The ZH230 shares many of the same virtues of the ZH270 (for obvious reasons) but has improved over the latter having slightly less grain and more natural sounding, extended highs. The first attribute that really jumped out in terms of character difference was the top end, followed by improved refinement across the board. During listening that weekend, we were directly comparing the new ZH230 with a ZH270 modified with nearly all available upgrades. As great as the ZH270 was and still is, the ZH230 is clearly the more evolved design. You will not be disappointed with the ZH230.