Q701 appreciation thread - Page 2

Hopefully more people can compare the K702/K701 to the Q701. Doing it with stock cables would be best.

I'd like to say there is absolutely no difference in sound, but I'd be lying. Just not what my ears heard.

I can't point out enough to people that the differences are not huge. Enough though to make the Q701 a keeper for me at least. I kept buying and selling the original K702 so many times.

My guess is just a combination of that button, possible different cables or something else. Maybe AKG burns the Q701 in for 500 hours in it's factory

To me it's like AKG took a list of complaints about the K702 and improved the sound slightly. It wouldn't surprise me at all. They seem to do this with many of their headphones.Just look at the K271 vs the K272HD.

Maybe there is a specific frequency on the K702 that bothers some and not others. Perhaps those that never had any issues with the original K702 would notice less of a change in the treble. To me, the differences in the soundstage size/accuracy is the most obvious. That and the mids are much fuller sounding to my ears. Not sure why. What I really love is how much better the Q701 is for gaming. It's soundstage is no longer abnormally massive for me in games. That's why previously I had preferred the K601 for gaming over the K702 I had.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Groundloop 

@tdockweiler - since you have lisened to both K601 and Q701, how do you find they sound to each other? Doing the math, it seems that getting a Q701 will cost me about 2.5x the price I paid for K601. Does it worth it?

 

The more and more I read, the more Q701 seems to be the perfectly balanced headphones for me - open sounding with great detail, well defined but not aggressive low bass, handling faster music better than say HD 650.

 

Thanks.

Q701 is definitely not worth 2.5 times the cost of the K601. The K601 here in the USA is about $200 new and I got my Q701 for $224, which is a steal!

To me, the Q701 has much better treble extension, more detail, larger soundstage, a clearer sound and perhaps more forward upper mids. It's weird because when you compare the two, the K601 just seems close to being a dark headphone, but it's really not. Just compared to the Q701. The K601 is also much warmer sounding to me. The K601 always felt like it had much more bass than the K702 (even graphs reflect this) but I'd have to compare the bass between the Q701 and K601 some more. K601 I like alot and I should compare them more. K601's mids might be a little more engaging for some music, but I don't know for sure yet. I clearly remember the mids of the K601 being much fuller sounding than those of the K702.

I previously preferring the sound of the K601 to the K702 in many ways, but the K702 did do a few things better. Right now it's definitely the Q701.

I can't say it enough, but this Q701 sounds like a mix between an old K702 and an HD-600. I know that sounds weird. K601 was closer to that description though.

BTW I got a K400 in and I do find the mids more engaging and more fun than those of the Q701, but no big deal. It'll be a nice comparison. K400 loses out to the Q701 in many areas, but that doesn't mean much to me.

Quote:

Originally Posted by chicolom 

Headfonia did a review of the Micro amp -> http://www.headfonia.com/headroom-micro-and-portable-micro-amplifiers/

 

I was surprised to read his impressions on the soundstage...

I agree with the comments on the soundstage somewhat, but I don't think it's that bad. That review manages to be positive it seems despite a few negatives.

Surprised he seemed to like the Asgard a bit more than the Micro Amp. Maybe Schiit made some revisions to make it sound better with the K702.

IMO the Asgard was a poor match for the K702, but sounded great with the HD-600 (and D2000). Upgraded to this Micro Amp only because of trying to find something that played well with BOTH my K702 and HD-650.

My Asgard I had didn't seem very powerful and it just feels weird having to max out the volume just for a silly K601. Guess this doesn't mean much. I really wish I had skipped the Asgard and went with the M-Stage, but I wanted a US built product.

The massive soundstage of the Asgard with the K702 ruins the sounds IMO, but with the HD-600/650 or headphones with a smaller soundstage, it's no problem. I don't even want to know how bad the Asgard would be for the K501!

If you compare prices, the $250 seems like a better value, but IMO the Micro Amp was worth every extra penny (it's $329) and I do think you're paying a little extra for the size and build quality. Micro Amp also just seems to be a better match for more headphones.

Micro Amp seems to be just about a perfect match for the K702 and Q701. This is the main reason I bought it. Still plan on getting the M-Stage one of these days just for comparison. I bet they have so many similarities.