[DantoIzzo]

I just went ahead and opened a PayPal dispute. This is extremely frustrating. I'm hoping this was a fluke that somehow slipped through the seller's radar (as they have fairly positive feedback and seem to have sold multiple Walkmans going by their reviews.

Good luck! What seller is this? Perhaps you can include it here to warn others!

 

[NightmanCometh96]

Good luck! What seller is this? Perhaps you can include it here to warn others!

I bought it from VIVA-JAPAN.

UPDATE: Tentatively good news. Thanks to the top comment on this Reddit post, I was able to enter recovery mode! After fully turning the ZX-707, I plugged it in and held the Volume + button as the Sony logo popped up (which happens automatically once the Walkman is plugged in). I selected the "Wipe data/factory reset" option and am now at the initial setup menu. Seems like for the A306 and ZX707, you have to hold the button down while it's charging; doing so while unplugged like the older models won't cut it.

UPDATE 2: Welp, that didn't seem to do much. It's asking for the original passcode or Google account info. Hopefully PayPal and/or the eBay seller give me a refund, otherwise I'm stuck with a paperweight...

Once all is said and done, I might just cave in and get a US model from an authorized retailer for the sake of convenience. I alternate between MDR-Z1Rs, a JM modded Hifiman HE-R9 and V-Moda M-100s (the original, non Master). And I typically don't max out the volume on any of my devices, maybe 75% at most (I usually just listen to music on my iPhone with an official Apple dongle). Would the capped performance/lack of high gain be that much of a noticeable downgrade in my use case?

 

[nautilus]

I bought it from VIVA-JAPAN.

UPDATE: Tentatively good news. Thanks to the top comment on this Reddit post, I was able to enter recovery mode! After fully turning the ZX-707, I plugged it in and held the Volume + button as the Sony logo popped up (which happens automatically once the Walkman is plugged in). I selected the "Wipe data/factory reset" option and am now at the initial setup menu. Seems like for the A306 and ZX707, you have to hold the button down while it's charging; doing so while unplugged like the older models won't cut it.

UPDATE 2: Welp, that didn't seem to do much. It's asking for the original passcode or Google account info. Hopefully PayPal and/or the eBay seller give me a refund, otherwise I'm stuck with a paperweight...

Once all is said and done, I might just cave in and get a US model from an authorized retailer for the sake of convenience. I alternate between MDR-Z1Rs, a JM modded Hifiman HE-R9 and V-Moda M-100s (the original, non Master). And I typically don't max out the volume on any of my devices, maybe 75% at most (I usually just listen to music on my iPhone with an official Apple dongle). Would the capped performance/lack of high gain be that much of a noticeable downgrade in my use case?

What has VIVA said? I just purchased one from them too. It looks like they have a pretty good return policy "

30 days

Money Back, Replacement

Seller pays for return shipping"

 

[NightmanCometh96]

What has VIVA said? I just purchased one from them too. It looks like they have a pretty good return policy "

30 days

Money Back, Replacement

Seller pays for return shipping"

Sadly, they haven’t said anything, although it has only been a little less than a day. I’m sure the time zone difference doesn’t help, either. It was probably around midnight in Japan when I first sent the message.

 

[nioh]

I’m surprised no one’s talking about the change in sound after latest firmware update. It’s a massive difference compared to the previous version. Bass was bloated in the previous version, now tamed just a bit to make it sound more natural. Soundstage is over the roof ? I’m not sure if it’s too much even, sometimes I feel like everything has a “Hall Reverb” effect now (especially with open back headphones)

Any other impressions ?

 

[music2heart]

Long time lurker here. I kept myself in firmware 1.02 just to be safe. Updated to 2.0 yesterday after some comments. Never wrote about sound signatures but here goes.

• Initial impressions were the sound was more different than I anticipated, and that I had wrongly pulled the trigger on this update.
• Vocals seemed ever so slightly lighter like it was missing something.

A bit later,

• Soundstage appeared pulled apart. I can hear individual instruments better. However, the sound has lost some of its density in the process.
• After hearing more songs, I am beginning to like this more. The vocals feel truer to life. Maybe I am just getting used to it.

I hope Sony did their homework on this. It looks like they waited to get this change in Android 13. Don't know if Android 13 has something to better audio.

These are just my initial impressions. Please take them with a chunk of salt.

 

[flyer1]

On 2.0 without the Sony Headphone App applied, vocals sound a bit distant as mentioned above. Definitely recommend using the Headphone app+Profiles with 2.0.

My XBA-N3 and MDR MV1 sound great with it on, very spatial+wide soundstage+bass much better defined compared to 1.07

 

[MudEnjoyer]

Haven’t noticed a difference between any of the firmware upgrades

Using direct source only as I can’t be bothered trying all the stuff. I just want that sweet brand synergy placebo between the source and my fav earphones.

 

[SolarCetacean]

I also haven't noticed any differences in sound from the firmware update. I do think the UI has become snappier overall, which subjectively makes the experience more enjoyable. Also, it's possible to enable gesture navigation instead of 3-button navigation, freeing up some more screen space. The setting seems hidden, because I haven't found a way to navigate to that page, but if you search in the Settings app for 'gesture', you'll find the page to switch to gesture navigation.

I quite like playing around with the different sound tweaking settings though. I like DSD Remastering with the sharp filter. I find that it gives the leading edges of notes a bit more "pop" or emphasis while also cutting down on sharpness in the treble without losing detail. I find the Slow filter softens the sound a bit too much for my liking.

 

[nioh]

On 2.0 without the Sony Headphone App applied, vocals sound a bit distant as mentioned above. Definitely recommend using the Headphone app+Profiles with 2.0.

My XBA-N3 and MDR MV1 sound great with it on, very spatial+wide soundstage+bass much better defined compared to 1.07

This is also what I noticed.

Are you using one of the streaming apps or playing local files from the music player ?
This also seems to make a difference, especially with Hi-Res streaming.

 

[nioh]

The moment you turn on high-res streaming mode, there’s already additional spatial sound processing(virtual multi-channel surround). End of the day streaming music isn’t going to match the bit perfect quality of offline playback no matter how “bit perfect” it gets. And the fact is Sony’s upsampling to 32bit 176.4/192KHz is really good, especially if you use DSEE Ultimate, streaming music is (subjectively) more enjoyable.

Streaming music is subjected to dynamic normalisation by the app developer and you have little control in how these “audio engineers” at the streaming companies do things. Good luck trying to find streaming music that has the actual audiophile level of dynamic slams:
https://www.sonible.com/blog/normalization-and-streaming-services/

This loudness normalisation has already altered the original music and no longer music as the artist intended but music as the audio engineers at spotify/tidal/Amazon intended.

Your comment regarding the virtual surround processing when turning High-Res streaming on seems quite obvious with the latest firmware. With the High-Res streaming turned ”off” it sounds more natural to me.

Btw DSEE Ultimate is only for low quality sources like Spotify or YouTube. For Lossless audio like Apple or Amazon, this is useless.

 

[Sonywalkmanuser]

Long time lurker here. I kept myself in firmware 1.02 just to be safe. Updated to 2.0 yesterday after some comments. Never wrote about sound signatures but here goes.

• Initial impressions were the sound was more different than I anticipated, and that I had wrongly pulled the trigger on this update.
• Vocals seemed ever so slightly lighter like it was missing something.

A bit later,

• Soundstage appeared pulled apart. I can hear individual instruments better. However, the sound has lost some of its density in the process.
• After hearing more songs, I am beginning to like this more. The vocals feel truer to life. Maybe I am just getting used to it.

I hope Sony did their homework on this. It looks like they waited to get this change in Android 13. Don't know if Android 13 has something to better audio.

These are just my initial impressions. Please take them with a chunk of salt.

Try experimenting with:

1) disabling the Sony Headphones app

this app in conjunction with High res streaming mode On has alot to do with expanding the soundstage.

If you turn off high streaming, disable headphone app and use direct source mode on, this is likely least sound processing configuration on the Walkman, this sounds most natural in my opinion but not really that enjoyable to listen to in my books.

this is from my experience on the WM1AM2, I don’t own the ZX707.

Personally for me, I like headphone app enabled, wired headphone profile added, ear scan done with high res streaming mode On and DSEE Ultimate switched on. It’s a big hit on the battery life but sounds more enjoyable to me with the expanded soundstage and stronger dynamics.

 

[flyer1]

This is also what I noticed.

Are you using one of the streaming apps or playing local files from the music player ?
This also seems to make a difference, especially with Hi-Res streaming.

I prefer to keep Hi Res streaming off and before also without use of the Sony Headphone app. Now 2.0 is the first firmware where the headphone app does something positive for me.

Also when using Youtube Music which is the only music app I make use off.

 

[flyer1]

Personally for me, I like headphone app enabled, wired headphone profile added, ear scan done with high res streaming mode On and DSEE Ultimate switched on. It’s a big hit on the battery life but sounds more enjoyable to me with the expanded soundstage and stronger dynamics.

Thanks for all your advice. Will experiment a bit more

 

[Sonywalkmanuser]

I prefer to keep Hi Res streaming off and before also without use of the Sony Headphone app. Now 2.0 is the first firmware where the headphone app does something positive for me.

Also when using Youtube Music which is the only music app I make use off.

I felt that Sony has been making steady improvements to their HTRF/360RA during 2023. There was a recent update to the HRTF algorithms during 3rd quarter of 2023 and Sony recommended for users to reupload their ear photos to generate a new improved experience.

The only issue with this kind of spatial sound processing is that the headphone in use has to be great at soundstaging and imaging or else it’s just not going to sound impressive.