[MarcoGV]

 

I know the mechanical design is the same, but the DT880 may be more suited for hard rock.

Hmm, but yeah, that's my only gripe... I don't want the same design. I love the Beyer sound, and like the 990's high treble and bass, but I don't know what else I could get with better build quality, and maybe slightly less harsh treble. How is the Q701 vs the DT 990? I always heard the Q701 was a lot like the DT 880's signature? also, how is the open-ear effect on the AKG's? I also hear that Beyer does best with targeting sound around you, while AKG's portray sound in a different pattern? This is important to me too because I will be using headphones for PC gaming as well.

The Soundmagic HP200 is an open can with strong bass and a V-shaped signature that may be an interesting alternative to the DT880.  The HP200 is very well built, very comfortable (to me; YMMV), relatively unexpensive, and easy to drive. Unfortunately, I have never heard the DT880, so I cannot compare them directly.  Also, if you have not done it yet, you should consider bass modding the Q701; you may find that you do not need any more bass. 

 

[Oktyabr]

Can a cheap replacement cable make the headphones harsh? Like irritating?

Wire presents resistance to electricity.  A wire (cable) with a different impedance than the one it replaced will change the damping factor of the amplifier which in turn could affect the sound you hear.  Got the old cable handy and a cheap multimeter?  

 

[Chris J]

Good idea!

The headphone cable should have an impedance of almost zero, less than 1/10 Ohm.
Bu you never know, some cable vendor may think adding some resistance to the cable may "improve" something.
I've heard of people buying cables with resistance in them for IEMs, but a replacement cable for a Q701 should be a simple wire set with no resistors added.

 

[mrs1986]

Good idea!

The headphone cable should have an impedance of almost zero, less than 1/10 Ohm.
Bu you never know, some cable vendor may think adding some resistance to the cable may "improve" something.
I've heard of people buying cables with resistance in them for IEMs, but a replacement cable for a Q701 should be a simple wire set with no resistors added.

Thanks for the input... Unfortunately, I don't have a tester with me, I might check it later in some electronic house...

 

[mrs1986]

BIG question, and this is about my safety rather than the headphone itself...
 
How loud can these cans be? What is a safe listening volume, i don't have how to see at how many db these are throwing music to my ears...
 
I have tinnitus, and i like to listen to relatively low volumes, but i find if i put the volume a little up, the headphones start to live, they sound better somehow...
 
I use it with my e12 always from 11 o'clock to 12 o'clock in low gain, but sometimes i get exited and go a little higher on the knob...

 

[Danpyre]

  BIG question, and this is about my safety rather than the headphone itself...
 
How loud can these cans be? What is a safe listening volume, i don't have how to see at how many db these are throwing music to my ears...
 
I have tinnitus, and i like to listen to relatively low volumes, but i find if i put the volume a little up, the headphones start to live, they sound better somehow...
 
I use it with my e12 always from 11 o'clock to 12 o'clock in low gain, but sometimes i get exited and go a little higher on the knob...

I think they can get very loud, depending on how suicidal I am that day.

 

[mrs1986]

  I think they can get very loud, depending on how suicidal I am that day.

Hahahaha, but more or less, when is actually ear damaging?? Considering the amp i have if you have any idea?

 

[Danpyre]

 
Hahahaha, but more or less, when is actually ear damaging?? Considering the amp i have if you have any idea?

Well, running straight of the laptop can go to deafening levels, and from my Nokia Lumia, it can also go to deafening levels.  I think an iPhone's max volume is less than a Nokia's, and I think the amps will make it louder.
I think you shouldn't ever turn the volume to max with these.

 

[mrs1986]

  Well, running straight of the laptop can go to deafening levels, and from my Nokia Lumia, it can also go to deafening levels.  I think an iPhone's max volume is less than a Nokia's, and I think the amps will make it louder.
I think you shouldn't ever turn the volume to max with these.

I know, that's clear... 
 
Thanks a lot for the help

 

[Smugsie]

Thought I'd put a measurement with my new cables vs stock.
Like I said before, personally I like the new cables. It does introduce a bit more sibilance, but for some reason it sounds and feels smoother in regards to treble like my sennheiser hd 598's. Although I very much like stock cables for guitar solos better. Of course, the Q701's really are my only preferred open headphone, I absolutely love them; so I went for a mini upgrade. 
Yes, I did take all measurement factors into account... This is the RAW data so there's no compensation for HRTF; that's why the bass looks wonky.

I heard you guys liked numbers, so here; have some numbers with a line scratched across

Spoiler: What my explanation probably sounds like to you:

 

Spoiler: What the cable difference actually makes:

 

[Chris J]

Thought I'd put a measurement with my new cables vs stock.

Like I said before, personally I like the new cables. It does introduce a bit more sibilance, but for some reason it sounds and feels smoother in regards to treble like my sennheiser hd 598's. Although I very much like stock cables for guitar solos better. Of course, the Q701's really are my only preferred open headphone, I absolutely love them; so I went for a mini upgrade. 

Yes, I did take all measurement factors into account... This is the RAW data so there's no compensation for HRTF; that's why the bass looks wonky.


I heard you guys liked numbers, so here; have some numbers with a line scratched across

Spoiler: What my explanation probably sounds like to you:

Spoiler: What the cable difference actually makes:

They are virtually identical.
What happens if you measure each cable 10 times?
I suspect the differences would average out.

 

[Smugsie]

They are virtually identical.
What happens if you measure each cable 10 times?
I suspect the differences would average out.

Each cable was avraged 5 times and surprisingly I got consistent results. There would be one faulty measurement if I moved my jaw or something

 

[Shaffer]

Each cable was avraged 5 times and surprisingly I got consistent results. There would be one faulty measurement if I moved my jaw or something

Did the cables sound similar to you?

Edit: Personally, I don't have a whole lot of experience with headphone cables. I did audition a HD650 cable vs HD600 wire and heard a minor, yet significant difference. Same with changing the stock K702 cable to a pro wire. Small differences, but I definitely preferred the stock K702 wire.

 

[Smugsie]

Did the cables sound similar to you?

Edit: Personally, I don't have a whole lot of experience with headphone cables. I did audition a HD650 cable vs HD600 wire and heard a minor, yet significant difference. Same with changing the stock K702 cable to a pro wire. Small differences, but I definitely preferred the stock K702 wire.

TLDR: The cables indeed do sound similar. The signature of the Q701's are still there; but it just sounds a bit smoother now like my Sennheiser HD598's treble.

---

I had a hard time justifying a $99 1.5m cable. The guy at HeadfoneShop kept telling me for an entire year, "Hey, it's up to you if you want to buy it man, you just have to believe me there's a difference". As he continued to play World of Warcraft on his laptop.

I took up his offer a year later and finally bought it.
Was there a difference? Thankfully yes, I was ready to return these. All my doubts lead to no until I finally got a chance to listen to the overpriced cable.

The cables made my Q701's lean a bit towards the smoother side, which is great; I can sell my HD598's now
There's a bit more treble grainyness on the green stock cables compared to the ADL cable that sound oh so great with guitars that I miss.
The cables are less sensitive to my amp's hiss but more sensitive to detail somehow.
I would also like to re-iterate that these cables due introduce a bit more sibilance.

I'm going to stop there because there's a lot of issues here on headfi about cable debates and my post probably sounds like complete lunacy now.
 

 

[Shaffer]

Thank you for the detailed reply. As for the forum (cable) political correctness, who cares? Dare I say, if more folks posted honest/experienced comments like yours, others would do the same.