I bought the Sony walkman NWWM1Z recently as well as their MDR Z7 earphones , for use when I travel.I like to enjoy the same level of quality when i am travelling as I have at home with my hi-fi. The walkman has great sound quality and level , but this amplifier takes it to a level that is more comparable with my home audio system. I also bought the MUC-B12 BL1 leads to make full use of the left and right inputs for the headphones that this amplifier affords the listener. These were expensive purchases but ones that after a few weeks of use , I do not regret having made. I needed a larger capacity device as my 64GB and 32GB walkmans were full and I had more music to store on a player. I had gone down the Apple route as they had a 128Gb player , but my cd collection was getting to big for that. The new Sonly player edges the Apple in terms of quality of sound as well as volume , and the added amplifier ,headphones and lead enhances this even more. I am splitting hairs here , but I actually think that my walk, an set up is better than more home stereo in terms of quality , and the volume level with the amp takes it to where I want it to be.Whilst the walkman on its own is good , I sit wishing that it could be a little louder. I also use the amplifier with an optical/analogue convertor/3.5mm lead with my appplemac to watch music DVD's and this lets the sound level/quality to my home system standard.

I have this as part of my in car set up alongside the ZX2. The sound quality/ clarity is amazing. The PHA3 suits my requirements perfectly.

Before I got into the world of audiophile grade hardware, I had no idea what a headphone amp would be used for, or why they were even required. It wasn't until I tried on an old pair of high impedance headphones that I realised why all these audiophiles were obsessed with power output. But raw power output isn't everything - you also need a high quality digital to analogue converter (DAC) to make good use of that power. For larger, desktop headphone setups, these two components are usually separate. But what if you want to take all that sound quality with you on the go? That is where something like the PHA-3 comes in. It has a very high quality DAC, a relatively large battery and a variety of inputs and outputs for use either at home or on the go while still maintaining a relatively small footprint. I primarily use this at home, and as the title suggests, I pair them with my MDR-Z7 and balanced cable. The difference this PHA-3 makes to the Z7 is amazing - an already immersive soundstage and potent low end are enhanced - bass is given a boost in definition and clarity is improved across the board. While it is a relatively niche product, it does what it does very well. Highly recommended, especially if you own a set of MDR-Z7 headphones.