[gLer]

@MrWalkman, @nc8000, thanks for your help - you'll be glad to know I fired up a Windows VM and quickly figured out how to set and change profiles. Easy and smooth.

Here's another one for you folks: how would you characterise the change from stock 1Z to warm? I'm over the moon at what I'm hearing with stock, but if anything would like a hair more bass weight, even if it costs me some of the extreme clarity I'm hearing with stock. Will the warm profile be shifting me in that direction?

 

[Excavation]

@MrWalkman, @nc8000, thanks for your help - you'll be glad to know I fired up a Windows VM and quickly figured out how to set and change profiles. Easy and smooth.

Here's another one for you folks: how would you characterise the change from stock 1Z to warm? I'm over the moon at what I'm hearing with stock, but if anything would like a hair more bass weight, even if it costs me some of the extreme clarity I'm hearing with stock. Will the warm profile be shifting me in that direction?

I suppose you could try other regions as they have different tunings. You don't necessarily have to change signatures. Of course its always important to mess around and find what works best for you. It may just work out better.

I find this chart is pretty useful and I use it as a guide and for the most part it seems to work.
(I do not remember who originally shared/created this as it was some time ago in the forum.)

 

[gLer]

I suppose you could try other regions as they have different tunings. You don't necessarily have to change signatures. Of course its always important to mess around and find what works best for you. It may just work out better.

I find this chart is pretty useful and I use it as a guide and for the most part it seems to work.
(I do not remember who originally shared/created this as it was some time ago in the forum.)

Thank you, this is excellent.

 

[OnTheSky]

So after more time with FD5 I can confirm that the KZ was the real problem (or rather it's pairing with custom firmware rather than player or earphones).


Now to the firmwares. Although I have tried to check all 4 tunings (just few songs each) i couldn't pinpoint real differences between them. To me they sound the same. There might be some changes but due to not having 2 units I can't directly compare them. I'm also not familiar enough with both the player and earphones to pick up the subtle difference that might be there.

One thing that convinced me to stay with bright tuning is that in one of the songs where the sibilance seemed a little too high the bright tuning seemed to suffer the least of it. It surprised me a little as I thought the warm version would be the one to smoothen the sibilance. Again it might be just wrong impression with the sibilance but I'll take it.

 

[gLer]

Hey guys, another n00b question (I'm new to all this, and catching up on 464 pages of history is hard!).

Is Project Z FW for WM1Z part of Walkman One, or is it its own thing? If it's standalone, what are the general characteristics, and does anyone prefer it over WM One?

Thanks...

 

[nc8000]

Hey guys, another n00b question (I'm new to all this, and catching up on 464 pages of history is hard!).

Is Project Z FW for WM1Z part of Walkman One, or is it its own thing? If it's standalone, what are the general characteristics, and does anyone prefer it over WM One?

Thanks...

That is one of many early versions that are no longer avaiable. I think this more or less morphed into what is now the WM1Z tuning of WalkmanOne (the only available MrWalkman fw) but I can’t really remember as it is more than a year old

 

[MrWalkman]

Hey guys, another n00b question (I'm new to all this, and catching up on 464 pages of history is hard!).

Is Project Z FW for WM1Z part of Walkman One, or is it its own thing? If it's standalone, what are the general characteristics, and does anyone prefer it over WM One?

Thanks...

That is one of many early versions that are no longer avaiable. I think this more or less morphed into what is now the WM1Z tuning of WalkmanOne (the only available MrWalkman fw) but I can’t really remember as it is more than a year old

Project Z is basically the "Warm" sound signature.

 

[MrWalkman]

Some good news (thanks to @DaStrow for sharing this!).

Someone developed and shared on Github a way to have lower latency via the USB DAC function. This can be integrated in the next Walkman One firmware update.

 

[Ravenous]

So I have a question for those with a WM1Z and WM1A with Mr. Walkman's latest Walkman One firmware. So I tried the external tuning of "Neutral/Warm" (0) with region MX3 on both these players with the BLON BL-03 earphones in balanced mode for both players, and I noticed that strangely enough my WM1A sounds "Richer" and more "intimate" compared to the WM1Z! The WM1Z sounds good, but music from it sounds a little bit thinner (maybe more analytical?) and ever so slightly distant when compared to my WM1A... Isn't the WM1Z supposed to have naturally "lush" and "rich" sound, whereas the WM1A is more "energetic"? Very strange lol. And to top it all off, this is with my WM1A having under 200 hours played from the balanced output (using balanced for the first time!), whereas my WM1Z was purchased used (most likely played with balanced mode as well)... Would anyone be able to tell me why my WM1A sounds perceivably richer than my WM1Z? I'm trying to find the best sound for my WM1Z that rival's my WM1A but I'm having a hard time lol.

 

[Hinomotocho]

So I have a question for those with a WM1Z and WM1A with Mr. Walkman's latest Walkman One firmware. So I tried the external tuning of "Neutral/Warm" (0) with region MX3 on both these players with the BLON BL-03 earphones in balanced mode for both players, and I noticed that strangely enough my WM1A sounds "Richer" and more "intimate" compared to the WM1Z! The WM1Z sounds good, but music from it sounds a little bit thinner (maybe more analytical?) and ever so slightly distant when compared to my WM1A... Isn't the WM1Z supposed to have naturally "lush" and "rich" sound, whereas the WM1A is more "energetic"? Very strange lol. And to top it all off, this is with my WM1A having under 200 hours played from the balanced output (using balanced for the first time!), whereas my WM1Z was purchased used (most likely played with balanced mode as well)... Would anyone be able to tell me why my WM1A sounds perceivably richer than my WM1Z? I'm trying to find the best sound for my WM1Z that rival's my WM1A but I'm having a hard time lol.

I might be experiencing that a bit myself.
I like the step up the 1Z provides but I find with my Z1R it picks up imperfections like clipping and distortion in certain recordings I hadn't noticed, or it wasn't as obvious when I had my 1A. There is no sibilance or harshness.
From memory there was an overall sweet spot with my 1A I haven't hit yet with my 1Z (300 hours), either with player burn-in or brain burn-in. The lower end has a nicer depth to it but something about the higher end that hasn't settled in with me entirely yet.
I was also expecting a bit different, and even feared it would be too warm.

*there are many songs/albums that do sound superb but compared to my 1A I feel there are quite a few that aren't as sweet as I had hoped.

 

[Ravenous]

I might be experiencing that a bit myself.
I like the step up the 1Z provides but I find with my Z1R it picks up imperfections like clipping and distortion in certain recordings I hadn't noticed, or it wasn't as obvious when I had my 1A. There is no sibilance or harshness.
From memory there was an overall sweet spot with my 1A I haven't hit yet with my 1Z (300 hours), either with player burn-in or brain burn-in. The lower end has a nicer depth to it but something about the higher end that hasn't settled in with me entirely yet.
I was also expecting a bit different, and even feared it would be too warm.

Yea I don't know lol, maybe it's the way the sound from these player's mesh with the production of the music and the ear/headphone that is used. I feel kinda stupid for posting about it as it's kinda hard to really put my finger on what makes me perceive this strange difference, but I do appreciate your input!

 

[Hinomotocho]

Yea I don't know lol, maybe it's the way the sound from these player's mesh with the production of the music and the ear/headphone that is used. I feel kinda stupid for posting about it as it's kinda hard to really put my finger on what makes me perceive this strange difference, but I do appreciate your input!

I know people have the same 1Z/Z1R pairing so I've always felt it is just me, I'm actually glad you posted. I was listening to a couple of albums a couple of hours before and they both highlighted what I was describing and it was bugging me.

 

[gLer]

So I have a question for those with a WM1Z and WM1A with Mr. Walkman's latest Walkman One firmware. So I tried the external tuning of "Neutral/Warm" (0) with region MX3 on both these players with the BLON BL-03 earphones in balanced mode for both players, and I noticed that strangely enough my WM1A sounds "Richer" and more "intimate" compared to the WM1Z! The WM1Z sounds good, but music from it sounds a little bit thinner (maybe more analytical?) and ever so slightly distant when compared to my WM1A... Isn't the WM1Z supposed to have naturally "lush" and "rich" sound, whereas the WM1A is more "energetic"? Very strange lol. And to top it all off, this is with my WM1A having under 200 hours played from the balanced output (using balanced for the first time!), whereas my WM1Z was purchased used (most likely played with balanced mode as well)... Would anyone be able to tell me why my WM1A sounds perceivably richer than my WM1Z? I'm trying to find the best sound for my WM1Z that rival's my WM1A but I'm having a hard time lol.

I might be experiencing that a bit myself.
I like the step up the 1Z provides but I find with my Z1R it picks up imperfections like clipping and distortion in certain recordings I hadn't noticed, or it wasn't as obvious when I had my 1A. There is no sibilance or harshness.
From memory there was an overall sweet spot with my 1A I haven't hit yet with my 1Z (300 hours), either with player burn-in or brain burn-in. The lower end has a nicer depth to it but something about the higher end that hasn't settled in with me entirely yet.
I was also expecting a bit different, and even feared it would be too warm.

I'm completely new to the WM1Z (and have never heard the 1A) but I will say I've found it to be more revealing and (on some tracks) less 'full' than I'm used to with my previous (though still current) DAP (Hiby RS6). I think it's possibly just the bass that's not as 'heavy' with the 1Z by comparison, and the resolution and imaging is also bumped up a few notches on the 1Z, which maybe makes some tracks sound a bit 'lighter' in tone. Could be that's the way they're meant to sound on high-end gear, and the 'lower-res' versions I've been used to are just that. Not sure, but interesting point. Listening only with the IE-Z1R so far.

On the flipside, when the 1Z nails a track...it nails it. Probably the best I've heard from any DAP/IEM combination in the hobby.

 

[Lookout57]

So I have a question for those with a WM1Z and WM1A with Mr. Walkman's latest Walkman One firmware. So I tried the external tuning of "Neutral/Warm" (0) with region MX3 on both these players with the BLON BL-03 earphones in balanced mode for both players, and I noticed that strangely enough my WM1A sounds "Richer" and more "intimate" compared to the WM1Z! The WM1Z sounds good, but music from it sounds a little bit thinner (maybe more analytical?) and ever so slightly distant when compared to my WM1A... Isn't the WM1Z supposed to have naturally "lush" and "rich" sound, whereas the WM1A is more "energetic"? Very strange lol. And to top it all off, this is with my WM1A having under 200 hours played from the balanced output (using balanced for the first time!), whereas my WM1Z was purchased used (most likely played with balanced mode as well)... Would anyone be able to tell me why my WM1A sounds perceivably richer than my WM1Z? I'm trying to find the best sound for my WM1Z that rival's my WM1A but I'm having a hard time lol.

Configure both with 1Z tuning and then you'll hear what the difference in hardware is. The 1A with 1Z tuning does have a more pronounced mid-bass while the 1Z with 1Z tuning has a deeper low bass.

 

[gLer]

On the flipside, when the 1Z nails a track...it nails it. Probably the best I've heard from any DAP/IEM combination in the hobby.

Further to this, the more I listen, the more I'm impressed. Just sat through Lana Del Rey's Norman screw*** Rockwell, one of my all-time favourite albums, and it's the best I'd ever heard it.

Discovered parts of the music I never knew were there. Yes the bass isn't quite as thick as I've known it, but maybe that's the secret. Hidden layers revealed. The stage, layering, imaging...next level good.