People said these were the BEST IEM ever made! Sony IER-Z1R

A review of the Sony IER-Z1R IEM including frequency response measurements and comparisons including Sony IER-Z1R vs HiFiMan Svanar (wired) and Sony IER-Z1R vs Westone Mach 70.

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00:00 Introduction
00:25 Price & specs
03:36 Sound quality
06:10 Fit & comfort
07:25 Sony IER-Z1R vs HiFiMan Svanar
10:26 Sony IER-Z1R vs Westone Mach 70
13:04 Wrap-up

#audiophile #audioreview #iem

[Facelessroninmartialarts]

Got my Z1R a few months ago, for me they are 1 of my end game IER's. Tip rolling is a thing with them and to get a good seal. They have the thumpiest bass that I actually LOVE.
They fit my ears like a glove so I guess I was quite fortunate in that regard. Will not sell them for any money.

[The_Shock_and_Awe]

After selling it for long time ago I decided to buy the ier z1r again and I'm blown away by the resolution and the texture of the bass and I've tried many IEMs with way higher driver count with est and even bone conduction like the Empire Ears I mean the Sony IER Z1R is really something you keep coming back to it (or me atleast) even after listening to higher specs IEMs or now I realized it's not just about driver count but the cohesion and quality of each driver 😂😂

[zzz-vdrp]

Here's the steps that i took to fit the z1r.

1. Fit the z1r into the ears without your regular size tips. I usually use m sized tips and when i did that i wasnt able to make the shell sit flush to my ears, but i did get a seal.

2. Remove tips and insert z1r directly into ears, if they're able to be inserted more deeply, your regular tips are too large.

3. Slowly increase tip size till the z1r cant fit as deep, and then go down 1 size. You'll still be able to get good seal while solving fitment issues.

4. Once you know what size you need now's the time to do tip rolling and finding different tips. I found that the divinus velvet gave me the best fit out of all the tips I've tested and tips like spinfit w1 don't fit well with the iem since they make them protrude out from the ear.

[chuanyewlee]

The Sony Z1Rs have been around for some years now. It's worth noting that it was made by Sony to specifically sound its level best when paired with their flagship WM1Z/WM1A DAPs. Do invest in a set of customt tips to help it fit into your ears and a top class pure silver cable and you'll be amazed what this thingy can do.

[nikolaygramchev]

Z1R are one of my three end-games making the Holy Trinity for me - the Helios, the Monarch Mk2 & the Z1R. These three compliment each other perfectly and give any enjoyment and quality of replay I need.

[MuhammadKharismawan]

I've owned my Z1R (both fullsize and IEM) for 2+ years now, and yes the treble can be spicy on the IER, but sometimes i just forgot that deep insertion yes actually tame the treble quite a lot. it's no longer zingy and sibilant. sometimes you can actually find better fit and comfort with small size tips, I usually use mediums and put them in shallow-ly but i always carry an ms size tips in the case for then I want them.

[BobbyEllaForever]

I’ve spent thousands on TOTL iems and associated gear and if I had to do it again, I wouldn’t. They just are not worth the price. Having said that, the Z1R has remained my favourite IEM since I got it in 2018. If you absolutely have to make the mistakes I made to realize what you already have is good enough, I recommend the Z1R.

[CsTruth]

I used the Z1R for about a year and it was my go-to every time I had to sit on long flights or long rides. I tried the mk2 as well because everyone was hyping it up, however the clear winner was Z1R for me. Even when my ears wasn't blessed and the fitting was kinda horrendous, it still sounded godly to me. Sold my Z1R because I had an ear infection. After recovering and testing the mega5est awhile back, I realised that fit is so important and that even though I was not particularly blown away by it, it was addictive to listen to due to its comfort and forward mids.

[BillyKueekSG]

For years, I was more of a wireless earbuds person. Less than 2 years ago, I kinda reconnected with music more seriously when I saw the cheap KZ IEMs online. Very quickly, I bought a few and some cables. I soon realized they can’t stay in my ears properly and have to use my hands to hold on it. So, I moved to headphones and have been at it since. The Tin T2 is the most expensive and probably best IEM I still have. Now, it’s Bluetooth earbuds daily and headphones for listening time.

[kurt]

I started ti write if there is a reason to own both Mach 70 and IER-Z1R, in the sense that is the presentation different enough, and I pause to go on their website. Not only thy put their T2 connection on an IEM, something in itself cringe enough, but even their adapter (yes becasue someone spending 1500 Euro should need an adapter 🙄) is for you to adapt your MMCX IEM to their cable, not the other way around. Good, we need their dumb cable.... no 4.4mm. This chanel does more to make them sell products then they are doing themselves, because in the minds of those people if you have gear that is primarely a balaced device so you need balanced cable, you need to obviously change your gear to use their product... the level of entitelment of those guys is literally of the chart.
Outstanding video, very informative, very well done, it is a shame some brands are taking themselves way to seriously.
ps. in case isn't clear I am not buyin any Weastone

[peytonsnead]

The thoughtful content is the brand. Also enjoying the extra effort on production.

[audio_tron]

Z1R had the very best vocal performance I have ever heard. Aful Cantor (pre-release version at CanJam) and Elysian Diva were close. Meze Advar a baby Z1R, like 90-95% of the way there.

[arandomchannel]

Great review Loki!
Yeah definitely the treble is spicy on the treble, but for me just pairing it with something that isn't that analytical such as a Chord Mojo does wonders

[AmbientDatabase]

I think it's now time for both Sony and Hifiman to release new versions with planar magnetic drivers. Hifiman could also consider releasing an electrostatic version.

[TheMeistex]

Best Passion For Sound,

I have a question regarding these wonderfull IEMs.
I am trying to find someone who has been using these IEMs for a longer time, I hope you can respond to my question. 🙏

So, I’ve done my reasearch on these and from what people say, they are exactly what I’m looking for.
I am only worried about one thing.
The carrying case of these IEMs make it so you have to unplug the IEMs from their cables.
I’ve read that MMCX connecters tend to worsen overtime if plugged/unplugged a ton.

So now my question is, do they still hold up after a longer time of unplugging/plugging?
Is it just as easy as getting a new cable?
Have you been putting them back in their case after every listening session, and how have the connectors been holding up?

I hope you can understand my concern, they aren’t quite cheap after all. But I’m willing to go buy them because of their amazing sound.

I hope to see a reaction from you. 🙏
Have a great day!

[SteveHolst]

Fortunately I've got big ears and the Z1R fits well and brings a party to my ears.

[OzSteve]

Great video as always Lachlan. I've never been a fan of IEM's until recently. I have MANY pairs of the 'under a few hundred dollars' but now looking above that. Lucky for me, I am about to move from the Gold Coast to Melbourne where there are many stores I can go broke in. I have a pair of Sony MDRZ1R and I love them (and also, Audeze/Dan Clark/Hifiman) I have been looking at the IER-Z1R but I too have the smaller ear-well and think they'd pop out and I'd be very annoyed spending hat sort of coin on them. As I am a bit weird on a plane, I use some noise cancelling headphones (over ear) just to mute the outside world but then pop in IEM's for the music. My go to's are the PSB M4U 4. But now thanks to this channel I need to expand 😃

[jased]

I love my ones and still after 2 years still top 2 of my iems. They fit perfectly for my ears but it really needs the chin slider to be tighened up to under my chin to hold them in properly.

[juanblanco]

Looking forward to the video about the frequency range perception research you mentioned! The widespread dogma on this question has always bothered me as reductive. Even if we can't identify some stimuli as immediately perceptible in a way we expect them to be (which isn't even always the case with sound waves falling out of the established frequency range of 20-20000 Hz), that absolutely doesn't mean that we are completely insensitive to them and they have no impact on our body and perceptual system in particular. Claiming that the frequency range purportedly covered by these IEMs doesn't and couldn't in principle make any difference is just as unscientific as claiming that it does indeed make a meaningful and positive difference for the inadequate amount, scope and depth of the research on the issue at the moment. I absolutely hate the pseudoscientific dogmatic overzealousy espoused by many people claiming to be scientific objectivists while having inadequate understanding of science, scientific meta theory and philosophy os science.

[dbean]

I have a pretty large space for IEMs but have small ear canals. I would think the shell would fit but the actual nozzle may have trouble staying. If I were to buy these, I’d probably buy some custom tips form adv sound or something considering they have a custom tip dedicated to the IER-Z1R