[hsubox]

Quote:

 
BTW don't get a Grado if you want positional accuracy

 

 
And yet, they are super awesome headphones (for certain types of music), and certainly make what does play out of them a helluva lot of fun!
 
I'm still waiting on the mailman to bring my Q701s..... 

 

[tdockweiler]

Quote:

 
And yet, they are super awesome headphones (for certain types of music), and certainly make what does play out of them a helluva lot of fun!
 
I'm still waiting on the mailman to bring my Q701s..... 

 
Yeah..tell me about it. I bought the SR-225 and loved that thing. I suddenly turned into some sort of Grado fanboy overnight and went out and bought the 325is. Compared them side by side for only an hour and sold the 225i. That was dumb. Now prefer the 225i just because of it's mids.
 
I was hoping the SR-125 was like the 225i rather than the 325i, but not likely. I'm not a fan of the SR-80 at all. That thing holds the record for being in my closet the most. I think I modded them so much that I ended up destroying them.
 
When I strike it rich I want to buy a 225i with wooden cups or something. I think the RS series I wouldn't like as much as the 225i.

 

[calpis]

Quote:

 
 
Actually, one headphone I would be willing to call garbage is the Parts Express Mini Headphones.  It's basically a $1.49 headband with two 25¢ drivers attached (total cost = $1.99).  It's funny how it has 4 star reviews on the Parts Express site though, but almost all of the reviews are for the headband itself (it's used for modding).
 

 

I modded these onto my ksc75's and soon found out that they suck for long hair. They are garbage indeed.

 

[chicolom]

Quote:

 
HOW DARE YOU! This headphone is not garbage and if you think this you haven't really heard it. It requires a vintage tube amp and a specific DAC. The problem with the Parts Express Mini headphone is that it has too much resonance due to the driver enclosure. You need to remove it and install the driver into the KSC75 enclosure. This requires a dremel and lots of patience. I also modded mine with hand sewn leather pads (took me 18 hours of work). Recabling them is also a nice upgrade. I used only ALO SXC wire and my own custom made sleeving. The ALO SXC seems to really expand the sounstage, but makes them a bit too analytical. I would say they're much too cold and analytical for most people.
 
With a couple hundred hours you can turn this thing into something that to my ears is far better than even the UR-20. Nobody has really heard it like I have!

 
LOL
 
I have to admit I only burnt them in for about 350 hours and I hear they are supposed to completely change at the 400 hour mark.  At the 457.5 hour mark, they completely change again.  I've read that to get the most out of them, you need to house the drivers in illegal Brazilian Rosewood cups.
 
It's also recommend to recable and balance them with Nordost Odin Supreme Reference cables, with eight Total Signal Control (TSC) tubes - each carrying a 23 AWG Dual Mono-Filament conductor with 85 microns of extruded silver over 99.99999% oxygen free copper, insulated in high purity class 1.003 extruded Fluorinated Ethylene Propylene (FEP).  The cables are offered in 90% and 98% speed of light, and yes, you can hear obvious differences between the two.  Only the 98% speed of light will give you the purified unadulterated frequency response the Parts Express are capable of.
 
Supposedly you can get them sounding better than ANYTHING you can buy at Wal-Mart!

 

[hsubox]

Wa-hey! My Q701s were just delivered a couple minutes ago.
 
Just for fun, I loaded up a song on my iPhone and went straight to the headphones. Confirmed that un-amped, these headphones are nothing special. 

 Gonna let them burn in a bit before I pass any further judgment, but so far, I'm liking the out-of-the-box sound signature. Suffice to say, you can call it bass-light when Grados sound bassy in comparison! Definitely much more laid back compared to the SR-225i's, but that is what I was looking for when I ordered these.
 
I think I am going to enjoy these.

 

[Shade45]

Just got the Q701's a few days ago and I love them so far. I upgraded from the HD 595's and noticed a HUGE difference in soundstage and sound quality right out of the box, and my 595's have been burned in for 500+ hours. I mostly use headphones for gaming, and the Q701's have amazing sound positioning, so I can tell where everything is around me with no problem at all. They also sound great for music of just about any genre, even hip-hop, but I am not a fan of heavy bass on headphone. Even so, the Q701's are not lacking in bass at all, but it is clean and accurate; not over exaggerated bass.
 
I have only had the Q701's for a couple of days but they are already the best headphones I have ever used and have fallen in love with them.
 
My only complaint  is the damn bumps on the headband. If you have short hair, like me, the bumps on the headband will dig into your skull, and that is almost no exaggeration. I actually have visible indentations on the top of my head where the bumps dig in after a few hours of wear, but they go away after about a day of not wearing them. It's extremely uncomfortable on the top of my head at the same time and gives me a headache, so it's hard for me to wear them for more than 2-3 hours. It's sad that the only flaw of the headphones, for me, comes down to the headband. I wish they had a version of the headband with no bumps or sold a replacement for it, but I haven't seen anything. My only solution for now is to wear them with a hat on, but I am looking for a better solution, so please let me know if you have a better solution to these annoying bumps please!

 

[Kyle 491]

Just wrap some kind of thin soft material around the entire band a few times (I used a soft white netting fabric I had lying around). A tea towel that isn't very coarse would work I'd imagine. It'll ruin the looks but since you're using them at home that won't matter much.

 

[snapple10]

Bought K701 when I first joined headfi but did not get to enjoy it , had few special moments with my WA6SE
Just got Q701, planning to at least give it a chance this time around
if it does most of what Hd800 does, I will be impress consider the cost

 

[hsubox]

Mine are #11409, btw

 

[AxelCloris]

Quote:

Mine are #11409, btw

 
Have they made any changes in the production run of these? I'm just curious if lower numbers could have a different sound than say the higher, more recent numbers. I'm also curious why the ones I ordered mid April from Amazon would be such a big gap in production number. Perhaps you have black and they sell more often than my whites? I doubt it means a ton, and either way I still love mine. But my sticker on the box claims mine is #1147.
 
Also, these are the most comfortable headphones I've ever owned. I'm know some people hate the bumps on the pad, but I like them. My head is a bit narrow, so maybe they don't dig into my head the same way it does other people. To give you an idea, the AT wing headbands don't work for me, my ears hold the headphones on by sitting at the top of the cups and hooking them. I confirmed that still happens the other day at the Best Buy down the road from me with the ATH-A900x. I cannot stand wing headbands. The Q701s feel so natural to me.

 

[hsubox]

Have they made any changes in the production run of these? I'm just curious if lower numbers could have a different sound than say the higher, more recent numbers. I'm also curious why the ones I ordered mid April from Amazon would be such a big gap in production number. Perhaps you have black and they sell more often than my whites? I doubt it means a ton, and either way I still love mine. But my sticker on the box claims mine is #1147.

Also, these are the most comfortable headphones I've ever owned. I'm know some people hate the bumps on the pad, but I like them. My head is a bit narrow, so maybe they don't dig into my head the same way it does other people. To give you an idea, the AT wing headbands don't work for me, my ears hold the headphones on by sitting at the top of the cups and hooking them. I confirmed that still happens the other day at the Best Buy down the road from me with the ATH-A900x. I cannot stand wing headbands. The Q701s feel so natural to me.

No idea on how they are serialized. I also have no idea how long mine have sat at Amazon's warehouse. Would be interesting to get some measurements across serial numbers to see if AKG has retooled their manufacturing along the way.

I agree, these are the most comfortable headphones I have owned. I don't find Grados uncomfortable (maybe I'm a freak), but these are so light, and the suspension system works so well. Like wearing a beautifully sounding cloud, heh.

I hated the ATH-900x wings. Kept slipping down my head.

These are proving to be a wonderful opera headphone. The soundstage is something else! Like I'm sitting in a concert hall (and I've been to a few!)

 

[hsubox]

With some hours (maybe 25) on the Q701, it's really loosening up, and the bass is starting to come through, though still not in droves. I wouldn't expect it to.
 
I managed to borrow a Wolfson DAC demo board from someone that works there, and connected to my computer (older HP Envy15), along with a CMoyBB with bass boost off, it actually has quite pleasant bass. I'm listening to Enigma - From East to West as I type this, and the bass is tight and controlled, and much more present than just running from the computer (IDT Audio codec that sounds fine on my Grados), or just from the DAC's line out.
 
I know that neither of my headphones are bass-heavy, but the best way I can compare the two in terms of speakers is that the AKGs sound like my PSB Alpha speakers (airy, accurate, tight, and musical), whereas my Grado SR-225i's sound like my buddy's older Polk LSi9 speakers (fun, in your face, very tight and accurate yet oomphy bass). I love them both, and can't seem to pick a favorite...

 

[KimLaroux]

Yeah same thing happened to me. I really don't know if it's the amazing human brain adjusting to the new sound, but I really enjoy my Q701 now. I use them and my SRH440 in equal amount, so I kept a "reference" point to "reset" my ears. Even with this precaution, I found the Q701 to sound a lot different than when I got them. Another thing of note is I bought my pair used. Given these two points, I like to believe it's my perception of the sound that changed, and not the headphones themselves.
 
The most obvious change is the distance between me and the sound. At first they sounded distant, but now they are much closer and intimate. The low range also filled up, moving the balance to the warmer side. It could be that the ear cushions formed to my head. This could provide a better seal, which would help the low end. It would also move the drivers closer, pulling me a few rows forward.  Honestly, I even find them dark! I never thought I'd ever say that after my first hour of listening. But it's true, there's an obvious hole in the higher register, muting guitars and other chord instruments.
 
I tried a number of different modifications to change the original sound of the Q701, but none of them actually made it "better". I always came back to stock. I finally gave up, and lifted my cup to AKG. They really tuned them as best they could.

 

[Chris J]

Quote:

With some hours (maybe 25) on the Q701, it's really loosening up, and the bass is starting to come through, though still not in droves. I wouldn't expect it to.
 
I managed to borrow a Wolfson DAC demo board from someone that works there, and connected to my computer (older HP Envy15), along with a CMoyBB with bass boost off, it actually has quite pleasant bass. I'm listening to Enigma - From East to West as I type this, and the bass is tight and controlled, and much more present than just running from the computer (IDT Audio codec that sounds fine on my Grados), or just from the DAC's line out.
 
I know that neither of my headphones are bass-heavy, but the best way I can compare the two in terms of speakers is that the AKGs sound like my PSB Alpha speakers (airy, accurate, tight, and musical), whereas my Grado SR-225i's sound like my buddy's older Polk LSi9 speakers (fun, in your face, very tight and accurate yet oomphy bass). I love them both, and can't seem to pick a favorite...

 
Hmm,  I tried burning in my Qs and didn't hear any difference.
Tried burning in my DT880s, same thing, didn't seem to make any difference to me.
Not very scientific, I know, it's only my unscientific opinion.
 
I don't think I could pick a favourite between the Q701 and the SR-225i.
In fact I want to get a pair of Grados in the next few months.........................and keep the Qs.

 

[hsubox]

Quote:

 
Hmm,  I tried burning in my Qs and didn't hear any difference.
Tried burning in my DT880s, same thing, didn't seem to make any difference to me.
Not very scientific, I know, it's only unscientific my opinion.
 
I don't think I could pick a favourite between the Q701 and the SR-225i.
In fact I want to get a pair of Grados in the next few months.........................and keep the Qs.

 
Right on. Fortunately, the two are different enough that they both fill different niches. The Q's reproduce pianos in a way the Grados could never dream of, but the Grados do drums and guitars in a way the Q's would weep for... keep them both!