[Queen6]

Maybe this is why I don’t hear much of a difference in sound quality with the DMP-WM1 FEv2 firmware from the stock firmware because I am using the standard 3.5mm headphone jack.

I have been trying to buy a balanced 4.4mm cable for my Beyerdynamic T5P to plug into the balanced jack of my WM1A. I have tried emailing custom cams about a balanced cable but still awaiting a reply.

Safe to say the that they wont sound worse for the additional power on 4.4, likely offering more presence & slam. Just the nature of the beast as most DAP's tend to offer more performance on the balanced output.

Have you tried High Gain on the 3.5 SE, equally @32 Ohm the WM1A will only be pushing approx. 31mW, on the 4.4 Balanced the output will be doubled, while on the 3.5 SE without High Gain a rather low 12mW. A lot is also determined by the HP/IEM efficiency which doesn't seem too bad at all with the T5P. If you have the ability might be worth A/B the T5P with a source that has variable output power as FEv2 is certainly big uplift versus the stock Sony 3.02 FW.

Q-6

 

[Artmuzz]

Safe to say the that they wont sound worse for the additional power on 4.4, likely offering more presence & slam. Just the nature of the beast as most DAP's tend to offer more performance on the balanced output.

Have you tried High Gain on the 3.5 SE, equally @32 Ohm the WM1A will only be pushing approx. 31mW, on the 4.4 Balanced the output will be doubled, while on the 3.5 SE without High Gain a rather low 12mW. A lot is also determined by the HP/IEM efficiency which doesn't seem too bad at all with the T5P. If you have the ability might be worth A/B the T5P with a source that has variable output power as FEv2 is certainly big uplift versus the stock Sony 3.02 FW.

Q-6

My Sony WM1A is on High Gain but still there is only a slight difference between the stock firmware and the FEv2 firmware.

However, I did an A/B test between the WM1A and A55 and the WM1A is indeed superior sound wise.

Don’t get me wrong the FEv2 firmware definitely is an improvement over the stock firmware as the bass is more detailed and the sound is more lush. It’s just that I was expecting a wider soundstage but I guess that’s where the balanced jack comes in.

Anyway MrWalkman has done an excellent job with those custom firmwares.

 

[Duncan]

I would say so, being on 4.4, with IEMs when swapping to new firmware, I often listen to stock, and it sounds so narrow and flat in comparison - I guess there is an element of system matching, but when you’re there, you’ll know it

 

[MrWalkman]

My Sony WM1A is on High Gain but still there is only a slight difference between the stock firmware and the FEv2 firmware.

However, I did an A/B test between the WM1A and A55 and the WM1A is indeed superior sound wise.

Don’t get me wrong the FEv2 firmware definitely is an improvement over the stock firmware as the bass is more detailed and the sound is more lush. It’s just that I was expecting a wider soundstage but I guess that’s where the balanced jack comes in.

Anyway MrWalkman has done an excellent job with those custom firmwares.

I would say so, being on 4.4, with IEMs when swapping to new firmware, I often listen to stock, and it sounds so narrow and flat in comparison - I guess there is an element of system matching, but when you’re there, you’ll know it

Try listening for a time on the FEv2 firmware, and then go back to the stock firmware (also applying the stock tuning). The differences could be more noticeable this way.

 

[Queen6]

My Sony WM1A is on High Gain but still there is only a slight difference between the stock firmware and the FEv2 firmware.

However, I did an A/B test between the WM1A and A55 and the WM1A is indeed superior sound wise.

Don’t get me wrong the FEv2 firmware definitely is an improvement over the stock firmware as the bass is more detailed and the sound is more lush. It’s just that I was expecting a wider soundstage but I guess that’s where the balanced jack comes in.

Anyway MrWalkman has done an excellent job with those custom firmwares.

Yeah, in all likelihood your not getting the best out of the DAP, HP & FW on just the 3.5 SE. If looking for a wider soundstage try Project Z or Chameleon 2.0 as they should open the soundstage up further, little too much with some albums for myself. FEv2 is a different animal originating from the DMP-Z1, IMO very much suiting the 1A's HW. Balanced will deliver more power, little better separation & placement.

FEv2 Plus is fuller, more resolving, overall more mature & natural than the thinner Sony stock 3.02 (which I also like)

24/96 FLAC, WM1A & FEv2 does justice...

Q-6

 

[unifutomaki]

I finally bit the bullet and put my previously stock ZX300 on the FEv2 firmware (been slammed with work this whole time and didn't really want to fiddle). What can I say... if upgrading from my A55 to the ZX300 lifted a veil, then upgrading the ZX300 to FEv2 has lifted yet another veil. The difference is immediately apparent and almost unbelievable. The balanced output in Plus mode is sublime, and makes even YouTube rips sound better. I'm at a loss for words.

 

[Artmuzz]

Yeah, in all likelihood your not getting the best out of the DAP, HP & FW on just the 3.5 SE. If looking for a wider soundstage try Project Z or Chameleon 2.0 as they should open the soundstage up further, little too much with some albums for myself. FEv2 is a different animal originating from the DMP-Z1, IMO very much suiting the 1A's HW. Balanced will deliver more power, little better separation & placement.

FEv2 Plus is fuller, more resolving, overall more mature & natural than the thinner Sony stock 3.02 (which I also like)

24/96 FLAC, WM1A & FEv2 does justice...

Q-6

Thanks for the advice. I will try the other firmwares like Project Z.

To save time (and I was really excited to try out my WM1A) I took out the sdcard with music on it from my LG G7 android phone and inserted it into the sdcard port of my WM1A. My question is will this affect the sound quality using an sdcard with music on my WM1A which was originally from my LG G7?

 

[nc8000]

Thanks for the advice. I will try the other firmwares like Project Z.

To save time (and I was really excited to try out my WM1A) I took out the sdcard with music on it from my LG G7 android phone and inserted it into the sdcard port of my WM1A. My question is will this affect the sound quality using an sdcard with music on my WM1A which was originally from my LG G7?

No but be aware that for the Sony to see the music it has to be inside a folder called Music in the root of the card

 

[Artmuzz]

No but be aware that for the Sony to see the music it has to be inside a folder called Music in the root of the card

Yeah, before I transferred the sdcard from my LG G7 to my Sony WM1A I made sure there was a folder called Music with my music files in it.

 

[Artmuzz]

@MrWalkman I used the SonyNWDestTool tool from Rockbox on my WM1A to see what region it is set on as I read on here that J (Japan) is the recommended region to set the WM1A to take full advantage of the DMP-WM1FEv2 and Project Z firmwares.

According to the SonyNWDestTool it is set on E (6) which is Asia and Australia. However, I was wanting to switch to J (Japan) but it doesn’t support High Gain Output. Also the SonyNWDestTool sees my WM1A as WM1Z.

 

[MrWalkman]

@MrWalkman I used the SonyNWDestTool tool from Rockbox on my WM1A to see what region it is set on as I read on here the J (Japan) is the recommended region to set the WM1A to take full advantage of the DMP-WM1FEv2 and Project Z firmwares. However, according to the SonyNWDestTool it is set on E (6) which is Asia and Australia. However, I was wanting to switch to J (Japan) but it doesn’t support High Gain Output.

Don't follow that table on the Rockbox website.

Region J also has the High Gain option.

Also the SonyNWDestTool sees my WM1A as WM1Z.

You could just ignore that. When using the StockRevert package, it will go back to normal.

 

[nc8000]

@MrWalkman I used the SonyNWDestTool tool from Rockbox on my WM1A to see what region it is set on as I read on here the J (Japan) is the recommended region to set the WM1A to take full advantage of the DMP-WM1FEv2 and Project Z firmwares. However, according to the SonyNWDestTool it is set on E (6) which is Asia and Australia. However, I was wanting to switch to J (Japan) but it doesn’t support High Gain Output. Also the SonyNWDestTool sees my WM1A as WM1Z.

J does support high gain as does most if not all regions except Europe. What model is shown will depend on what FW is installed on the player

 

[Queen6]

@MrWalkman I used the SonyNWDestTool tool from Rockbox on my WM1A to see what region it is set on as I read on here that J (Japan) is the recommended region to set the WM1A to take full advantage of the DMP-WM1FEv2 and Project Z firmwares.

According to the SonyNWDestTool it is set on E (6) which is Asia and Australia. However, I was wanting to switch to J (Japan) but it doesn’t support High Gain Output. Also the SonyNWDestTool sees my WM1A as WM1Z.

As per the other guy's flip the WM1A to J. If your WM1A has low hours E can be piercing as it's rather V shaped. J is far more balanced and will bring up the mid's. Another region of note is MX3, this is more U shaped, will boost the sub bass, sharpen the treble a little and for you the gain is a touch more on MX3, only downside to MX3 is that there is no BT remote capability.

There's now a lot to consider as not only does CFW alter the sound signature and presentation, the interaction of regions also comes into play. Some including myself have felt that the staging is off with some albums with some WM1Z based CFW, equally it also occurs to me that flipping the region to TW may resolve as that staging is narrower, this region will also push the bass more than the others...

Some confuse power and volume for improved SQ, you'll find most with DAP's tend to lean towards the balanced port. Once you make the jump you wont regret. These days I look to IEM's that natively have balanced connections. HP a different story, equally nothing a decent cable maker cant resolve.



Q-6

 

[Artmuzz]

As per the other guy's flip the WM1A to J. If your WM1A has low hours E can be piercing as it's rather V shaped. J is far more balanced and will bring up the mid's. Another region of note is MX3, this is more U shaped, will boost the sub bass, sharpen the treble a little and for you the gain is a touch more on MX3, only downside to MX3 is that there is no BT remote capability.

There's now a lot to consider as not only does CFW alter the sound signature and presentation, the interaction of regions also comes into play. Some including myself have felt that the staging is off with some albums with some WM1Z based CFW, equally it also occurs to me that flipping the region to TW may resolve as that staging is narrower, this region will also push the bass more than the others...

Some confuse power and volume for improved SQ, you'll find most with DAP's tend to lean towards the balanced port. Once you make the jump you wont regret. These days I look to IEM's that natively have balanced connections. HP a different story, equally nothing a decent cable maker cant resolve.



Q-6

Interesting that region J has different sound as do the other regions. I will put region J on my Sony WM1A and test the other regions too.

I finally got reply from CustomCams. They can make a balanced cable for my Beyerdynamic T5P with a 4.4mm jack for my Sony WM1A for £97. However, I don’t know if I could get this cheaper elsewhere. Amazon used to sell them for £35 but they don’t sell them now.

 

[Duncan]

Interesting that region J has different sound as do the other regions. I will put region J on my Sony WM1A and test the other regions too.

I finally got reply from CustomCams. They can make a balanced cable for my Beyerdynamic T5P with a 4.4mm jack for my Sony WM1A for £97. However, I don’t know if I could get this cheaper elsewhere. Amazon used to sell them for £35 but they don’t sell them now.

You’re entering into murky territory there!

what materials are the competing products made from? Pure copper, SPC or silver? (I doubt silver for the price, but if FiiO can do it…), although this is one of the most controversial topics (cable debating is generally a no-no), the order in which I’ve listed them will determine if nothing else the treble power (from weakest to most prominent) is on offer, but it isn’t necessarily a night and day difference, and plenty of people hear no difference at all…

all I will add is that the Amazon cheaper cables tend to fail (in my experience), compared to those made by a major manufacturer / custom.