I know would even buy one of my headphones, so resell isn't a viable option either. Once the choice is made I have to commit.

The Z7M2 has a great advantage over the Ebony in my case because I have a Sony WM1A and it comes with a 4.4mm cable which is a huge plus, it fits right into my "ecosystem." Also, I can walk out of the store with my headphones, no need to wait.

I don't know if it's too much to ask. But could you please elaborate a bit more on the details of why the Z7M2 fell short against the Ebony? Like I said thr Z7M2 made my jaw drop and if the Ebony tops that...I would like to know more if possible.


Thank you in advance.
 
Aug 22, 2019 at 5:24 PM Post #800 of 2,440
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Aug 22, 2019 at 5:44 PM Post #801 of 2,440
It's simply not possible for me to get both and return either of them, return policies here for stuff like headphones are less than...generous. No one I know would even buy one of my headphones, so resell isn't a viable option either. Once the choice is made I have to commit.

The Z7M2 has a great advantage over the Ebony in my case because I have a Sony WM1A and it comes with a 4.4mm cable which is a huge plus, it fits right into my "ecosystem." Also, I can walk out of the store with my headphones, no need to wait.

I don't know if it's too much to ask. But could you please elaborate a bit more on the details of why the Z7M2 fell short against the Ebony? Like I said thr Z7M2 made my jaw drop and if the Ebony tops that...I would like to know more if possible.


Thank you in advance.

The Z7M2 and TH-X00 are definitely different sounding headphones. If my memory serves me, the Z7M2 are a more mellow sounding headphone. But they are a big improvement over the original Z7, which sounded downright muddy to me. The TH-X00 sounds more bold and up-front compared to the Z7M2.

With the stock pads, the TH-X00 does sound a little muffled in the mids, but still very good overall and quite enjoyable. Also, the stock pads are somewhat stiff and don't form a very good seal around your ears.

I own all of Dekoni's other pads for the TH-X00, and have compared them all directly against each other may times, and the Hybrids always sounded the most balanced to me.

Once the Dekoni Hybrid pads and Attenuation rings are installed, the overall SQ improves significantly across the board (approx. 25% improvement, if I had to put a number on it). And the vocal range becomes world-class in it's transparency and vividness.

Don't get me wrong, the Z7M2's are not bad headphones at all. They are well built and are super-comfortable. They just sounded overly mellow for my personal taste. But if you prefer a more smooth-and-mellow kind of sound, then the Z7M2 will be the better choice. But if you want a more up-front and vivid sound, the stock TH-X00 is very good, and with the Hybrid pads and rings, they become something quite special, IMHO.

PS - If you are buying the newest version of the TH-X00 (the TR-X00), they have removable cables. It shouldn't be too hard to find a cable with a 4.4mm plug that will work with the TR-X00.
 
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Aug 22, 2019 at 7:40 PM Post #802 of 2,440
The Z7M2 and TH-X00 are definitely different sounding headphones. If my memory serves me, the Z7M2 are a more mellow sounding headphone. But they are big improvement over the original Z7, which sounded downright muddy to me. The TH-X00 sounds more bold and up-front compared to the Z7M2.

With the stock pads, the TH-X00 does sound a little muffled in the mids, but still very good overall and quite enjoyable. Also, the stock pads are somewhat stiff and don't form a very good seal around your ears.

I own all of Dekoni's other pads for the TH-X00, and have compared them all directly against each other may times, and the Hybrids always sounded the most balanced to me.

Once the Dekoni Hybrid pads and Attenuation rings are installed, the overall SQ improves significantly across the board (approx. 25% improvement, if I had to put a number on it). And the vocal range becomes world-class in it's transparency and vividness.

Don't get me wrong, the Z7M2's are not bad headphones at all. They are well built and are super-comfortable. They just sounded overly mellow for my personal taste. But if you prefer a more smooth-and-mellow kind of sound, then the Z7M2 will be the better choice. But if you want a more up-front and vivid sound, the stock TH-X00 is very good, and with the Hybrid pads and rings, they become something quite special, IMHO.

PS - If you are buying the newest version of the TH-X00 (the TR-X00), they have removable cables. It shouldn't be too hard to find a cable with a 4.4mm plug that will work with the TR-X00.

Thank you for that detailed reply, it's exactly the kind of information I need. I auditioned the Z7M2 again today, this store had the 4.4mm cable on their demo piece.

I gave my self 30 minutes with the equipment, today they didn't click with me as much as last week. A noisy store isn't the most ideal place to sample headphones, but they just didn't shine as last time. I'll give it one more go this weekend, I'll carry my Hugo and my T1.1 with Auteur pads and try as much as possible to get a good comparison.

This particular pair of Z7M2 didn't deliver the bass the way I like it, that first bass line of West Of Hollywood was...not quite there.
 
Aug 22, 2019 at 9:11 PM Post #803 of 2,440
MDR-Z7M2 is a nicely built headphone with high comfort rating.. But unfortunately, the SQ leaves much to be desired.. Even headphone 1/3 its price sounds better..
 
Aug 22, 2019 at 9:11 PM Post #804 of 2,440
This particular pair of Z7M2 didn't deliver the bass the way I like it, that first bass line of West Of Hollywood was...not quite there.

Even though I'm not the biggest fan of Steely Dan/Donald Fagen, IMO, the two best-sounding bass test-tracks of theirs is Steely Dan - Godwacker (gotta love that title :rolling_eyes:) and Donald Fagen - Morph the Cat.

Check 'em out, if you haven't already! :L3000:
 
Aug 24, 2019 at 9:41 PM Post #805 of 2,440
Thank you for that detailed reply, it's exactly the kind of information I need. I auditioned the Z7M2 again today, this store had the 4.4mm cable on their demo piece.

I gave my self 30 minutes with the equipment, today they didn't click with me as much as last week. A noisy store isn't the most ideal place to sample headphones, but they just didn't shine as last time. I'll give it one more go this weekend, I'll carry my Hugo and my T1.1 with Auteur pads and try as much as possible to get a good comparison.

This particular pair of Z7M2 didn't deliver the bass the way I like it, that first bass line of West Of Hollywood was...not quite there.

Since you mentioned you have a Hugo, I strongly suggest you try Z7M2 again attached with Kimber Kable, if the store you're going have it. You'll be amaze Z7M2+Kimber Kable+Hugo/Mojo setup sounded absolutely fantastic with more soundstage, more airiness, more details and much cleaner and sweeter, like the way Audeze LCD2c open back sounded (with an upgraded cable). Only different is LCD2c soundstage still slightly wider (coz open back design), but only can be use in a quiet room, where Z7M2 can be use almost anywhere and not to mention it is so much lighter and super comfort to wear for short and prolong hours of music listening than any other wired headphones I know of.
 
Aug 24, 2019 at 10:54 PM Post #806 of 2,440
Tried the Z7M2 again today, playback was from the WM1A and output from a Hugo. No time really to get a Kimber Kable. This particular headphone sounded better than the one in the other store; on a side note, the guys at the Sony store were like children when I took out the Hugo to connect my T1 and the Z7M2, "I never thought I'd see one of these live." They listened to everything on their own for around 5 minutes, before we started swapping headphones back and forth to get a solid feeling of these two.

It took a bit of fiddling around with the volume control to get an "equal" sound pressure from both of the headphones, you can really feel the 600 Ohms of the T1 are no joke. Eventually I dialed in the volume so both headphones were equally loud, I had to this every time I switched headphones; this was by no means a scientifically controlled test, but hey, "We work with what we've got." Once both headphones; Z7M2 and T1 Gen 1 with Auteur Pads are heard at a similar sound pressure, the differences are not subtle but are not enough to warrant owning both of them at the same time.

When I told one of the Sony guys: "There really isn't that much difference between them, is it?" He shrugged and said: "...yeah" - with a kind of disappointed tone. They really wanted to make the sale, and honestly I also wanted to buy them, this pair of Z7M2 were at USD500, new! The Z7M2 bass is really nice, more elevated than the version of the T1 I'm using, but the bass on the Z7M2 is less focused, on the T1.1 with Auteur pads the bass wasn't as pronounced as on the Sony but it was more accurate, less blurry. Detail retrieval on both was more or less the same on the mid frequencies, but when it came to deliver nuances, the T1 trumped the Z7M2, no contest there.

This became the most evident when I played the first 30 seconds of Luminol by Steven Wilson on his "The Raven That Refused to Sing (And Other Stories)" album (great album by the way, it's one of the few works of the guy that I enjoy). I use this track to test, nuance, speed and BASS. On the T1 the first snare hits sounded so...natural as if the snare drum was in front of me, the decay of the snares could be easily picked up on the T1. The Z72M just couldn't do the same trick; mind you, it's open versus closed headphones and the T1 are known for its imaging and soundstage, but no matter how high I turned the volume up the Z7M2 just wasn't...there. When the speedy bass line came in, the Z7M2 just couldn't keep up, it fell apart, it still sounded REALLY good, but the T1 just owned that bass line.

After I heard that last song I unplugged everything, thanked the two Sony guys, apologized for getting their hopes up and left. The first guy really pushed the Z7M2 to me. "They give you more details! it has more bass! they're just better." I didn't talk much with that one, he did all the talking. The second guy was much more approachable and stayed with me throughout most of the audition, listening back and forth. Neither of them really knew Beyerdynamic, much less their flagship, but the second guy did pick up that he wasn't listening to ordinary headphones. I know the T1 nowadays aren't the same behemoth than a decade ago, but it's still a capable headphone.

At the end the second guy summed it up really well: "If you had heard the Z7M2 before the ones you have right now, it would be your first choice. But as it is now, you're better off tweaking other components of your chain than to own the Z7M2." I have to give it to him, it takes a massive amount of professionalism for a salesperson to say that someone shouldn't buy their product since it won't add much, nothing but respect for that guy.

One last note, they still have the WM1A at an scandalous price of USD540, NEW! it's an official Sony Store here in Colombia. Just leaving that here in case anyone wants to...complete that idea.
 
Aug 24, 2019 at 11:35 PM Post #807 of 2,440
Thanks for the impression. Just don’t forget that the Z7mkii does get better with a cable upgrade. It isn’t too shabby given it’s a closed design. Really not a fair fight if you ask me. One is open and one is closed.
 
Aug 24, 2019 at 11:52 PM Post #808 of 2,440
My take on z7m2 vs beyers is that beyers are obviously more V shaped and thus exciting, and z7m2 is more gentle. I started my journey with beyers, but when I used it for several hours why working near computer it gives me headache.
z7m2 is very enjoyable for long listening sessions, so I now use them for this, and switch to beyers for shorter sessions.
 
Aug 25, 2019 at 2:49 AM Post #809 of 2,440
the guys at the Sony store were like children when I took out the Hugo
It's very funny, why would they behave in that way?

Hmm.. Probably like no Kimber Kable available, the Sony store you went also don't have a DMP-Z1 which is far superior than Hugo, as the last time I've audited it.
 
Aug 25, 2019 at 1:48 PM Post #810 of 2,440
It's very funny, why would they behave in that way?

Hmm.. Probably like no Kimber Kable available, the Sony store you went also don't have a DMP-Z1 which is far superior than Hugo, as the last time I've audited it.
Not every store has the Sony DMP-Z1 though. In Thailand, it is only available at Sony Siam Center location only. To me this is quite stupid. It’s like u already paid for these billboard space but elected to only use one out of 30 available locations.
 

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