Sony NWZ-ZX1

amazon Sony NWZ-ZX1 reviews

Along with the music server HAP-Z1ES and the UDA-1 / B decoder, the NWZ-ZX1 Walkman player is among Sony’s flagship product lineup into the digital audio market. high.

Not only that, the NWZ-ZX1, along with the NWZ-A17 and NWZ-A15, is also a spectacular re-release of the once-famous Walkman portable music player. Of course there must be significant technological improvements, satisfying more and more difficult ears, not just ordinary consumers but also audiophiles, who want to enjoy high quality sound every where every time.

The NWZ-ZX1 weighs in at 139g, is ideal for a handheld, stylishly designed, masculine, relatively angular but luxurious enough with a solid solid aluminum bezel, The gold-plated, leather-covered front, the toughened protective glass front for the 4-inch TFT touch screen with 854 x 485 pixel resolution. The entire function key is located on the right side, USB port and 3.5mm on the bottom edge. This player has a moderate thickness, 13.5mm (the thinnest point is only 9.5mm), holding on the hand quite firm and also not uncomfortable when stuffed in the pocket jeans. This is also a way to express the spirit against the thin and “smooth” design of Apple.

Unlike the same segmented products from the lesser-known brands, the NWZ-ZX1 does not function as a decoder (DAC), but focuses on digital music playback. Inside the player is Sony’s own DAC chip, which is compatible with 24bit / 192kHz (HD sound) audio tracks and most popular audio formats: WAV, FLAC, AIFF, ALAC (Apple Lossless), MP3, AAC, HE-AAC, WMA, AVC, WMV, PNG, JPEG image formats. The 128GB capacity allows you to store up to 2,800 songs at CD-like (16bit / 44.1kHz) resolution or 800 songs at 24bit / 192kHz (about 150MB per song).

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Sony Walkman NW-ZX1 128GB MP3 Player Hi-Res: Buy it now

To check the sound quality of the NWZ-ZX1, ​​I used Bang & Olufsen’s BeoPlay H6 special edition, a fairly good partner. The duo can play all sorts of music, from jazz to rock, from pop to symphony, hip-hop. The NWZ-ZX1 is equipped with a digital S-Master HX amplifier with exceptional noise-canceling, noise reduction capabilities. It’s no coincidence that the NWZ-ZX1 has received so many compliments from top tech and audio magazines and websites. It’s hard to point out that the NWZ-ZX1 is less than the AK240 – Astell & Kern’s products are four times more expensive. The NWZ-ZX1 delivers a lively, natural sound with high detail and the most surprising of which is to create a relatively clear sound stage.

With the song Lascia Ch’io Pianga on the album A New Journey (FLAC 14bit / 44.1kHz), the player can immediately see the player’s voice is great. Hayley Westenra’s silly, shaking, vibrating, and reverberating voices are all fully replayed. The violin is fluttering, airy, high without being harsh. NWZ-ZX1 knows how to please jazz vocal fans when it recreates the wildness of the artist’s top performers. Through the headset, I easily perceive the technical style and mood of the singer, from Stacey Kent’s slightly melancholy, half-womanish voice to smoky, , From the sadness of Patricia Barber to Norah Jones’ youthful freshness. Even male vocalists are highly persuasive, hearing Nat King Cole, Ingram Washington, Julio Iglesias or Leonard Cohen are completely emotionally insensitive.

Passing through the source of the lossless 24/96 tracks, the NWZ-ZX1 has shown great bass control, dynamic range. Carole King’s tapestry is still intact, while the harsh electric guitar of Highway Star (Deep Purple, Machine Head) has really impressed me. With the Beethoven Symphony No. 5 (Vienna Philharmonic, conductor Carlos Kleiber), NWZ-ZX1 has shown a wide, balanced and detailed space. The NWZ-ZX1’s bass strips are not fierce but rather rounded, soft, rustic, fresh and high-pitched. Difficult ears may feel a bit more subtle, but the disadvantage is that not everyone can recognize it.

With sources like compressed MP3 or AAC tracks, the DSEE HX (Digital Sound Enhancement Engine) technology recovers lost signal at high frequencies, making the sound clearer and cleaner. Compared to the iPod Touch Gen 5 of Apple, the sound quality of the NWZ-Z1 is superior, especially the ability to express dynamic range of rock music or symphony.

The NWZ-ZX1 runs Android 4.1 (Jelly Bean), which loads files quickly, including 24bit / 192kHz files. Sony’s stated battery life is 32 hours of continuous MP3 playback, and we’ve been away for 10 hours, with a battery life of just under 20 percent. An undeniable strength of this player. It’s a pity that it’s not compatible with the DSD format, but to compensate for the NFC interface, it’s “instant and always” compatible with the new generation of portable speakers – in case you want to share music with others.

Review of NNVN:

The NWZ-ZX1 is truly a high-quality digital music player that deserves all those who care about the quality of music and want to showcase their self-esteem. In addition, the Sony brand is a trusted guarantee for the level of the product. If you want to find a more affordable device, it might be the NWZ-A17 and NWZ-A15 with almost no loss of audio quality but 64GB and 16GB storage. All you need to do is to have the NWZ-ZX1 pair with a headset that fits your taste. There are a lot of options from Denon, Sennheiser, PSB, B & W, KEF, NAD, Beats. Audio, Bang & Olufsen or AKG.