[chicolom]

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Can someone PLEASE take a picture of the 65's grill without the pads on??? All this talk of the subtle diffs between the cans, and no one's interested if the hole layout has anything to do with it?

 
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No, I'm asking if the 65's grill (what I'm calling the part that the pads latch onto, behind which is the driver) look like this picture from the parts list, because my regular 702's have none of the openings in the outside ring.

 
 
 
Relax, they are the same.  Something that obvious would have been pointed out A LONG time ago.
 
I"m not sure the picture your posting is the same part your thinking of though.  It looks like it's either underneath the part you can visibly see when you open them or is the back of the part you see when you open them.
 

 

[chicolom]

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Chico, what number is your Annie?

 
Anniversary = #752
Q701 = #4165

 

[Dougr33]

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Relax, they are the same.  Something that obvious would have been pointed out A LONG time ago.
 
I"m not sure the picture your posting is the same part your thinking of though.  It looks like it's either underneath the part you can visibly see when you open them or is the back of the part you see when you open them.
 

Okay, fair enough, I'll relax.   You're right, I'm sure someone would have noticed, but not having all the models, I wanted to know if I had an old style 702, and that without the (now known to be imaginary) extra openings perhaps adding Annie pads wouldn't yield the same results as others were hearing.  
 
The picture is of that part, as shown in the latest pdf. You can see the slots in the exploded view too.  Perhaps it was the original design and they never updated the schematic.
Anyway, thank you very much for taking the time to calm me down; I really do appreciate it. I'm going to order the new pads now.
 

 

[Acix]

K702.65 meet the Q701.
 

 

[imackler]

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K702.65 meet the Q701.
 

 
One of them should be wearing blue glasses. And maybe a different scarf. 

 

[LugBug1]

But what happens when they swap hats...

 
But seriously, the recent posts about pad changes have been really informative.

 

[Hawaiiancerveza]

Quote:

But what happens when they swap hats...

 
But seriously, the recent posts about pad changes have been really informative.

Ya I agree.  Thanks guys for the up dates.  I guess when I get my 65th's I'll be selling them after I do some A/B comparisons also.  If I find it different I will also chime in. 

 

[tdockweiler]

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I'm not able to swap FAST enough, but I SWEAR, Tdock's Q701 is voiced just a hint brighter than my Annie. Not sure if it's driver variation or burn-in, etc, but it is brighter, even with Annie pads. Either way, I do prefer the Q701 with Annie pads than the Q701 pads, so whether it's the same exact sound out of the headphones or not, I say the Annie pads are worth it, IMHO.

Either way, make no mistake, they are either the same sonically, or they are nearly 98% the same with a slight more warmth out of the Annie, though my Annie isn't as burned in as tdock's Q701, if you believe in that... what I do know is that my Annie is warmer and more bottom heavy and not as airy as his Q701 with the Annie pads.

edit: Absolutely. My Annie is warmer. Not a huge difference, but I can hear it. So it doesn't sound identical to HIS Q701, but it's close-ish. I don't want to commit to saying it is or isn't the same, but either way, the sound is very close, so if you own the Q701 and are fine with the headband, it's worth trying out the Annie pads.

Just remember, two of the same headphone can sound slightly different. Case in point, I had THREE DT990/600ohms in my house at the same time, and they all sounded a hair different from one another, one of them being noticeably more bassy and mid recessed compared to the other two.

 

 
I know it's hard to believe, but there is always a TINY possibility that the reason my Q701 is slightly brighter is due to the outer grill and foam behind it. I imagine the difference is barely audible. I tested some minor grill changes and did hear some slight differences. The biggest difference SOMEHOW was when removing the outer grills foam. I know I didn't like my Q701 as much with the K601/K701 outer grill (stock pads). It made it very very slighly less warm and thinner sounding. We're probably talking like a 3-5% difference. It only is noticeable in specific music. I was using some Tony Bennett songs with a good soundstage

It's actually as bad as comparing the graininess of the HD-650 vs the HD-600. That also was only noticeable in music with a large soundstage. Some won't be able to hear any difference with most music.
 
I used the heck out of my Q701. I bet I have about 1000+ hours on it. I spent 120 hours in Skyrim alone. I don't recall my number, but I bought it in October 2011. I didn't notice any changes along the way, but it's possible.
 
I think comparing the difference in grills is a waste of time. Best thing for someone to do is to try one grill for a week and then switch to a different one. Otherwise the sound is way too similar. Only a complete nerd would do this (like me).
 
I imagine if I wanted the Q701 with Annie pads to sound 100% like the 65th, it would be a good idea to remove the Q701s outer grill foam OR get some K701 outer grills (slightly more open). 
 
My old K601 actually got warmer/bassier when I removed it's outer grills. Weird. Maybe the 65th is similar in that it gets warmer/bassier when being made more open? Doubt that!
 
Strangely the same thing didn't apply to my Q701! I could be wrong though.
 
Feel free to remove any grills if you get bored. They turn counter clockwise

Sounds weird, but those free priority mail tags work better than tape! Less sticky too.
 
 
My guess is that the foam and outer grill will make some area of the mids sound a tad more forward than the 65, but maybe not. The 65th probably has more forward (and fuller sounding) lower mids, but maybe not.
Sometimes it seems that when you have more warmth and more forward lower mids you get less forward upper mids and less treble. Guess it's all some weird balancing acting that i'll never figure out.

 

[Mad Lust Envy]

Putting the Q701 pads on the Annie, it reminds me a lot of the Q701 I had. So if there is any difference, it is definitely slight. Again the difference in pads is mostly in specific genres of music. It is perfect believable that some songs will sound near identical with both pads, while other songs, you can easily tell whichpad you're using.

 

[jerg]

So really, the annies are just K702 65th Padniversary edition 

 
Pad-fi strikes again!

 

[elwappo99]

So really, the annies are just K702 65th Padniversary edition 

Pad-fi strikes again!

The best you could hope for with Akg is new pads. No way they'd redesign a driver

 

[Mad Lust Envy]

I figured they'd at least change something internally, like damping or something, but it does seem to be just the pads, though my Annie definitely sounds different from tdock's Q701. Like 5%. More, thicker bass, less treble, even with the same pads. Still it's close enough to blame it on either driver variation or if you want to believe in it, burn in. Tdock says he has 1000 hours on his. My Annies probably have around 100 hours, and that's being generous.

Basically as different my one Dt990/600 that was warmer and more bassy, while the two other 990/600s I had on had that were not as bassy, and brighter.

Too bad no two headphones sound exactly alike.

 

[Sophonax]

Got my Asgard 2 a couple of days ago, and I've been listening to my K702.65 on that amp.  Big differences when compared to listening on my Yamaha integrated, as expected.
 
On the Asgard 2, the bass quantity is reigned in pretty significantly, everything sounds tighter and more detailed, the soundstage opens up, the imaging sharpens, and there's the sense of more air in the presentation.  Basically, it sounds much more like my memory of the K701.
 
I think the K702.65 still improves on balance when compared to the K701.  The elevated bass quantity is pretty close to what I'd call neutral on the Asgard 2, and the emphasis that the K701 put on the upper mids is diminished.  As others have been starting to point out, I wouldn't be surprised if the pads are solely responsible for the sonic changes.
 
I'm not sure I'll end up keeping the K702.65.  I might go ahead and get the K701 instead, and install a pair of the memory foam pads -- I have always preferred a hard-wired cable, and the fact that it has four conductors vs. the K702.65's three makes the K701 much easier to convert to balanced.  But whatever way you slice it, I still think the K702.65 is a great headphone.  I would even call it a good value, if it weren't for the fact that you could buy a regular K70x or Q701 with a pair of memory foam pads for less.

 

[chicolom]

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Hmm... despite the differences in tonal characteristics between pads, I must say the Q701 pads and Annie pads aren't night and day. It's literally a change between sub bass extension and treble/air, and it's not HUGE. I have to say BOTH pads are great. The Q701 pads decay the bass a bit faster, and sub bass is not as extended, but mid bass is similar. The vocals are brighter and a bit sharper in comparison to the Annie pads, but there is a sparkle that is not as evident on the Annie pads. The Annie pads soften that sharpness, and do make things just a hint warmer and less fatiguing, though not as immedately airy. I have to say, I do prefer the Annie pads. It sounds fuller and more rounded, more organic/natural, IMHO.


Either way, make no mistake, they are either the same sonically, or they are nearly 98% the same with a slight more warmth out of the Annie, though my Annie isn't as burned in as tdock's Q701, if you believe in that... what I do know is that my Annie is warmer and more bottom heavy and not as airy as his Q701 with the Annie pads.

Just remember, two of the same headphone can sound slightly different. Case in point, I had THREE DT990/600ohms in my house at the same time, and they all sounded a hair different from one another, one of them being noticeably more bassy and mid recessed compared to the other two.
 

 
 
Yes, the changers aren't that drastic.  You can tell they're just different variations on the same base sound.  They still have much of their sound in common.
 
And it sounds like any minor changes between the K702 65 and the other x70x, apart from the pads, are probably unintentional by AKG and can be chalked up to minor variation in the headphones themselves.

 

[LugBug1]

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I figured they'd at least change something internally, like damping or something, but it does seem to be just the pads, though my Annie definitely sounds different from tdock's Q701. Like 5%. More, thicker bass, less treble, even with the same pads. Still it's close enough to blame it on either driver variation or if you want to believe in it, burn in. Tdock says he has 1000 hours on his. My Annies probably have around 100 hours, and that's being generous.

Basically as different my one Dt990/600 that was warmer and more bassy, while the two other 990/600s I had on had that were not as bassy, and brighter.

Too bad no two headphones sound exactly alike.

Very true.
I wonder if it's the pads on the newer K701's that make them sound warmer? Don't know if anyone has tried the normal K/Q702 pads on the K701's?