I have the Oriolus BA300s amp too.. I agree with all the improvements you listed but it smooths the vocals too much for my liking and it somewhat takes away the realism which the 1Z is so good at.
However, if you listen mainly to Jazz and instrumental pieces, adding the BA300s will be ideal due to improvements in staging & dynamics.
Just finished doing this same upgrade on my 1A, and my initial impressions are much the same. While I wouldn't go quite so far as to say that the difference is dramatic, there are definitely noticeable improvements to soundstage and separation. I need to log more listening hours post-change, but it also seems to have tightened the bass ever so slightly. For those considering trying this - my soldering skills are pretty mediocre, but I managed without too much trouble. Many thanks to Diet Kokaine for the inspiration, and also to Whitigir for the awesome guide and pics.
The MOD is easy. Awesome, hope you enjoy it.
The resolution for me in quite a bit higher, bass is tigheter, and the soundstage is deeper, amd more Holographic.
Last night I was listening to Chantal Chamberland, and it was a tour de force, everything from timbre to instrument separation was an absolute treat. Background is pitch black.
This should be stock Sony is squandering an easy opportunity to instantly upgrade it's overall sound quality.
Did negative terminals mod on the 4.4mm female balance plug recently and boy, it feel like upgraged from bookshelf speakers to large full size tower speakers. Love the weight, energy and image.
Did negative terminals mod on the 4.4mm female balance plug recently and boy, it feel like upgraged from bookshelf speakers to large full size tower speakers. Love the weight, energy and image.
Coincidentally, I have been auditioning a K-Modded 1Z for the last 3 days. This is Music Sanctuary's own unit and has the Ultimate mod as per their site below:
The only difference is that instead of having a 14-wire PW 1960 mod on the Balanced output, this particular unit has a 24-wire mod. I have no idea how it was squeezed in.The main difference between the modded and stock unit is resolution. The modded unit has a higher resolution than stock and better clarity. It still retains Sony's warm signature but everything else is tuned up. Darker black ground, better separation + layering and wider sound stage. Another interesting point to note is that I am listening at 5-10 clicks lower volume due to improved detail retrieval.
After 3 days, I can't go back to the stock unit and I will be buying over the modded unit from MS.
I have been auditioning quite a number of TOTL DAPs (incl N8, N6ii, SP2K, QPM, LPGT, LP6k) over the last 3 months with the IER-Z1R and the main thing that pulls me back to the 1Z is how well it does vocals. The stock 1Z has prob been superseded in some areas by the new TOTL players but there is so much realism in the way it portrays vocals to me that I still cannot find another player which performs as well or better. I am not sure how much the IER-Z1R plays a role is this but the combination to me is just sublime for Vocal tracks.
I have been running in the DX220 + AMP8EX and its about close to 150hrs... I can say that this set up is more appealing to me than the TOTL players I mentioned earlier.
Its a close call between the 228EX and the modded 1Z. Both are so good but in different ways. The 228EX is more airy and with even larger stage while the 1Z has more focused vocals. So my usage split is as below:
1Z>EA Horus>IER-Z1r = audiophile vocal tracks (English+Chinese), small Jazz
228EX>PW 1960> Hayla CE-5 = Pop (English+Chinese+Jap+Kor), EDM, Jazz, Orchestral
I travel back to Singapore often for work and visit them whenever I am in town. Nice and experienced bunch of folks when it comes to IEMs.
I am keeping their modded 1Z so I guess they will not have a unit to lend out but I do see that they are selling a personal unit of a modded 1A with the Ultimate Mod and the same 24-wire PW 1960 mod on the balance output. You can check with them on that unit.
I notice you have the Ultimate K-Mod 1Z as well. How do you like it?
I have not been able to put the player down much... the synergy with the Horus and Z1R is so good. I love the improvements in Bass (both quality and quantity) as well.
Listening to To Love's albums and appreciating the bass notes.
I notice you have the Ultimate K-Mod 1Z as well. How do you like it?
I have not been able to put the player down much... the synergy with the Horus and Z1R is so good. I love the improvements in Bass (both quality and quantity) as well.
Listening to To Love's albums and appreciating the bass notes.
It's just a long love story. Got 1Z for almost 3 years, got the premium mod done 18 months ago. And finally went for a new one and Ultimate mod.
Was able to compare Premium and Ultimate for 10 days.
More dynamic, more power (seems like there is more weights), darker background. Small but real improvement.
Compared to the standard 1Z, it's for me better on all the criterias. Again, small improvement, but there.
You can do that by cut a tiny layer or multiple layers of OCC copper sheet(s) sandwich between conductors (wires) and PCB negative terminals on the 4.4mm female plug. If you want a little more synergy and soundstage you can use silver or silver plated copper plate(s). For warmer sound you can just use pure copper or even gold plated copper. Play around with it and see which combination works best for the sound you want. I use copper for first layer and then two silver.
It's just a long love story. Got 1Z for almost 3 years, got the premium mod done 18 months ago. And finally went for a new one and Ultimate mod.
Was able to compare Premium and Ultimate for 10 days.
More dynamic, more power (seems like there is more weights), darker background. Small but real improvement.
Compared to the standard 1Z, it's for me better on all the criterias. Again, small improvement, but there.
When I first got my hands on the modded 1Z, the main thing that stood out was resolution and I found the rest to be largely similar.
However, upon more detailed and longer listening sessions, I was able to appreciate the upgrades in all the other areas. All the small improvements consolidated into an outstanding upgrade package.
Not taking anything from Sony, I also came to the conclusion just how good the stock 1Z was. I mean I could still live with the stock 1Z for a long time since I could not find a replacement after auditioning other more recently released TOTL players.
I do not want to come across as a Sony fanboy. I appreciate good SQ on vocals vs being focused on branding. To me the 1Z just have that something on the vocal presentation that stirs my emotions but others will put more emphasis on other areas so everyone will have to continue auditioning to find their sweet spot. I just consider myself lucky to have found mine early
They have players to listen to there. Just message them and make sure there would be one on the day you visit. They have a listening area where you could do side by side comparisons....if you brought your Walkman.
You can do that by cut a tiny layer or multiple layers of OCC copper sheet(s) sandwich between conductors (wires) and PCB negative terminals on the 4.4mm female plug. If you want a little more synergy and soundstage you can use silver or silver plated copper plate(s). For warmer sound you can just use pure copper or even gold plated copper. Play around with it and see which combination works best for the sound you want. I use copper for first layer and then two silver.
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