[8b2y0n]

i love sony

 

[Zoop]

   
I have the Slappa case for my Sony 7520's, nice case only thing for me as they are generic case is I have to watch my cables as I can not have them taken off now I've had the cables modded and welded onto the cups! Good to know the Z7 fits in there if I get them as they look a lot bigger to my 7520's. 
Thanks for sharing that, I might have pop into London soon then to try them, take it is still fairly loud with ambient noise around in the store in that department? This is where my battery on the Hugo will come into play to demo them with my ZX1 up town.
 
Oh yes, the 90's, when they still had plenty of money to burn!  I've noticed the Highs can still be an issue with some models in the last few years, mainly reason I let my Z1000's go which was a shame. 
 
Would quote Grizzly and Neo but be too many to do on this page! , but been a good read on this page though and is interesting how it comes around again the Sony flagship question whether they will break through the 1K barrier for the first time since I think it was when I last used Minidisc? plus taking into account the paint is still drying on the Z7's it is a intriguing thought will Sony bring out a higher model so soon...?
 
I don't think we will see the likes of R10's status for a very long time (next ice age maybe) or ever (most likely) currently with Sony digging them selves out of a few holes deficit wise but I can see even with the Z7 not so long released Sony bringing out a 1K can now they are taking their audio division a little bit more seriously again since their re-shuffle and seems a natural progression to go from the Z7 is now in place.  If they are now dabbling with Ciem's (something I thought I would not see Sony doing currently) then there is hope of a new big brother to the Z7. Could be they are still gauging this new Z7 model feedback and sales figures before signing off development of a new higher flagship model.  
Guess we will have to keep out eyes on next few days @ CES.   
 
That's still not to say I am getting itchy pants on not trying to pull the trigger on a Z7 if one was going for the right price! 

when i was there on 28th, it was quite busy, so yes, isolation wasnt great. 
 
but i have been there plenty of time, if you turn up in the morning/first thing the store opens, it;s normally quite quiet. 

 

[zazex]

  i love sony

+1

 

[Neo Zuko]

So I am digging the MDR-1A. How much better is the Z7 in sound quality? I would not replace my MDR-1A with it as one is a far better portable, but I'd like to quantify the difference to see if it's worth having both.

 

[dweaver]

I personally think the Z7 is to be to big to really be portable. I think the Z7 sounds better but you really should see if you Can hear for yourself to make that choice.

 

[Neo Zuko]

I saw mini disc mentioned... I loved mini discs. Had a portable recorder and a home deck unit. CD recording was way behind at the time and MP3s / iPods / iPhones / Android were not around yet,

 

[Mickice]

I personally think the Z7 is to be to big to really be portable. I think the Z7 sounds better but you really should see if you Can hear for yourself to make that choice.

Z7 sounds better here too, I'd go portable as soon as I can pick up a unit up for under $350au. That's my street price limit incase it gets nicked.

Till then I use the V6, which is cheaper and doesn't have that bass hump of the 1A.

 

[zorin]

The new PONO portable player can drive MDR-Z7 in the balanced mode if you plug 3.5mm connectors of Z7 into both the headphone jack and line out jack of PONO. Neat.

 

[Mickice]

  The new PONO portable player can drive MDR-Z7 in the balanced mode if you plug 3.5mm connectors of Z7 into both the headphone jack and line out jack of PONO. Neat.

Woah? Would this be advised? Could this also be done with the PHA-2?

 

[zorin]

 

Woah? Would this be advised? Could this also be done with the PHA-2?

I do not think PHA-2 can do it. Maybe somebody who has it can try. 
PONO player/amplifier was designed to have this balanced mode driving ability. On the PONO thread they talk about it. [Towards the end of the thread]
There, you can have a player and an amplifier with a choice of using single ended or balanced drive mode, all for 400 dollars instead of paying some 1500 plus dollars for Sony offering of an amplifier plus a separate player.
http://www.head-fi.org/t/629454/pono-neil-youngs-portable-hi-res-music-player

 

[Bill-P]

So, I finally got a Z7 in, and now I can proceed to bash it mercilessly! Hahaha!
 
Okay, seriously, though, I think it's a nice headphone. In fact, a very nice headphone.
 
I take back whatever I said about this thing.
 
Out of my iPhone and portable devices, it sounds exactly like how I thought its measurements looked. Bass indistinct, smeared, unfocused, lacking slam, weight, and texture. Midrange too warm, congested, and distant at the same time. Also too shouty. Treble peaky and yet dark, lacking air.
 
But out of my DIY amp and DAC setup that I built for the HE-560 (read: super overkill powerful, I could drive the HE-6 to insane levels with this), it sounds stupendous. Soundstage definitely not up to par with my HE-560, but depth is excellent. Bass is much more focused, much tighter, much more slamming. Midrange more focused, and aside from the shouty midrange and the slight treble peak at 7-8KHz that can be heard, it's... actually very nice.
 
And I haven't even modded this thing yet.
 
Color me... very impressed.
 

 

[purk]

  So, I finally got a Z7 in, and now I can proceed to bash it mercilessly! Hahaha!
 
Okay, seriously, though, I think it's a nice headphone. In fact, a very nice headphone.
 
I take back whatever I said about this thing.
 
Out of my iPhone and portable devices, it sounds exactly like how I thought its measurements looked. Bass indistinct, smeared, unfocused, lacking slam, weight, and texture. Midrange too warm, congested, and distant at the same time. Also too shouty. Treble peaky and yet dark, lacking air.
 
But out of my DIY amp and DAC setup that I built for the HE-560 (read: super overkill powerful, I could drive the HE-6 to insane levels with this), it sounds stupendous. Soundstage definitely not up to par with my HE-560, but depth is excellent. Bass is much more focused, much tighter, much more slamming. Midrange more focused, and aside from the shouty midrange and the slight treble peak at 7-8KHz that can be heard, it's... actually very nice.
 
And I haven't even modded this thing yet.
 
Color me... very impressed.
 

Yup, that what I've been saying.  How about running it balanced as well as silver cable upgraded?  You will like it better there too.

 

[purk]

  I do not think PHA-2 can do it. Maybe somebody who has it can try. 
PONO player/amplifier was designed to have this balanced mode driving ability. On the PONO thread they talk about it. [Towards the end of the thread]
There, you can have a player and an amplifier with a choice of using single ended or balanced drive mode, all for 400 dollars instead of paying some 1500 plus dollars for Sony offering of an amplifier plus a separate player.
http://www.head-fi.org/t/629454/pono-neil-youngs-portable-hi-res-music-player

 
Not all balanced are created equal.  What's the DAC on the PONO?  The PHA3 can be had for around $750 shipped and comes with ESS9018 on board.

 

[dweaver]

Pono DAC = ESS Sabre 9018 DAC chip

 

[Bill-P]

  Yup, that what I've been saying.  How about running it balanced as well as silver cable upgraded?  You will like it better there too.

I think I will resort to modding to fix the rest of my qualms...
 
Mainly:
1) The upper mid is a bit too forward/harsh, so it sticks out like a sore thumb because the whole presentation is very relaxing/smooth.
2) There is a peak in the lower treble that makes this headphone sound... a bit peaky. If this peak was a bit higher up (à la R10), it would be nicer.
3) The bass could definitely be tighter, though amping already helped with power, authority, impact, and control.
 
I guess I'm just asking for a lot... but I'm also hearing a lot of potential with this headphone.