AKG K812

Rating: 9.2
Sound 9.3

It is remarkable how precisely the musical content can be located and how well separated it is. And the K812 sounds so easy and uncomplicated.

Click to expand...

Sound: 9.3

Handling: 9

Total: 9.2
Price: 870 €



Intro
A headphone with pure sound that inspires, an extraordinary stage extension and fantastic imaging. It is not for nothing that the K812 together with the K872 (closed version) are AKG's current flagship.

With its technical capabilities and its precise and detailed sound, these headphones are a revelation in themselves and let you rediscover your music. Stunning, but not quite perfect for my preference.



Handling
That's what I call solid workmanship. The K812 seems to be made of one piece and you have the feeling that this headphone can hardly be affected by external influences, even if the ear cups are a bit "loosely" embedded, or in their connection still look most fragile. Otherwise the K812 impresses with its pure metal construction, as well as leather headband and earpads.

These earpads are placed completely over the ear and thus directly on the head/neck. They do not have a "classic" design, even if the padding is round, but protrude a little bit inwards at the lower part, which should contribute to a better sound sealing and is therefore directly a tuning element. In general, pads can strongly influence the sound of headphones, either by changing the distance from the ear to the driver, or the used (sound permeable) material. Certainly this plays a bigger role with closed designs. The earpads of the K812 feel good, but you notice the "leather lip" protruding inwards, which reduces the comfort for me a bit.

The headband does not offer any additional padding and does not automatically adjust to the shape of the head, but it is comfortable when you have adjusted it correctly, which can easily be done by pushing the "buttons" on the side.
The 8-series weighs a few grams more than the 7-series, which is noticeable, but due to the good weight distribution of the headband and the secure fit around the ear, this is not a big comfort problem and negligible.

The detachable cable measures a good 3m and has a 3-pin LEMO connector towards the headphones, as well as a gold-plated 3.5mm jack plug, for which a 6.3mm adapter is of course also included.

It should be clear that the isolation, due to the open construction, is not really existent, but with moderate ambient noise and running music privacy (at least for yourself) is possible. Of course I also don't want to embezzle the included real wood stand.



Sound
Bass
The bass of the K812 may not be the most powerful, but it has a damn dry punch and finds the right balance between detail, precision, natural response and entertainment. It could be a bit rounder and more authoritative for my taste, and a bit more powerful in the low end, but even so it's a real weapon, especially when it comes to quality. It also reacts very well to an equalizer without distorting.

Mids
The K812 performs just as well in the mid-range. They reveal an amazing number of side scenes and even the finest musical elements, as well as certainly unwanted "production errors". Or better said, it makes the music human and you notice that there is an artist behind it and not a machine. The mids are also quite neutral, but sound neither dull nor emotionless. I'd like a bit more warmth, but the K812 sounds light as a feather in the mids and above all unexcitedly exciting. I don't find any major blunders tonally and above all I never have the impression of exertion or compression.

Trebles
It becomes a little more demanding in the high frequencies. It is certainly a contradiction in terms to be able to analyze everything in music without having to concentrate on it, and this with a completely fatigue-free high frequency. Somewhere this high resolution has its price, especially when the musical input is not the highest quality. The K812 wants to reveal even the smallest micro-detail, for which every music producer will thank it, but it does not invite you to relax and simply enjoy, also due to its moderate sibilant emphasis and the somewhat obtrusive 6 kHz peak. In the long run it's a bit too intense for me, but I still enjoy the pure and detailed high tone, the higher it climbs.

Stage
Surely this is not the first time you read the praises of the K812's spacious stage. I can actually only say that I cover this with my listening impression. But what I find special is that despite the space available, nothing seems lost and voices can just as easily build up intimacy.

Imaging
This becomes more impressive in imaging. It is remarkable how precisely the musical content can be located and how well separated it is. And the K812 sounds so easy and uncomplicated. In contrast to the K702, or Q701, the K812 is more differentiated and above all at home on all layers, instead of concentrating more on the panorama. Certainly, the K812 is also suitable as a gaming headset due to its excellent localization, but then not at a lan party with other gamers in the room. Apart from that, its technical capabilities make it a valuable tool for editing and processing any kind of music.



Outro
What a headphone. I must admit that I am really enthusiastic about the technical capabilities, even if the signature does not match my preferences 100%. I would still like some body in the mids and a more pronounced low bass.

For me, the somewhat pointed trebles are a little bit too much, but considering the refined sound and the spatial representation in total, I can get over it. Details, imaging and stage, combined in a balanced signature with a somewhat emphasized high frequency and thus certainly a bit above the neutral reference curve.
In addition, it has a good grip, is hard as a board and dry in the low frequencies, transparent and high in resolution.

The AKG K812 more than lives up to its flagship status, also in its workmanship. Give me a little less brightness, as well as a smoothed treble and instead more depth and pressure in the bass, with a little more powerful mids. Maybe my "ideal" would be done. It remains to be seen what the K872 can contribute to this.

Thanks to Sattler Electronic Showtronic AG for providing the test headphones.
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I fully understand that everyone who has listened to the K812's is entitled to their own sweet opinion but the hoo ha concerning these headphones only created uncertainty in my mind and I stupidly allowed myself to be swayed unduly by other people's opinions. I tried to get hold of a dem pair of K812's in the UK but sadly AKG UK had decided to place the sale of the K812's in the hands of a company who didn't believe in customer service and none of the sellers appointed by this company had a dem pair. Understandbly, the sellers informed me that they could not afford to stock a pair of headphones at this price range for dem purposes. Basically, AKG UK has gone about the marketing & selling of K812's in the wrong way and instead of getting that the real market for the K812's was in the very healthy audiophile marketplace, they have promoted these wonderful headphones to the "professional" customer (I wonder how many of this customer actually spent £1,000 on a pair of headphones for their work purposes?). I even tried to persuade the distributors to supply the Hi Fi Lounge hi fi dealership who have a dedicated headphone building but this wasn't allowed.
Sorry, I am expressing my frustration rather than telling anyone about my experience with the K812. I own, as so many do on head-fi, a number of headphones including HD600's (too slipper like for me), Grado RS2i (hell, I can't remember what they sound like, time I sold them perhaps), AKG K550's (great value, bought because I needed a pair of closed), AKG K702/65's (bought when the K812's first came out and I thought the K812's  were too expensive, stupid me).
So I really like the AKG general house sound as I guess others like another headphone manufacturer's house sound? Anyway, although I was really enjoying my K702/65's I was aware of some shortcomings, I wanted more treble, more detail, a better quality bass so I thought I would ignore the "varied" reviews and I bought the K812's from Amazon thereby ensuring the UK distributor's sellers did not get the sale, a lack of co-operation cuts both ways chaps.
I love these headphones, absolutely fabulous sound (for me). I love the solid & extended bass, the spaciousness, the additional treble over the K702/65's, the lovely midrange. I generally listen to headphones with my Cowan Plenue 1 & Colorfly C4 Pro DAP's and the K812's are easier to drive than the K702/65's so this is a really useful aspect. One review I read talked about the K812's being compatible with iPhones etc on their own but who would drive a pair of top notch headphones in this way? But it is great that the K812's do not challenge my DAP's and the arrival of the K812's prompted me to buy an Audioquest Dragonfly v.2 and the combination is a great match.
The K812 is well made, like the mix of materials, not too heavy & comfortable for extended listening but I would have loved a 3ft cable as well as the 10ft one. Personally I have no use for a 10ft cable.
Have ordered a 3ft cable from Double Helix Cables but still have 2 months to go before it arrives, can't wait......
Now before everyone thinks I'm just an AKG fanboy, I want to say I'm in the 50-60 age range and it could well be that much younger ears would result in a different review. This is my review however and my best advice is to grab a well run in pair if you can and otherwise just buy the K812's like I wish I had done.
I PAID £938 IN THE UK, have converted this to USD 1400.

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Me: I am a 21 year old student living in a small town in India. I would like to call myself a music enthusiast, rather than an audiophile. I was inspired by music since childhood, and as the time passed, the passion of music grew in me, and that subsequently led me to join Head-Fi. Eventually, I found the pleasure of listening to music mainly by the HD600 and recently, by the seductive LCD2 headphones, and realized the true components of recorded music. I usually like to listen to Indian Classical Music along with Bollywood songs. My main listening genres include classical, vocal, instrumental, jazz and sometimes pop.  With time, my sonic preferences have very much grown. I avidly admire transparency, accuracy along with neutrality, & this has led me to review the AKG’s prestigious K812 flagship headphones.

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Intro:  AKG Acoustics (Akustische und Kino-Geräte G.m.b.H) is well recognized, established & one of the oldest audio brand specializing in the area of audio & headphones. They are headquartered in Vienna, Austria.  The ‘K’ series line is a very popular and long running headphone offering from AKG. They have a specific vision in making their products: Their products should last long and should employ quality engineering for precise and accurate sound reproduction, with state of art cutting edge technology. All the headphones are designed by their engineers in Austria. Few headphones are manufactured in China. The K812 headphones the flagship & best headphones AKG can offer today. K812 replaced K712 as flagship headphones in the year of 2013. These are studio reference headphones. The pair I will reviewing belongs to latest batch & current year manufacturing. The K812 is completely manufactured in Slovakia.
 

 
Founded in 1947 by Dr. Rudolf Görike & Ernst Pless. Originally, their main aim was to provide technical equipment for cinemas: loudspeakers, film projectors and light meters. Their business slowly expanded and AKG started selling car horns, door intercoms, carbon capsules for telephones, headsets and cushion speakers. The first AKG microphone was used by radio stations & Theaters. AKG developed its first patents, the moving coil technology and the principle of mass load membranes, allowing its products to have extended frequency ranges.
 
With the creation of the D12 microphone in 1953, AKG achieved international fame, setting the standard for voice transmissions. Being the world's first dynamic cardioid microphone, it possessed excellent sonic qualities for that time, making its way into radio stations and recording studios from across the world. In 1994, AKG was acquired by Harman International Industries, and they later setup AKG USA’s headquarters in California.
 
In 2010, AKG Acoustics received a Grammy Award for the work the company has done in the recording field.
 
Specifications of K812:
 
 

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Let us see what the K812 has got for us,
 
Packaging and Accessories: The K812’s arrive packed inside a very premium and heavy black cardboard box. The box has a magnetic lock. Once the box is flipped open, The K812 is seen resting on the Sieveking headphone stand, which provided by AKG in the box. Nothing fancy, basic accessories included. But each and every part has a premium quality and feel to it.
 

 

 

 

 

 
List of accessories in the box, which include the following:
 
Headphone Cable: About 2.5 meters long, terminating in 3.5mm.
 
Headphone Stand: Excellent quality universal headphone stand to display headphones when not in use.
 
¼” Screw on Converter: To plug in the K812 in the 6.5mm headphone jacks.
 
User Manual: Contains instructions to operate the K812 and other warranty information.
 

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Design and Build: AKG’s K812 has a top notch build quality. It employs metal constructions in most of the areas. AKG K812 headphones use suspended headband which can be manually adjusted for precise fit, which ensures in least possible physical pressure on head. The headband has a foam-pleather base with ventilation vents, & is very accurately angled. It is attached to the main headphone frame which holds the headphone together.
 

 

 

 
The K812 has an extremely sophisticated build with high technology materials & latest scientific designs. The manual adjustment of headband distance can be adjusted by pushing he button and sliding gently as desired. The K812 is designed in such a remarkable manner, that clamping force is almost zero. This is the first time I have ever come across a headphone (along with Sennheiser HD800) which offers such luxurious design & engineering elements.
 

 

 
The K812 is a fully open headphone, hence has vents for air intake at either side of headphone. Driver shell rotates about its own axis to fit various types of human skulls. The whole headphone is supported on by the two parallel outer headband beams, which are flexible and adopting. These also carry wiring for opposite driver (right). The K812 carries all-new and latest generation top notch performance drivers developed by engineers at AKG specifically for K812 alone. This driver carries an extremely powerful 1.5 Tesla magnetic field capable magnet. The diameter is 53mm, one of the largest drivers ever made. The sound waves coming towards out of drivers are treated to ‘air’ by open mesh, allowing air to blend with sound waves for a very airy presentation. 
 

 

 
Cable has a very good build. It is straight, flexible and does not get tangled. I could not notice the presence of any microphonics. Plug is straight and gold plated. The stock cable does a great job in transferring signals along with great transparency. The cable on headphone has three pins, and is configured for single end termination; balanced mode mode is not supported. Please note: While inserting cable plug into K812’s socket, carefully align to the indicating red line and gently push in. To remove the cable, gently pull out.
 

 

 

 

 

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Comfort:  K812’s are excellently comfortable to wear, even for longer sessions. These feel really wll designed as per human analogy. Clamp force is almost non existent, and ears have been given an excellent space to reside, do not touch anywhere. The earpads are made up of leather, are high quality ones. The Space inside the earpads is also great, great amount of depth and space.  The earpads on K812 are designed such that, the area of contact around the ears or anywhere is made as less as possible, and clamp force is reduced to almost zero: This will result in an excellent comfort.
 

 

 
These ear pads are very soft & flexible in nature, which ensures in better comfort & adoption without compromising consistency, and also in durability of the pads themselves. The earpads can be removed to clean or replace with a simple anti-clockwise horizontal twist. These earpads are called as “Sound Sealer” by AKG. Hence, K812 ‘s  earpads seal out & engulf the user’s ears, rather than sitting around the ears. Single downside in this department weight, as the K812 weighs slightly on heavy side with 390 grams (owing to its solid build) feels slightly heavy on worn on. But again the excellent design factor makes up for it.
 
Overall, The K812’s are one of the worlds most well designed and most comfortable headphones.

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Sound:  The K812 has a vastly neutral “mesmerizing” sonic character. ‘Accuracy, Transparency, Details’ are the key terms.  Emphasis is not given at any particular frequency range; all ranges are completely flat, making these truly spectacular reference headphones.
 
Burn in: These perform consistently, and I could not observe any major sonic change with burn in. I have heard these from right out of the box till few hundred hours.
 
Lows: are very accurate, tight and refined; has a strong impact. Depth is excellent, the lows go very deep with authority. They also have an appreciable amount of body & quantity
 
Mids: Neutral, very detailed & transparent.  Special mention is about the naturalness and tonality. The mids of K812 are very neutral, but are presented in an extremely silky manner.
 
Highs: Very are clear, extended, airy & detailed. Very transparent & sensitive as per the given setup & recording.
 
Soundstage: The K812’s soundstage is breathtakingly airy, spacious, and fully circular 3D life like soundstage. Imaging is again spatial, with instruments placements very accurately positioned. Component/instruments are clearly and vividly separated and explained in a very detailed manner. According to my observation, these headphones are very neutral, and accurately represent the given recording. Given its transparent nature, I can say the K812’s are strictly not forgiving to poor recordings. Hence these are transparent, revealing and resolving.

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Comparison: Let us take a brief look at other popular top notch & excellent performing headphones available in similar price point.
 
I would like to compare the AKG’s“mesmerizing” K812 to Sennheiser’s “mighty” HD800 & Audeze’s “passionate” LCD-2F. All these three headphones are open backs, over ear. They are also very neutral by sonic response, but presented in different fashions. These are all top notch headphones and one of the world’s finest.
 
Sennheiser HD800: A Solid performer and a well established headphone, which is sonically extremely good performing. Sonically it is vastly neutral with no emphasis on any frequency range. But highs are very sensitive to the setup & recording used.  HD800 definitely feels (and indeed is) Lighter than K812 by weight. The HD800 is also slightly more comfortable owing its design & comfort principles that is compatible with majority of users. After intensive listening, I could observe K812 was comparatively ahead in performance in the following departments: In rest of the aspects, HD800 is marginally superior.
 
Lows: The K812 audibly has a deeper Lows with more authority without compromising its neutrality. Accuracy, detailing is same on both headphones.
 
Tonality: The K812 delivers a very realistic tonality which feels very silky & is simply mesmerizing when compared to HD800, which has a relatively vast flat mids.
 
Soundstage depth & layering: This where HD800 is left behind by K812. The overall depth across depth offered in K812 is simply amazing & spectacular, the stage goes very deep. But when the matter comes to width & height, HD800 performs better.
 
Amping: HD800 is very sensitive when it comes to headphone amplifiers, and it promptly points out the different between various amps in a accurate fashion. Whereas the K812 is comparatively more steady and accommodating to amps, so it ‘goes along’ with amps without much fuss.  Also the K812 is much more efficient & easier drive when related to HD800.
 
Summary: Both are extremely good performing headphones, and differ by final presentation delivered. Considering overall sonic traits, AKG’s K812 will sound slightly more ‘musical & enjoyable’ but without compromising its technical or reference deliverance aspect. Technically, HD800 is a more suitable headphone for critical listening and mastering purposes. But the K812 is more versatile & stable, proving to be great with mastering as well as music listening.
 
Both HD800 & K812 are top-notch reference class headphones & perform amazingly.
 
Audeze LCD-2F: Without a second thought, it offers the most accurate, linear & deepest lows of all headphones in sub 1000$. Mids are presented in a beautiful manner with ‘thickness’ and has a lovable realistic tonality. Highs although accurate, do not have enough details. Soundstage is very good and circular, but nowhere near the capabilities of HD800 & K812. Therefore the LCD-2F is not technically superior when compared to HD800 & K812. LCD-2’s strength elsewhere: In music listening. HD800 & K812 are reference level headphones whereas the LCD-2 is a headphone designed and aimed primarily for music listening.
 
The LCD-2 is one of the heaviest headphones (by physical weight), and this makes the LCD-2 to make a compromise in comfort department.  Although , the LCD-2’s already have a very good comfort & ergonomics (when weight factor is excluded). The strong point for LCD-2 will be primarily music listening, LCD-2 presents itself in a complete opposite fashion than that of HD800 & K812. Hence, it is safe to say, if HD800 & K812 are on one bank of river, then the LCD-2 is on the other one. They are completely opposite& never meet.
 
The HD800 & K812 are superior reference level headphones whereas the LCD-2 is a headphone designed and aimed primarily for music listening.

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Amplification: These K812’s are rated at 36 ohms and are indeed designed to be power efficient, can be run comfortably by DAP’s. But since these are top tier reference headphones, the K812’s scale really well with setups, and an well performing amp/dac is strongly recommended for optimal performance delivery. The K812 very much appreciates amplifiers which are revealing or transparent with powerful current output. Ideal amp/dac with a good match/performance for K812 include: Objective2/Odac & Schiit Magni/Modi Stack, amongst few others. These devices are very much affordable and are easily available.

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Conclusion:  The K812 headphones are phenomenal performing headphones. It is one of the few amazingly performing top tier reference headphones. The K812 is the flagship headphones from AKG, and the K812 is the absolute best which a renowned brand like AKG can offer. The K812’s deliver a breathtaking sonic performance. These deliver exactly what is fed into them, thus making the K812’s a technically ideal & extremely transparent headphones. Absolutely Mesmerizing & Marvelous pair of superior reference headphones by AKG.
 

 
 
Pros:
 
Top-Tier Reference Sound quality: “Mesmerizing” Sound presentation here is vastly neutral, with excellent response from across frequency band, and is very much helpful for critical listening as well as for casual musical pleasure.  K812 is very responsive, with great speed. With sheer amount of transparency & speed, the K812’s are simply one of the best top-tier performance headphones one can access get today. It performs extremely well and is neck-to-neck with HD800 by performance.
 
Top notch Build Quality: AKG K812 is very well engineered and designed. It is the showcase of AKG’s engineering. It is wisely built, by using cutting edge technology materials which provide a very durable life for the headphones. These are made in Slovakia with individual attention to each unit.
 
Excellent Comfort: Owing to their scientific & ergonomic design, including near zero clamping force & engulfing earpads, the K812’s feel very welcoming & comfortable.
 
Value: AKG K812 puts up an extremely good performance and it is definitely worthy for its offering price. This makes K812 a fantastic purchase for professionals & enthusiasts alike.
 
 
Cons:
 
Weight: The K812 weighs 390 grams, which is slightly on the weightier side. But this factor is mostly not noticed while worn, and is very much comfortable owing to its well implemented & ergonomic design.

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