Customer reviews from sony.com
Sony - Hi-Res Music Player with 1TB Hard Drive - Silver
Average customer rating
4.2
(71 Reviews)
Rating breakdown 71 reviews
5 Stars
37
4 Stars
19
3 Stars
10
2 Stars
0
1 Star
5
82%of customers recommend this product.
(
50 out of
61)
Customer Reviews for Sony - Hi-Res Music Player with 1TB Hard Drive - Silver
Customer Rating
5
Fantastic audio quality!
on May 6, 2014
Posted by: DonD2
After three months of use, the HAP-Z1ES has became the main input for my living room audio system. Playing ripped CDs and downloaded hirez audio files, it has replaced a PC and DAC costing several times the Sony's price. The Sony's soundstage and realism is simply outstanding when run with DSD remastering ON and DSEE OFF for playing lossless PCM and DSD files. Initially, the high end treble was a little light (with ripped CDs), but this has improved considerably with software/firmware updates (and, perhaps, some break in time). Internet radio with DSEE ON is considerably better than PC software packages but still not equivalent to lossless audio. The Android/Apple remote app is the best way to control the player (the front panel screen is too small for use in a room sized environment) and with the proper tablet driving a monitor can provide a room sized visual interface.
There are a couple of areas for improvement. First, the DSEE really should be completely disabled automatically for lossless PCM - if ON, it sometimes messes with the soundstage and some vocals. It would also be nice if the remote apps would let the user chose the portrait or landscape interface rather than automatically forcing the interface depending on your phone/tablet's physical screen characteristics.
Written by a customer while visiting sony.com
Customer Rating
3
TIDAL?
on January 14, 2018
Posted by: Mike N
Gender:Male
Nice player but how come still no TIDAL support after all this years? And don’t get me started on MQA....... I am considering selling it.
No, I would not recommend this to a friend.
Written by a customer while visiting sony.com
Customer Rating
5
Amazing product!
on December 4, 2017
Posted by: Newtie1
Gender:Male
Terrific sound quality in a very convenient and feature-rich package. The audio resolution compares favorably to my high-end CD player costing more than twice as much as the HAP-Z1ES. I strongly recommend transferring CDs with an externally powered drive unit. This is mentioned in the owner’s manual, but I didn’t realize it until my Apple SuperDrive proved glitchy. Otherwise, transferring music from a computer is easy. Backing up the HAP’s internal HDD to a computer is also easy. I wish the Favorites would be saved to a backup file so the playlist would not be lost with a reset to factory defaults.
I would recommend this to a friend!
Written by a customer while visiting sony.com
Posted by: SweatyMike
Gender:Male
Verified Purchase:Yes
To upload my music files took 5 days as the Sony would freeze in the middle of the upload and I had to restart and examine where the Sony froze which it did constantly despite being directly connected to my router. There is no way to upload files except via computer as it doesn't recognize any USB HDD that is not formatted to Sony's file specs. You cannot use an external DAC!!!!!!!!! Finally, to add the nail into the coffin - after days of loading up everything when I went to play some files I realized that there is something wrong with the electronics inside which made playback horrible sounding. I compared it to the original disc using a CD player, Cambridge 851C, and streaming the exact file into my Cary 200TS DAC and realized that the Sony had a problem!!! Even the 'wireless' setup was clumsy and often I couldn't even access the 'wireless' setup!!!! What should have been an easy process turned into TORTURE!!! I should have done more research because if I did I would never have purchased this 'clunker'.
No, I would not recommend this to a friend.
Response from sony.comBy Sony North America Customer Support, May 12, 2020
Hi SweatyMike, We regret to hear about this. First, please make sure to update the unit to the latest firmware version. Refer to this link below for instructions:
https://www.sony.com/electronics/support/audio-components-hdd-audio-network-audio-players/hap-z1es/downloads/00016041
And also, please follow the steps on this link if you're having some issues transferring files to your unit:
https://helpguide.sony.net/ha/mt/v1/en/contents/TP0000223764.html
External DAC can be used in this unit such as the TA-ZH1ES.
And for sound-related issues, please follow the troubleshooting steps on this link:
https://helpguide.sony.net/ha/hapz1es/v1/en/contents/TP0000222039.html
https://helpguide.sony.net/ha/hapz1es/v1/en/contents/TP0000222040.html
If you are unable to resolve your concern, please email us at socialsupport@am.sony.com with the following details:
Name:
Sony Username:
Model Number:
Issue:
Telephone Number:
Sincerely,
Sam
https://www.sony.com/electronics/support/audio-components-hdd-audio-network-audio-players/hap-z1es/downloads/00016041
And also, please follow the steps on this link if you're having some issues transferring files to your unit:
https://helpguide.sony.net/ha/mt/v1/en/contents/TP0000223764.html
External DAC can be used in this unit such as the TA-ZH1ES.
And for sound-related issues, please follow the troubleshooting steps on this link:
https://helpguide.sony.net/ha/hapz1es/v1/en/contents/TP0000222039.html
https://helpguide.sony.net/ha/hapz1es/v1/en/contents/TP0000222040.html
If you are unable to resolve your concern, please email us at socialsupport@am.sony.com with the following details:
Name:
Sony Username:
Model Number:
Issue:
Telephone Number:
Sincerely,
Sam
Written by a customer while visiting sony.com
Customer Rating
5
Great sound
on September 27, 2014
Posted by: LouCiro
Very good sound quality . Needs random play mode. Needs ability to support other iwireless nternet radio sources like Sirius XM radio.
Wireless sets up easily. Could use more detailed instruction manuals.
Wireless sets up easily. Could use more detailed instruction manuals.
I would recommend this to a friend!
Written by a customer while visiting sony.com
Customer Rating
5
Sony HAP-Z1ES is Audioincredible!!!
on April 22, 2015
Posted by: AudioGineer
Purchased Sony HAP-Z1ES on Nov 20, 2014 from Audiotronics in Roanoke VA - thanks Alan. Silver faceplate., it was pretty heavy, very well made, top quality parts from what I can see. Ripping my CDs and organizing them was a chore - 35 years worth of CDs - it took over a month of almost daily work. I ripped to WAV format, since it is lossless and most generic format. Good thing I started ripping in October! I used MediaMonkey Gold ($25) to rip, organize and add meta-data to albums. Used Win 7 File Explorer to download files via WiFi (2.4GHz band) to Sony. The WiFi is slower (64Mbps) than Ethernet, but my Computer Room is different from my Stereo Listening Room, so WiFi it was. A typical album takes about 4-6 minutes to download, so this also took a while. I let the unit play Lou Reed Rock 'n Roll Animal for 48 hours to break in, then I started listening to my Martin Logan Monolith III speakers driven by Pass Labs electronics. I set up the Sony to upsample all WAV files to DSD 1-bit streaming format (most were 44.1kSps, 16-bit, but others are 96k or 192k / 24bit digital downloads). The sound was super clean, open, 3-dimensional, excellent sound staging, great highs, deep tight bass with tons of drive, super focused midrange made male and female voices and guitars sound amazingly realistic, triangles and cymbals glisten and sparkle without a hint of harshness, and the background is dead silent. The unit faithfully plays thunderous dynamics required in symphonic music and the better rock musics. And on top of that, the SmartPhone app controls the Sony play selection. The only nitpick I can find is that the Sony does not (yet) also control the Volume level! If it did, I would not long need a preamp. And on top of all that, it has an excellent sounding HD Digital Radio feature that can connect to streaming radio Internet sites all over the world - most of the best or the most popular stations in each country, in many different genres, are available - for free. Sony really knocked it out of the park with this product. Goodby old CD player, goodby old SACD player, goodby old DAC, goodby old FM tuner - the Sony replaces them all.
I would recommend this to a friend!
Response from sony.comBy Jerome, Sony Support, April 24, 2015
Hi AudioGineer, It's so good to hear that you are happy with your purchase. We will share what you've said to the proper department. Thank you for your time.
Written by a customer while visiting sony.com
Customer Rating
5
gorgeous looks and sound
on March 16, 2015
Posted by: danthpnh
I bought the unit one month ago, downloaded the majority of my music via Ethernet. Now make changes wirelessly. Works great.
In terms of sound quality, I am very impressed, the soundstage is wide, there is a sense of air and clarity in the music.
I like the fact that you turn the system on and it just works, no need to turn on computers, nas, etc., make it all work before you start enjoying your music. The app works great when it works but loses its connection to the unit sometimes.
I would recommend this to a friend!
Response from sony.comBy Jerome, Sony Support, March 16, 2015
Hi danthpnh, Thank you for your review and for choosing our product. We're happy that you enjoyed the unit.
Written by a customer while visiting sony.com
Customer Rating
4
Great concept and sound, interface not so hot
on September 26, 2014
Posted by: Anonymous
The HAP-Z1ES is an astounding product. The music is stored in one compact place, over 2000 CDs and counting, gone are the bulky cabinets and the CD clutter. The music sounds better too. To be clear, rip the CD and transfer the file from computer to music server, then do an AB comparison and the Sony sounds better, a lot better. Wow! What is not to like? Well, the App to interface either a tablet or phone to control the music server is not consistent. Sometimes it works, and sometimes not, or it is slow and balky. Accessing the music with the control knob on the music server is awkward to see and slow to use. The more CDs that are stored the more difficult it gets. The Internet radio feature is on and off, lately mostly off. Finally, by ripping your CDs and storing them on the hard drive, means that you lose the tactile feel of having the disc in hand and liner notes to read. On balance the Sony HAP-Z1ES is a winner and is highly recommended.
I would recommend this to a friend!
Written by a customer while visiting sony.com