[proglife]

That purple reflection on the grills... kinda look sexy... don't ask me why I think that.

makes it look like an insect's eye

 

[musicor]

My unit

still not have any problem...

My unit

still not have any problem...

You made a bed for your Z1R. Nice job

 

[Sonic Defender]

i'd like to think that it hasn't come to this but i could delete the post if it's touching a nerve

No, not even close. We are all big kids here and I'm sure we can survive this. I know you like to stir the pot from time to time, keeps things interesting I guess.

 

[BubbaJay]

As you can see I'm new posting on Head-Fi but not new to the site and all this talk about of the Z1R's frequency response has done my head in. None of it though has changed the fact that it most likely will be my next headphone purchase. I had a chance to listen to the Z7 for a while which a lot of people didn't like but I thought they sounded very good. I tend to like a warmer fatigue free signature which is why I love my Nighthawk and Elear so much. Like many have said sound quality is very subjective and we all have are preferences, and frequency response imo has nothing to do with sound quality most of the time.

 

[Sonic Defender]

... and frequency response imo has nothing to do with sound quality most of the time.

It can, but again, and as always, there is individual difference at play. Let's assume there is a universal baseline of not annoying sounding, most likely a flat frequency response. Now flat might be perfect for some, boring to others, but truly neutral you would expect to at least not annoy people if it doesn't have any big peaks or dips. You can have all kinds of deviations from a frequency response like that, some will be easily perceived, but many won't really be as audible as they may seem when looking at a graph. Some of the deviations will be a positive to some, not so for others, some won't even notice. The range of possible responses while not infinite I'm sure is very substantial.

I like measurements, I think they are useful, to a point, but given the limitations of measurement (and there are limitations) and other confounding factors it would be truly foolish to base a decision only on a frequency response graph unless it was so obviously flawed beyond redemption. No matter what anybody says, when I look at the Z1R, I really don't see major issues, I see some deviations here and there, mostly I think it looks reasonable enough and when I listen to the Sony it sounds very good so obviously where it deviates from a neutral response works for my preferences. Really measurement in many ways is just a curiosity for me, I know it has value, but it really isn't the holy grail of audio truth, our hearing brain is. I tend to believe there are general tendencies in the frequency response that are best to remain as true to as possible, but there is most certainly room to deviate and create sonic signatures and that is exactly what Sony has done here with the Z1R. Not for Tyll, just fine, I'm not aware that Sony was designing for him personally anyway, I suspect they had a signature in mind and they captured it and shared it with those who would like it. I know I do, and I'm not alone.

 

[up late]

No, not even close. We are all big kids here and I'm sure we can survive this. I know you like to stir the pot from time to time, keeps things interesting I guess.

i prefer "add to the discussion"

 

[canali]

you could have ignored it

 

[MacedonianHero]

Sitting down with my Z1Rs tonight and Diana Krall's new album and these are such easy headphones to enjoy! Unlike some of my previously closed Japanese headphones like the TH-900s (fatiguing treble that would grate on me after 30 minutes), D7000 (see TH900s, but add a more extreme "U" shape), or W3000 (somewhat bass light and "honky" mids), these Sony's just let me sit back and let the music pour in!

 

[up late]

As you can see I'm new posting on Head-Fi but not new to the site and all this talk about of the Z1R's frequency response has done my head in. None of it though has changed the fact that it most likely will be my next headphone purchase. I had a chance to listen to the Z7 for a while which a lot of people didn't like but I thought they sounded very good. I tend to like a warmer fatigue free signature which is why I love my Nighthawk and Elear so much. Like many have said sound quality is very subjective and we all have are preferences, and frequency response imo has nothing to do with sound quality most of the time.

it has everything to do with it. every headphone has a frequency range. frequency response graphs chart it. i would be astonished if sony's audio engineers didn't use frequency response measurements along with their ears to shape the z1r's sound signature.

 

[greggf]

Speaking of stirring the pot, I notice that in the link up late posted, Tyll mentions all the attention his review of the Z1R got. And that's what this is all about: attention, good or bad. It's entertainment. That's why he wears the clown shirts. It's not about us enjoying our lives through good sound that we like.

 

[nanaholic]

i'd like to think that it hasn't come to this but i could delete the post if it's touching a nerve

No nerves are touch, but the argument is rather round looking at the moment with nothing particularly new being added if you just drop a link.

Here's a life lesson that everyone should take to heart - the thing about arguing what is clearly a subjective opinion is that the more heated you make your point the more it makes you look like a self-righteous pomp. I think most people who own the Z1R aren't new to the hobby and knows what a flat FR neutral headphone sounds like and can appreciate the technical difficulty in making an accurate sounding phone, this however takes nothing away from the personal subjective preference for something that is NOT neutral nor accurate, and these subjective preferences are arguably the very foundation of this hobby. We have the revival of vinyls and analog tapes which has worse SNR than digital formats, tube amps with poor harmonic distortion measurements and noise floor compared to (sometimes much cheaper) SS devices, heck even at the very beginning of the entire musical chain where artists deliberately boost their guitar amps to cause distortion in the sound, none of these acts or devices aims for the accurate sound reproduction but rather the subjective "sound quality" of personal preference.

BTW I think it is pretty hypocritical for Tyll putting down the Z1R for poor measurements when he has a few very expensive tube amps on his wall of fame (and completely gashing over them) while also not showing measurements for those amps and the tubes, preciously for the reason I have pointed out above. So really is he not just preferring his imperfection/distortion in a different part of the chain (eg if someone is using his ruler flat HD800 on a tube amp to "flavour" the sound with harmonic distortion, why is that more preferable/superior than someone who uses a ruler flat SS amp and little harmonic distortion with the Z1R)? Then why single out headphones? Or even one headphone in particular? This doesn't make you look like much of an objectivist.

 

[stenog]

Speaking of stirring the pot, I notice that in the link up late posted, Tyll mentions all the attention his review of the Z1R got. And that's what this is all about: attention, good or bad. It's entertainment. That's why he wears the clown shirts. It's not about us enjoying our lives through good sound that we like.

This, ignore the guy!

 

[up late]

Sitting down with my Z1Rs tonight and Diana Krall's new album and these are such easy headphones to enjoy! Unlike some of my previously closed Japanese headphones like the TH-900s (fatiguing treble that would grate on me after 30 minutes), D7000 (see TH900s, but add a more extreme "U" shape), or W3000 (somewhat bass light and "honky" mids), these Sony's just let me sit back and let the music pour in!

i thought that you regretted parting with your w3000anv. i don't hear the mids as "honky" or the bass as lite, but the mids are forward compared to the z1r. the z1r reminded me of a bass-heavy, darker version of it in a way. both are an easy listen but the z1r is far more comfortable imo. i'd like to compare them side by side to determine which one i'd rather own.

 

[up late]

Speaking of stirring the pot, I notice that in the link up late posted, Tyll mentions all the attention his review of the Z1R got. And that's what this is all about: attention, good or bad. It's entertainment. That's why he wears the clown shirts. It's not about us enjoying our lives through good sound that we like.

i think that you're overlooking his passion for the hobby, which appears genuine to me

 

[jscmd2000]

The slappa case just arrived today... sorry, don't mean to change the subject, but... it is too small! It won't close! The zippers are about 1/2 inch apart, and I don't want to force it and break the yolk or something. How did you get this to close, whoever recommended them, if you don't mind sharing? The Mr. Speakers ether case was perfect but sold it 'cause it was just collecting dust. Any other recommendations, please?