[tdockweiler]

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If people can't hear the obvious boost in bass between a standard K70x and the 65, its time to get those ears checked. This is why there needs to be some various comparisons between the K712 and 65th, instead of hearsay. No Q701 w/65 pads or whatnot. Just straight 65 vs 712.

 
Totally agree! At first I read that wrong. Compared to a regular K702, 3db seems possible. Between the Q701 and Annie...no way IMO. Compared to my Q701 though it sounds like just a little more low bass (barely audible honestly) and just mostly mid-bass. The differences were the most audible during gaming (especially Far Cry 3).
 
It'd be really funny though if Q701 + Annie pads really wasn't 99% identical in sound to the K702 65th despite it sounding the same to almost two or more people who had both. I mean there could be small differences that NONE of us could hear very well.
 
I know you'll all hate me for this but my guess is that the Annie is just the regular K702 with memory foam pads. NOT the Q701. Makes more sense. So confusing and annoying! Why does the Q701 have more distortion in graphs than the K702? Am I reading something wrong? I know it's the same driver..or so they say. Maybe the Q701 + Annie pads is more like 90% identical to the Anniversary.

 
Did anyone ever do a comparison of an Annie vs a K702 + Memory foam pads? My guess is that the Q701 + Annie pads would sound worse than K702 + Annie pads. More muffled and darker.
 
I really really hope the K712 sounds much better than my Q701 with Annie pads. That thing was such a major disappointment for me. Luckily I only bought the overpriced pads. It'd be funny if I loved the real Annie and not her clone. Tempted to buy a K702..ugh don't do it!!
 
Have to say that it'd be really nice if K712 had more low bass than even the Annie and still retained the Q701s nice upper mids and wasn't too dark. If so I'd pay full price and sell the Q701...maybe.

 

[tdockweiler]

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Absolutely, that being said, if the graphs from Head Room are right I am anxious to see what the stock angled pad sounds like on the K712. I wonder why Head Room never measured the Annie's? Hopefully I can order my K712 in the next few weeks....

 
Don't think they ever sold them.
I offered to send Tyll my Q701 with Annie pads long ago but I don't think he was ever interested or maybe he didn't get my email.
I suggested to him recently that he do an article on comparing the K712, Q701 and Anniversary. Highly unlikely it will happen but it would sure be nice!
At the very least I hope we can get measurements from him of the K712.
 
No way i'm paying $500 for an AKG headphone. Not unless it's at least 25% better to my ears than the Q701.
Not like I listen to music more than 2 hours a day anyway..not worth it. Actually I'm broke and such a cheapskate.

 

[chicolom]

Quote:

Originally Posted by tdockweiler /img/forum/go_quote.gif
 
 
 
I know you'll all hate me for this but my guess is that the Annie is just the regular K702 with memory foam pads. NOT the Q701. Makes more sense.
 
That doesn't make sense to me.  If that were true, it would have been outed quite quickly when compared to the Q701.  If that were true, than the K702 Anniversary using angled pads would sound like an old K702 - but it doesn't.  It sounds like a Q701.  The Q701 and K702 use identical pads (identical part no.).  I swapped pads on my Q701 and K702 when I did that comparison, just in case, but it had no affect on the sound.  The K702 was always colder and leaner than the Q701 no matter what I did, and the difference was obvious and noticeable imediately.  Not true for the Anniversaries though.
 
 
 
Did anyone ever do a comparison of an Annie vs a K702 + Memory foam pads? My guess is that the Q701 + Annie pads would sound worse than K702 + Annie pads. More muffled and darker.
 
Not sure if anyone did a comparison, but I know a couple people are using regular K702 + memory foam pads.  I don't think they have anything to compare it to though - just the one headphone with 2 sets of pads.
 

 

[chicolom]

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Don't think they ever sold them.
 
I saw this:
http://www.headphone.com/headphones/akg-k702-65th-anniversary-edition.php
 
Clearly they didn't put much effort into it though as they don't even list the specs for the headphone, let alone a graph or anything.
 
 
 
 
No way i'm paying $500 for an AKG headphone. Not unless it's at least 25% better to my ears than the Q701.
 
I wouldn't pay $500, but razordog should have them below $400 by now.  The Anniversaries eventually got down to $350 at razordog  (I think).
 

 

[yaluen]

Originally Posted by chicolom /img/forum/go_quote.gif
 
Anyways, I wonder if there has been a rolling change to the K702 and it'd be interesting to see how a K702 off the latest production run with the flat headbands (or even one purchased after the release of the Q701) measures and if it sounds the same as the Q701
 
I can't speak for the new flat headband K702 models, but the K702 I used in this comparison was bought after the Q701s had already been out for a good while.  So at that time no rolling changes had occured.  Maybe the Q701 and K702 sound the same now, or maybe they're still different.  I don't think we know...

 
Ah great, I was hoping you would say something about that. Some black magic has been used in making the Q701.
 
Quote:

Quote:

If people can't hear the obvious boost in bass between a standard K70x and the 65, its time to get those ears checked. This is why there needs to be some various comparisons between the K712 and 65th, instead of hearsay. No Q701 w/65 pads or whatnot. Just straight 65 vs 712.

 
Totally agree! At first I read that wrong. Compared to a regular K702, 3db seems possible. Between the Q701 and Annie...no way IMO.
 
...
 
Have to say that it'd be really nice if K712 had more low bass than even the Annie and still retained the Q701s nice upper mids and wasn't too dark. If so I'd pay full price and sell the Q701...maybe.

 
Certainly very possible if you look at the K702 and Q701 FR curve. Almost a 3dB difference in the mid to upper bass region but similar sub bass response.
 
...
 
Might be possible if you swap K702/Q701 pads onto the K712, which has the same pads as the K702.65, as it seems like that change in sound sig from Q701 to K702.65 is due entirely to the pads.
 

No way i'm paying $500 for an AKG headphone. Not unless it's at least 25% better to my ears than the Q701.
 
I wouldn't pay $500, but razordog should have them below $400 by now.  The Anniversaries eventually got down to $350 at razordog  (I think).
 

 
Yep I can confirm that that's the case when you used the coupon code that razordog emails you if you leave the K702.65 in the cart for a while.

 

[tdockweiler]

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I know you'll all hate me for this but my guess is that the Annie is just the regular K702 with memory foam pads. NOT the Q701. Makes more sense.
 
That doesn't make sense to me.  If that were true, it would have been outed quite quickly when compared to the Q701.  If that were true, than the K702 Anniversary using angled pads would sound like an old K702 - but it doesn't.  It sounds like a Q701.  The Q701 and K702 use identical pads (identical part no.).  I swapped pads on my Q701 and K702 when I did that comparison, just in case, but it had no affect on the sound.  The K702 was always colder and leaner than the Q701 no matter what I did, and the difference was obvious and noticeable imediately.  Not true for the Anniversaries though.

 
OH OK. I should have checked your old review comparison. I didn't remember you saying the Annie with Q701 pads sounded like a Q701! Well duh, don't know how I forgot that part. Must be tired. It's so easy to spot and remember what the old K702 sounds like. Can't make any mistakes there. I have bad memories of that thing and will probably never forgot how it sounds. It's one headphone that I had a love/hate thing with, just like the HD-600.
 
Hope the K712 comes down in price soon. If I ever bought it and it sounded identical to the Anniversary i'd return it immediately and not feel an ounce of guilt.
 
I do wonder if K701 pads are any different than Q701/K702 pads. I know they're a different color, but that's all.
 
BTW you never know..maybe the K712 has a COMPLETELY new driver. Not just a "special" version of a K702 driver. Highly unlikely. Someone should take a picture of it.

 

[Salvatore]

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Chicolom has agreed to put his time and effort into sorting this out for us. The 712s shipped today so I'll have them Tuesday, then they will be sent to him for a full review/comparison by someone way more qualified than me! Thanks Chicolom. Should be interesting.

 
Looking forward of Chicolom's impressions/review. Thanks MLee for arranging this.
 
Quote:

If people can't hear the obvious boost in bass between a standard K70x and the 65, its time to get those ears checked. This is why there needs to be some various comparisons between the K712 and 65th, instead of hearsay. No Q701 w/65 pads or whatnot. Just straight 65 vs 712.

 
This is so true and one of the main reasons I now take hifiguy's opinions/reviews with a grain of salt (no offence, I still think you're doing great job). Nevertheless, I hope that the upcoming review is indeed done right. These headphones deserve more than just a hasty unboxing.

 

[jimpah]

I'm not too thrilled about these, just some newly splahsed colour on it and a different name and BAM; new phone. Doesn't seem like AKG will bring anything awesome to the table like they used to do. I still love the company though, some products won't destroy their rep with me. Sure, I should most likely listen to them properly before making any sort of judgement. =) 

 

[Shazb0t]

The 65th is just a pad change of the K/Q701 so I'm not surprised some people didn't hear much of a difference.

 

[macbob713]

Can't speak to the 65th, but I'm listening to John Scofield's Uberjam cd right now, and having compared the Q701 directly to the 712, it's no contest. The 712 smokes the Q!

 

[macbob713]

Comparing the same Scofield cd on the K712 vs the HD800, the 712 mops it up. Deeper, richer sound, equal depth and width of the sound field, just plain more fun to listen to. The HD800 sounds a little thin and bass light in this particular matchup.

 

[macbob713]

Just compared new cd by Terrance Blanchard, hd800 to k712. This was no contest, the hd800 presented a better soundscape than the 712, more open and detailed. The 712 sounded good but the Senn had this one easy.

 

[wrightanswer@ear]

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I admit, it's getting ridiculous. They could simply just call it something like 'K702b' or something. That way people understand that it's still the same headphone with tweaks, like pads that add bass and better headband). No need to saturate their line with new and confusing model numbers (which make people think it's all new).

 
 
Every time an amended model is released, it gets promoted with fresh reviews and "unboxing" videos and dealers are obliged to buy in a load of new inventory, not to mention the hundreds of pages of discussion like on here. That keeps their market lively and focuses renewed attention on the products. Calling the headphone the K702-B or suchlike wouldn't have a quarter of the "buzz" of "712".
Also, while AKG is no doubt interested in existing AKG customers upgrading, they need to attract NEW buyers. And they're more likely to attract those new buyers with "new" and "improved" models rather than asking them to buy a headphone that is several years old and getting long in the tooth. Seems like normal (and sensible) marketing to me. If the previous headphones were failures, they'd be replaced with models more substantially different. With the 702 being a good seller, they'll want to extend its run, albeit with only minor upgrades. I don't see much wrong with that. 

 

[bracko]

Quote:

 
 
Every time an amended model is released, it gets promoted with fresh reviews and "unboxing" videos and dealers are obliged to buy in a load of new inventory, not to mention the hundreds of pages of discussion like on here. That keeps their market lively and focuses renewed attention on the products. Calling the headphone the K702-B or suchlike wouldn't have a quarter of the "buzz" of "712".
Also, while AKG is no doubt interested in existing AKG customers upgrading, they need to attract NEW buyers. And they're more likely to attract those new buyers with "new" and "improved" models rather than asking them to buy a headphone that is several years old and getting long in the tooth. Seems like normal (and sensible) marketing to me. If the previous headphones were failures, they'd be replaced with models more substantially different. With the 702 being a good seller, they'll want to extend its run, albeit with only minor upgrades. I don't see much wrong with that. 

Amen 

 

[devhen]

I agree that making small changes to an already good model is preferable to when companies make large changes to a model that was already great and it just ends up making it worse. I don't see any reason why something as successful as the K702 shouldn't receive small improvements over time instead of just replacing it with a completely different model that people won't like as much. But my problem is this recent trend toward ~ $600 headphones. It seems companies are raising prices just because they feel they can and we end up with new headphones that seem like they would have been released at a lower price point 1 or 2 years ago. The Sennheiser Amperior, the Beyer T70 and T90, to name a few, and now the AKG K702.65 and K712. To me these all seem like headphones that would have sold for $200 less a couple of years ago, before these companies decided that not only would they make more money by raising prices but that the sticker price would increase the *appearance* of luxury regardless of whether the customer was actually getting something significantly improved over previous models.
 
Anyway.... I'm getting sick of having to wait 2-3+ months before a new headphone comes down in price to what its worth. I'd love to get the K702.65 or K712 but I'm not going to pay $500 for them....