[Sonic Defender]

Worth the wait my friend, worth the wait. After the overnighter the sound is more spacious, better separation, the treble has ease but still sparkles. Bass is even more controlled and impressive.

After having the thx00 for quite some time, I can say the thx00 is the fun version while the 1z is the reference. They outperform the th900 as well imo.

I would hope the Z1R destroys the THX00 at everything. if it didn't I would be extremely disappointed. I can understand the TH900 being very competitive, but please tell me the THX00 isn't in the same league or I'll have to pout.

 

[Liu Junyuan]

You both provided very useful information, thank you for that. I'm just a little careful now as I do listen to music with plenty of bass information and I have found that if the decay isn't controlled enough the bass can start to sound undifferentiated and the notes will carry on for un-realistic periods of time. I'm starting to wonder about the balance between driver size and dampening constraints. I have to do some careful thinking as my tastes fall in between reference, and warmer, coloured signatures. I call my self a bass-head lite. I need enough bass, it must have impact, but I still require detail and effective control. It does sound like the Z1R is pretty close to ideal for me, but I do have modest concerns still.

Not to detract from the discussion (as I am fascinated by this new Sony), but based on what you say are your preferences and your rig, I am a little surprised you have not tried an HE-6, which has some of the most reference-level, visceral, and clean bass I have heard, combined with a very musical yet technically capable presentation across the FR, particularly with light mods. And they have a very large speaker-like presentation, scaling quite well with speaker amps in particular. The fact you already use speaker taps for your headphones makes this a no-brainer audition IMO. I do see you are looking for sealed headphones but I have to point out the HE-6 would seem to tick all of your sonic preferences perfectly.

I am really looking forward to your reception of the Sony.

Okay, I will return to lurk mode...

 

[Soundsgoodtome]

Not even close.

I would hope the Z1R destroys the THX00 at everything. if it didn't I would be extremely disappointed. I can understand the TH900 being very competitive, but please tell me the THX00 isn't in the same league or I'll have to pout.

 

[Sonic Defender]

Not to detract from the discussion (as I am fascinated by this new Sony), but based on what you say are your preferences and your rig, I am a little surprised you have not tried an HE-6, which has some of the most reference-level, visceral, and clean bass I have heard, combined with a very musical yet technically capable presentation across the FR, particularly with light mods. And they have a very large speaker-like presentation, scaling quite well with speaker amps in particular. The fact you already use speaker taps for your headphones makes this a no-brainer audition IMO. I do see you are looking for sealed headphones but I have to point out the HE-6 would seem to tick all of your sonic preferences perfectly.

I am really looking forward to your reception of the Sony.

Okay, I will return to lurk mode...

Well, I have considered it, and I did own the HE 560, but I'm looking specifically for a closed headphone, but yes, the HE-6 is a headphone I would like to own. I also use a 180 watt speaker amp via speaker terminals to drive my headphones so I believe I could drive the HE-6 well. Like you seem to be, I was just so intrigued by the Z1R and perhaps this is a little foolish, but I love the understated, yet modern look so at least some of the appeal is aesthetics and as much as I am sure the HE-6 sounds special, it is rather ugly (to me). At least I'll admit I'm partially buying for the joy of good looks!!

 

[sonics]

​

I did end up finishing my review folks....and you can find it right here.​

Super great review, thank you.

Which portable amp/dac would you guys recommend for the z1r?

 

[beowulf]

And the price keeps crashing, at least in the UK. With the currency adjustment to Euros, one can now get the Z1R at €1558.
When I bought mine on the first batch (exactly one month and three days ago) it was €1900, which was the original launch price.
 
I'd say that such a drop in such a short period ins quite frustrating for the initial users, plus IMHO it damages the brand positioning (Sony already has a reputation of losing value fast).
 
I'm not saying that the initial price is what it should be, but simply mentioning the drop % and seeing it purely on the value-retention side.
The upside is that if this allows more people to get them, then I'm happy with that, they're worth the listening.

 

[Rowethren]

And the price keeps crashing, at least in the UK. With the currency adjustment to Euros, one can now get the Z1R at €1558.
When I bought mine on the first batch (exactly one month and three days ago) it was €1900, which was the original launch price.

I'd say that such a drop in such a short period ins quite frustrating for the initial users, plus IMHO it damages the brand positioning (Sony already has a reputation of losing value fast).

I'm not saying that the initial price is what it should be, but simply mentioning the drop % and seeing it purely on the value-retention side.
The upside is that if this allows more people to get them, then I'm happy with that, they're worth the listening.

It is a bit crazy, I noticed my "pre-order" had gone down by another £30 today. Wonder what the price will be once they actually get delivered lol

 

[thatonenoob]

Well, I have considered it, and I did own the HE 560, but I'm looking specifically for a closed headphone, but yes, the HE-6 is a headphone I would like to own. I also use a 180 watt speaker amp via speaker terminals to drive my headphones so I believe I could drive the HE-6 well. Like you seem to be, I was just so intrigued by the Z1R and perhaps this is a little foolish, but I love the understated, yet modern look so at least some of the appeal is aesthetics and as much as I am sure the HE-6 sounds special, it is rather ugly (to me). At least I'll admit I'm partially buying for the joy of good looks!!

No problem with being a fashionphile I know I'm definitely one...sometimes...maybe....always...nevermind.

 

[beowulf]

It is a bit crazy, I noticed my "pre-order" had gone down by another £30 today. Wonder what the price will be once they actually get delivered lol

 
Yup. Someone who bought them new at retail price in most of Europe at launch (2200) would now sell them used perhaps at 1250. That's a $1K loss in one month,  losing close to half the value, something you won't see with many high end headphones.
 
I guess my MDR-1000X are going back to Amazon near the end of the return period. The squeaky plastic annoys me, plus they'll probably cost 60 Eur in a month from now anyway.

 
Also,  might think about getting the amplifier...  at this rate the Sony TA-ZH1ES will be costing 500 EUR by Christmas.

 

[beowulf]

No problem with being a fashionphile I know I'm definitely one...sometimes...maybe....always...nevermind.

 
That reminds me, I really liked your photos, but felt a few more of the inside of the case would be nice. There's a sense of "whoa" when you open that magnetic lock and raise the top of the case open.

 

[Rowethren]

Yup. Someone who bought them new at retail price in most of Europe at launch (2200) would now sell them used perhaps at 1250. That's a $1K loss in one month,  losing close to half the value, something you won't see with many high end headphones.

I guess my MDR-1000X are going back to Amazon near the end of the return period. The squeaky plastic annoys me, plus they'll probably cost 60 Eur in a month from now anyway.  
Also,  might think about getting the amplifier...  at this rate the Sony TA-ZH1ES will be costing 500 EUR by Christmas.

I think it might be to do with the fall in the Japanese market over the last month or so but even then the drop in the market is nowhere near the drop in price of these headphones and why has it dropped so much faster in the UK considering we are in a downturn ourselves as well...

 

[beowulf]

I think it might be to do with the fall in the Japanese market over the last month or so but even then the drop in the market is nowhere near the drop in price of these headphones and why has it dropped so much faster in the UK considering we are in a downturn ourselves as well...

 
Sounds more like Sony pricing models, the market drops would not justify it. A higher percentage would be normal on the 1000X, but not so much on the Z1R.
 
It is a coincidence but right after I posted the earlier rant a friend told me that the MDR-1000X can already be found for 258 EUR in Europe (from the original 400 not so long ago).
 
I haven't bought Sony stuff in a long time but the next time I do, it sure won't be on the launch month...

 

[sosrah]

It is a bit crazy, I noticed my "pre-order" had gone down by another £30 today. Wonder what the price will be once they actually get delivered lol

but if the price go up again before Z1r availability, your preorder will remains at today price?

 

[Gibraltar]

I expect these price changes have nothing to do with Sony. You'll notice that the suggested retail prices on the Sony websites remain unchanged. It's up to individual retailers to set the price as they see fit, which is where the 'suggested' comes from in MSRP. My guess is Amazon has some algorithm that's changing the prices based on demand or maybe based on discrepancies between different Amazon sites globally. There's no way to know for sure, but I haven't seen these kind of discounts anywhere other than Amazon.

 

[beowulf]

  I expect these price changes have nothing to do with Sony. You'll notice that the suggested retail prices on the Sony websites remain unchanged. It's up to individual retailers to set the price as they see fit, which is where the 'suggested' comes from in MSRP. My guess is Amazon has some algorithm that's changing the prices based on demand or maybe based on discrepancies between different Amazon sites globally. There's no way to know for sure, but I haven't seen these kind of discounts anywhere other than Amazon.

 
They operate in curious ways, but it must make sense logistically for them.
 
In my case they told me that they wouldn't give any refund once the item had been received, but that I could just return it (it was in the 30-day return window) and buy again. Sounds like a hassle for both sides, but must be more profitable.
 
The case of the MDR-1000X is different, as it is not a TOTL, but I'm seeing a similar % in drop very early, so I'm definitely going to send them back (and probably not re-buy them anytime soon, because of the plastic noises).