[rlw6534]

Hello Everyone!

Does Dolby Atmos work on the NW-WM1AM2? Having a ZX500 it was kind of disappointing that most of my Atmos albums on apple music only played through the stereo mix. Would appreciate a confirmation,

Thanks

AFAIK, Atmos on Android is only available on high-end smartphones. I'm not aware of any DAP that supports it. FYI, it works if you use an Apple device as a source to an external DAC.

 

[cFkoauvicGBK7o]

Yes, I am sure Sony looked to save a few bucks on their golden brick flagship DAP by deliberately choosing a cheaper CPU and not really caring about audio quality. Everything about the build and price of this unit (and the 1AM2) suggests that Sony primarily cares about the bottom line over the short term. Long-term and reputation be damned, I hear those engineers saying. They also know that the market for these gold bars is made up of fools who cannot tell the difference between $10 earbuds and the Sennheiser HE-1, so why not sneak it by them, they'll never know.

That all sounds logical.

I've worked on onboard software management on space crafts for ten years now. I'm not claiming to know everything about electrical engineering because I don't but a lot of the "concerns" expressed in this thread don't even have merit in my work despite being mission critical software. I'm sure there are other embedded engineers on here that can verify/discuss.

Unless you personally have two devices where the only difference is the CPU (pretty sure no such device exists) then I don't know how you can so confidently say that the CPU affects the sound quality.

 

[Sonywalkmanuser]

I've worked on onboard software management on space crafts for ten years now. I'm not claiming to know everything about electrical engineering because I don't but a lot of the "concerns" expressed in this thread don't even have merit in my work despite being mission critical software. I'm sure there are other embedded engineers on here that can verify/discuss.

Unless you personally have two devices where the only difference is the CPU (pretty sure no such device exists) then I don't know how you can so confidently say that the CPU affects the sound quality.

Although the ARM based SOC are much more smaller and runs on 5volt battery, it doesn’t mean it won’t create alot of noise during processing. It’s just that you can’t hear them and you have rely on microphones, oscilloscopes or voltmeters to detect them.

it is even possible to extract encryption keys from a computer’s processing noise by placing a microphone near it:
http://www.cs.tau.ac.il/~tromer/acoustic/

Q&A​

Q1: What information is leaked?​

​

This depends on the specific computer hardware. We have tested numerous laptops, and several desktops.

• In almost all machines, it is possible to distinguish an idle CPU (x86 "HLT") from a busy CPU.
• On many machines, it is moreover possible to distinguish different patterns of CPU operations and different programs.
• Using GnuPG as our study case, we can, on some machines:
  • distinguish between the acoustic signature of different RSA secret keys (signing or decryption), and
  • fully extract decryption keys, by measuring the sound the machine makes during decryption of chosen ciphertexts.

Q2: What is making the noise?​

The acoustic signal of interest is generated by vibration of electronic components (capacitors and coils) in the computer's voltage regulation circuit, as it struggles to supply constant voltage to the CPU.

When different secret keys are used for decryption, they cause different patterns of CPU operations, which draw different amounts of power. The voltage regulator changes its behavior to maintain a stable voltage to the CPU despite the changes in power draw, and this alters the electric currents and voltages inside the voltage regulator itself. Those electric fluctuations cause mechanical vibrations in the electronic component, and the vibrations are transmitted into the air as sound waves.

The relevant signal is not caused by mechanical components such as the fan or hard disk, nor by the laptop's internal speaker.

 

[FreeTime]

uh, im just a pc enthusiast who likes to DIY and observe technological advancement. Think Sony is not really skimping on the CPU, else they would not have used a better CPU for the upcoming 707. If im not wrong, WM2 is using the same CPU as walkman 507. Maybe some have see the picture, 707 will be the pioneer to test the new CPU and iron out all the bugs, then it will be use in the next flagship. That's the advantage of a big company which have many models of product.

Stability of a flagship product is very important, it will make or break the company. Does it affect SQ, it depends how ones see it, if they can update the drivers numerous times and can control it upside down and integrate it flawlessly with other components, they can do wonder with it. 707 will be their next project, there is always a price to pay to be a pioneer, 507 owners will know what i mean.

 

[andrewski]

That'd be really funny if the went from 99.96% to 99.99% copper, then used the cheapest cpu they could find.

 

[Sonywalkmanuser]

uh, im just a pc enthusiast who likes to DIY and observe technological advancement. Think Sony is not really skimping on the CPU, else they would not have used a better CPU for the upcoming 707. If im not wrong, WM2 is using the same CPU as walkman 507. Maybe some have see the picture, 707 will be the pioneer to test the new CPU and iron out all the bugs, then it will be use in the next flagship. That's the advantage of a big company which have many models of product.

Stability of a flagship product is very important, it will make or break the company. Does it affect SQ, it depends how ones see it, if they can update the drivers numerous times and can control it upside down and integrate it flawlessly with other components, they can do wonder with it. 707 will be their next project, there is always a price to pay to be a pioneer, 507 owners will know what i mean.

Actually the M2 Walkman is not running on the same SOC as the ZX507

ZX507 runs on NXP I.mx8 mini
M2 Walkman runs on NXP I.mx8 Plus

The I.mx8 plus SOC has a new Neural Processor Unit and a more higher grade GPU.
Both still are using the same A53 quad cpu cores.

The biggest difference is the AI computational processing power of the I.mx8 plus, which is rated at 2.3 Tera operations per second for the NPU. Even the 8 core Qualcomm snapdragon 660 SOC with its hexagon 680 DSP on the ZX707 is unable to match the AI processing power efficiency of this NXP I.mx8 plus SOC due to its NPU.

 

[Sonywalkmanuser]

WM1AM2 battery life impact

• The battery life may become about 20% shorter when the [High-Res streaming] function is active.

https://helpguide.sony.net/dmp/nwwm1m2/v1/en/contents/TP1000521634.html

ZX707 Battery life impact

• The battery life may become about 40% shorter when the [High-Res streaming] function is active.

https://helpguide.sony.net/dmp/1302/v1/en/contents/TP1000733571.html

Why does ZX707 consume much more battery than WM1AM2 for hi-res streaming mode? I think it is very likely due to less power efficiency of the Qualcomm SOC vs the NXP SOC for the hi-res streaming mode’s sound processing, which I think might be also related to the NXP having the more power efficient NPU. Which means it is highly likely that Sony has utilised some form of AI processing for hi-res streaming mode.

And yes the above sentences is intentionally written in this way to confuse people.

 

[Sonywalkmanuser]

That'd be really funny if the went from 99.96% to 99.99% copper, then used the shi**est cpu they could find.

But Sony did use the most flimsy microSD tray they can find for the M2 Walkman! This is a fact.

Fake sony engineer interview: we have tried many types of microSD tray and found the one that does not introduce vibrations to the Walkman, no doubt it looks flimsy but it’s for sound quality.

 

[mhaapl]

Just thinking when the SD card arrives tomorrow - About streaming apps (mainly Apple Music) can I choose the Sd card for storage for offline use?

 

[psikey]

Well you can with Tidal, Amazon Music, Spotify so I'd imagine so.

 

[buzzlulu]

I have been more or less following this thread since inception however, at 638 pages, it is easy to not pay detailed attention.
I have owned a 1Z since release however I must admit it does not see frequent use - I only take it with me when going to my second home.
I use my Utopia exclusively in DAC mode streaming Qobuz from my iPhone however I must admit I am not fond of the wonky nature of connectivity -

iPhone > Apple CCK cable > USB cable > tethered to the Walkman.

Things would be much "cleaner" with the new 1ZM2 with native Qobuz streaming and the Utopia plugged directly in. I wonder if I am crazy and should simply soldier on as it - extra cables and all. I have concerns about the "lag" in using the onboard apps (Qobuz) as the iPhone Qobuz app runs perfectly. I also gather the sound signature has changed and things are "cleaner" but not necessarily better.

Can anyone bring me up to date on current thoughts on the original vs. the new Z

 

[Andricop]

I also thought that the Z1R would not be a comfy fit but really it is no bother with the right tips.

Which tips are you using?

 

[WAmadeusM]

If you can buy a 1AM2, Z1R you're not poor

My 1AM2 is most expensive DAP I've owned after sending the 1ZM2 back, and the Sony IER-M9's are most costly IEM I've paid for as I bought the K10U (rrp £1700) 2nd hand.why

If you can buy a 1AM2, Z1R you're not poor

My 1AM2 is most expensive DAP I've owned after sending the 1ZM2 back, and the Sony IER-M9's are most costly IEM I've paid for as I bought the K10U (rrp £1700) 2nd hand.

Why did the 1ZM2 get shown the door?

 

[FranckZZZ]

INTER

 

[Whitigir]

I have been more or less following this thread since inception however, at 638 pages, it is easy to not pay detailed attention.
I have owned a 1Z since release however I must admit it does not see frequent use - I only take it with me when going to my second home.
I use my Utopia exclusively in DAC mode streaming Qobuz from my iPhone however I must admit I am not fond of the wonky nature of connectivity -

iPhone > Apple CCK cable > USB cable > tethered to the Walkman.

Things would be much "cleaner" with the new 1ZM2 with native Qobuz streaming and the Utopia plugged directly in. I wonder if I am crazy and should simply soldier on as it - extra cables and all. I have concerns about the "lag" in using the onboard apps (Qobuz) as the iPhone Qobuz app runs perfectly. I also gather the sound signature has changed and things are "cleaner" but not necessarily better.

Can anyone bring me up to date on current thoughts on the original vs. the new Z

First and foremost, ZM2 is miles better than 1Z