When I purchased my WM1A about 2 months ago, came with 3.01 installed already.
Reading this thread has me curious as to how the other firmwares sound. I was fine with 3.01, but after hearing 3.02, There’s zero chance I’m switching back.
Hd800 and Hd800s is ok with wm1A/Z. But if you want the very best out of it, you will need some heavy champs (amps) to do the job.
DAP don’t really meant to drive full-size headphones on the go. Some of the modern one are very powerful, but there are tradeoff
The only one that does the job well is by far the DMP-Z1 and with beautiful synergies too. Everything else you will need a top tier amp to make hd800/s to sing. Many people think both have piercing treble but it simply is being underpowered or driven by a not so good digital-analog source ...or both.
I tried my Sennheiser HD800 with my Sony NW-WM1A...
This uses the balanced output of the 1A to the HD800. At highest volume, you are touching the threshold of painful loudness (1A gain on high). Sounds great.
To compare, I also hooked up my CEntrance HiFiM8 via its balanced output to the 1A... similar volume, similar great sound.
I then compared the 1A to my Sennheiser HDVD DAC/amp, built for the HD800. I got the pain-threshold volume at about 60% of full scale of the HDVD volume knob. Sound quality at similar volumes was indistinguishable from that of the other two players.
It was reported that Sony engineers never designed the Signature DAPs for full size headphones. On the other hand Sony marketing found use in showing both the MDR-Z1R and Signature Walkmans photographed together.
It was reported that Sony engineers never designed the Signature DAPs for full size headphones. On the other hand Sony marketing found use in showing both the MDR-Z1R and Signature Walkmans photographed together.
Because for the many times I've talked to Sony engineers, they don't seem to be the type that would say something like this. They understand some people's demand for more power but they themselves are easy going and believes in whatever people are happy with, and that means playing with any sort of combination they can think of. For example all the people who said that IER-Z1R can't be driven by a low power source, except when I talked with Kuwahara-san he said he even tuned the IER-Z1R with the Sony PCM-D10, which only outputs a measly 30mW on the 3.5mm jack, and finds it really pleasing due to the analogue-like sound signature of the D10 output.
Because for the many times I've talked to Sony engineers, they don't seem to be the type that would say something like this. They understand some people's demand for more power but they themselves are easy going and believes in whatever people are happy with, and that means playing with any sort of combination they can think of. For example all the people who said that IER-Z1R can't be driven by a low power source, except when I talked with Kuwahara-san he said he even tuned the IER-Z1R with the Sony PCM-D10, which only outputs a measly 30mW on the 3.5mm jack, and finds it really pleasing due to the analogue-like sound signature of the D10 output.
If my player drives my headphone to more-than-adequate volume (I.e. adequate is reached before the knob is turned up all the way), and if the player does not distort at its top volume, what more am I missing? If my Sony NW-WM1A reaches as loud as I’d ever want on a particular set of headphones (say HD800) before reaching say 80% of full volume setting, what more will it do for sound than my top-of-line desktop amp that reaches my max volume at, say 50% of its full volume setting?
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