Sony has two headsets that I am most impressed with. One is the MDR-EX1000, and the other is the XBA-Z5. The Z5 is a BA+DD hybrid headset released in 2014. It was Sony's flagship product at the time, but the price was only about 500 USD. Indeed, its price does not seem to be "flagship-ish" enough, but I think the Z5 is almost the most "conscientious" or "being real" iem of the flagship portable market.
A few years ago, in our country, if we mentioned the flagship in-ear monitors, we would usually think of SE846, K3003, Xelento, etc. Indeed, the first thing most people notice when distinguishing flagship products from entry products is the price. The prices of the three aforementioned headsets were all above 1,000 USD in our country when they were released. In the eyes of a group of people who define performance by price, the Z5 is simply not worthy of the title of flagship at its price.
In addition, the Z5 has a shape similar to a USB flash drive, which is easy to cause discomfort to wear, and it is really unsightly to wear. Maybe passers-by will cast strange eyes when you going out and wearing it. But such a design is because that the Z5 has adopted a large dynamic driver. The sound quality improvement brought by the large dynamic driver is absolute, which also shows that Sony at the time had a strong pursuit of sound quality and was willing to compromise other aspects for sound quality.
Due to the adoption of large-diameter dynamic drivers, the sound of the Z5 is very characteristic. First of all, the uniqueness of the Z5 as a flagship is that it does not have the obvious "head effect" like most in-ear monitors. The longitudinal soundstage of the Z5 also makes me feel very comfortable. This feeling can be obtained from the EX1000 which also adopts large-diameter dynamic drivers.
But it must not any manufacturer can make a sound as good as EX1000 and Z5 by the adoption of large dynamic drivers. Soon after Duna launched the DK3001, I purchased the DK3001 because of my missing the sound of the Z5. Although the sound quality of the DK3001 is not bad, it is not as good as the Z5 in terms of the connection between the dynamic driver and the balanced armature, or the size of the soundstage. The vocal is full of charm on the Z5 when listening pop songs, and the distance feeling of the vocal is very appropriate. The female vocal is sweet, while the male vocal is magnetic. One thing I like the most on the Z5 is its treatment of treble: it makes a roll off at 6~7kHz, which reduces the chance of harsh or discordant sound, while keeping it rich in treble details.
The Z5's bass is like a benchmark for me. Even with a 3.5mm single-ended plug, the Z5's sound is very balanced and has a high degree of stereo separation. The bass volume is moderate for me, the sub bass is excellent, and has a very fast response.
The Z5 is an excellent headset with Sony's characteristics. The Z5's performance is by no means inferior to those more expensive than it, and claims to flageship or high-end in-ear monitors, for example, the three aforementioned headsets which I have listened all of them before. Except for the K3003 which may be able to compete with the Z5 (although the sound of the K3003 is not balanced at all), I don't think the overall sound of other headsets is better than the Z5.
Pushing the time to 2019, Sony released its new generation of flagship in-ear BA+DD hybrid headset: IER-Z1R. Perhaps the high pricing of the IER series is Sony's compromise on the phenomenon that "defining performance by price" and the current high-priced portable earphones.
A few years ago, in our country, if we mentioned the flagship in-ear monitors, we would usually think of SE846, K3003, Xelento, etc. Indeed, the first thing most people notice when distinguishing flagship products from entry products is the price. The prices of the three aforementioned headsets were all above 1,000 USD in our country when they were released. In the eyes of a group of people who define performance by price, the Z5 is simply not worthy of the title of flagship at its price.
In addition, the Z5 has a shape similar to a USB flash drive, which is easy to cause discomfort to wear, and it is really unsightly to wear. Maybe passers-by will cast strange eyes when you going out and wearing it. But such a design is because that the Z5 has adopted a large dynamic driver. The sound quality improvement brought by the large dynamic driver is absolute, which also shows that Sony at the time had a strong pursuit of sound quality and was willing to compromise other aspects for sound quality.
Due to the adoption of large-diameter dynamic drivers, the sound of the Z5 is very characteristic. First of all, the uniqueness of the Z5 as a flagship is that it does not have the obvious "head effect" like most in-ear monitors. The longitudinal soundstage of the Z5 also makes me feel very comfortable. This feeling can be obtained from the EX1000 which also adopts large-diameter dynamic drivers.
But it must not any manufacturer can make a sound as good as EX1000 and Z5 by the adoption of large dynamic drivers. Soon after Duna launched the DK3001, I purchased the DK3001 because of my missing the sound of the Z5. Although the sound quality of the DK3001 is not bad, it is not as good as the Z5 in terms of the connection between the dynamic driver and the balanced armature, or the size of the soundstage. The vocal is full of charm on the Z5 when listening pop songs, and the distance feeling of the vocal is very appropriate. The female vocal is sweet, while the male vocal is magnetic. One thing I like the most on the Z5 is its treatment of treble: it makes a roll off at 6~7kHz, which reduces the chance of harsh or discordant sound, while keeping it rich in treble details.
The Z5's bass is like a benchmark for me. Even with a 3.5mm single-ended plug, the Z5's sound is very balanced and has a high degree of stereo separation. The bass volume is moderate for me, the sub bass is excellent, and has a very fast response.
The Z5 is an excellent headset with Sony's characteristics. The Z5's performance is by no means inferior to those more expensive than it, and claims to flageship or high-end in-ear monitors, for example, the three aforementioned headsets which I have listened all of them before. Except for the K3003 which may be able to compete with the Z5 (although the sound of the K3003 is not balanced at all), I don't think the overall sound of other headsets is better than the Z5.
Pushing the time to 2019, Sony released its new generation of flagship in-ear BA+DD hybrid headset: IER-Z1R. Perhaps the high pricing of the IER series is Sony's compromise on the phenomenon that "defining performance by price" and the current high-priced portable earphones.
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glad I have both z5 and ex1000
but when I compared them side by side with IER-Z1R, it was hard to justify keeping Z5. The improved technicalities, DD treble, and cleaner mid bass tuning on Z1R made it an easy choice.
