[RedBull]

^ Better than pink   AD700 reborn.

 

[mvrk10256]

Been using them everyday for a bit now. Definitly look better, and feel great. 

 

[raddogz]

Just picked up a pair for gaming originally, but decided to keep these - working well here in the office
 
These are pretty awesome.  These are my first open-air design and I think I can get used to them

 

[Richsvt]

I just received a pair and after listening for a little while, I am impressed, sq is good and they are super light. Damn these are big. I plan to use with mostly classical and folk and some jazz guitar/piano, seems well matched for that. Mostly will be FLACs running through Schiit M&M stack. So far, nice.

 

[DavidJ1973]

I've got a pair of these with about 800 hours of use.


They're clearly not the best, BUT...

1). For what you pay, it feels like highway robbery. EXCELLENT VALUE

2). Solid construction. I've dropped mine several times.

3). COMFORT SECOND TO NONE. I was recently separated from ex-wife when I bought these for apartment use, and would wear them up to 6 hours nonstop, and never once did they feel uncomfortable.


Now the not-so-good:

1). Don't turn your head. When you move, the cowling which holds the unique "winglets" in place will create some noise that is picked up inside the cans and can be annoying. These headphones are best for sitting still.

2). PC audiophiles will find themselves tweaking their gear a lot depending upon the production quality of an album.

3). Not that great for classical music.

Anyway, I like mine and recommend them to people who are sitting still and enjoy music, games, movies from a PC. And for $100, you can't beat these. They knock the socks off my Grado SR80i, which are muffled in sonics and uncomfortable after a short period of time.

 

[jeffrocc]

Just wondering if anybody has figured out a way to minimize the squeaking and creaking of these cans? Graphite maybe? Fairly pleased with sound, amazing comfort, but wow, really noisy!

 

[RedBull]

Hehehe, I have the same squeeking issue also, my solution, I ignore it.

 

[jeffrocc]

I know, I know. And I'm sure it's been talked about to death lol. But jeepers! You would have thought with the amount of detail that HAVE paid to these quite reasonable cans, this would have been given a little attention

 

[steeveejee]

my second set of good headphones.
the first were ath m-50s which the ad700's blow away imho
i bought them used for $60 and they were burnt in already
the side grills were dented and the head pads were kinda nasty
took em apart, removed the dents (with the blunt end of a screwdriver handle)
cleaned the pads and added a rubber band between the head pads to keep em on my head more firmly
also modded the ear pads with foam strips so my ears fit inside better
im extremely pleased with them
super comfortable with an enormous sound stage
bass is there but could be better (my only complaint)
haven't experienced the squeaking you guys are talking about
maybe the rubber band alleviates that?
thinking about upgrading to a set of ad900x's soon

 

[DavidJ1973]

Typically I just try to minimize rapid head movement. I know it's not the fix people are looking for, but it's the only thing I could think of without dismantling and reassembling with different piece parts.

And psychologically, whenever I hear the noise caused from movement, I tell myself "This is a small price to pay for comfort such as this." I say that because most other cans I've had, while they may sound superior to these like my AKGs, these are by far my "long distance runners" from the comfort viewpoint. Once I wore them for 8 hours uninterrupted and never once were they uncomfortable.

 

[TheGiantHogweed]

I know it has been ages since the last post on this thread but I have been wanting to write about what I have thought about the AD700s for quite some time now. Before I got them, I didn't know what proper Hi-Fi sound was like really because I only had very basic Sennheiser HD201s. When I first got the AD700s, I was just amazed by the detail and the feeling of actually being there with the band. But what I didn't know then was how much difference it made by what I plugged them into. I had them plugged into a very basic 2.0 set of Logitech PC speakers because that was the only thing I had with a volume dial. When I now plug them back into them, the sound just sounds muddy.
 
I then started listening to music on a Pioneer stereo amplifier's headphone socket and even though the sound was traveling through 10 meters of cable to get to it, I couldn't tell any difference in sound quality compared to just plugging them directly into my computer. I loved the sound of these headphones when they were on direct but there was just one problem: the bass was so lacking! Turning the bass dial up on the amplifier didn't really improve the sound much. It just made them sound a little muddy unless it was a very good recording. I then decided to look into headphone amplifiers and I saw that many people said that the Fiio E11 goes well with the AD700s. It goes better with them than anything else I have ever tried! On bass boost 2 on the E11, you start to hear and feel the bass more and it doesn't mess up the other sounds as much as other EQ devices I have tried. I have also tried the AD700s of the Fiio E10 but I still think they go better with the E11. I have never heard better sounding high frequencies on anything else. Even on more expensive Hi-Fi speakers. They just sound so bright and sharp and I would really miss the treble if I got a pair of headphones with less.
 
It could just simply be because they are open that their soundstage is so good because a few months ago, I bought the AKG K550 and yes, they have much better bass but they lack that open and spacious soundstage that the AD700s have.
 
I have had the AD700s for almost 3 years now and they just don't feel like they will stop working any time soon. They sound no different to what they used to and I just hope they will last.
Another thing I love about them is how comfortable they are! I can wear these for simply hours and not really know I have them on. It was very hard to get used to the AKG K550s because I was so used to the 3D wing support of the AD700s which I still really like. I agree with other people though, you do look very silly wearing them!
I just don't know if you can get open back headphones at a similar price that I paid for these and not loose any of their soundstage. I live in the UK and they only cost me £87. I paid £129 for my K550s and they overall, don't sound as good (but then they are closed back).
 
Yet another thing I like about them is the quality of the cable. It feels like it will never ever break. I don't know why I can't find cables like this online to use for other things. It it very thick but also much more flexible than I thought it would be.
 
If anybody who has had these headphones know of a pair that is still being made that is a similar price and has similar sound, I would be interested to know about them.

 

[Yazen]

  I know it has been ages since the last post on this thread but I have been wanting to write about what I have thought about the AD700s for quite some time now. Before I got them, I didn't know what proper Hi-Fi sound was like really because I only had very basic Sennheiser HD201s. When I first got the AD700s, I was just amazed by the detail and the feeling of actually being there with the band. But what I didn't know then was how much difference it made by what I plugged them into. I had them plugged into a very basic 2.0 set of Logitech PC speakers because that was the only thing I had with a volume dial. and when I now plug them back into them, they sound just sounds muddy.
 
I then started listening to music on a Pioneer stereo amplifier's headphone socket and even though the sound was traveling through 10 meters of cable to get to it, I couldn't tell any difference in sound quality compared to just plugging them directly into my computer. I loved the sound of these headphones when they were on direct but there was just one problem: the bass was so lacking! Turning the bass dial up on the amplifier didn't really improve the sound much. It just made them sound a little muddy unless it was a very good recording. I then decided to look into headphone amplifiers and I saw that many people said that the Fiio E11 goes well with the AD700s. It goes better with them than anything else I have ever tried! On bass boost 2 on the E11, you start to hear and feel the bass more and it doesn't mess up the other sounds as much as other EQ devices I have tried. I have also tried the AD700s of the Fiio E10 but I still think they go better with the E11. I have never heard better sounding high frequencies on anything else. Even on more expensive Hi-Fi speakers. They just sound so bright and sharp and I would really miss the treble if I got a pair of headphones with less.
 
It could just simply be because they are open that their soundstage is so good because a few months ago, I bought the AKG K550 and yes, they have much better bass but they lack that open and spacious soundstage that the AD700s have.
 
I have had the AD700s for almost 3 years now and they just don't feel like they will stop working any time soon. They sound no different to what they used to and I just hope they will last.
Another thing I love about them is how comfortable they are! I can wear these for simply hours and not really know I have them on. It was very hard to get used to the AKG K550s because I was so used to the 3D wing support of the AD700s which I still really like. I agree with other people though, you do look very silly wearing them!
I just don't know if you can get open back headphones at a similar price that I paid for these and not loose any of their soundstage. I live in the UK and they only cost me £87. I paid £129 for my K550s and they overall, don't sound as good (but then they are closed back).
 
Yet another thing I like about them is the quality of the cable. It feels like it will never ever break. I don't know why I can't find cables like this on line to use for other things. It it very thick but also much more flexible than I thought it would be.
 
If anybody who has had these headphones know of a pair that is still being made that is a similar price and has similar sound, I would be interested to know about them.

ATH-AD700x? 

The ATH-AD900x is only a little more if you order from Japan, but they do not sound exactly the same.

 

[DavidJ1973]

Yes, they are a little "bass hungry," but I like my music sounding as realistic as possible, so I don't like an over-processed bass sound. These cans I think duplicate a realistic bass, presuming one chooses something that was mixed and mastered properly.

You also said that some recordings are less muddy than others with these. This is paramount because there are a lot of sound engineers who engineer the music for maximum loudness, with the idea that their product will mostly be heard through cheap earbuds or over ambient noise in a bar or restaurant or whatever. These headphones are actually REVEALING a poor mix and/or master. It's not your equipment or the headphones.

 

[TheGiantHogweed]

Yes I agree. I have listened to some modern recordings and some of them even on spotify premium sound a bit harsh and tinny as if they are made for people to listen on their phone or something. Proper recordings do sound superb though. Similar to what you said, I think the bass is very well controlled and each bass note on a good recording sounds very clean and not at all muddy like many other headphones are. I once heard a pair of beats and I thought that they sounded way to bass heavy. The midrange was so messed up just because of the crazy amount of bass. I could not believe the price when I looked them up. They were £167 compared to £87 which I paid for my AD700s.
 
One of the few things that puts me of listening to these is the amount of sound leakage. I know it is expected to happen on open back headphones but I do think I would listen to these as often as my AKG K550s if it wasn't for their sound leakage. I would have thought that it is because that they are open that they give such an open and airy soundstage which is what I like most about them.

 

[Yazen]

Maybe it is just me, but I think the AD700 sounds colored.  Low end does not seem to have much detail or presence in most of my music too

Not as if its a bad thing, because I find it suits the signature well.
 

  Yes I agree. I have listened to some modern recordings and some of them even on spotify premium sound a bit harsh and tinny as if they are made for people to listen on their phone or something. Proper recordings do sound superb though. Similar to what you said, I think the bass is very well controlled and each bass note on a good recording sounds very clean and not at all muddy like many other headphones are. I once heard a pair of beats and I thought that they sounded way to bass heavy. The midrange was so messed up just because of the crazy amount of bass. I could not believe the price when I looked them up. They were £167 compared to £87 which I paid for my AD700s.
 
One of the few things that puts me of listening to these is the amount of sound leakage. I know it is expected to happen on open back headphones but I do think I would listen to these as often as my AKG K550s if it wasn't for their sound leakage. I would have thought that it is because that they are open that they give such an open and airy soundstage which is what I like most about them.

 
I ordered the K550 over the weekend.  Care to give a comparison of both?  The suspense is killing me now