[music_man]

Yeah, but.... if I decide I want to try to try the copper and/or hybrid after the silver then decide I want the silver back they will most likely tell me to walk the plank. I never found folks at Kimber to be rude but not overly nice either. the thing is these are custom made and very expensive. plus he built it for me the same day which is unheard of. now, return it? I don't think so. in my honesty that is not a very nice thing of me to do and I doubt they will allow it. a large retailer once sent me notice I had made too many returns(4 in a row) same exact situation. they said they will close my account if I keep it up. they would be losing money and no one is very keen on that. plus the fact the guy I have done business with there did me a big favor.

so, before they ship it I was just wondering if there is a consensus of what goes best with these. warm them up, or brighten them up? Of course ultimately it is subjective but just trying to get a grasp on how people generally feel about them. too dark or too bright? interestingly no pro review made mention to this affect. well, tbh he probably already made it anyways. I feel in otherwise well designed equipment the cables only account for 2-5% of the sound. especially high end headphones. so I guess honestly I will never know. I am not about to do that to him quite frankly. even if he said sure, fine it is not very nice and I know what he would probably be thinking.

I see here only a few got the copper and no ag. I imagine it is the price. I do not mean to be a complete jerk but to me my enjoyment is priceless. I also do not see anything wrong with a nearly 4 grand cable on $2,300 headphones. obviously neither does Kimber. it is not like we are talking about beats or bose here. apparently these are the real deal once again. sony does this once in a blue moon. the combined price though I am expecting these to be very serious stuff. I am not stuck on grado. I own all kinds of high end equipment. so if these are darn good I will most certainly appreciate them. I know most people even given the money would have listened to the stock cable first but sometimes you have to say what the heck. either way ag, cu, ag/cu I would expect a noticeable difference over the stock cable. people even said the sony designed Kimber was night and day. one thing I find odd about Kimber is they do not buy into 7n but outside of making one this is the best cable offered for them afaik. I wish there were more cables for other brands. even those that are hard wired. if for nothing else pro headphones have always had detachable cables for obvious reasons.

I saw a picture of the packaging. I doubt they went to that length for no reason. very few of the highest end headphones are packaged like that. I am excited, I really hope these knock it out of the park, in their own respect, of course they sound different than other headphones but somewhere comparisons can be made I am sure. just not to grado for instance. not to mention their box put's grado's box to shame and the headphones themselves(ps2ke) are more money. although there has been a lot of talk if that price is warranted. which is interesting because as far as grado goes I prefer the original ps1k.

I honestly and obviously do not know how they sound but I am prepared for greatness. I can almost be positive I will not feel like tyll. that is very strange. maybe someone does not prefer them but give merit where merit is due. it is like people hated the 010. hate is a strong word. they were outstanding in their own right if not suited to everyone's tonal expectations. it is like saying you hate a Ferrari 458. maybe you personally do not like it but it is still a great car no doubt. I am much more open minded than that. I doubt they are going to be killing me. at the least they are not my favorite but I will still keep them. I just do not feel compelled to return or sell things unless they absolutely suck in everyone's opinion(including mine) which is already proven not to be the case.

anyways, I was just wondering if most of you would brighten these or darken them? that's all.​

 

[TSAVJason]

Yeah, but.... if I decide I want to try to try the copper and/or hybrid after the silver then decide I want the silver back they will most likely tell me to walk the plank. I never found folks at Kimber to be rude but not overly nice either. the thing is these are custom made and very expensive. plus he built it for me the same day which is unheard of. now, return it? I don't think so. in my honesty that is not a very nice thing of me to do and I doubt they will allow it. a large retailer once sent me notice I had made too many returns(4 in a row) same exact situation. they said they will close my account if I keep it up. they would be losing money and no one is very keen on that. plus the fact the guy I have done business with there did me a big favor.

so, before they ship it I was just wondering if there is a consensus of what goes best with these. warm them up, or brighten them up? Of course ultimately it is subjective but just trying to get a grasp on how people generally feel about them. too dark or too bright? interestingly no pro review made mention to this affect. well, tbh he probably already made it anyways. I feel in otherwise well designed equipment the cables only account for 2-5% of the sound. especially high end headphones. so I guess honestly I will never know. I am not about to do that to him quite frankly. even if he said sure, fine it is not very nice and I know what he would probably be thinking.

I see here only a few got the copper and no ag. I imagine it is the price. I do not mean to be a complete jerk but to me my enjoyment is priceless. I also do not see anything wrong with a nearly 4 grand cable on $2,300 headphones. obviously neither does Kimber. it is not like we are talking about beats or bose here. apparently these are the real deal once again. sony does this once in a blue moon. the combined price though I am expecting these to be very serious stuff. I am not stuck on grado. I own all kinds of high end equipment. so if these are darn good I will most certainly appreciate them. I know most people even given the money would have listened to the stock cable first but sometimes you have to say what the heck. either way ag, cu, ag/cu I would expect a noticeable difference over the stock cable. people even said the sony designed Kimber was night and day. one thing I find odd about Kimber is they do not buy into 7n but outside of making one this is the best cable offered for them afaik. I wish there were more cables for other brands. even those that are hard wired. if for nothing else pro headphones have always had detachable cables for obvious reasons.

I saw a picture of the packaging. I doubt they went to that length for no reason. very few of the highest end headphones are packaged like that. I am excited, I really hope these knock it out of the park, in their own respect, of course they sound different than other headphones but somewhere comparisons can be made I am sure. just not to grado for instance. not to mention their box put's grado's box to shame and the headphones themselves(ps2ke) are more money. although there has been a lot of talk if that price is warranted. which is interesting because as far as grado goes I prefer the original ps1k.

I honestly and obviously do not know how they sound but I am prepared for greatness. I can almost be positive I will not feel like tyll. that is very strange. maybe someone does not prefer them but give merit where merit is due. it is like people hated the 010. hate is a strong word. they were outstanding in their own right if not suited to everyone's tonal expectations. it is like saying you hate a Ferrari 458. maybe you personally do not like it but it is still a great car no doubt. I am much more open minded than that. I doubt they are going to be killing me. at the least they are not my favorite but I will still keep them. I just do not feel compelled to return or sell things unless they absolutely suck in everyone's opinion(including mine) which is already proven not to be the case.

anyways, I was just wondering if most of you would brighten these or darken them? that's all.​

Maybe @buzzlulu can give you his impressions and wire journey.

 

[Rchandra]

I really wanna know the kind of leather sony used for the headband. I am at this point shocked it can handle the sweat that I give it via cardio. I had some cracks on my headband but it really is nothing more then the headband conforming to my head. I can confirm this isn't some synthetic garbage for a headband but a really solid piece. This headphone continues to amaze me. I do think that this leather needs to breathe so maybe being out in the elements is good for this headphone? I would love to talk to one of these headphone engineers at sony. How do they make something so expensive so light yet solid at the same time.

 

[Fifty five]

Yeah, but.... if I decide I want to try to try the copper and/or hybrid after the silver then decide I want the silver back they will most likely tell me to walk the plank. I never found folks at Kimber to be rude but not overly nice either. the thing is these are custom made and very expensive. plus he built it for me the same day which is unheard of. now, return it? I don't think so. in my honesty that is not a very nice thing of me to do and I doubt they will allow it. a large retailer once sent me notice I had made too many returns(4 in a row) same exact situation. they said they will close my account if I keep it up. they would be losing money and no one is very keen on that. plus the fact the guy I have done business with there did me a big favor.

so, before they ship it I was just wondering if there is a consensus of what goes best with these. warm them up, or brighten them up? Of course ultimately it is subjective but just trying to get a grasp on how people generally feel about them. too dark or too bright? interestingly no pro review made mention to this affect. well, tbh he probably already made it anyways. I feel in otherwise well designed equipment the cables only account for 2-5% of the sound. especially high end headphones. so I guess honestly I will never know. I am not about to do that to him quite frankly. even if he said sure, fine it is not very nice and I know what he would probably be thinking.

I see here only a few got the copper and no ag. I imagine it is the price. I do not mean to be a complete jerk but to me my enjoyment is priceless. I also do not see anything wrong with a nearly 4 grand cable on $2,300 headphones. obviously neither does Kimber. it is not like we are talking about beats or bose here. apparently these are the real deal once again. sony does this once in a blue moon. the combined price though I am expecting these to be very serious stuff. I am not stuck on grado. I own all kinds of high end equipment. so if these are darn good I will most certainly appreciate them. I know most people even given the money would have listened to the stock cable first but sometimes you have to say what the heck. either way ag, cu, ag/cu I would expect a noticeable difference over the stock cable. people even said the sony designed Kimber was night and day. one thing I find odd about Kimber is they do not buy into 7n but outside of making one this is the best cable offered for them afaik. I wish there were more cables for other brands. even those that are hard wired. if for nothing else pro headphones have always had detachable cables for obvious reasons.

I saw a picture of the packaging. I doubt they went to that length for no reason. very few of the highest end headphones are packaged like that. I am excited, I really hope these knock it out of the park, in their own respect, of course they sound different than other headphones but somewhere comparisons can be made I am sure. just not to grado for instance. not to mention their box put's grado's box to shame and the headphones themselves(ps2ke) are more money. although there has been a lot of talk if that price is warranted. which is interesting because as far as grado goes I prefer the original ps1k.

I honestly and obviously do not know how they sound but I am prepared for greatness. I can almost be positive I will not feel like tyll. that is very strange. maybe someone does not prefer them but give merit where merit is due. it is like people hated the 010. hate is a strong word. they were outstanding in their own right if not suited to everyone's tonal expectations. it is like saying you hate a Ferrari 458. maybe you personally do not like it but it is still a great car no doubt. I am much more open minded than that. I doubt they are going to be killing me. at the least they are not my favorite but I will still keep them. I just do not feel compelled to return or sell things unless they absolutely suck in everyone's opinion(including mine) which is already proven not to be the case.

anyways, I was just wondering if most of you would brighten these or darken them? that's all.​

when Q010 first came out. so many says " it's sound weird" " FQ graph look suck"

But now it have legendary status...

What

 

[music_man]

Exactly, Fifty five. I know how good the 010 and r10 are. I am betting this follows the heritage, when sony gets around to high end they do not mess around. This is very welcome instead of another ps2ke without even hearing it. like I said I like the original ps1k best of the new ones so why bother.

It is Lambskin! any good leather "creases", deep crevices but not cracks.

 

[davidland]

Sony always impress me, but I don't get one yet

 

[Bern2]

I am using the stock cable, and I EQ the mid/upper bass down a bit. Alternating between the HD800 (with Sonarworks) I have been very happy. Part of the reason I have never explored alternate cables is that my music inventory (CCM) is all over the place regarding mastering. Driving them with a Teac HA-501. (SE)

Bern

 

[rgs9200m]

The Z1R has for me an excellent "substance" factor, where the images of everything have a plump sense of a real object with a definable surface and exterior and interior. That's what I most like about them.

It is a different animal than the R10 (that I used to own for years). The R10 images had nice natural boundaries and very natural placement in 3 dimensions, but the images themselves always seemed a bit "glassy" for lack of a better word, and even a little miniaturized.

I eventually sold my R10 because I found this less than satisfying in the end. FWIW, I personally enjoy my Z1R more and it's a permanent keeper in my stable.

If anything, I would recommend a cable or dac or amp that has firm, transparent, controlled bass, along with clear, extended highs.

I've said it before, but I absolutely do not hear any shrill or overdone highs at all. In fact, since I am super-sensitive to fatiguing treble (or vocals with glare, a real show-stopper for me with digital). In fact, the wonderful balanced Goldilocks highs are a strong point and a wonderful feature of the Z1R.

If anyone has a DAC that they feel has glare that makes you wince or bothersome highs or upper mids, before you go searching for a new DAC, I urge you to give the Z1R a try and see if this solves the problem. With my EMM dac, which can have some digital chill, the Z1R was just the ticket (a Godsend actually).

 

[Fifty five]

Oh. you let R10 go...

 

[rgs9200m]

Yep, I went through 3 of them before I decided I liked the more modern ones better with a thicker sound.

 

[music_man]

Probably compare to bass heavy r10. I have both. The z1r is bass heavy. second person to say better than the r10! that is a big deal. I bought much more expensive cables but this seems overly expensive. I do not mind.

I got everything here. too tired. hook it up tomorrow. Then burn in 150 hours. I might have something to say meanwhile or otherwise see you guys in 3 weeks! I am excited about these. why? compare grado's pizza box to what these come in lol. Obviously sony got very serious again.

 

[rgs9200m]

I should mention all my R10s were bass lights, so that was (maybe) my problem. I'm not a basshead, but I just can't deal with an anemic headphone.

 

[kman1211]

I should mention all my R10s were bass lights, so that was (maybe) my problem. I'm not a basshead, but I just can't deal with an anemic headphone.

That is likely it. The bass-heavy is quite a different sounding headphone than the bass light.

 

[buzzlulu]

Maybe @buzzlulu can give you his impressions and wire journey.

Well - now that you ask - just a few random musings.

I have had the opportunity to be in direct contact with the folks at Kimber and found them to be extremely friendly, informative, and open and available to anything. Their policy is a 30 day return policy no questions asked. I was basically told - "try it out and if you don't like it just send it back"

My suggestion is that, while it is very easy to work directly with Kimber, you might feel better working with one of their authorized dealers if you wish to maintain a line of separation between you and them. An authorized dealer can handle the custom orders and any eventual returns.

I chose to work through Jason at TSAV. This is not meant to be a fan boy advertisement but rather telling you exactly what my experience with them was. They go out of their way to make a customer happy and their service is nothing short of excellent par none. I have purchased a Utopia, Z1R, Moon 430HA and several Kimber Axios cables. Along the way I had the opportunity to pick Jason's brain and after detailed discussions (where he understood what I was looking for) he had no problem sending me out cables to try. I emphasize "detailed discussions" as that cuts down on randomly sending out cables which would not have worked for what I was looking for.

With particular reference to the Z1R I have had the Sony Kimber collaboration balanced cable, the Kimber Axios all copper, and the Kimber Axios hybrid silver/copper. On my Utopia's I had the Kimber Axios copper and Wireworld Platinum Nano (all silver).

On the Sony: the Sony/Kimber collaboration was an upgrade - though nothing earth shattering. The Kimber Axios all copper was a significant upgrade sound wise - and the build and construction was HEAD AND TAILS superior to the Sony/Kimber collaboration which is made in China. I am not bashing "made in China" - simply that the difference between the two is like that between a Jeep Cherokee SUV and a Range Rover. Night and day.

Kimber Axios silver/copper hybrid - while this was a very nice sounding cable - better and improved over the stock Sony cable - the bottom line summary for me is that it changed the tonality, sound and flavor of what the Sony engineers are trying to achieve with the Z1R. The cable, imho, changed the Z1R's into something they were not meant to be. They were a bit emasculated and lost the DNA which the Sony engineers built into them. They still sounded great - however they became something which they were not meant to be as envisioned by the designers..

The all copper Axios kept the DNA and the design parameters which the engineers voiced them for - and simply amplified and made them better - without changing them. I believe someone used an analogy of a Porsche 911. The car is great with its stock tires. Change them to an even better and larger high performance tire and the car will perform better. The car did not CHANGE - it simply became better at what it already did. Same with the Copper Axios - the headphones did not change in their basic performance - they simply got better.

Kimber Axios Copper - well worth it imho.
Oh - and as an added bonus - extremely sexy cable.

 

[ervin192]

Imo the axios cu is a solid upgrade from the Sony-kimber but the Sony-kimber is not a PURE upgrade from the original stock. The sound becomes more stiff and less fluid esp. in the trembles. The axios cu keeps this difference. So I myself am still waiting for an upgraded stock cable, currently nowhere to be found.