[Dim666]

Hi

Does the NW WM1A work with 400gb cards?

Regards

Darren

yes it works I confirm

 

[397324]

Hi ezekiel77.

Thanks for the reply. I've got a FiiO X7ii and am thinking about getting the NW WM1A. I see you also have a QP1R, which I have owned, but sold because of the battery indicator issue.

How would you compare the two and does the NW WM1A issues that have yet to be resolved?

I've always had DAPs from specialist manufacturers like Fiio, iBasso and Questyle and never from a mainstream company like Sony or Pioneer. So I'm not sure if the larger companies with their financial clout and R & D capabilities will prove to be a more pleasurable experience.

Regards

Darren

 

[Quadfather]

Hi

Does the NW WM1A work with 400gb cards?

Regards

Darren

Yes, I am using one. The Sony sounds great from balanced after burn in. User interface is great, and battery life rules. It is one of my favorites.

 

[Hawaiibadboy]

9 hours...

9 HOURS and the battery is still topped off.
Hip hop, high gain, balanced....9 hours. That's a usual ideal limit. I would be happy with that. This is apparently just getting warmed up.

 

[proedros]

the sony battery is why i don't see myself moving to another dap manufacturer

1 battery drainage/week , this is insane

 

[ezekiel77]

Hi ezekiel77.

Thanks for the reply. I've got a FiiO X7ii and am thinking about getting the NW WM1A. I see you also have a QP1R, which I have owned, but sold because of the battery indicator issue.

How would you compare the two and does the NW WM1A issues that have yet to be resolved?

I've always had DAPs from specialist manufacturers like Fiio, iBasso and Questyle and never from a mainstream company like Sony or Pioneer. So I'm not sure if the larger companies with their financial clout and R & D capabilities will prove to be a more pleasurable experience.

Regards

Darren

I've compared QP1R and WM1A twice before, here,

Comparison between WM1A balanced out vs QP1R.
IEM: AAW W900
Cables: Kumitate Lab 4.4mm balanced (SPC) for 1A, Effect Audio Eros I (copper/silver hybrid) for QP1R. Can't control this as I have only one balanced cable for Sony.
Album: Fleetwood Mac "Rumours" (24/96 FLAC), with The Chain played the most bcos Guardians of the Galaxy 2!
WM1A settings: Low gain, Direct Source On.
QP1R settings: Low gain, no EQ.
The comparison was mainly to satisfy my own curiosity. The QP1R has been my go-to DAP for nearly a year.

Not sound:
WM1A is heavier and bulkier, but feels sturdier built. QP1R is lighter and the metal/glass build looks impressive but the clickwheel doesn't inspire confidence. I should know, I've had the wheel replaced once. The Sony startup takes a minute to switch on and update database. UI is fast after firmware update 1.20. Hardware buttons take half a second to respond, and that's about my only beef against the WM1A.

QP1R takes a shorter time to start up and update database, about 30 seconds. I've learnt to use the buttons instead of the clickwheel after having the wheel replaced. The haptic vibration is responsive and feels nice, actually. Button response time is almost immediate. I'm not going into touchscreen vs clickwheel/button-based UIs here. Both are functional and gets me to where I need. Both libraries can be sorted via album artist, which is good. Normally I just go to "all songs" and play random however.

Sound impressions:
I thought it would be a straightforward warmer vs brighter signature, but the comparison had a few surprises. The Sony balanced out is impressive. While it's true the Walkman has more bass body and weight, the note texture from bass to treble is more apparent. I hear each note as it starts, sustains and tails off beautifully. The sound is fuller, and gets quite addictive.

QP1R on the other hand has the note speed and dynamics, a more energetic signature, with thinner notes. Bass sounds flatter with more restraint, and might be better for faster tracks. Mids is a matter of preference, both are equally competent (euphony vs transient response). Sony wins for slower tracks though. I always thought QP1R was a master at treble, but here it sounds brighter yet less detailed than the Sony, bcos of the Walkman's excellent note texture.

Instrument imaging is a draw, pretty impressive for Sony given its thicker notes. Both QP1R and WM1A have accurate and realistic imaging, with a good around-the-head spacial cues. Soundstage width is similar, but Sony has a tinge more depth and height. QP1R sounds airier, while WM1A is better accomplished with instrument layering.

In short both are excellent, with a slight edge to WM1A owing to better note texture and immersiveness. QP1R is better for dynamics and air. I like to pair QP1R with darker IEMs, while Sony is the better all-rounder.

Conclusion:
I'm glad to own both. Also, Guardians of the Galaxy 2 is a damn fine movie.

And here.

Not sure who you addressed it to bud, but I'll give my two cents.

My WM1A is at the 800-hour mark, with most of the hours coming from balanced out. SE is er... like everyone and their grandma says, meh.

Context is important. For a year plus I've been listening to QP1R. It's been my reference DAP for good reason, mainly bcos it sounds so damn good for the price. I hesitate to recommend the player to anyone (horrible UI, defective battery indicator, and the less mentioned about the clickwheel the better), but for pure SQ, it's da bomb. I'd say it's reference-level detailed, with an airy and open stage, and it's dynamic as hell. It segues from soft to loud to soft again in a heartbeat, and is effortless in doing so. These qualities make listening to music a very involving experience. I head bop and air guitar to it. Even air piano. It might not be the last word in timbre, tonal accuracy and vocal euphony, but it went for a neutral and very detailed signature, and pretty much accomplished that. I've not heard many DAPs (regrettably, not even Opus #2 or DX200), but only SP1000 surpasses the QP1R in quality, if we're staying in the same signature.

So any impressions I have about WM1A, which I've owned since March, is done in comparison to QP1R. I should have explained that earlier. WM1A lacks dynamics compared to QP1R. But then again we're talking about QP1R's greatest strength so there's no shame in that. WM1A aims for a smooth-neutral sound that's easy to please and excellent for long listening sessions. Which is great because the battery life is excellent. Even via WM1A's balanced out, I feel QP1R has more apparent detail, and an airier, more expansive stage. WM1A has the note richness, more emotion in its vocal reproduction, and an overall fuller and smoother sound. It's also no slouch in soundstage either. Definitely not as fun as QP1R, but as a total package including UI, battery life, storage, and some kickass balanced cables I have made, 8 times out of 10 I pick WM1A when going out and about. QP1R is mostly grounded because of the dumb battery indicator (40% one minute and 0% the next), really a killjoy.

The only thing IMO that needs work is not all album art is displayed, but that's because of Sony not being able to read progressive jpgs.

 

[397324]

Thanks for the info. The wheel issue is fixed on units manufactured after late 2016 and a new firmware released in December 2016 was supposed to fix the battery indicator.

Some are still having problems though and both the Uk and USA distributors will only advise people still having problems to PM them for the supposed fix and neither will post on here what they are advising, despite numerous requests to do so.

It is pointless emailing Questyle themselves as they never and I mean NEVER answer emails from customers.

 

[gerelmx1986]

Hi

Does the NW WM1A work with 400gb cards?

Regards

Darren

Sure a Pic is worth more than 1000 words

 

[gerelmx1986]

Hi ezekiel77.

Thanks for the reply. I've got a FiiO X7ii and am thinking about getting the NW WM1A. I see you also have a QP1R, which I have owned, but sold because of the battery indicator issue.

How would you compare the two and does the NW WM1A issues that have yet to be resolved?

I've always had DAPs from specialist manufacturers like Fiio, iBasso and Questyle and never from a mainstream company like Sony or Pioneer. So I'm not sure if the larger companies with their financial clout and R & D capabilities will prove to be a more pleasurable experience.

Regards

Darren

hi, Sony for me has been always pleasure to use, be it the nice sound, which WM1A has exceeded my expectations in both SE and balance. The battery is another area in which Sony deserves praise. User interface too very intuitive, only minor quirks like you need to tap and hold then slide the seek slider. And the jpg issue that only reads baseline jpg.

The sound ni describe from my WM1A is sodann real, sometimes gives you the impression of being there live, depends on the recording, but overall quite nice organic presentation, large Soundstage and proper separation between instruments.

 

[DONTGIVEUP]

The Sony original balanced cables that shipped with the Z5 have 2 separate (3.5mm?) L & R jacks whereas the Kimber has one 4.4mm jack. How is it possible to say that one is better than the other unless using a balanced amplifier like PHA-3.
Straight through the WM-1A the 4.4mm can be tested but not the original balanced cable supplied by Sony.

Actually, it's the balanced output that makes the Z5 (or any other headphones) sound as stunning as they do, I tried the kimber cables over the regular Sony balanced cable and I found the regular cable to sound better than the kimber ones (which sounded a little more bland in my opinion), of course this is subjective and everyone is entitled to a personal opinion. I ended up purchasing the regular Sony balanced cable which was 10000JPY cheaper than its kimber branded counterpart and (to my ears) sounded slightly better. Either way you can't go wrong since the balanced output just sounds so much better than the Single Ended one.

 

[asquare3376]

The Sony original balanced cables that shipped with the Z5 have 2 separate (3.5mm?) L & R jacks whereas the Kimber has one 4.4mm jack. How is it possible to say that one is better than the other unless using a balanced amplifier like PHA-3.
Straight through the WM-1A the 4.4mm can be tested but not the original balanced cable supplied by Sony.

It all comes down to what source you want the Z5 to be used with. If you have PHA-3, get the dual 3.5mm (not stock, the upgrades because they are definitely better), if you have a WM1A or the 1Z, get the 4.4. I own both, one with the PHA-3 and other with the 1Z. To each its own unless you want to plot frequency graphs and compare.

 

[gerelmx1986]

The Sony original balanced cables that shipped with the Z5 have 2 separate (3.5mm?) L & R jacks whereas the Kimber has one 4.4mm jack. How is it possible to say that one is better than the other unless using a balanced amplifier like PHA-3.
Straight through the WM-1A the 4.4mm can be tested but not the original balanced cable supplied by Sony.

I have an adapter for my xba-z5, the cables of the original balanced cable for z5 suck, they are not of quality as the Sonys own upgrade cables offers

 

[soundkist]

For those of you who ordered those plastic jack/port caps from Encompass.com, have any of your orders shipped? I just keep getting extensions on the when it'll be in stock again date...

 

[kubig123]

For those of you who ordered those plastic jack/port caps from Encompass.com, have any of your orders shipped? I just keep getting extensions on the when it'll be in stock again date...

I got an email informing me that they have been shipped, but no tracking number.

 

[soundkist]

I got an email informing me that they have been shipped, but no tracking number.

Excellent--thanks for info!