[Mad Lust Envy]

Soundfreak, before you jump into any headphone, you need to read up on them. Like any electronic, you have to do your homework. 3 weeks at Head-fi should've let you know that these headphones are anything but typical.

 

[Soundfreak33]

Your right, i will do my homework even more now, im getting tired of buying and returning headphones.  Im going to buy E9 and see if i get improvment and go from there.

 

[Katun]

Quote:

Your right, i will do my homework even more now, im getting tired of buying and returning headphones.

 
I do my homework properly and still end up getting rid of the majority of my headphones. Sometimes, you just have to hear it for yourself.

 

[Hailin]

Quote:

 
I do my homework properly and still end up getting rid of the majority of my headphones. Sometimes, you just have to hear it for yourself.

yup me too. Just got an offer on my HD598 hoping that goes through and my Q701s are going back to amazon. I just couldn't find enough time to enjoy due to the noise in my household. I knew they didn't block out much noise but for some reason everyone feels they must make more noise when I have headphones on. So I get I am in market for a 3d soundstage in a closed headphone which means a D2000, K550, or T70 may be in my future.

 

[PurpleAngel]

Anyone here switch from a Senn HD558/HD598 to the Q701?
If so, what differences did you notice?

 

[Hailin]

Quote:

Anyone here switch from a Senn HD558/HD598 to the Q701?
If so, what differences did you notice?

The 598s are mid frq monster, the q701 is not as crazy in that range much more balanced. I found the soundstage smaller on the Qs compared to the speaker like nature of the 598. The Q is capable of way more bass due to the mid range hogging of the 598.
 
Granted this is coming from a realtek onboard chip which might explain my soundstage issue on the Qs.

 

[PurpleAngel]

Quote:

The 598s are mid frq monster, the q701 is not as crazy in that range much more balanced. I found the sound stage smaller on the Qs compared to the speaker like nature of the 598. The Q is capable of way more bass due to the mid range hogging of the 598.
 
Granted this is coming from a Realtek on-board chip which might explain my sound stage issue on the Qs.

Realtek, understandable
I'm assuming my STX and Yamaha would do a better job of driving the Q701s

 

[chicolom]

Quote:

They will reward you when amped, though you're into a darker sound, sound they may just not be for you. You may as well get a Sennheiser then.

 
This. 
 
I personally don't think the Q701s are that bright.  Based off the other headphones I've tried, I would describe the Q701s as slightly dark and warm sounding. 
 
Getting a more transparent source and amp can make them sound clearer and less muffled/muddy.  I'm not sure that's what you want though, if you think they are already too bright.  When I first ran my Q701s off my soundcard while waiting for my DAC and amp to come in, I thought the Q701s might be slightly too warm.  After I setup my DAC and amp, they sounded perfect as they became more clear and open sounding.  The more transparent setup de-warmed them a bit, which is exactly what I was going for. 

 

[Mad Lust Envy]

Anyone here switch from a Senn HD558/HD598 to the Q701?
If so, what differences did you notice?

I did. I find the HD598 boring and analytical. Way too much midrange, and not enough life overall. Sure, if you want a singer singing right into your ears its fine, but other than that, the Q701 does everything else better. It sounds more realistic and enjoyable. I find the tone of the Q701 to be pretty neutral to very slightly warm, and well balanced overall, with just a lack of sub bass, but mid bass in line with the rest of the sound. It also sounds more lively and fluid.

I don't think the HD598 compares to the Q701, though its a good alternative for gamers who don't wanna spend much on amping, as the HD598 is less demanding by quite a bit.

If anything, I felt the HD598 to be a poor man's K701 with even more mids.

I'm really not a fan of the Sennheiser sound for music.

 

[PurpleAngel]

Quote:

I did. I find the HD598 boring and analytical. Way too much midrange, and not enough life overall. Sure, if you want a singer singing right into your ears its fine, but other than that, the Q701 does everything else better. It sounds more realistic and enjoyable. I find the tone of the Q701 to be pretty neutral to very slightly warm, and well balanced overall, with just a lack of sub bass, but mid bass in line with the rest of the sound. It also sounds more lively and fluid.
I don't think the HD598 compares to the Q701, though its a good alternative for gamers who don't wanna spend much on amping, as the HD598 is less demanding by quite a bit.
If anything, I felt the HD598 to be a poor man's K701 with even more mids.
I'm really not a fan of the Sennheiser sound for music.

Thinking of selling off my HD558s for Q701s
I'm guessing my Essence STX (AD797BR) and Yamaha RX-V671 can drive the Q701s

 

[Mad Lust Envy]

I think the STX has the same power specs as the E9, and the Q701 sounds great off the E9. The STX shouldn't have any issues.

 

[Soundfreak33]

Well i just watched the moviie Sherlock Homes with my Q701s, and i have to say it sounded fantastic, although the headband was getting very uncomfortable.

 

[calpis]

Right now I'm listening to MLE's Q701's with flac>foobar>hm101>mstage and they sound fantastic. Super mellow to me and relaxing, kinda like listening to ety er4p's but without the discomfort I get in my right ear from the tips. Also, I thought the white would have been offensive to me but they actually ended up being really gorgeous.
 
Been listening to nothing but anime and game OST's non stop  

 

[Mad Lust Envy]

Funny, that's usually what I wore them most for. Anime/game music/watching. XD

I don't really use my headphones that much anymore though. General laziness, I guess. I take the SQ hit and just listen to stuff through my soundbar.

 

[calpis]

Hah, I'm the same. If I'm really lazy I just use Mirage ipod dock and when not so lazy I turn on my receiver and watch stuff with a couple of Monitor Audio bookshelfs and a sub. Headphone time is for evening/late night or when I just want to disappear.