I was able to spend some quality time with my MZ-E3 over the soothing sounds of Michael Bolton. I love the JP box art of this player, so cool...I know I always snap carpet photos, and I'm sorry haha, but I don't live in an environment where I have space to set up a proper photo rig. Anywho, this guy has never been used far from the box, and the headphones/LCD remote are still unused. For the best too, they are usually not as good as proper headphones IMO. I like the loud volume output of the MZ-E3. I am used to the MZ-N1 and similar, to where the headphones only begin to sound loud at max volume, maybe I am alone in that observation, but this player is plenty loud at max, and actually I feel perfectly fine using it below Max volume.
The complete package, mint player, accessories, and the new looking box - amazing! I like the output of the earlier Walkman and Minidisc devices, beefier it seems. Lovely!
You are right, it is beefier, and if you compare the specs from year to year, there are some models that have less than the regular 5mw output...
When you use the IEMs of today, output is really high. Too high in some circumstances, where you can't up the volume above 2 before piercing your eardrums. Better are units with line out, so you can add your own (little) amplifier of choice that can outperform the built-in ones. Several MD devices have this, Walkmans only a few.
Interesting Interesting observation. I didn't know that about IEMs. I know that for recording, line out is nicer to me because IMO headphone out on most Sony Walkmans are like bass boosted or have some EQ on them, even when Bass Boost is off.
I need to refine the statement above: IEMs that are easily driven, like most of the KZ series and comparable models. Their might be enough IEMs around that require higher power output of the device it is being driven by.
Most modern IEMs are indeed very easy to drive, many having sensitivity specs of 106-109dB/mW (at 109 it's really sensitive). Depending on impedance (many common ones are 32Ω), they might get a bit harder to drive as impedance goes higher, but if we are to compare IEMs to something like Senheiser HD600 (300Ω) or even HD560S (120Ω), the latter are really hard to drive. Interestingly enough the MZ-N1 and MZ-E3 have the same power output specification (2 x 5mW into 16Ω). I wonder if one has a regulatory power limitation built into the firmware... Otherwise I can't explain myself how one would sound much louder than the other. As for line out, that's always nice to be there for a couple of reasons: - one can get a lower noise floor and distorsion when using a better external headphone amp; - low sensitivity and/or high impedance headphones become much more usable with an external amp; - volume can be controlled in much finer steps;
There are only 2 versions of the N1, marked in the service manual as FR and EXCEPT FR. R104 and R204 are identical for L+R channels:
... or maybe my model was dodgy... but I did have two (one blue and one silver), both were much lower than anything I'd heard previously. You are definitely right though, on paper they shouldn't be any different. Incidentally, I found that turning off 'bass boost' in the little OSD did make things slightly louder... *shrugs*
Without mega bass / bass boost, there is more for the entire frequency range. Ever measured power consumption of your stereo kit when pumping up the bass? You can also tell as the amp will get hotter, more heat needs to be dissipated. Emphasizing especially lower frequencies is power hungry, and there is a limited supply in battery powered devices. If I recall correctly, some portables are specced to have higher output when powered by an adapter vs. batteries. Need to look it up. The screenshot below is taken from the cover page of the service manual of the Sony CD Walkman D-EJ825/925. When originally bought in France, one can complain about low power output!
I could not find the reference I was looking for, although the Sony WM-7 Service Manual hints at different output levels: 20mW x 2 with DC, it blows the MZ-E3 off the stage.
