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AKG K271 Questions

post #1 of 14
12/26/09 at 4:59pm
Thread Starter 
I had the Denon AH-D2000 for my closed headphone needs.
But I have the HD800 and Grado RS1 and they both are very midrange and detail oriented (both emphasizing the lower treble and upper midrange).
So I just could not stand the recessed mids in the Denons.
I'm looking at the AKG K271 to provide the mids and details for my closed headphone needs.

I know the AKG K271 will provide more midrange then the AH-D2000, but will it provide more treble detail and extension than the AH-D2000?
And are the AKG K271 more transparent and accurate than the AH-D2000?

I find it odd that Headroom prefers the AH-D2000 as reference quality with greater rating than AKG K271. I thought Headroom preferred the accuracy of AKG over other more colored headphones like Grado and Denons, Denons being recessed in the mids and bass heavy.
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post #2 of 14
1/12/10 at 1:50am
I'm playing around with my new K271 MKII right now (out of NuForce uDAC) and the mids are definitely upfront, almost as much as my RS1 with flats. Easily the best mids out of a closed headphone I've have/had (D1001, SRH840, ES7). The treble is as extended as the RS1 with bowls I feel, and actually sparkle more than my K701's highs... very crystal clear. Great staging for a closed headphone, more than the previous 3 closed headphones I've mentioned. Overall, the response is almost Etymotic/PFE+Grey filter-ish, which was what I was looking for. If you're craving for closed headphone mids, this is definitely HP to go with IMO.
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post #3 of 14
1/12/10 at 2:07am
Quote:
Originally Posted by K_19 View Post
I'm playing around with my new K271 MKII right now (out of NuForce uDAC) and the mids are definitely upfront, almost as much as my RS1 with flats. Easily the best mids out of a closed headphone I've have/had (D1001, SRH840, ES7). The treble is as extended as the RS1 with bowls I feel, and actually sparkle more than my K701's highs... very crystal clear. Great staging for a closed headphone, more than the previous 3 closed headphones I've mentioned. Overall, the response is almost Etymotic/PFE+Grey filter-ish, which was what I was looking for. If you're craving for closed headphone mids, this is definitely HP to go with IMO.
Hey K_19,

Would the K271 MK II be a good "gigging" (band) headphone? Would it isolate enough for drumming? I'm very interested...

Thanks!
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post #4 of 14
1/12/10 at 2:10am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by K_19 View Post
I'm playing around with my new K271 MKII right now (out of NuForce uDAC) and the mids are definitely upfront, almost as much as my RS1 with flats. Easily the best mids out of a closed headphone I've have/had (D1001, SRH840, ES7). The treble is as extended as the RS1 with bowls I feel, and actually sparkle more than my K701's highs... very crystal clear. Great staging for a closed headphone, more than the previous 3 closed headphones I've mentioned. Overall, the response is almost Etymotic/PFE+Grey filter-ish, which was what I was looking for. If you're craving for closed headphone mids, this is definitely HP to go with IMO.
Thanks. I did trade in my ah-d2000 for akg k271. I like the mids and treble on these more than the ah-d2000. It's less detailed however than the ah-d2000. K19, can you compare the mids and treble with the akg k701. Which has more forward mids and how do they compare in the treble range.
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post #5 of 14
1/12/10 at 2:13am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by iHelp View Post
Hey K_19,

Would the K271 MK II be a good "gigging" (band) headphone? Would it isolate enough for drumming? I'm very interested...

Thanks!
They isolate very well. Lot more than the denons. They grip your head and stay in place. They don't clamp enough to hurt but grip it well.
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post #6 of 14
1/12/10 at 2:15am
Quote:
Originally Posted by sling5s View Post
They isolate very well. Lot more than the denons. They grip your head and stay in place. They don't clamp enough to hurt but grip it well.
As much isolation as an IEM? Or HD280/SRH840...
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post #7 of 14
1/12/10 at 2:20am
I'm actually liking the mids on the K271 better than the K701's at this point! I feel that it's much more balanced. K701's have this undeniably funky midrange with (at times strange and painful) upper mid peak, with lower mids feeling thin compared to the K271's. Best way I can put it here is that the upper midrange on K701 is more forward but lower mids actually sound more recessed. Treble region is more forward on the K271's as well and K701's won't sparkle as much as it does, but K701's do extend a bit higher.

K701's slaughter K271's on detail and soundstage, though, and the bass extends much deeper on the K701's as well as being tighter.

As for the isolation and comfort... they isolate just a TAD less than the SRH840's that I had, but using pleather pads may help further (I'm using the velours right now). Definitely good isolation even for closed headphone standards. Comfort is great with the velour pad, although they do give a firm grip on your head (this could be something that may loosen over time)... but the light weight and the soft headband makes it quite comfortable overall I feel.
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post #8 of 14
1/12/10 at 2:20am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by iHelp View Post
As much isolation as an IEM? Or HD280/SRH840...
I would not say as much as IEM. That's hard to achieve for headphones.
But for full sized headphones, they are one of the best...from what I've heard because I've only had the denons for comparisons.

If your serious about isolation, i would go with IEM. Preferably customs, although the best isolating IEM in my experience was the Etymotics (lot more than the shure e500, ue11pro and JH 13pro).
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post #9 of 14
1/12/10 at 2:26am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by K_19 View Post
I'm actually liking the mids on the K271 better than the K701's at this point! I feel that it's much more balanced. K701's have this undeniably funky midrange with (at times strange and painful) upper mid peak, with lower mids feeling thin compared to the K271's. Best way I can put it here is that the upper midrange on K701 is more forward but lower mids actually sound more recessed. Treble region is more forward on the K271's as well and K701's won't sparkle as much as it does, but K701's do extend a bit higher.

K701's slaughter K271's on detail and soundstage, though, and the bass extends much deeper on the K701's as well as being tighter.
Thanks for the comparisons. That helps a lot. Than the akg k271 is a keeper. It should serve me well for my closed headphone needs when I need isolation and can't listen to hd800 and grado rs1.

Speaking of mids, I have heard that the mids on the akg k510 are fantastic, something the akg k701 has lost.
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post #10 of 14
1/13/10 at 6:29pm
My brother bought himself AKG K271 and I've always liked the sound of those. Everything just sounds good but one problem was with those phones... My brother likes to listen to very high volumes sometimes and if you crank it, those plastic earcups will start vibrating and messing up the sound big time. I opened his pair and put some Dynamat Xtreme to the earcups. Now the bass is much fuller and powerful when needed. I strongly suggest that mod for everyone with K271's in their posession.
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post #11 of 14
1/13/10 at 6:40pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Seba View Post
My brother bought himself AKG K271 and I've always liked the sound of those. Everything just sounds good but one problem was with those phones... My brother likes to listen to very high volumes sometimes and if you crank it, those plastic earcups will start vibrating and messing up the sound big time. I opened his pair and put some Dynamat Xtreme to the earcups. Now the bass is much fuller and powerful when needed. I strongly suggest that mod for everyone with K271's in their posession.
didn't know you could do this with the k271. I did the dynamat to the cups when I had the ah-d2000. darn...threw the dynamat away. didn't think i would ever use it again. will try at some point. thanks
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post #12 of 14
1/13/10 at 7:41pm
Definitely sounds interesting, but which areas will the Dynamat mod comprimise? If it has any sort of negative effects of the quality of the mids, highs, and soundstage then it would probably not be for me...
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post #13 of 14
1/16/10 at 2:32am
Just wanted to say that I did an extended listening session with these tonight through my Pico -> WA6 -> K271... and found the mids just HEAVENLY. IMO, they get it just right. Purely for mids balance, I prefer these many times over the K701 mids. It's forward yet with even amounts of high and low mids. Weirdly, it actually reminded me of SE530 mids, so I actually did a headroom graph check... and found that aside from the more of a lower treble/upper mid spike with the K271, their mid response was almost nearly identical! I had been searching for their type of SE530 mids in fullsize headphones for the longest time, and it seems I've found the closest yet.

Aside from the mids, I love that this still gives that typical AKG clarity and speed. Amount of detail/soundstage/positioning/bass falls way short of K701 of course, but IMO for their price/closed nature they still give enough of each of those areas. My only REAL complaint so far is their comfort... the headband is perfect, but they clamp a lot on my bigger-than-average head (do they loosen up at all?) and that the velour pads holes are too small for my ears, so I'm using the pleather/vinyls which are not the most comfortable. Other than that, these are absolutely fantastic for both my listening and monitoring needs and I'm very happy with them.
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post #14 of 14
1/17/10 at 3:12pm
Yes you can open the cups by removing the earpads and removing the screws and then separate the driver from the housing. Cables are quite short in both sides, but when you open them up the cables have a slight slack on both sides and you can install the Dynamat pieces to the cups.
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