That volume's pretty high. Is that what it takes on the zx300 on high gain to get acceptable volume out of the Z1R?
you told me once before that the zx300 actually has more output power on hg balanced than your 300B tube amp>?
1.- There are a number variables, technical and personal. Direct I would say 90-100. DSD is usually 95-105. Flac w/ DSP 85-95. There's still plenty of headroom, the ZX goes to 120. I think the ZX has plenty to drive the Z1R balanced.
2.- The ZX puts out more power than my 300B amp... volume is fairly low w/ the Z1R + 300B... the 300B HP output is 32ohm.
I still think the Z1R @ 2.1x the cost is a better buy vs ZX, the Z1R wows me and the ZX I'm meh, but I do like it's look/feel/build.
That volume's pretty high. Is that what it takes on the zx300 on high gain to get acceptable volume out of the Z1R? I have been reading that the Z1R actually isn't that hard to drive, and I think you told me once before that the zx300 actually has more output power on hg balanced than your 300B tube amp>? I am hoping to get by on the zx300 for a while until I scratch up enough for a nice DAC/AMP combo for stationary listening, since I just confirmed over in the zx300 thread that it can do digital line-out with the right cable. (not intendng to use the Z1R as a 'portable', just being able to move about the house, different rooms)
Following the replies that the rig will not change much, i still feel that with the right amp (a cable might do less) this can change the whole world of these headphones. I had a long discussion with Sony support yesterday since i wanted to send these for their checkup but the support person said that there is no way the headphones will sound as good as they need with the dac/amp i'm currently using (Musical Fidelity M1 HPAp). He suggested to get the Sony TA-ZH1ES in order to drive them into their full potential so looking for used one if someone sells .
Following the replies that the rig will not change much, i still feel that with the right amp (a cable might do less) this can change the whole world of these headphones. I had a long discussion with Sony support yesterday since i wanted to send these for their checkup but the support person said that there is no way the headphones will sound as good as they need with the dac/amp i'm currently using (Musical Fidelity M1 HPAp). He suggested to get the Sony TA-ZH1ES in order to drive them into their full potential so looking for used one if someone sells .
There was once indeed a guy who found his z1r broken, with a leak in its magnesium dome, so maybe you would like to go out and compare with another pair to ensure if it's not defective.
Following the replies that the rig will not change much, i still feel that with the right amp (a cable might do less) this can change the whole world of these headphones. I had a long discussion with Sony support yesterday since i wanted to send these for their checkup but the support person said that there is no way the headphones will sound as good as they need with the dac/amp i'm currently using (Musical Fidelity M1 HPAp). He suggested to get the Sony TA-ZH1ES in order to drive them into their full potential so looking for used one if someone sells .
it is unlikely that acquiring another amp will change the character of your headphone to the extent that you hope it will, unless it's a poorly designed one. but it's your money to spend on whatever you like.
Following the replies that the rig will not change much, i still feel that with the right amp (a cable might do less) this can change the whole world of these headphones. I had a long discussion with Sony support yesterday since i wanted to send these for their checkup but the support person said that there is no way the headphones will sound as good as they need with the dac/amp i'm currently using (Musical Fidelity M1 HPAp). He suggested to get the Sony TA-ZH1ES in order to drive them into their full potential so looking for used one if someone sells .
Even though the Sony dac/amp is very good, your Musical Fidelity M1 HPAp is no slouch either. Just found a test on a German website stating this. Very good with a great variety of headphones. Only the usb input is sub par they say. So don't expect night and day differences, please. Listening to my Z1R from my WM1A using the balanced stock cable.
I think I might know what @vourt was on about.
I have noticed the Z1R has a tight response at certain freqs... kind of like a closed vs ported sub. This can subjectively improve or detriment tracks with certain beats like synth hi-hat; this is unique to the Z1R vs all my other HP/IEM/Speakers, examples...
Detrimental:
CHVRN - November: (https://www.deezer.com/us/album/12012668) this track has a Tick, Tick, Tick beat which sounds quite annoying with the Z1R. The ticks are higher pitched and shorter/tighter.
Jordan Comolli - Alone (https://www.deezer.com/us/album/14311232); This has a FAT sub-bass which the Z1R renders very tight and precise; while my other HP/IEM it's too sloppy.
While A<>B my overall impression was that the Z1R had an efficient coil + higher power magnet controlling the diaphragm, which translates to fast and precise movements... but it does make it sound different as it doesn't bleed/smooth responses.
That's a clear presence of that blamed 10k peak of the Z1R, but it's not always there. For instance you will not easily hear this harsh treble with Sony stuffs, WM1s or ZH1ES.
I have only had the Z1R for a couple days. Did my normal routine with DSotM with the MUC-B20SB1 cable, the 1Z and TA-ZH1ES. DSotM has been a recording I have heard on $100K vinyl rigs as well as IPods. I would have to say even with-out burn-in the Z1R did surprisingly well. The heavy synth notes after the clock chimes were warm and textured on "Time". What really surprised me was how the headphones did on lesser recordings. Van Halen (1978) has always been a test disk, here using the Japan 1st pressing file run off the Z1 in side USB mode, the cymbals were perfect. The guitar had both a meaty tone as well as great placement and separation.
Probably the closeness of everything is what has me so much enamored here. It's as if the sonic placement has the tracks floating near by not across the room. Still there is that speaker with room effect going on in the low-end. Again an album like Stella (1985) by Yello has never sounded better. Most of Stella must be due to the 70mm DD doing the reverberations so on point? I really don't know? What I can say is the Signature Series left me not wanting to hear it on vinyl. I kept thinking......"This digital file has always been on the thin side?" But once again the adding of detail, room effect and rock solid imaging takes the cake. It's that or I don't know what it is. DSD upscale tomfoolery?
The Achilles Heel is obviously the control in the low end. The bass definition is what it is. Male vocals are just simply a slight tad lower in the mix than they should be normally. Lucky Robert Plant can bypass the baritone male getting up to tenor falsetto and such............lucky here! And.........to put it all in perspective Stairway To Heaven almost had me cry in my beer. It was all that good..................HD remaster 24/96.
But different too.........with all these perceived dynamics, parts of songs which I was expecting to have more bass and more emphasis had less. There is a transition in Stairway To Heaven where the keyboard low note kicks-in right along with a low note electric bass string bass note. Normally it's an abrupt and dynamic change in the song, though here it dovetails in with much of the song dynamics. Interestingly I've never heard the bass note done this way. Though it's not overly wrong sounding just surprising. Basically after a couple days you know the 1ZR woods your visiting are not a normal place, nothing is truly as it seems. But the ability to make less than average files shine with DSD upscale makes it all some kind of Head-Fi fantasy.
The sound the headphones have is maybe something new to me, and I've heard headphones starting in 1975. It's a surprising take on adding room effect and maybe not caring about artifacts but going for full tilt musicality? It rubs STAX in the face with proverbial sterile professor papers. It runs off like a non-faithful wife in light of the Harman Curve.
May be I am the exception, but just listening to a dragonfly black streaming Tidal is really enjoyable- I know this hobby can get crazy but I wonder how many of us can enjoy this headphone on a simple rig. I have a Geek xfi Dac/amp and had a cavalli liquid carbon and to be honest these headphones sound really good pretty much with everything. It really amazes how much money some people spend to make them sound “better”. But I guess that’s the nature of the hobby.
May be I am the exception, but just listening to a dragonfly black streaming Tidal is really enjoyable- I know this hobby can get crazy but I wonder how many of us can enjoy this headphone on a simple rig. I have a Geek xfi Dac/amp and had a cavalli liquid carbon and to be honest these headphones sound really good pretty much with everything. It really amazes how much money some people spend to make them sound “better”. But I guess that’s the nature of the hobby.
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