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!

Hallo, Als ich den Kopfhörer ausgepackt habe war ich sehr erfreut wie angenehm dieser erst einmal in der Packung präsentiert wurde. Anmerken möchte ich, dass ich mir die Standschale aufgrund einiger Rezensionen billiger vorgestellt hatte. Schließlich habe ich den Kopfhörer an meinen Kopfhörerverstärker angeschlossen und sofort probegehört. Zu allererst war ich von der Räumlichkeit begeistert, doch dann viel mir auf, dass viele Lieder viel weniger Bass haben, als sie sonst abgespielt werden (Also erstes Plus: Exakte klangliche Wiedergabe). Da ich mir zuvor allerdings durch die - auch sehr schönen, aber nicht vergleichbaren bassbetonten - Koss Porta Pro (UVP 70€) die Ohren verdorben hatte, brauchte ich mehr Bass. Ich dachte an die Rezensionen, dass der Kopfhörer recht geringe Bassleistung habe und dachte daran, diesen Wunsch aufzugeben. Ich probierte es trotzdem und setzte in meinem Equalizer die Bassleistung ziemlich hoch, sodass mir vor lauter Wumps beinahe die Ohren weggeflogen wären, wären sie nicht durch die angenehm großen Ohrmuscheln festgehalten worden. Also das Gerücht "kein Bass" kann ich nur im vollen Umfang widerlegen. Meiner Meinung nach ist somit für jeden was dabei. Wer keinen Equalizer hat, der lade sich Winamp oder ein ähnliches Programm; vorrausgesetzt man hört über den PC. Hier erstelle ich noch einmal eine subjektive Liste mit Schulnotensystem, indem ich auf jede wichtige Eigenschaft des Kopfhörers eingehe: Verarbeitung - 1,0 (Alles sehr solide gebaut, Lederband perfekt angepasst. Vergoldete Kontakte - Passgenau) Design - 1,0 (Dies ist natürlich nur meine Meinung, doch ich finde das edle Weiß in Kombination mit dem braunen Lederband sehr ästhetisch) Bauweise - 1,5 Die Ohrumschließende Bauweise macht den Klang einzigartig. Schön wäre trotz HiFi-Kopfhörer ein wechselbares Kabel gewesen. Praktisch ist allerdings die einseitige Kabelführung, die Sennheiser beispielsweise häufig nicht anwendet. Komfort - 1,5 Der Anpressdruck fällt deutlich höher als die geschlossenen AKG K 272 HD aus. Diese sollten unbedingt einmal probegetragen werden. Klang - 1,0 Perfekte Räumlichkeit. Lieder enthalten urplötzlich viel mehr Details. Auf einmal höre ich eine Lache am Anfang von "The Passenger". Gesamt: 1,2 Anmerkung: I.) Angenehm finde ich die Kabellänge von 3 Metern und die 6,3 mm Standard-Klinke. Denn eine 3,5 mm Klinke hier zu benutzen, wie es mancher anderer Kopfhörer in dieser Preisklasse hat, finde ich bescheuert. Denn wozu stellt man einen perfekten Kopfhörer her, wenn der Klang niemals perfekt ankäme. II.) Dass ein Kopfhörer Zeit brauche, um sich einzuhören, finde ich doch sehr unwahrscheinlich. Leider geistert dieses Gerücht gerne im Internet rum. Daran, dass sich eine Person an den Kopfhörer gewöhnen muss, ist nicht zu zweifeln. Doch passt sich nicht der Kopfhörer an die Person an, sondern genau umgekehrt. III.) Probiert, falls ihr unentschlossen seid, unbedingt den AKG K 272 HD aus oder den Sennheiser 595, 600 oder 650. Bei Sennheiser gefällt mir die ovale Ohrmuschel nicht, aber das sei jedem selbst überlassen. Fazit: Dieser Kopfhörer ist sicherlich KEIN Schnäppchen, doch wer den letzten Rest Wohlklang aus seinen Liedern quetschen will und nicht große Geldprobleme hat, für den ist dieses Produkt meiner Meinung nach perfekt zugeschnitten. Ich selbst bereue den Kauf nicht, da mir dieses Produkt in nahezu jedem Bereich sehr gut gefällt. Danke für's Lesen!

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!

Al prezzo di 111 EUR (Nov 2019) il rapporto qualità prezzo è strepitoso. Sul sito AKG è in vendita al prezzo di 449 $. Certo, questo esemplare è costruito in Cina e non in Austria ma i materiali sono quelli standard e l'assemblaggio accurato. Spedizione Amazon in anticipo sulla previsione. Quindi se volete una cuffia di alto livello, compratela. Poi attaccatela ad un PC (o un CD in repeat-all) che la faccia suonare a basso volume per un rodaggio di 48/50 ore e quindi passate a leggere qualche dettaglio ulteriore: Suono. E' una cuffia analitica come da famiglia AKG ma non è più "fredda" come ad esempio era la "nonna" K501 della metà anni 2000. Il suono è più caldo e più morbido ma rivela bene i dettagli. Diciamo che cerca di avvicinarsi ai gusti di orecchie meno professionali e che si vogliono godere la musica. I bassi ci sono e non sono invadenti. Certo che mancano un po' di corpo, soprattutto rispetto alla pari classe Sennheiser HD650. Ma a certi livelli di cuffie, diventa anche questione di gusti. La K701 è più aperta sui medio-alti, senza che diventino fastidiosi. La cuffia è di tipo aperto, quindi il suono è udibile all'esterno e potrebbe disturbare chi vi stesse vicino. Poco da dire sul comfort d'uso. E' leggera ed il cavo abbastanza lungo. NON fatele il dispetto di attacarla ad uno smartphone o un PC. Se proprio dovete, cercate di collegare un DAC esterno di buona qualità che riceva in input il segnale digitale. La K701 nasce per un impianto HI-FI di calibro medio-alto. E allora vi darà di sicuro belle soddisfazioni. Conclusioni: un affare. E' perdente solo contro "mostri" di prezzo stellare, come pienezza del suono, dettaglio e soundstage. Ma allora dovreste spendere ben oltre i 1000 EUR. Con questa K701 al prezzo di saldo in giro, per ora, non ne varrebbe la pena.