[cn11]

I had sworn off BA's too, but now own the Thunder which has 10 of 'em, plus a DD of course! It's the finest IEM I've heard.

 

[Skullar]

Not a fan of the mids, I think EXT is better overall.

However considering the price and the TOTL soundstage/imaging performance, it is a no brainer.

Well i am soundstage whore. And i did pick it up used for cheap enough. So even if i dont like it i will not loose much.
Wanted to hear them for quite some time now.

 

[Xinlisupreme]

I had sworn off BA's too, but now own the Thunder which has 10 of 'em, plus a DD of course! It's the finest IEM I've heard.

+1
I think tuning is more important than driver design.

 

[jwilliamhurst]

+1
I think tuning is more important than driver design.

Amen!

 

[Xinlisupreme]

Amen!

Don’t you think so?

 

[rantng]

My 2022 resolution: (since I have found the one sound I am looking for) don't buy any new IEMs!

Let's see if I can last 3 months

Is that a type-o? Did you mean 3 weeks?

 

[jwilliamhurst]

Don’t you think so?

Yes! My “Amen!” Was in 1000% agreement with you

 

[kevin638880]

+1
I think tuning is more important than driver design.

Definitely, especially the estats. Unlike DD, it could literally do nothing better than BA tweeters....

 

[kevin638880]

Is that a type-o? Did you mean 3 weeks?

Well I have been thinking of grabbing a pair of Clariar i430...............

 

[gLer]

LMAO @gLer!!!

Just poped it to check 250+ missed posts and here goes Christmas miracle!!..

A man who almost slapped me in the wrist for putting EVO on sale when i moaned about its treble, now sold his EVO and then on top bought Z1R!!

Now ive seen everything..

And just because of that i haaaaad to pick up Z1R too lol.

Lol, I thought about what you might say as soon as I decided to do it! Happened so quickly too. The sweetener is that I could replace EVO with both MDR and Z1R and kill two birds with one stone. That was a big motivator and it all went down at almost the same time. I'm just extremely relieved and lucky it all worked out like it did, as I was fully prepared to reverse the whole thing and re-buy EVO I'd it didn't work out.

The IER Z1R may one day become the first IEM I buy for the third time.

I can honestly say the only IEM I can imagine replacing the Z1R for me one day is a Z2R.

Honestly, just based on graph it looks horrendous in my book. But i have heard too many impressions saying quite different things than what graph shows. And if @gLer likes it.. There is a good chance i will.

Everything I read about the Z1R before buying it was exactly why I hadn't bought one until now. Bass looks rolled off (it's not!), upper mids look boosted (slightly but such good quality it doesn't matter), vocals said to be recessed (they're not, just not overly forward), and there seems to be a treble peak or two (there may be but treble is such high quality there's zero harshness or sibilance or fatigue). At least not how I hear it. Then there's the horror stories about fit and weight - which I personally don't understand. The nonsense about the stock cable being twisty and too thick is just that - nonsense. Of course this is all just my opinion, but if you look at how I scored it on my ranking list, you'll get an idea of how I hear it compared to everything else. YMMV.

The midrange isn't particularly to my liking which is basically what caused me to sell it the two times i've own one...but the bass and treble are so good that I'm tempted to get one on hand to have as a "special teams" IEM.

I agree that vocals aren't always front and centre but I find them more clear than EVO, for example, and the bass and treble are so good I actually want to hear them right there all around me just as much as the mids. I hear Z1R as more U shaped than V, even though many would disagree. So again, YMMV, but I'll just say it's very receptive to tip and source rolling.

 

[kevin638880]

but I'll just say it's very receptive to tip and source rolling.

And the absolutely atrocious fit.

 

[davidmolliere]

+1
I think tuning is more important than driver design.

True but when design meets tuning then it's engineering and art combined and that's where the special IEMs / Headphones are born...

For example DCA Stealth has some very innovating stuff with the 3D printed Acoustic Metamaterial Tuning System (AMTS) which integrates waveguides, diffusion control, quarter-wave, and Helmholtz resonators into one compact structure that serves a goal of lowest possible distorsion and solves resonance issues with closed back headphones. Same goes for IE900 and its three chambers and the acoustic vortex milled into the nozzle (T3CA) system... innovation for innovation sake means nothing without good tuning.

But top tuning with top R&D means benchmark IEMs and headphones for sure...

 

[gLer]

And the absolutely atrocious fit.

Like I said in earlier impressions, they fit me like a glove. I can wear them for hours without readjusting once. I'm one of the chosen ones I guess

 

[kevin638880]

Like I said in earlier impressions, they fit me like a glove. I can wear them for hours without readjusting once. I'm one of the chosen ones I guess

I consider that lucky - you are able to enjoy the Z1R fully. It is pretty damn good afterall!

I have known many for not fitting with the Z1R, perhaps we just have small ears but definitely more complaints about the fit of the Z1R than, say, a U12t or something. Personally I'd recommend trying them on before blind buying one just to see if it fits.

But then I remember the EXT's comfort was praised by most ppl, then we have @aaf evo so it is "YMMV" again at the end of the day.

The "cable being thick" tho I can attest it is nonsense. It is thinner than most stock cables.

 

[feverfive]

True but when design meets tuning then it's engineering and art combined and that's where the special IEMs / Headphones are born...

For example DCA Stealth has some very innovating stuff with the 3D printed Acoustic Metamaterial Tuning System (AMTS) which integrates waveguides, diffusion control, quarter-wave, and Helmholtz resonators into one compact structure that serves a goal of lowest possible distorsion and solves resonance issues with closed back headphones. Same goes for IE900 and its three chambers and the acoustic vortex milled into the nozzle (T3CA) system... innovation for innovation sake means nothing without good tuning.

But top tuning with top R&D means benchmark IEMs and headphones for sure...

Thank you! Yes, it all matters. We don't need to divide ourselves into "tuning" vs. "tech" sects. One without the other = mediocrity as far as I'm concerned.