[Sonic Defender]

  You need to get a nice quiet PC like a Serenity from Puget Custom Computer or one of the Endpcnoise PCs.

Way cheaper to just turn the music up

.

 

[Sarnia]

  You need to get a nice quiet PC like a Serenity from Puget Custom Computer or one of the Endpcnoise PCs.

 
You might be right, unfortunately (or fortunately I guess) my PC is specced where I need it to be for my other hobby, photography, plus a bit of gaming. Replacing it would be too expensive given what I've spent on headphone-related gear recently. Divorce is only a bank statement away. Luckily my laptop is completely silent, and for streaming the iPad will do nicely too.
 
Well, having tried the same tracks out of my laptop I'm a little sheepish now (baaah!). The Z1R still picks up the whisper slightly more than the HEKv2, but there's not much in it. However overall the HEK does resolve a little more than the Z1R (and frankly sounds bloody amazing). 
 
While I knew the ambient noise in the room would have an impact on the open headphones, I didn't appreciate by how much, so thanks again to up late and LaCuffia for pointing it out. Like I've said before this is very much a learning experience for me.
 
What still amazes me is how well the Z1R competes with the HEK v2, I still believe it really is something special.

 

[rgs9200m]

I'm obsessive compulsive about loud computer noise, and fans or drives that whirr or are high pitched are the worst even when just working and not listening to music. 
Yep, you don't realize the affect or annoyance of ambient noise sometimes until it stops. 

 

[Sarnia]

  I'm obsessive compulsive about loud computer noise, and fans or drives that whirr or are high pitched are the worst even when just working and not listening to music. 

It is annoying. I need to look at replacing the fans with some quieter ones, and also maybe the CPU cooler. It's around 43db at my sitting ear level at the moment. 
 
Otherwise it's a good reason to get my ears sorted and have a set of closed cans for when I need the PC on.

 

[cloud_c]

 
I looked up the initial song you put
 
and almost went crazy looking for it
 
then i don't know if i imaged something but @ 20 seconds i thought i heard a whisper in the background but that could be a beat, and now i need to look up the edited song
 
what a weird video man!
 

 
Check at 20 sec
@Sarnia
 
do you hear it?
 
I'll check out the George Erza now!
 
Where is the whisper? I got 440s on (beyers not shure) so i doubt i'll hear it hehe
 

 
I hear a "Go" at the start 1st second

 



I just had to use the T1 as a comparison here. Un-eq'ed I clearly hear the sound starting at 20 seconds. While it sounds like a sound effect rather than a voice, to me it sounds like an intentional artifact from processing a segment of the same track being heard with a short delay of maybe a second and possibly some reverse play of the music just before the voice as I hear both the effect and a delayed copy of the voice at low volume. Happens again for a few seconds at 1:17.
I hear it clearest on the T1, but the Z1R also clearly presents the info, just not as pronounced. With eq, they both have the same volume and nearly same detail, maybe a hair in favour of the T1, but not much time a/b here, so don't lend to much weight to that.
"Go" is very clear to me on all headphones and am surprised that anyone wouldn't hear it.
Just for giggles I tried this with the SZ2000 and 1R(same type of feel rubbery single ended cable) and I hear the detail on these two phones as well though slightly less clear. Perhaps the PHA-3 that is powering them is doing a great job or I have really sensitive ears, not sure, maybe both.
Certainly I enjoyed the first track a lot and most with the Z1R. I'm happy about that. These are keepers.

 

[Sonic Defender]

 

 



... These are keepers.

 
Indeed they are.

 

[sweetben]

Some observations about my Z1Rs.  First off The Sony/Kimber cables make a nice difference in my opinion, everything just sounded a little better to me.
 
Also, I have tried the Z1Rs with with the Chord Hugo and the Audioquest Dragonfly Red.  The Hugo was definitely more resolving and provided a better sense of space, but the Red actually provided a little more body to my music.  Bass was little more fun.

 

[LaCuffia]

I have the DragonFly Red too and I agree it sounds really good with the Z1R.

 

[Sonic Defender]

  Some observations about my Z1Rs.  First off The Sony/Kimber cables make a nice difference in my opinion, everything just sounded a little better to me.
 
Also, I have tried the Z1Rs with with the Chord Hugo and the Audioquest Dragonfly Red.  The Hugo was definitely more resolving and provided a better sense of space, but the Red actually provided a little more body to my music.  Bass was little more fun.

I have read that the Hugo tends toward leanness where the Mojo that I often use with the Z1R leans toward weight and warmth. Nice to know that the Red does such an admirable job.

 

[canali]

Love the DF red...A little firecracker of a DAC for its price...I often change it up with the mojo (with my iPod touch 6) if I want a quick, lightweight and unencumbered connection on the fly.

 

[Sonic Defender]

Love the DF red...A little firecracker of a DAC for its price...I often change it up with the mojo (with my iPod touch 6) if I want a quick, lightweight and unencumbered connection on the fly.

I often think of picking one up, but sadly have no need for it. My buddy is looking for something so maybe I'll suggest the Red to him (and that way gain sneaky access to one when I want to try it).

 

[canali]

I often think of picking one up, but sadly have no need for it. My buddy is looking for something so maybe I'll suggest the Red to him (and that way gain sneaky access to one when I want to try it).

Good review to share with your friend.. sure the DF red is no mojo...But it's not a POS either.
http://www.digitalaudioreview.net/2016/04/audioquests-dragonfly-red-puts-high-end-daps-on-notice/

 

[dnnaudio]

Have been listening on and off to the Z1R the past few days: ipod classic > cypherlabs soloDB > SPDIF > Hugo. On my earlier post I mentioned the Z1R to me sounded best suited to my tastes after comparing with various other TOTL cans. Not sure I still feel the same as I now feel the Z1R can be a bit too polite on the top end resulting to a darkish sonic character, as if there's a thin curtain in front. Instruments like brass, horns, guitar and even piano loses a bit of the sharp edge that to me is an important part of musical enjoyment. On some tracks this darkness can be compensated by increasing volume a bit so the highs get get more substance and energy, but on other tracks even increasing the volume does not do it. The Z1R is tops when it comes to resolution, rendering of space and scale and overall coherence and in these areas it kills my DHC cabled Shure 846 w/c I have used for years. While I can enjoy it as it is I am inclined to look for cable alternative that can compensate the darkness. Too bad the Sony-Kimber cable does not do this as it seem to go further to the dark side. Maybe another DHC cable..

 

[AnakChan]

  Have been listening on and off to the Z1R the past few days: ipod classic > cypherlabs soloDB > SPDIF > Hugo. On my earlier post I mentioned the Z1R to me sounded best suited to my tastes after comparing with various other TOTL cans. Not sure I still feel the same as I now feel the Z1R can be a bit too polite on the top end resulting to a darkish sonic character, as if there's a thin curtain in front. Instruments like brass, horns, guitar and even piano loses a bit of the sharp edge that to me is an important part of musical enjoyment. On some tracks this darkness can be compensated by increasing volume a bit so the highs get get more substance and energy, but on other tracks even increasing the volume does not do it. The Z1R is tops when it comes to resolution, rendering of space and scale and overall coherence and in these areas it kills my DHC cabled Shure 846 w/c I have used for years. While I can enjoy it as it is I am inclined to look for cable alternative that can compensate the darkness. Too bad the Sony-Kimber cable does not do this as it seem to go further to the dark side. Maybe another DHC cable..

 
What cables were you using out of the question? The standard stock cable? The reason I'm asking is because a few weeks back, I wrote the same to a fellow Z1R colleague that I felt it was a little dark with a treble spike off my WM1Z and comparing against the Elear back then.

This past weekend at the Fujiya show, I was at the tried out these other cables off their balanced amp and now that you've talked about a dark signature, I'm thinking back I didn't get that feeling with the Z1R. It prompts me to want to try more cable variety with the Z1R to see if that darkness is due to standard/stock cables. Naturally I'm wary as the cables were almost to the cost of the Z1Rs themselves. But if it proves to be the cable, then at least in my eyes, it demonstrates the Z1R is somewhat noticeably scalable, and it's not just pure grunt power that it needs to get the most out of it, but maybe more clean/consistent power drive. Again this is almost pure speculation with a brief 10 min actual listen.

 

[L Zhao]

Anyone own the B&W P9's alongside their Z1R 's ?

I owned P9 prior to Z1R, in some degree they have similar characteristic, P9 has a nice soundstage (semi-open), a bit more bass heavy. Z1R is more resolve. I enjoyed both. But Z1R is definitely less sound leaking which is the main reason i opt for it for office use.