[ThurstonX]

That dog is ready for Halloween!  Make sure he answers the door for all the kiddies  

 
chicolom has got it right.  Big companies tend to be lazy and not really care too much once some product is rolled out or some decision has been made.  It's more trouble than it's worth to get the approval to fix the problem or change the system; in this case the inventory system.  That assumes anyone at AKG even thinks it's a problem, which, apparently, they do not.  They just blame the crazy/delued/disgruntled customer  Since they already have a part number for the Annie pads, and figured they'd use the same for K712 (or someone really screwed up and didn't give its pads a new number; kinda doubt it), and then decided to change the pads, they'd have to change their inventory system (yeah, those database updates are a BITCH!), or all their manuals (more likely).
 
So, as is often the case with big companies, they ignore the problem and move on to the Next Big Thing (the K812 in this case).

 

[acs236]

What a great deal these are.  Several years ago my headphone journey pretty much ended when I K701s came out.  Before then, I tried more headphones then I care to remember, but I'll try:
Sennheiser HD580, HD590, HD650; Sony CD3000, CD3000 woodies, SA5000; Grado SR60, SR225, SR325i, MS2, MS1, RS1; AKG 501. Finally, I was happy the K701, which to my ears, had the best overall balance of any headphone that I tried.  Now, you can get the Q701s, which sound every bit as good, if not better, for under $250.  

 

[Evshrug]

^Seems so weird to me that the Q701 costs so much less than the regular K700 series flagships... maybe the endorsement and green just wasn't selling well for them? Definitely a bargain, which just scales up and up with the gear you plug it into.

The Q701 always had a good center image for me, but the K702..not so much.
When I modded the Q701 I felt it had improved the center image depth. It kind of threw me off a lot and would often fool my brain into thinking the mids were recessed or too distant, but that is 1000% not the case. It's the recording. I would say this was the only thing I really had to adjust to.
My idea is that it improves when the mids become slightly fuller. There is a chance there is maybe a .5db difference in the treble of the modded Q701 vs stock but I can't hear any change at all. When you alter the treble things can often sound further away or closer in the soundstage.

Thanks tDock,
I never felt that the Q701 had the "missing phantom center" that K701 reviews talk about, but over months of time I came to understand that sometimes it seemed oval-shaped, unless I was using my tube amp (sylvania JAN) which I'm confident in saying adds nice mids presence (best combo with the HE400 — with a more neutral amp, like my FiiO E12, the sucked out distant mids made the HE400 not enjoyable for me).
The K712 has more mid presence than the Q701 stock, not a crazy difference but I LIKE the difference. Not sure I'm trained enough to positively identify a .5 dB difference to Treble.
The Modi sounds more and more appealing to me, if I ever get a DAC separate. The tricks using the iDevice Camera Connection Kit make it even more widely useful.

 

[Hairspray]

^Seems so weird to me that the Q701 costs so much less than the regular K700 series flagships...

 
In Europe, the Q701 (over $300) costs more than the K701 (only $230 and made in... Austria).
That's about + 33% !!!

 

[Hairspray]

 
My Chihuahua would never do that.  He's extremely gentle, and I trust him with my life.

 
Really?  

 

 

[62ohm]

   
In Europe, the Q701 (over $300) costs more than the K701 (only $230 and made in... Austria).
That's about + 33% !!!

 
in NZ, Q701 costs $500 NZD while the K701/702 costs $750 NZD lol, the same as K712
 
that is why when I was planning to get a headphone I ruled out AKG of the option, cause I thought they were "overpriced" before the Q701 comes out

 

[Smugsie]

Can anyone confirm if the Fiio E12 is a valid portable amp? I can only buy amps from Canadacomputers.com (retail) because I don't like paying my parents to use their credit card. Plus I just joined the workforce to fund my music addiction and pay for tuition. I listen to music, EVERYWHERE in my house (except at the dinner table and showers of course). So portable and local retail is a must.

Edit: My current portable/desktop setup is a Sony Walkman E474 and Fiio E07K

 

[Chris J]

Can anyone confirm if the Fiio E12 is a valid portable amp? I can only buy amps from Canadacomputers.com (retail) because I don't like paying my parents to use their credit card. Plus I just joined the workforce to fund my music addiction and pay for tuition. I listen to music, EVERYWHERE in my house (except at the dinner table and showers of course). So portable and local retail is a must.


Edit: My current portable/desktop setup is a Sony Walkman E474 and Fiio E07K

Not too sure what you mean by valid, but the E12 works very well with Q701 'phones.

 

[Smugsie]

Well, I got a lot of feedback that the e07k despite being a good amp/dac for its' pricepoint; struggles to drive the Q701. I just plan to at least drive the Q701's to its' near full potential.
Although if the +12 gain option on the E07k would be the same result as buying the FiiO E12, I won't be needing to buy a new amp.

 

[Evshrug]

Can anyone confirm if the Fiio E12 is a valid portable amp? I can only buy amps from Canadacomputers.com (retail) because I don't like paying my parents to use their credit card. Plus I just joined the workforce to fund my music addiction and pay for tuition. I listen to music, EVERYWHERE in my house (except at the dinner table and showers of course). So portable and local retail is a must.


Edit: My current portable/desktop setup is a Sony Walkman E474 and Fiio E07K

I admit, I'd be very curious to read what FiiO makes of "Is the E12 a valid amp?" after they translated it to Chinese, took a guess at what you mean, and replied back in their colorful English. That isn't a judgement of anyone, just noting how difficult it can be to understand eachother.

The E12 is a little more pocketable than the Q701 is portable, so I'd say it is a portable, but you probably wouldn't want anything else in a pants pocket with it. In a backpack or other bag, though, the E12 is hard to beat. I think both the E12 and E07k (I have the E12, never heard the E07k) will have enough power to drive the Q701 to adequate volume, but what you would gain with the E12 is a greater sense of transparency/realism/lack-of-grain, a more refined bass boost, and more "muscle" to effortlessly provide impact and speed to each note. The E12 is FiiO's cleanest, most reference amp to date. As a side note, the E12 has a very low output impedance for sensitive headphones yet tons of power on tap for power-hungry headphones, so the E12 is probably one of the most versatile portable amps, especially at it's price range. I also happen to think the bass boost compliments the Q701 very well with music. The high gain mode of the E07k does not made it sound like an E12...

Here's what I recommend: use the E07k first. Though it has basically the same amp section as the E6, it ought to be adaquate for the Q701, and you already have it. After you use it for a while and if you feel like the Q701 is held back by it, the E12 will provide you with all the benefits I listed in the above paragraph.

 

[Smugsie]

I admit, I'd be very curious to read what FiiO makes of "Is the E12 a valid amp?" after they translated it to Chinese, took a guess at what you mean, and replied back in their colorful English. That isn't a judgement of anyone, just noting how difficult it can be to understand eachother.

The E12 is a little more pocketable than the Q701 is portable, so I'd say it is a portable, but you probably wouldn't want anything else in a pants pocket with it. In a backpack or other bag, though, the E12 is hard to beat. I think both the E12 and E07k (I have the E12, never heard the E07k) will have enough power to drive the Q701 to adequate volume, but what you would gain with the E12 is a greater sense of transparency/realism/lack-of-grain, a more refined bass boost, and more "muscle" to effortlessly provide impact and speed to each note. The E12 is FiiO's cleanest, most reference amp to date. As a side note, the E12 has a very low output impedance for sensitive headphones yet tons of power on tap for power-hungry headphones, so the E12 is probably one of the most versatile portable amps, especially at it's price range. I also happen to think the bass boost compliments the Q701 very well with music. The high gain mode of the E07k does not made it sound like an E12...

Here's what I recommend: use the E07k first. Though it has basically the same amp section as the E6, it ought to be adaquate for the Q701, and you already have it. After you use it for a while and if you feel like the Q701 is held back by it, the E12 will provide you with all the benefits I listed in the above paragraph.

Well here's the thing, the q701's are amazing. I've ran the E07k for about ~1200 hours with my q701's and ath-a900x put together (250 hours on the q701). At first listen, the q701 is DEFINITELY fast in bass punch for metal genres, fast in capturing guitar plucks, the sound of a vocalist inhaling, the double and wide layered imaging, extended but clean bass, a touch of warmth around the mids...
However my curiosity is if there's more to the q701's than what I can expect. Because when I got my a900x, I believed that sound couldn't get any better until I upgraded to the q701's.

I guess I'll have to find out myself then.
Oh, I also don't plan on carrying it around my pocket, most likely just setting it on a tabletops.

I thank you very much Evshrug for your indepth reply.

 

[koiloco]

Yes, q701 scales way up with better equipment. My modded q701 is sublime now with Woo WA22.
My he500 has not received much head time today.

 

[Evshrug]

I thank you very much Evshrug for your indepth reply.

Wow, so courteous!
If you're curious for even more in depth info, read the E12 product review linked in my signature ("The Power of Zeus, in Your Pocket!" Tested with my Q701).

If I got more replies like yours, I would write reviews more often! Maybe I oughtta hang out with Canadians more often...

 

[Chris J]

I agree with most of this.
I have an E17 and an E12.

The E12 just has a bit more drive, a bit more fullness when driving the Q701.
The E17 really isn't a bad amp at all, it's just that the E12 makes the Q sound better.

I'm terrible at describing sound, but I do know what I like.

 

[ThurstonX]

Yes, q701 scales way up with better equipment. My modded q701 is sublime now with Woo WA22.
My he500 has not received much head time today.

 
It's definitely fun to switch between the modded Q701 and HE-500 with a tube amp that can drive both.