Sony PHA-3 balanced portable dac/amp
Aug 7, 2020 at 3:53 PM Post #1,831 of 1,922
I see @Witcher uses the MDR-Z1R with the PHA-3. As opinions vary is there anyone else that uses these together and gives the thumbs up? Usually Sony have good synergy.
I just saw one secondhand locally and was wondering as it is an older model if it was still a good buy these days?
 
Aug 7, 2020 at 4:09 PM Post #1,832 of 1,922
I see @Witcher uses the MDR-Z1R with the PHA-3. As opinions vary is there anyone else that uses these together and gives the thumbs up? Usually Sony have good synergy.
I just saw one secondhand locally and was wondering as it is an older model if it was still a good buy these days?
Yes...I have used mine with a variety of headphones including the MDR-Z1R. Plenty of power for the Z1R. You should be able to pick up a used one for $300 or so.
 
Aug 11, 2020 at 1:39 PM Post #1,833 of 1,922
I see @Witcher uses the MDR-Z1R with the PHA-3. As opinions vary is there anyone else that uses these together and gives the thumbs up? Usually Sony have good synergy.
I just saw one secondhand locally and was wondering as it is an older model if it was still a good buy these days?
i can get for usd 250 here in malaysia, the only thing that prevent me 2 buy is its not AC variant, need to operate using battery only, keep shutting down due to heat while playing n charging
 
Aug 11, 2020 at 2:21 PM Post #1,834 of 1,922
i can get for usd 250 here in malaysia, the only thing that prevent me 2 buy is its not AC variant, need to operate using battery only, keep shutting down due to heat while playing n charging
I've seen comments about this. Considering it is quite big and not as 'portable' as the PHA-2A, I expected it to have the ability to run off mains power.
I am disappointed they dropped the portable dacs, sure there is the WM1A /1Z but they are not very powerful and the only option is the rather large and pricey TA-ZH1ES.
 
Aug 12, 2020 at 12:57 AM Post #1,835 of 1,922
I've seen comments about this. Considering it is quite big and not as 'portable' as the PHA-2A, I expected it to have the ability to run off mains power.
I am disappointed they dropped the portable dacs, sure there is the WM1A /1Z but they are not very powerful and the only option is the rather large and pricey TA-ZH1ES.
the europe variant can run off mains power, but sadly cant get here in Asia, also rarely find used one for sale here considering big price drop at used market.
 
Aug 12, 2020 at 1:51 AM Post #1,836 of 1,922
the europe variant can run off mains power, but sadly cant get here in Asia, also rarely find used one for sale here considering big price drop at used market.
I wasn't aware of the 2 variants. It was never available in my country so secondhand someone still wants US$520 - nevermind
 
Oct 17, 2020 at 5:44 PM Post #1,838 of 1,922
Just dusted this thing off....... damn, this is like sonys dac version of the R10, but much kore affordable. I remember why i never got a home dac upgrade. All my cans are 32ohm or under btw.

That's one of the reason I gave up on the highend Orthos. Most require top flight amps with a lot of power to sound really good. My WM-1Z can drive my HD800S/820 really well....so I sold my HE1000 V2. I still keep the PHA3 because it still sound really good and it does a good job with the HD800 in balanced. The trick about the PHA-3 is to use the best connectors and digital cable as possible. It does sound better than the iFi Black Label to my ears.
 
Last edited:
Oct 17, 2020 at 9:38 PM Post #1,839 of 1,922
That's one of the reason I gave up on the highend Orthos. Most require top flight amps with a lot of power to sound really good. My WM-1Z can drive my HD800S/820 really well....so I sold my HE1000 V2. I still keep the PHA3 because it still sound really good and it does a good job with the PHA3. The trick about the PHA-3 is to use the best connectors and digital cable as possible. It does sound better than the iFi Black Label to my ears.
Funny, i also upgraded from the BL. I was surprised to prefer the sony over ifi even without having access to a bass boost.
 
Oct 17, 2020 at 10:44 PM Post #1,840 of 1,922
Funny, i also upgraded from the BL. I was surprised to prefer the sony over ifi even without having access to a bass boost.
It’s a wonderful device that is under appreciated. Wish Sony had adopted the 4.4 mm balanced on it though. It is annoying that I need to use a 4.4 mm to dual stereo mini adapter with the PHA3. Given that I am handy at making my own cables, it isn’t a big deal but just an inconvenience.
 
Oct 19, 2020 at 11:35 AM Post #1,841 of 1,922
Only concern I have about the PHA-3 is its high output impedance. Sony is quite cagey, now never specifying output impedance, but long ago, when I first got the PHA-3, it was on their spec sheet at the time.
 
Oct 26, 2020 at 2:08 AM Post #1,842 of 1,922
For the people who have made comments in the past comparing with the WM1A/1Z, have any of you installed the recent MrWalkman firmwares and care to comment on how they compare to the PHA-3 now? People speak very highly of the improvements achieved with the 1A/1Z so I was wondering if they had been perceived as passing the sound of the PHA-3?
 
Nov 18, 2020 at 1:51 AM Post #1,843 of 1,922
I had my wm1a with various new firmwares. I still think overall the Pha-3 is better


For the people who have made comments in the past comparing with the WM1A/1Z, have any of you installed the recent MrWalkman firmwares and care to comment on how they compare to the PHA-3 now? People speak very highly of the improvements achieved with the 1A/1Z so I was wondering if they had been perceived as passing the sound of the PHA-3?
 
Nov 18, 2020 at 2:50 PM Post #1,844 of 1,922
I had my wm1a with various new firmwares. I still think overall the Pha-3 is better
No cheating the hardware man. Agreed. Only the hardware mods WM1A/Z can surpass the PHA3. Still, the PHA3 is quite a bit more powerful than the WM1A/Z.
 
Nov 18, 2020 at 3:05 PM Post #1,845 of 1,922
I believe that extra oomph is what makes a lot of headphones and IEM’s which sound great on WM1A absolutely sparkle and shine with the PHA-3. If they could make the PHA-3 a tad smaller, with a 4.4 connection and perhaps make it just 5% closer to the Sony TA-ZH1ES, it’d be the best portable amp/dac on the market for balanced headphones.



No cheating the hardware man. Agreed. Only the hardware mods WM1A/Z can surpass the PHA3. Still, the PHA3 is quite a bit more powerful than the WM1A/Z.
 

Users who are viewing this thread

Back
Top