AKG K701 HEADPHONES, Over ear - White

I've been listening to my Grado Prestige Series SR325is Headphones for most of the year and have no complaints, other than the initial comfort factor. But I really wanted another mid-to-high end set to keep from moving the Grados from one room to another (I know, lazy, huh?). I almost went with the Sennheiser HD 650 Headphones , but I've already got a smaller pair of Sennheiser HD 238 Open Aire Stereo Headphones Optimized for iPod/iPhone/MP3/and Music Players and wanted to try the K701s because of the excellent reviews. On first listen, I wasn't impressed. The music didn't seem to have any depth to it, like it was all coming to you on a flat plane, if that makes any sense at all. I knew these headphones need some break-in time, so I kept listening. Mainly I plugged them into my home theater and played some Dead Space 2 on the PS3. Slowly but surely, they turned around, and now they're my go-to headphones (I still love you Grado, but you're going into a drawer for a little while). The detail and clarity is spectacular; the bass is just right (I don't find it at all lacking as some others have noted); comfort level is fantastic. My only complaint: I really liked the thick cord on the Grados and wish the cord on the AKGs felt as sturdy. That's more of a comparison than a complaint, though. As far as amplification goes, I don't know how these sound without it. I've only used them on a newer Pioneer 1120-K (late 2010) receiver and, in my bedroom, a Peachtree Audio Decco2, which is both a headphone amplifier and DAC in one (and a wonderful piece of equipment, I might add). I stream audio from MOG (supposedly 320 kpps, the highest rate available to my knowledge) to either an Apple TV MC572LL/A (NEWEST VERSION) or Apple Airport Express MB321LL/A [NEWEST VERSION ] and then into, respectively, the Pioneer receiver or the Decco2. Both have DACs, so I feel like I'm getting a good source going into a good output, and that truly makes these headphones shine. A quick word on DACs: I purchased a small portable DAC earlier this year and returned it. I could tell no difference in the sound. But the DAC in the Decco2 really fills the music out and makes it sound so rich and detailed. If you're going to invest good money into headphones, please consider the source going into them. I suspect if you simply plugged these headphones into your iPod with no amplification or conversion to analog, you might wonder why you spent so much money. But with the right equipment, you'll fall in love with your music all over again. And one last thing! If you're playing video games using a home theater system, i.e. you have a console hooked up to a receiver and surround sound speakers, these headphones are truly fantastic for gaming. I've mainly been playing Dead Space 2, and the detail and directional effects are amazing. I can't imagine any of the Ear Force or Astro headphones besting these AKGs. UPDATE JULY 2012: I've been back and forth between these cans and my Grados for the past few months, with most of my listening through Grado. But I m sitting here now listening to Scissor Sister's new album on my AKGs, and I often forget how great these sound, so detailed and full and lush. They're more impressive now than when I first purchased them. Highly recommended. If I had to chose between the AKG and the Grado 325, I'd probably still go with Grado, just because the build is so sturdy and they're Made in America. But there is nothing wrong with the AKG at all. Excellent stuff all around!

Se cercate una cuffia di qualità ad un prezzo ottimo non potete non prendere in considerazione questa cuffia della AKG. Io l'ho acquistata a febbraio e dopo diverse ore di ascolto sono assolutamente soddisfatto del mio acquisto. La cuffia si presenta in una elegante confezione, una volta aperta la scatola troviamo all'interno: la cuffia, una base dove appoggiarla ed un jack adattatore. La cuffia è rifinita bene con materiali di qualità, si tratta di una cuffia aperta con padiglioni circumaurali pertanto non sarete isolati dai rumori esterni (nè chi vi sta attorno sarà isolato da voi). La cuffia è comoda, i padiglioni in soffice velluto grigio circondano completamente le vostre orecchie ed anche dopo molti minuti indossarla non è un problema. Il cavo è lungo a sufficienza per trovare una posizione comoda accanto al vs. impianto Hi-Fi, fuoriesce da un solo padiglione e questo è decisamente comodo per evitare l'aggrovigliarsi del filo, manca però la possibilità di sganciare il cavo direttamente dalla cuffia. Per l'ascolto l'ho abbinata al mio vecchio impianto Hi-Fi che tante soddisfazioni mi ha dato e continua a darmi: amplificatore integrato Sansui AUX-501, piatto Thorens TD320 con testina Stanton 681EEE-MKII-S, lettore cd Rotel RCD965BX. Personalmente non ho avuto problemi di amplificazione, pertanto mi verrebbe da dire che se avete un buon ampli anche se non dedicato all'uso della cuffia non dovreste avere problemi. Come suona? Premetto che per poter dare un giudizio corretto bisognerebbe poterla comparare con altri prodotti di fascia alta, ma non avendo questa possibilità dovrete accontentarvi di un giudizio parziale. A mio avviso la cuffia suona in maniera neutra, nessuna enfasi particolare, a volte sembra un pò avara di bassi, ma con altre incisioni vi accorgerete che non manca nulla, nè la timbrica nè il punch. Se vi concentrate durante l'ascolto potete percepire i minimi dettagli del brano in esecuzione e la scena sonora non è mai piatta. Io l'ho trovata estremamente piacevole nella riproduzione delle voci degli interpreti, soprattutto se femminili, e di alcuni strumenti (pianoforte, fiati), ma anche con l'elettronica ed il pop classico non delude. Per darvi un'idea più precisa ho ascoltato Michael Jackson (Thriller), Amy Winehouse (back to black), Tracy Chapman (diversi brani), Adele (21), Pink (The truth about love), Depeche Mode (alcuni singoli), The Police (Reggatta De Blanc), Edoardo Bennato (Sono solo canzonette), David Bowie (The next Day), ed il risultato dell'ascolto è stato sempre piacevolissimo. In definitiva io la consiglio senza problemi, purchè tutta la Vs. catena di ascolto sia valida e le tracce siano di ottima qualità, ovviamente se potete provatela prima dell'acquisto perchè nell'alta fedeltà la percezione ed i gusti di ognuno sono quantomai diversi, se non potete farlo non abbiate timore nell'acquistarla è comunque un prodotto di qualità.

Reference headphones are not the most friendly for general listening, but absolutely necessary in the recording studio. If you want headphones to listen on the bus or train these are not for you. If you want sharp transparent perception of your mix, you need these. I use them to supplement with reference monitors to fine tune the stereo balance and find high spots in the EQ. Being open back they do not provide any real isolation from background noise, but this is not a problem in a studio or private litening room. Importantly they are some of the most comfortable headphones I have ever worn.

I have just purchased these out of pure curiosity because they were on sale at just £108 plus a £10 further discount voucher on Black Friday, that was too much for me to resist taking a gamble. BUILD: These will definitely be talking points and I really like their retro look when sitting on their stands, I'd say they are "headphone art". The build quality seems decent enough although nothing out of the ordinary either, fairly solid with a nice comfortable fit and surprisingly light. The ear cups are very large and they do take a bit of getting used to. But like going from a Ford to a BMW, you know you've moved up a step or two but the BMW is still unfamiliar and it takes time to settle into it and enjoy it properly. SOUND: These are quite different to my Grado SR60i's that I've enjoyed for many years and will continue to do so, I am very familiar with the Grados sound so I will try and give some comparisons with those as a point of reference. Firstly the 701's are much less emphasised in the bass, in other words they are flatter in frequency response, when there is bass present they will show it but they are not designed to initially impress in the bass department, instead they are very accurate of the signal presented to them. I can say the same across the rest of the audio spectrum. At first this makes them sound a little strange because the Grados clearly have more bias towards the lower end, but the lower end is more "muddy" on the Grados, I supposed you would call it added warmth. This added warmth works well on stuff like Spottify / TV and other such devices. It also helps drown out harshness on poor recordings etc. However, you can easily add some equalisation to these at the low end if you desire more "artificial warmth" Having said all that, I believe the 701's are a headphone that just gives you what is there and some may find that strange, I would say that giving yourself time to adjust to this and also listening to some well recorded Jazz, classical, acoustic will show just how good these head phones can be, they are more open, cleaner and dynamic than the Grados on well recorded music of any genre. But there is still a place for the Grados and that is on ipods, mobile phones and some pop / rock that needs added colouration to make it palatable! One thing I would like to stress, there is a lot of nonsense in Hi-Fi and no two individuals will hear things the same, I recently bought an Asus Xonar One Muses Edition Pre/Dac and I can honestly say that comparing the headphone amp on that with my PCI Asus DG sound card at the same volume level, I could not honestly tell any difference in sound quality when running the 701's. People will argue with me but I'm afraid it's true, as much as I didn't want it to be! Price doesn't always equate to performance in Hi-Fi, beware the marketing hype! There are very few "bad" out there these days, everything is adequate, it's nothing like the difference in spending £1000 on a turntable compared with spending £50 because a turntable is all about precision engineering and you do hear big differences. But headphones? not! They are all pretty decent above the £70 mark, we are talking about a diaphragm housed in a case that's it! They are simply different and a matter of personal taste, I will be using the 701's for critical listening to well recorded music and keep the Grados for general use, films and the like. Anyway, I can guarantee that using a properly installed Asus DG soundcard with the gain set to +64 in the impedance in the Audio centre software, plus a pair of these you will have made a significant improvement in your PC sound which will be over 90% of what you can achieve by spending £1000's more so don't bother! Asus DG is only £23 on Amazon at moment but make sure you install the drivers carefully and set up the supplied Audio Centre Correctly, this card also sounds great with the Grados by the way. I asked AKG for their opinion about the concept of "running in" because according to many reviews, these need 300hrs use before sounding right, here is their reply... "I think you are referring to the "burning-in time" of the headphones, as it is regarded on the Internet and other media. However, I would say that this is just folk law. The headphones are tested and set to perform at their peak level straight out of the box" Make of it as you please. Good listening! Edit 03/03/2016: Having now used these for a good few months, i have decided they are not for me and i'm back on My Grado Sr60i's. The reason is that I find the flat response of the AKG's a bit boring, I also started to find the massive ear pads a bit uncomfortable and I found the sound to be a little detached or "distant" from my ears and having to increase the volume to try and get me excited. Having said all that, my son likes them (he's 19 and does a lot of music mixing). For him the clarity is what he needs, but for me, they just don't exite me and don't have that warmth and fullness of the Grado's. Good phones no doubt but just not for me!

Tras 5 días de uso (unas 4 horas diarias) puedo decir que estoy encantado con ellos. Antes de la compra leí muchas opiniones. Las hay a montones. Tanto poniendo los auriculares por las nubes como criticando aspectos negativos. No soy un experto y puedo decir barbaridades, pero mi experiencia ha sido muy positiva hasta ahora. Los he probado conectados directamente a la tarjeta de sonido del PC, a un Sony Xperia Z Ultra, a un amplificador de auriculares Matrix M-stage HPA2 USB conectado al PC por USB y usando el DAC del Matrix y conectados a la salida de auriculares de una cadena de música Kenwood del 97. Y los he comparado con unos in-ear de Sony y unos Sennheiser HD 218. Aquí no hay color. Simplemente la comparación sobra. Están muy por encima. Y finalmente, la música que he escuchado es principalmente clásica. Orquestal o cámara. Buscaba algo que fuese muy bien con esta música y lo he encontrado. También he escuchado jazz, pop, rock... y no veo que suenen nada mal. El objetivo final de esta opinión es comentar que, en mi opinión/experiencia: 1. Suenan muy muy bien. La escena, el detalle, el timbre de los instrumentos e incluso los bajos. 2. No los he encontrado tan necesitados de amplificador dedicado como comentan. 3. La escucha a través del PC horrible. 4. A través del amplificador Matrix muchísimo mejor. Pero pierden escena, se vuelve más pequeña y extraña. Y suenan mucho menos naturales. Si no hubiese encontrado algo mejor, probablemente pensaría que esta opción era muy buena. 5. A través de la cadena de música, correctos, nítidos, buenos graves. Muy disfrutables. Más naturales que con el Matrix. 6. Con el Sony Xperia Z Ultra la sorpresa ha sido mayúscula. Los mueve. Cerca de la amplificación máxima del móvil, eso sí, pero sin llegar al máximo. Pero sobre todo, suenan mejor que a través del Matrix! Los detalles se aprecian mejor. La escena es buena. No lo entiendo bien, pero es así. También suenan los bajos. Supongo que para muchos poco, pero yo los veo en su sitio. El ClearAudio+ de Sony me gusta. Levanta los medios y separa mucho los instrumentos, diría yo. En definitiva, los estoy disfrutando con el móvil. Cosa que no esperaba!! Como contras: 1. Tumbado con la cabeza en una almohada molestan. Llegan más atrás que mi cabeza y presiona hacia delante. La solución, una camiseta doblada en la nuca. Un rollo, pero entonces dejan de presionar y es muy cómodo. 2. No son tan cómodos como me hubiese gustado. Cómodos, pero no como si no llevases nada. 3. Para uso con el móvil el cable es aparatoso. No es su uso natural, supongo, pero como es lo que mejor me funciona... 4. Me quedo con la duda de cuanto mejorarían con un amplificador "de los buenos". Desde luego no he encontrado que el Matrix les vaya, pese a que es una combinación muy recomendada.