Sony TA-ZH1ES into ZH1EX

With the release of the new Walkman M2, still using S-Master HX. It reminded me one of Sony signature that I didn’t like too much many years back. The TA-ZH1ES

Why ? Because this amplifier were warm in signature, but that isn’t bad, except that it is also very boomy and blooming with soft textures, hazy details. If you thought that it would be a desktop Walkman Nw-WM1A or Z, then you would be mistaken. Hence I didn’t keep it for too long.

I loved them S-Master, and on walkman.  I especially tried to use it line out into my other desktop stuff, all sounded great ....only until I discovered what a real line out from the modern gears can sound like.  I put on my wishlist that if the next Walkman ever get released, I hope it has a Line out feature.....except with the M2, it didn’t.

I also loved that DSEE-HX, and not much of a DSD-remastering on TA-ZH1ES.  On the DMP-Z1, the DSD remastering is very tastefully done.

While the new M2 Walkman seems to be an improvement from M1 which was topped out at 96Khz max, where as modified firmware from Mr.Walkman has allowed upto 196Khz as well.  But the TA-ZH1ES (TAZ) is always doing upto 384Khz 


So, what is the best S-Master at the moment that offers the highest DSEE-HX ? Power output ? Line out ? You guessed it.  This is the TAZ

I have obtained it again to modify it, because when will be the best time to modify it ? It is now.  A used TAZ can be obtained for a very reasonable price, put in some works and I will have an improved Desktop S-Master!!!

For anyone who is interested in working on the TAZ. I am not going to spoon feed you, but the service manual can be found by googling.  The link is here 


After all of the experiences with Walkman, and other platforms. I know that Power supplies are always the essentials in any systems.  So the plan is to Improve the TAZ with better Power supplies.  Lower floor noises, better transient responses, higher bandwidth, they are the goals.

During the visual inspections , I can find F-resistors, Nippon Chemicon, and fine gold Nichicon inside 



After upgrading the Power supply regulators, I observed the phones out are modulars in design.  Though Sony tried their best to minimize signal integrity losses by having 1 direct soldered on and the main PCB to be removable for servicing, I still couldn’t bare the ideas of crimped on wires and OFC generic grade of copper.  I replaced just the one that I need the most, the balanced 4.4mm to be Pure Solid Silver 



The heart of the power delivery and output signals integrity have now been upgraded.  The improvements are immediate, much better textures, clarity, details, the haziness is a lot less present, and the soft textures is no more.  The TAZ is now much more capable in technicality.  However, the upper highs are not exactly smooth or well defined, it is somewhat messy and blurred.  

The next solution is to apply noises absorbent materials.  The TAZ is a design of Discrete S-Master.  It is composed of FPGA as the core processor, the Analog devices Dual chips for DSP processors, and other dedicated IC for clocking, reclocking, then carried toward the direct amp output.  Therefore, there is no portable S-Master similar to the one on Walkman to be found.  Who care about discrete R2R ? I am all over this discrete S-Master



Because S-Master is easily susceptible to the surrounding, including Vibrations, and interferences.  Applying noise absorbent is a great idea.  And from the experiences from Ibasso products.  I took enough cares to make sure and not to over damping the noises.  That means, applying toward the most active and noisiest components, while leaving the rest alone.  So, all of the reclocking IC, gate drive, and the Output MOSFET, main FPGA and Dual DSP chips are getting the treatments



The improvements at this stage is that the blurred out upper high textures are more defined.  The back ground is further suppress, imagings are better and more vivid textures across the spectrum can be observed .  It gets more obvious when you turn on DSEEHX, though at this moment, telling the differences between different modes are still very hard.  The changes are so subtles.  But one can totally settle for this step as a final step.  It preserves the Sony house sound but improving technicalities of the TAZ.

I thought I would be set here, but I still am not quiet satisfied with the powerful blooming and it lingering decays.  It bleed and overwhelm a doubles percussion.  It also has that warm signatures Eventhough much more controlled.  I still could not help but wanting more.  How about more articulation, controlling in decays, bloom, overall transients, a little more neutral perhaps ? But not too much that can render the TAZ and S-Master to lose it musicality ?

I went on and started sound signature tuning in those output capacitors.  These guys are chosen to be at maximum physical fitment that can be cramped inside the TAZ compact and beautiful chassis.  They are through holes.  So taking them out and started putting other caps in, run testing on sound signatures to tune them.  It went on such as a breeze.  After many different swap, I was jaws dropped by Kasei Audio Note.  Yeah, this TAZ output responds is unlike anything I have experiences by far.  It could be the unique hybrid implementations, but the Kasei is so wonderful that I have never heard it this way.  Amazing soundstage, Vastly expanded in width, more so than Depth, lush and vivid mid/vocal, but very controlled bass, powerful and punchy, superbly dynamic, and amazingly articulated.  Tonal balances is now beautifully revealed, yet lushly, musical, liquid, well balanced.  Not only the tonal balances are realistic and with more pitches precision, but the acoustic instruments housing resonances can be easily observed.  


My TAZ has now been transformed, from an uncontrollable beast into a very well disciplined, matured Super model in my experiences and preferences.  Just beautiful 😻 

My TA-ZH1EX



Some pictures are taken from online and posted as illustration 😊