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Old vs new AKG 240's

post #1 of 20
8/17/06 at 7:41pm
Thread Starter 
I have some old (25 years) AKG 240's with model name "sextett".Honest!
Each earcup has 1 central driver surrounded by 6! passive diaphragms.
The new 240's have what's called an "XXL Varimotion " driver, one per
earcup and it appparently covers the entire face of the earcup.
Is one better than the other? Help!
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post #2 of 20
1/20/07 at 10:35pm
I bought my AKG 240's when they were new on the market in 1975 or '76. I still have them and they work fine. The passive diaphragms were one of the main selling points. I have always loved the open clean sound and was disappointed to learn that the headphones that bear the name today are a different design. I just got a pair of K701's hoping they could recreate some of the magic I felt with the old 240's.
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post #3 of 20
1/25/07 at 12:17am
So the old 240's are better?
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post #4 of 20
1/27/07 at 3:58pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by 450 View Post
So the old 240's are better?
I haven't heard the newer ones yet, but I do plan on doing a comparison between the K240, K240M, K240DF, and K240S sometime.

The old K240 sextett is surprisingly balanced and does a really good job of getting out of the way and letting you focus on the music. I agree with mikesul on the very clean, open sound.
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post #5 of 20
2/6/07 at 5:33pm
This is fascinating. My father bought a pair of 240 in the mid-80's and then a few years ago I bought him a "new" pair of 240M because his 240's had gotten really ratty. He said something like "Son, thanks for the thought, but these new phones don't sound anything like the old ones. I'll keep the old ones."

I'm not going to ask him to take his vintage 240 apart, but what are the differences and when were the changes made? My 240M are about six years old, and I enjoy them for rock but not much else.
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post #6 of 20
2/6/07 at 5:44pm
Keep the sextetts... I've been looking for a pair for a while.
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post #7 of 20
2/7/07 at 6:54pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by JXBJXB View Post
This is fascinating. My father bought a pair of 240 in the mid-80's and then a few years ago I bought him a "new" pair of 240M because his 240's had gotten really ratty. He said something like "Son, thanks for the thought, but these new phones don't sound anything like the old ones. I'll keep the old ones."

I'm not going to ask him to take his vintage 240 apart, but what are the differences and when were the changes made? My 240M are about six years old, and I enjoy them for rock but not much else.
The original has six passive radiators (small drivers with no coil/magnet) surrounding the main driver, rather than just thin damping pad. A similar set of passive radiators was used in the K340 as well.
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post #8 of 20
2/11/07 at 4:13pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Fitz View Post
I haven't heard the newer ones yet, but I do plan on doing a comparison between the K240, K240M, K240DF, and K240S sometime.
The old K240 sextett is surprisingly balanced and does a really good job of getting out of the way and letting you focus on the music. I agree with mikesul on the very clean, open sound.
i'd love to hear about this comparison, Fitz. did you ever do this?
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post #9 of 20
2/11/07 at 4:21pm
Still waiting on the K240S to arrive before I start getting thorough with it.
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post #10 of 20
2/11/07 at 5:19pm
The 240 Sextet was my first real headphone and I still have it. It is actually a rather decent headphone, musical and enjoyable.
Unfortunately I have not heard the new K240 to compare.

Looking forward to your review Fitz.
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post #11 of 20
2/11/07 at 6:09pm
i currently have a sextet and used to own the m version. unfortunately i didn't have them simultaneously to compare. hmm, mebbe i'll have to score another m to see about the differences. i do have a small 2xx collection which is kind of fun in and of itself. for more about this sort of comparision see this thread:
http://www.head-fi.org/forums/showthread.php?t=223898

(whoo hoo! post #500. do i get to learn the secret handshake now? )
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post #12 of 20
2/13/07 at 1:52am

Old AKG 240

First post !

Bought my first true headphones back in the late 1970's on a co-workers recommendation... good old AKG. Thinking they're sextets (can't read the screw cover any more) and the AKG archives only have a pdf file showing the old cans which have the earmarks of these. Mine definitely have the six radiators surrounding the main driver and the cable with lines on it.

Say, does anyone know where replacement earpads can be found for these? After all of these years, they still sound good (ok, really good for my initial investment) and are in fair shape. Not bad considering they travelled around the Pacific with me in the US Navy.
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post #13 of 20
2/13/07 at 2:10am
Quote:
Originally Posted by pjnewman View Post
First post !

Bought my first true headphones back in the late 1970's on a co-workers recommendation... good old AKG. Thinking they're sextets (can't read the screw cover any more) and the AKG archives only have a pdf file showing the old cans which have the earmarks of these. Mine definitely have the six radiators surrounding the main driver and the cable with lines on it.

Say, does anyone know where replacement earpads can be found for these? After all of these years, they still sound good (ok, really good for my initial investment) and are in fair shape. Not bad considering they travelled around the Pacific with me in the US Navy.
The K240 sure seems to be nearly indestructible compared to many other headphones! If they have the passive radiators, then you definitely have the sextett.

You can get replacement pads by calling Frank, the parts guy for Harman, at 818-920-3279 and ordering two of part number 2058Z1001. If you're not in a hurry though, I've got a bunch of spare parts for AKG headphones on order already (which I'm not sure when I'll actually get them), and I can just send you a pair since I'll have more than I actually need.

p.s. welcome to Head-Fi, sorry about your wallet.
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post #14 of 20
2/13/07 at 10:15am
There are also Velour pads available if you prefer them to the 'pleather' ones.
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post #15 of 20
2/14/07 at 1:37am
I'm not sure when I'll actually have time to sit down and do a detailed comparison with everything, but I have finally gotten the K240S and I am thoroughly unimpressed. I have a version of the K240 sextet with much more bass than the normal version, but even it pales in comparison to the massive sloppy bass of the K240S.
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