I miss the forward soundstage of my AD 700's :(

I recently obtained some AKG q701's, and while the sound quality in and of itself is far better then my AD 700's, i really miss the AD700's natural sounding center image. The imaging always sounded a lot closer to speakers than any other headphones i've tried due to the way the drivers were angled. The AKG's drivers are angled as well, but not nearly to the degree of the AD700's.

feelsbadman.jpeg

Quote:

Originally Posted by elwappo99 

You can easily sell the Q701 and get a different pair of headphones. All AD really have that sound. It is definitely a fun and 'intimate' sound that's not talked about too much (in comparison to wide open sound). Also you may want to look into Grado headphones. What kind of music are you into? 

i don't want to get rid of the q701's because the linearity of them sounds beautiful. i just wish the drivers were angled in the same manner as the AD-X00 phones. they would be perfect if that were the case. my preference of music is irrelevant as far as headphone selection goes. in both HP's and speakers, linear, accurate sound is what always impresses me from a "sound signature" perspective. if i could get that kind of sound with the same imaging as the AD-700's, i think i'd be set for life as far as headphones goes.

Quote:

Originally Posted by elwappo99 

 

The soundstage isn't good in the typical sense that people refer to as 'open' and spread out. The instruments on my AD2000 are separated, but if feels like you are sitting in the front row of the performance. 

assuming the imaging is the same across all AD phones, it sounds to me as if i am sitting in front of a pair of properly set up speakers. i always loved that about them. very different from the typical extreme stereo image exaggeration you tend to get with headphones.

just pulled the trigger on some AD 900's. we'll see how i like them. one of the two of them (either the akg's or ad 900s) will end up being sold.

Quote:

Originally Posted by elwappo99 

 

 

I see. The Q701 do have a very nice sound. I was only wondering your genre of music because you may like Grados, however I'm not such a big fan of Grados when it comes to classical, jazz, or any modern 'pop' type music. What gives the sound, more than having an angled driver, is the closeness of the driver to your ear. The Q701's large pads are what give it the more open sound. 

i may have a winner based upon this graph.

details of what i DIDN'T like in the AD700 are indicated by my (extremely skilled graphics design) arrows :P

EDIT: POSTED WRONG GRAPH. BRB

That big ugly dip in the higher mids was my only grip with that headphone.

Quote:

Originally Posted by OperatorPerry 

"Forward" soundstage of the AD700?

 

Hmm....   I love the wide soundstage of my AD700 and was planning to buy the Q701 because it seemed like a general upgrade over the AD700 in every way.  I want to keep the wide, laid back soundstage of the AD700.  Does the Q701 really change the soundstage feeling of the AD700 too much?

 

Also, how comfortable is the Q701?  The AD700 is amazingly comfortable as long as the temperature stays low.

 

Perry

they are more comfy IMO. they sound like a "corrected" ad 700. it has a wide soundstage, but by forward i mean the soundstage sounds really close to speakers, like it's just a more "in front" sound. most headphones sound hard left and hard right with no real defined center, and what center they do have seems to come from the middle of your head. ad 700s sounded "3d" to me. idk, its hard to describe lol. if you've ever sat in front of a pair of high end speakers it sounds very similar soundstage wise. most headphones suck in that department when compared to speakers.