[psikey]

IER-Z1R having weak mids is largely overstated. it's there and it's not really behind bass/highs.

Still, too many concerns to spend £1K+ blind for me. The M9 seemed to be universally applauded and even makes it to Crinacle top S rating too (appreciate just one persons views) , which not many have! (Z1R does too). He only rates on sound, not fit or anything else.

Rank	Value Rating	Model	Price (MSRP)	Signature	Comments	Tone Grade	Technical Grade	Setup	Based on	Note weight

S	★	64 Audio A/U12t	2000	Neutral with bass boost	Amazing bass (for a BA), top-tier resolution and detail-oriented signature.	S	S	12BA	Music Sanctuary demo unit	0
S	★	Elysian Annihilator (2021)	3700	U-shaped		S	S	2EST 4BA 1DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit
S	★	Sony IER-Z1R	1700	Mild V-shape	Extended yet natural treble, realistic sub-bass focus and spacious imaging capabilities.	S	S	1BA 2DD	Personal unit	-3
S-	★	qdc 8SL/Gemini/Anole VX	1410 (8SL) 2180 (Gemini) 2560 (Anole VX)	Mild V-shape	Reference tuning with good tonality and top-level resolution. Similar tunings across top tier models.	S-	S+	8/10BA	Music Sanctuary demo unit	-2
S-	★★	ThieAudio Monarch	730	Neutral with bass boost	A clean-sounding monitor with a bass boost near-exclusively in the sub-frequencies.	S-	S	2EST 6BA 1DD	Review unit
S-	★	64 Audio Tia Trio	2300	Neutral with bass boost	A more correct sounding version of the Fourte with slight cutbacks in staging and sheer resolution.	S	S-	2BA 1DD	E1 demo unit	1
S-		Vision Ears Erlkonig	4800	Variable	Good tonality, high resolution and an overall decent all-rounder.	S-	S	13BA	Third party unit	2
S-	★★	Hidition Viento (B-mode, custom)	950	Variable	Best-in-class tuning and tonal balance with near-perfect coherency. Recommended as a custom-fit.	S+	A+	4BA	Zeppelin & Co demo unit	-3
S-		Empire Ears Odin	3400	Mild V-shape	A Legend X with the bass properly controlled and the resolution one step higher.	S-	S-	4EST 5BA 2DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit
S-	★	Sony IER-M9	1000	Warm neutral	Neutral tonality, highly coherent and decent detail pickup. The all-rounder of the IER lineup.	S-	S-	5BA	Showfloor demo unit	2

 

[royalemint]

Still, too many concerns to spend £1K+ blind for me. The M9 seemed to be universally applauded and even makes it to Crinacle top S rating too (appreciate just one persons views) , which not many have! (Z1R does too). He only rates on sound, not fit or anything else.

Rank	Value Rating	Model	Price (MSRP)	Signature	Comments	Tone Grade	Technical Grade	Setup	Based on	Note weight

S	★	64 Audio A/U12t	2000	Neutral with bass boost	Amazing bass (for a BA), top-tier resolution and detail-oriented signature.	S	S	12BA	Music Sanctuary demo unit	0
S	★	Elysian Annihilator (2021)	3700	U-shaped		S	S	2EST 4BA 1DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit
S	★	Sony IER-Z1R	1700	Mild V-shape	Extended yet natural treble, realistic sub-bass focus and spacious imaging capabilities.	S	S	1BA 2DD	Personal unit	-3
S-	★	qdc 8SL/Gemini/Anole VX	1410 (8SL) 2180 (Gemini) 2560 (Anole VX)	Mild V-shape	Reference tuning with good tonality and top-level resolution. Similar tunings across top tier models.	S-	S+	8/10BA	Music Sanctuary demo unit	-2
S-	★★	ThieAudio Monarch	730	Neutral with bass boost	A clean-sounding monitor with a bass boost near-exclusively in the sub-frequencies.	S-	S	2EST 6BA 1DD	Review unit
S-	★	64 Audio Tia Trio	2300	Neutral with bass boost	A more correct sounding version of the Fourte with slight cutbacks in staging and sheer resolution.	S	S-	2BA 1DD	E1 demo unit	1
S-		Vision Ears Erlkonig	4800	Variable	Good tonality, high resolution and an overall decent all-rounder.	S-	S	13BA	Third party unit	2
S-	★★	Hidition Viento (B-mode, custom)	950	Variable	Best-in-class tuning and tonal balance with near-perfect coherency. Recommended as a custom-fit.	S+	A+	4BA	Zeppelin & Co demo unit	-3
S-		Empire Ears Odin	3400	Mild V-shape	A Legend X with the bass properly controlled and the resolution one step higher.	S-	S-	4EST 5BA 2DD	Zeppelin & Co demo unit
S-	★	Sony IER-M9	1000	Warm neutral	Neutral tonality, highly coherent and decent detail pickup. The all-rounder of the IER lineup.	S-	S-	5BA	Showfloor demo unit	2

I would say trust your own ears, when it comes to sound preferences. Everyone hears differently.

 

[DAPpower]

Why is the WM1Z2 so damn expensive, Sony should have taken a different approach with pricing. The audiophile market is small but I'm sure a massive chunk of the market would of ended up purchasing these players if only they were more reasonably priced. Having a DAP backed by a massive company like Sony is a huge plus.

 

[Taylor_]

Why is the WM1Z2 so damn expensive, Sony should have taken a different approach with pricing. The audiophile market is small but I'm sure a massive chunk of the market would of ended up purchasing these players if only they were more reasonably priced. Having a DAP backed by a massive company like Sony is a huge plus.

Just go for WM1A M2.

 

[psikey]

I would say trust your own ears, when it comes to sound preferences. Everyone hears differently.

Totally agree, but sometimes have to take a leap of faith and buy blind, especially if not even sold in your own country so have to import. Normally I'd just try via Amazon with easy return.

 

[psikey]

Just go for WM1A M2.

Having had both, I've no regrets returning the Z for the A. Unless you really love the gold bling and have plenty on money that cost doesn't matter.

 

[royalemint]

Totally agree, but sometimes have to take a leap of faith and buy blind, especially if not even sold in your own country so have to import. Normally I'd just try via Amazon with easy return.

Buying blind is thrilling. It's like gambling lol. I bought Z1R blind, ended up selling it because it was too heavy for me.

I bought Craft Ears Aurum and Oriolus Szalayi blind, and got lucky on both gambles.

 

[klyzon]

deleted

 

[Kiats]

Why is the WM1Z2 so damn expensive, Sony should have taken a different approach with pricing. The audiophile market is small but I'm sure a massive chunk of the market would of ended up purchasing these players if only they were more reasonably priced. Having a DAP backed by a massive company like Sony is a huge plus.

That is why Sony has always had two models whether the first or second iteration: the 1A and the 1Z. Choice.

If you cannot hear the differences, then it does not really matter anyway.

 

[twister6]

Just saw something cool on FB. The guy behind DDhifi (Demond Ding), did a teardown of WM1ZM2, taking the whole thing apart in order to show how his ground pin adapter works. Only 3min video clip, but it is pretty cool to see the guts of ZM2. It's a video clip embedded into his FB post.

 

[klyzon]

Anyone using the miter leather case can confirm it fits a glass screen protector??

 

[ducnsh]

Anyone using the miter leather case can confirm it fits a glass screen protector??

No, it fits very well with device so there is no space for glass screen protector

 

[klyzon]

Does the m2 recognize replaygain tags?

 

[AudioAndCoffee]

Anyone using the miter leather case can confirm it fits a glass screen protector??

It can fit with glass protector.

 

[Andricop]

Does the m2 recognize replaygain tags?

Speaking about tags: any idea why does the M2 does not recognise lyrics added with Tagr?
Which software do you use to add lyrics to a song?