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Can someone do a Sennheiser HD800 vs AKG K1000 review?

post #1 of 73
6/5/09 at 5:17pm
Thread Starter 
Moderator note: I've changed the thread title from the original: "Sennheiser HD800 vs AKG K1000" after clicking on it one too many times these past several days only to be disappointed not to see a review... Wmcmanus

this had to come!we have HD800 vs O2 and GS1000,but i like AKG K1000 the most...so i'm intersted in this comparison the most.
please someone who have both post your impressions...
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post #2 of 73
6/6/09 at 6:12am
Yeah, I am waiting for this comparison as well...
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post #3 of 73
6/6/09 at 6:40am
I'm interested also. And against the O2.
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post #4 of 73
6/6/09 at 7:21am
IMO give it another two months, and then we'll compare the big guns.
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post #5 of 73
6/7/09 at 12:59am
From another forum:

Quote:
Originally Posted by wrecked_porsche
Larry, how would you say the K1000 compares to the HD800 in terms of speed, transparency, neutrality? Thanks.

If you had to keep only one of the two based on SQ and pure enjoyment alone (not listening environment/cost, whatever), which one would you keep and which one would you ditch? If you then take all the other factors into acount, would your decision be different?

Vicki, you've owned a nice K1000 rig in the past IIANM. Any input from you as to how they stack up against each other would also be appreciated too, so feel free to toss your $2 worth into this thread. Thanks Vicki !

Quote:
Originally Posted by HeadphoneAddict
Right now my HD800 are much better than my K1000 #1478 (formerly Smeggy's then J-Pak's). But I'm sure I don't have the right amp for the K1000 yet, and I think I need to re-cable them. I brought mine to CanJam and didn't find any amp to really make them shine, although some were better than others. Mine are a little darker and bassier sounding, so not as transparent as they should be. I have an 8-watt EC ZDT on order but it never made it to CanJam for me to try, so I can only hope it will sound better than the K1000 did off the 8-watt Woo WA5.

When I heard Naaman's K1000 in February out of his Beta 22/Buffalo DAC I had to own a pair, so I traded my first O2 Mk1 for these from J-Pak. At the Feb meet we had tried Naaman's K1000 out of my Square Wave XL balanced and it sounded pretty nice although not as good as his Beta 22, but it has enough power to play loudly. My K1000 just do not sound as good as I recall his sounding. I'd wanted to compare mine to his, but we never got the chance.

Right now I have also tried the K1000 with some inexpensive speaker/headphones amps that I have laying around that do well with normal cans and stats - including 5-watt Travagans Red with AD743 (best) opamps, 12-watt Nuforce Icon (worst), and 8-watt Qinpu A-3 (in the middle). All three of these amps sound pretty nice with my O2 Mk1 or HE60 Mk1 when used with my SRD-7 Pro or Mk2. In those cases, like the HD800 the O2 Mk1 also beat the K1000. (my current O2 Mk1 used to be Naaman's). It's like trying to enjoy a Stax O2 off an SRM-1 Mk2 Pro - I almost think my HF-2 excite me more than the K1000 so far.

So, if the K1000 don't sound noticeably better with the ZDT, I may either re-cable them, or consider selling the ZDT and keep looking for a better amp. I am NOT ready to give up on them yet, but If I had to pick one right now it would be my HD800 out of my Woo WA6 (maxed with pseudo dual power supply and Sophia Princess 274b rectifier, but no DACT).
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post #6 of 73
6/7/09 at 1:35am
Thread Starter 
Thank you very much for the detailed impressions.
i am not sure the amps you tried are the issue,because i tried my K1000 with a 300$ headphone amp and ,please don't laugh, a cowon D2 as source and i was blown away.
it was alot better than GS1000 connected to a Grace 902 with some Ayre CD player as transport, and anything else i ever auditioned.
so i really hope HD800 is better than K1000,because they are so hard to find.
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post #7 of 73
6/7/09 at 2:13am
I'm looking for an impression from someone that appreciates the K-1000 and uses a quality speaker amp. I prefer the K-1000 to every other phone including the HE-90, R10 and O2. I'd also like to know how they compare, rather than just one beats the other and that's that. Beats it how? There are many aspects to audio.

I think as posted above, though, the real comparison will be down the road when the excitement, newness and FOTM ends. If it beats the K-1000s for my taste, then I'm getting them. If not, then not interested.

When the HD650s came out many said they beat the Ks, Same with K701, so I'll wait to hear the HD800 before trusting threads here and after the newness. I bought the K701s before hearing some stated they are better than the K-1000s... boy was that wrong IMHO. I've been mislead before, but I at least want some K-1000 fans to compare rather than some that have just heard them or own them but haven't really dialed them in.
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post #8 of 73
6/7/09 at 2:25am
But the AKG's are sooooo coool looking! in my opinion they are the best looking headphones ever made...
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post #9 of 73
6/7/09 at 2:28am
Quote:
Originally Posted by gilency View Post
But the AKG's are sooooo coool looking! in my opinion they are the best looking headphones ever made...
I actually really like how the HD800s look, I've been very surprised by the people hating on the aesthetics.
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post #10 of 73
6/7/09 at 2:35am
@Larry, when you get your ZDT, please let me know how they perform with you K1000 kay? Thanks!
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post #11 of 73
6/7/09 at 3:17am
hm nice thoughts, larry.
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post #12 of 73
6/7/09 at 3:19am
Thread Starter 
They look freakin' amazing!
Quote:
Originally Posted by gilency View Post
But the AKG's are sooooo coool looking! in my opinion they are the best looking headphones ever made...
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post #13 of 73
6/7/09 at 3:53am
I'm also very interested in this matchup. With a little luck, I'll contribute to it. The HD-800 is quite good, and I think I'll end up selling part of the stable and grabbing a pair.

I'd like to run comparisons from the Moth - I can run both from it. That ought to show up differences not attributable to amplification. Not as much, anyway. That would be a problem for a lot of comparisons since both are very sensitive to amplification and there aren't many that can drive both.
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post #14 of 73
6/7/09 at 4:30am
I suppose I could help with this comparison as I have a k1000 rig that I'm very happy with but also got an hd800 for something different.
I'll wait until I get my Balancing Act before posting anything as I'm only listening to the hd800s out of my pico right now.
I will say that it might be more of a preference thing for me vs which one sounds better.
I find the k1000s have such a different sound than any other headphone out there that you really are not comparing apples to apples.
That's why I think I'll always have the k1000s and something else to complement them.
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post #15 of 73
6/7/09 at 4:39am
Quote:
Originally Posted by foo_me View Post
I suppose I could help with this comparison as I have a k1000 rig that I'm very happy with but also got an hd800 for something different.
I'll wait until I get my Balancing Act before posting anything as I'm only listening to the hd800s out of my pico right now.
I will say that it might be more of a preference thing for me vs which one sounds better.
I find the k1000s have such a different sound than any other headphone out there that you really are not comparing apples to apples.
That's why I think I'll always have the k1000s and something else to complement them.
I value your comparison since I know we have the same taste and appreciation for the K-1000.
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