[Bobdonut123]

Feel free to shoot me a private message if anyone intends to buy

 

[Malevolent]

He would have 2 of the top 3...but in your suggestion, he'd be missing the top dog.

There's a closed Stax now?

In all honesty, I'd probably rank the Stellia just outside the top 5, in terms of closed-backs.

Speaking of ranks, I should do a review shootout sometime soon.

there's a headphone for everyone or almost everyone

I'm in complete agreement here. That's the beauty of this hobby, really - no matter how dreadful something measures in an objective sense, or how badly derided a product is, it will always have its fair share of advocates and defenders.

Now, let me get back to my AirPods.

 

[Bobdonut123]

There's a closed Stax now?

In all honesty, I'd probably rank the Stellia just outside the top 5, in terms of closed-backs.

Speaking of ranks, I should do a review shootout sometime soon.


I'm in complete agreement here. That's the beauty of this hobby, really - no matter how dreadful something measures in an objective sense, or how badly derided a product is, it will always have its fair share of advocates and defenders.

Now, let me get back to my AirPods.

What's your ranking?

 

[nc8000]

There's a closed Stax now?

In all honesty, I'd probably rank the Stellia just outside the top 5, in terms of closed-backs.

Speaking of ranks, I should do a review shootout sometime soon.


I'm in complete agreement here. That's the beauty of this hobby, really - no matter how dreadful something measures in an objective sense, or how badly derided a product is, it will always have its fair share of advocates and defenders.

Now, let me get back to my AirPods.

There used to be a closed Stax

 

[Malevolent]

What's your ranking?

I might do a shootout of the flagship closed-back headphones on the contemporary market. I'm a huge fan of closed cans, so this endeavor sounds fun.

 

[Malevolent]

There used to be a closed Stax

Wow, I really didn't know that. Thanks for letting me know!

For anyone curious, it's the Stax 4070. That thing looks beastly, and not in a good way. Heh.

 

[MacedonianHero]

There's a closed Stax now?

In all honesty, I'd probably rank the Stellia just outside the top 5, in terms of closed-backs.

Speaking of ranks, I should do a review shootout sometime soon.


I'm in complete agreement here. That's the beauty of this hobby, really - no matter how dreadful something measures in an objective sense, or how badly derided a product is, it will always have its fair share of advocates and defenders.

Now, let me get back to my AirPods.

No thanks...I prefer the Stellia and Utopia to the SR009/007 (which I also used to own). That said, the Z1R's would be #3 on my list.

 

[adrianm]

Z1r have a bigger Soundstage and more of a mid-bass presence which I really like. Overall in sound quality I think the stellias win, but they aren't worth the extra 1000 dollars to me. Also z1rs are the more "heavy duty" headphone, where the stellias I just want to baby because they are prone to scratches.

What makes the Stellias "win" then?

 

[Malevolent]

What makes the Stellias "win" then?

Here's what I wrote in an earlier post -

The Stellia is the slightly more resolving headphone. I find its treble section a little better controlled, too.

The Z1R, on the other hand, bests the Stellia in everything from the lower-mids to the sub-bass region. Bass texture on the Sony flagship is quite special, IMO. You have a robust low-end that is chock-full of texture, slam and rumble. Staging on the Z1R is also noticeably better than on the Stellia - the Focal sounds cramped in comparison. And whilst the following is a sentiment grounded in subjective preference, I think the Z1R handles vocals a lot better, too. There is energy and gravitas that most other headphones struggle to reproduce.

At this level, both headphones are excellent performers; a lot of it comes down to your personal preferences, and in this regard, the Z1R trumps the Stellia. To my ears, music is immensely more enjoyable on the Z1R than on most of the other headphones on the contemporary market (and I have heard my fair share of top-end ones, too).

 

[adrianm]

Here's what I wrote in an earlier post -

The Stellia is the slightly more resolving headphone. I find its treble section a little better controlled, too.

The Z1R, on the other hand, bests the Stellia in everything from the lower-mids to the sub-bass region. Bass texture on the Sony flagship is quite special, IMO. You have a robust low-end that is chock-full of texture, slam and rumble. Staging on the Z1R is also noticeably better than on the Stellia - the Focal sounds cramped in comparison. And whilst the following is a sentiment grounded in subjective preference, I think the Z1R handles vocals a lot better, too. There is energy and gravitas that most other headphones struggle to reproduce.

At this level, both headphones are excellent performers; a lot of it comes down to your personal preferences, and in this regard, the Z1R trumps the Stellia. To my ears, music is immensely more enjoyable on the Z1R than on most of the other headphones on the contemporary market (and I have heard my fair share of top-end ones, too).

Having compared my now-3+ year old Z1R's with the Stellias using a Dave yesterday i'd have to agree with everything you said ,except i didn't really find any area where the Stellias were better, then again i didn't really focus on the treble section.What do you mean by resolving though? I found the Z1R images a lot better,has better separation, the only area where the Stellia came out ahead was in lower midrange detail ,where it was slightly eclipsed by the bass on the Z1R ,but that's due to the tuning and i'd take it any day over the dry lifeless sound of the Stellia.They reminded me of my old audiotechnica m40x (tuning wise)
I also found the build quality and comfort lacking compared to the Sonys.
I think the best upgrade from a Z1R is adding a Dave to it

 

[Damz87]

I listened to the Z1Rs for hours last night and it was bliss. Boris Brejcha's new live stream on tidal sounded devine. Cigarettes After Sex, same thing. Two different genres and the Z1R is a master at both. I was looking at my empys and LCD 4s, and then said no and kept the Sony's on. These are just magical cans. I absolutely love them.

Boris Brejcha + Z1R is an incredible combination.

 

[pataburd]

Here's what I wrote in an earlier post -

The Stellia is the slightly more resolving headphone. I find its treble section a little better controlled, too.

The Z1R, on the other hand, bests the Stellia in everything from the lower-mids to the sub-bass region. Bass texture on the Sony flagship is quite special, IMO. You have a robust low-end that is chock-full of texture, slam and rumble. Staging on the Z1R is also noticeably better than on the Stellia - the Focal sounds cramped in comparison. And whilst the following is a sentiment grounded in subjective preference, I think the Z1R handles vocals a lot better, too. There is energy and gravitas that most other headphones struggle to reproduce.

Similar in many respects to the perceived differences, in my ears, between the Focal Utopia and ATH-ADX5000.

 

[340519]

Absolutely incredible.

Boris Brejcha + Z1R is an incredible combination.

.

 

[MacedonianHero]

What makes the Stellias "win" then?

Simply put, they are on par with the very best open-backed headphones that I've owned. I cannot say that for any other pair of closed-back headphones...period. Their level of transparency is almost there with the Utopias (which is saying a LOT), but add a touch of warmth/bass and openness that really sets them apart. Pretty much all other closed-back headphones have something "funky" with the frequency response and so many come off as "U" sounding like the TH-900 and to a lesser extend the Z1R. Neither of these two Japanese closed-back headphones can attain the overall level of transparency and detail retrieval (though I do like them quite a bit and enjoyed owning them...though I no longer own them anymore).

 

[pataburd]

I have a friend in Britain who hears the same way. One reviewer described the FR of the Z1R as "M-" versus "U-" shaped.
Maybe the Utopia/Stellia pairing will be the open/closed dynamic endgame for me, too, but meanwhile the Z1R are due today from UPS.
The Utopia are my go-to open dynamics, but the ATH-ADX5000 offer more musical qualities for me, especially in the overall bass response.