MDRZ1R Signature, Hi-Res Headphone, Black

I been hearing lots of praise for the mdr-z1r and now that I have my own I believe it definitely deserves it. The mdr-z1r are extremely well constructed and designed with absolutely no creaking and at least for my head the headband is just the right tension that works together with the deep molded earpads that soft in a way that It seals around your ear but it's firm enough to maintain its shape keeping my ears from making contact with the drivers, making these the most comfortable headphones I worn yet. For this section I may not know the correct technical audiophile terms to describe the mdr-z1r's performance and you can get a better description from other reviewers here, but I can probably describe the z1r better by comparison with other headphones I have, for example: Mdr-1am2, good build quality and light as a feather but earcups are shallow and sometimes it creaks a bit, sound profile is v shaped with more emphasis on the highs compared to the z1r but somewhat less subbass and very narrow soundstage which is expected for a typical close back of its price range. Mdr-z7m2, this one is very comparable in build quality and comfort and having that wide soundstage but the sound profile while still v shaped and detailed it's kinda dull across the board especially when compared to the 1am2. It's like if the z1r was to split into two separate headphones with the z7m2 having the build quality and the soundstage while the 1am2 keeps the exciting sound profile. That concludes my review of the mdr-z1r and I hope this gives you a better idea if you happen to own either of those headphones in the comparison.

I use a cabled connection from my iPhone 17 to a Chord Hugo2 D/A and headphone amplifier. My previous top of the line headphones were the Focal Stellia. The Sonys are excellent, more layering with significantly more bass. I guess there is a reason they have remained unchanged for many years now. It’s not like Sony lacks the means to come with a “new” model every couple years. The fit is a little tight and I have to see if it will improve with time.

Headphones...like all audio devices/equipment...have their own unique sound signature. Some will find the Sony MDR-Z1R to their linking, few won’t. What’s undeniable is that from the presentation, unboxing and feeling in your hands and on your head, it’s easy to see that this is truly a flagship product. You can tell Sony held nothing back in terms of giving its designers and engineers free reign to create their dream headphone...and in my eyes and hands, they’ve truly delivered. But what about sound? Here is where you will find the never ending debate come to a head (pardon the pun): Closed-back vs. Open-Back designs. If you prefer an open-back sound, there probably isn’t anything the Sony can do to sway you from the absolute best open-back cans. However, the Z1R’s have the widest, deepest soundstage I’ve ever heard from a closed design as well as presenting well recorded music with all the air and layering you would only expect from a really good open-back. And, due to the closed-back, you get an amazing amount of bass that’s always in control, with a full sense of depth and tightness, never boomy or muddy. They also have a great amount of isolation from the outside world. FWIW, I mostly use my Z1R’s with my Sony NW-ZX2 Hi-Res player and on my laptops & iPad Air with the incredible THX Onyx DAC/headphone amplifier. Material is Tidal (CD and MQA quality) streaming and stored high-res FLAC and DSD files. All in, these are undoubtedly the best closed-back headphones in the world, with reference-levels of sound quality and amazing build quality to boot. If you value the sonic signature and other qualities that a closed-back headphone brings...bass presence and authority, tempo, control and isolation are areas the Sony excels in...then you probably can’t go wrong with the Z1R’s. They are hugely expensive, yes, but the best is rarely ever cheap.

They are very good headphones. I replaced the headphone cables with better aftermarket cables and noticed a substantial improvement in audio quality. I recommend doing so.

This is a hard review to write. In part it's difficult because trying to describe the subjective experience of appreciating sound and music is hard, but also in part it is a difficult exercise in taming things like "confirmation bias" and trying to justify a huge purchase. I didn't think I would become a guy who would drop 26 Benjamins on a pair of headphones, a cable, and a digital audio player. Yet, here I am. How did this happen? MY HEADPHONE HISTORY I decided to do a deep dive into classical music about 3 years ago. I was down about the state of the country and the world, and I wanted an escape valve. I bought a big box set of Herbert von Karajan albums, and then I needed something to play them on. I started with Sony's MDR-7506 "Studio" headphones because they were praised for their "flatness" and were relatively inexpensive. I needed something that could hold the entire box set ripped as FLAC files, so I got a Sony NW-A45 Walkman. And this was fine... for a while. I felt like I could get more. More bass, smoother sound, more comfort. So I bought a pair of Sony MDR-1000X noise canceling headphones. This was a nice purchase because they paired with the Walkman easily and transmitted audio over LDAC, a higher resolution codec than standard Bluetooth and AptX. And things were fine... for a while. The MDR-1000X are plastic headphones with pleather ear pads. They are comfortable for about an hour at most. Great for a bus ride or for some listening at work, but not great for a 3 hour listen in the late evening. So I started to look into wired cans with more premium materials. I settled on Sony's MDR-Z7 headphones. These were Sony's flagship for 2014, praised for their huge 70mm drivers and seismic bass, but criticized for being a little over-emphasized in the bass region and a little recessed for vocals. But with wired headphones, you start to hear about better standards. "Balanced" cable provides more power and less "noise" than standard 3.5mm mini cable. OK, fine. I plumped for a balanced cable and Sony's NW-ZX300 Walkman, which has a balanced output. And it was fine... for a while. I will say this - there were improvements with each step. Bass was deeper and more controlled, less "boomy" while still making it feel like you were surrounded by cellos or double basses (or, for rock, by bass guitars and kickdrums). I was hearing more from my music. Was it a linear progression in audio improvement that matched the increase in price? No. "Diminishing Returns" is something you'll hear a lot about in this hobby - and it's the real deal. So why did I eventually go for the WM1A Walkman and the MDR-Z1R headphones? Well, in addition to chasing the dragon so to speak, I wanted durability and comfort. The MDR-Z7 are very comfortable, but the earpads are pleather, and thus prone to wearing out, and are difficult to source replacements for. The WM1A has a much larger screen, which is key for album art, something I enjoy. So I saved up my Amazon points for the Z1R. I found a WM1A on eBay for about 75% of MSRP. I purchased a used Sony Kimber balanced cable from a Head-Fi user. And I took the plunge on the headphones at the beginning of this month. I purchased a pair of Dekoni leather replacement pads as a backup for the stock pads. I am done. Done! I will not be buying any more gear. What have I learned? What wisdom can I pass on to you? EVALUATING THE Z1R The MDR-Z1R sells for almost thrice what the next Sony step-down model, the MDR-Z7M2 does. Does it provide thrice the performance? No way. No how. It is better, don't get me wrong. You'll hear more detail in the bass region especially - but it's not night and day. I would wager that you get 90% of the performance for 40% of the price. So why buy these things? Well, the build quality is supreme. There are no creaks or squeaks. The frame is entirely metal, covered by real leather. The pads twist off easily, as opposed to the screw that holds in the Z7 pads. The comfort on the head is about even with the Z7. The headphones come in a beautiful wood and leather storage case, though I think for the price Sony should have included a travel case, too (there are plenty of options from companies like Geekria, though). The case makes a great storage area for my Walkman and cables, as well. I can tell you from A/B testing that there is not much difference between the stock cables (both 3.5mm and 4.4mm balanced are included) and the Kimber upgrade cable. There may be a small difference, but I would have to do double blind testing to try and determine it (something I can't do with 1 Walkman and 1 pair of headphones). On first listen, the headphones seemed a bit too forward in the bass region and some vocals seemed a bit recessed. I lightly adjusted the EQ on the WM1A (pictured) to compensate, very successfully in my opinion. After settling in and tuning/listening for a good 40 hours, I find the sound quality to be excellent, and yes, a solid upgrade over the Z7. I listen primarily to classical, and in this genre the Z1R provides a deep, enveloping experience, very much like being in a concert hall, with perhaps slightly elevated bass (though it can be tuned down). Particularly notable is the way in which deep, resonant bass tones (such as those from contrabasses and cellos) retain all of their detail and do not crowd out other parts of the mix in the middle tones. Digitally recorded concert music especially gives this sense of "being there" detail and richness. The digital Karajan/BPO Brahms Symphony 1 is apocalyptically huge. For rock and pop, drums have a real slam to them, while vocals are crystal clear and can compete (Especially when tuned up slightly). Vocals in Haim's "Women In Music Pt. III" are close and intimate. The Strokes' "The New Abnormal" sounds amazing, from bass guitar to vocals to percussion. Well-recorded jazz makes you feel like you're in the studio, easily sensing where the instruments are in the room. John Coltrane's "A Love Supreme" sounds like it is surrounding your head. Well-mastered electronic dance music, such as Lady Gaga's "Chromatica," sounds pretty incredible, too, with very impactful beats and no sonic muddiness. Basically, the Z1R handles all of these genres with aplomb, as long as you tune the sound to your preferences (as pictured, I lowered the bass levels slightly and boosted the range where vocals reside slightly). There is some controversy on the question of whether these headphones require a separate amplifier to sound their best. Reviewers seem split, as is the enthusiast community. Personally, I do not own or use an amplifier, and I can't say I feel like anything is "missing." I use the WM1A Walkman with balanced cables, and generally keep the volume at a setting of about 48/120 for orchestral music, 38-40/120 for pop and rock. Much louder gets uncomfortable. I also ran these over standard 3.5mm cable from my Surface Book 2 laptop. Again, I couldn't push them past about the 40% mark on Windows 10's volume control without getting really uncomfortable (25% was better). I have seen various jargon-laden explanations of how sound would theoretically improve with an amp, but I remain unconvinced. It sounds incredible directly from the Walkman over balanced cable, and very good from the laptop over 3.5mm. CONCLUSION The overall selling point for this headphone is "richness." This is not a thin, bright sound that tires your ears out after an hour. It's smooth, rich, deep. In headphone circles, this is termed a "dark" headphone while certain brands, like Sennheiser or Beyer Dynamic headphones, are "bright." While brightness is prized by some audiophiles for its detail in the treble region of the signal, it can really fatigue the listener after a while. The Z1R can be listened to very comfortably for hours on end. It sounds more balanced to my ears, at least. I certainly feel as though I can hear all the high instruments, even when the bass is pronounced. The other thing you're paying for is build quality. It feels like a finely tuned luxury car with leather seats and perfect handling. Like a BMW or a Porsche. The leather pads are extremely comfortable, and their shape conforms to the head very nicely. I would say these are the best pads I've experienced. It's very, very comfortable. Overall, the Z1R seems like it should last nearly forever if cared for well. They are not a good value, in the same way a BMW or Porsche are not a good value. The improvement over a pair that costs half as much simply isn't parallel and linear. There are definite diminishing returns. For most people, a good pair of noise-cancelers by Sony or Bose will more than meet their needs, and they will costs about a quarter as much. For almost everyone else who is looking at wired cans, the Sony MDR-Z7M2 will do nicely for a closed headphone, or say a Hifiman Sundara if you're looking for an open-back headphone (closed means that the earcups seal sound in, which gives you more privacy; open means that the earcups let sound out through an open grille, which might disturb others in the room/office but also might make the headphones sound more spacious and airy). The Z1R is a terrible value but a great headphone. It's for dragon-chasers. I am certainly enjoying my music quite a bit with them. I don't feel like I need to go any further. I admire them as a physical object every time I take them out and fire them up. I do wonder what I might have spent that extra G on instead, though. That value proposition is why I give it 4 stars instead of 5 (which it more than earns on performance and build quality). I hope my "journey" gives you, the reader, some ideas to chew on as you mull over your purchase plans. UPDATE: I have now logged a good 300 hours on these cans, driven by my WM1A Walkman. I cannot say to what degree the sound has changed because I was listening the whole time - but I can say that my appreciation for the sound has deepened. Recordings that I thought were a little subpar on my previous headphones reveal themselves to be deep and precise with the Z1R. Most notably, I have switched to the stock balanced cable, which turns out to be fabulous (the Sony Kimber cable's gold-plated connector wore out, and I recommend against purchasing it). There is no need to buy aftermarket cables here! After 300 hours there are no parts that seem in danger of wearing out. The stock pads may be just ever so slightly compressed, but this does not present any issues in the actual wear and listening of the cans. After 7 months my initial verdict stands - 5-star headphones at a 4-star price.

I received the product from Amazon well packaged with no serious damage to the outside of the delivery box. The Sony box on the inside of said package was even cleaner indicating it was packed and shipped well. I got the headphones out of the well-built leather wrapped wood(?) box and the left ear cup falls off. Upon further inspection and removing 2 tiny phillips head screws with a jeweler’s screwdriver, I was able to see the source of the problem. The headband was missing a tiny clip that keeps the metal post from pulling through. I inspected it on the other side and this clip was properly installed. No clip was found in the box, no clip inside the headband cavity, no signs of damage. I reached out to Sony customer support immediately providing proof of purchase from Amazon and pictures of the "damage". In my direct ticket to Sony and my correspondence on the phone, I stated multiple times that these headphones were not broken and I just required a small tiny clip. From the beginning I told them I wanted to keep the headphones, just wanted to repair them properly. I was told by customer support my proof of purchase + storefront was approved for warranty but I needed to wait till their "technical team" took a look at it and determine a solution. This ticket was submitted on a Friday so I had to wait till Monday to receive a final response. I crafted a tiny clip myself out of a piece of metal and installed it on the headphone which worked perfectly (clip on my finger in one of the attached photos). I mean, "its just a tiny piece of metal, not a huge deal right? I'll get the perfect fit clip and install it on the headphone and they will be working just fine!" or so I told myself... Monday I received a phone call from Sony customer support and was told that the headphone will be considered as damaged and that they would not cover it because it was NOT a manufacturers defect (more on this later). I was told that I would have to take it up with amazon. Further questions of just receiving a little clip got me nowhere with the cold human on the other side. There was no sympathy from customer support in this call, just a big FU and click of the receiver. Now for those who don't know, these headphones are hand assembled by Sony Artificers in Japan. Part of the magic is that these are hand assembled. Its obvious that whomever assembled this forgot the clip. My disdain isn't with him/her since it was just a simple mistake with NO DAMAGE. I make approximately 450 mistakes a second so its understandable that someone may have forgot this, or it fell out. Most of that clip is held in by gravity with the pressure between the headphone earcup and headband. If the headphones are flat on a surface with that clip exposed, it could very well fall out. But the engineering design wants this to be loose so that the earcups swivel easily yet feel solid. This clip cannot fall out once installed into the headband since it leans tightly on the sides of the aluminum frame. The other fact that infuriated me was that they were putting this as damage on Amazon... I may have been born yesterday but this clip is hidden behind a solid aluminum shroud called the headband, then inside a Fort Knox foam packed leather box which is tightly crafted to hold the headphones in place, which then that box goes inside another box, which then that box goes inside an Amazon shipping box with some packing material. These headphones are so well protected that I would have to take a sledgehammer to the box just to attempt to damage the cargo on the inside. All of the materials packed in the box had all their original wrapping material and did not appear to be tampered with so its not like someone opened this box to remove this clip for their own gain. They make so little of these headphones I find it highly unlikely that would be the case since its not a known issue that I can find anywhere. In all, I returned this product to Amazon and indicated it was "damaged". Luckily Amazon LLC has a great return policy because I bought through Amazon LLC to get official support by Sony for their "warranty". If you buy from other places that aren't an official storefront you don't get the "warranty" so I guess they just don't pick up the phone? I would have maybe preferred that at this point. I know that some of you will buy this product anyways but the only way that these deaf greedy corporations learn anything is to speak with your wallet. Buy from someone who has compassion in their product from top down: from the engineers to the salespersons.

The Z1Rs are my first high end pair of headphones. I bought them after I spent a few months with my first DAC, and realized how good music, movies, and games could actually sound. The Z1Rs take every bit of sound quality my DAC provides and clearly has even greater potential. So I ordered a ScHiit Magnius and Modius combo in order to experience balanced audio. These headphones are beautiful to look at, and in the elegant complexity of their construction. They are the most comfortable headphones I have ever worn, despite a greater than normal size. That extra size provides a really amazing sense of space and depth to the sound. They are very easy to drive, requiring very little power from an amp in order to sound their best. I am not an Audiophile. The best recommendation I can offer is to tell you that I spent $1800.00 + on this pair of headphones, and I consider the purchase one of the very best that I have ever made!

These Sony MDR-Z1R headphones are simply incredible! I am using them with the Sony NW-WM1A Walkman. These are more than what one would call “detailed”. These make music come alive to the point that the materials the instruments are made of can be heard and felt....Wooden instruments sound like wood, metal strings sound like metal, the friction of the hairs of a violin bow against the metal strings can be felt, synthetic drum heads can be distinguished from animal skin ones, vocals sound human. These go beyond accuracy, instrument separation, imaging, sound stage, etc. and actually “create” the music. As a musician I can say I have not yet heard any headphones as good as these or like these at any price. These are a conduit to the musicians on the other end. They also achieve this even while listening at very low volumes which is pretty amazing and are also outstandingly comfortable and light weight too. These headphones should be considered musical instruments in themselves. Bravo, Sony!