[BeBop Lives]

Absolutely wonderful!! And for $130.....wow....looks brand new. Sounds wonderful....got some good single malt with a bit of the savings.

 

[bonfirehay]

Just to pinch in the audiophile debate:
 
Too many people still equate price with quality.
The fact is, the majority of headphones and speakers are produced using similar techniques, with similar materials, with some exceptions.
And even with the exceptions, there is no indication that more expensive techniques or more expensive materials will produce better results. (For example, one of the most praised brands of club speakers, Funktion-One, use cone transducers made out of paper, instead of trying to sell you gold, diamond or platinum tweeters like some)
Just a matter of price marketing and our limited primate brains doing the math.
 
I hate the term audiophile a little bit.
It has a few depreciative connotations attached, like the delusions and compulsions people can have about audio equipment, some of them pathological and harmful.
If you want to speak to the quality of a piece of gear, the worst adjective you can use it audiophile.
Because if you could actually use it on in a piece of gear and not a person, it would mean: Unreasonably expensive audio equipment.
And in that sense, the AKG K550 are not audiophile form the perspective of this community, because they are reasonably priced for it's quality, specially considering they compete with 500$+ headphones. However they will likely be considered audiophile by the average Joe, because they are much more expensive than most people would expect to pay for headphones.
 
If you want to refer to the quality of headphones in the sense you meant, you are better off using more objective terms, like 'Distortion', 'Fidelity' or even 'Reference'.
Or you could admit, and refer to the inherently subjective experience that is sound appreciation, like many wise people have, and start referring to the enjoyment the headphones give you.

 

[BeBop Lives]

Well said.......,"so enjoy k550", I do.

 

[elvergun]

  And in that sense, the AKG K550 are not audiophile form the perspective of this community, because they are reasonably priced for it's quality, specially considering they compete with 500$+ headphones. However they will likely be considered audiophile by the average Joe, because they are much more expensive than most people would expect to pay for headphones.

 
Bah...I'm enjoying my K550 right now.  I have an HD800 and a T5p withing reach, but right now I want to enjoy the signature of the AKG...and the isolation...my girlfriend is a noisy human being. 

 

[raidenwolff]

Audiophile simply means a person who likes music. Why get into this argument of defining the word at all? Pretty pointless. Some people use it to mean 'unreasonably expensive audio equipment', some use it objectively with no snobbery involved. Some categorise low-fi, mid-fi, high-fi, some don't. I can equally propose Beats stands for 'unreasonably expensive audio equipment'. They're unreasonably expensive for the SQ that they produce in all their products in their respective price range. So Then people will come to its defense saying they're actually not bad, with good build quality, looks fantastic, yada-yada-yada. See where the discussion becomes pointless? We all value different things in a headphone. 
 
Which brings me to 'too many people still equate price with quality'. To a certain extent, it is a good rule of thumb for beginners who are starting out. The only thing you can do is do more research, test out the headphones yourself, and find what makes you happy, no? Headphones are not purely about sound quality. Some people wear Beats as a fashion statement. And yes, I hate them lol. But that's my own opinion. I won't force other people to think that as well. I'll just bring it up and hopefully persuade others to care more about SQ instead of focusing on peripheral factors. 
 
The words 'Distortion', 'Fidelity' or 'Reference' are no more objective than the word audiophile. Words inevitably mean different things to different people, and sound perception is always subjective. 
 
This whole discussion about whether the AKG K550 fits in the 'audiophile quality' above goes nowhere because we each have different ways to categorise what 'audiophile quality' means. You think it's snobbish, because lots of people use it that way. I don't, because I don't use it that way. Just like the words hydrophile means something that's attracted to water. Do you feel 'depreciative connotations attached' to the world hydrophile, then? 
 
The only thing I agree with is your last sentence. 
 
Why don't you guys check out how Urban Dictionary defines audiophile? lol. 
 
Let us all ditch the 'is K550 an audiophile headphone' debate, and proceed to appreciate or discuss about these fantastic headphones? To my ears, I found the SQ amazing at this price. I bought them for £110 on Amazon and did not regret it one bit. They are quite analytical and work well with many genres. The bass is tight and accurate, but the overall cold feel of the headphones means it's not overly suited to many mainstream songs - at least to me. It really depends on how the song is mixed. They're not an overly 'fun' headphone. More for people who like clarity and to hear all the details in, say, classical music. I read in a thread somewhere that people thought they were good for RnB and Hip Hop. I would have to disagree wholeheartedly. RnB and Hip Hop, as well as Pop and Rock work much better on 'fun' sounding, warmer headphones to me. The AKG K550 works best, IMO, with classical music, acoustic songs, female vocals, and well-mixed songs of most genres. 

 

[gamefreak054]

My brother just bought a pair of AKG K550s so he would have a closed back travel headphone and they sound pretty good. Anyways I wanted to bring up that Mr.Speakers Alpha pads fit perfectly on these headphones. I had an extra pair so I sold them to my brother and it makes the headphones much more comfortable and avoids your ear touching the drivers (if you are like me and have this problem). 
 
I also wanted to bring up that the sound actually is clearer and more crisp. I really was expecting the pads to make them bassier and darker with these pads, but it really had the opposite effect. I think this is partially due to the pads making the drivers aimed at your ear compared to being aimed directly at your head.
 
There is my input on the alpha pad K550s. It was really bugging me I could not find any information if the pads worked or not.

 

[elvergun]

My brother just bought a pair of AKG K550s so he would have a closed back travel headphone and they sound pretty good. Anyways I wanted to bring up that Mr.Speakers Alpha pads fit perfectly on these headphones. I had an extra pair so I sold them to my brother and it makes the headphones much more comfortable and avoids your ear touching the drivers (if you are like me and have this problem). 

I also wanted to bring up that the sound actually is clearer and more crisp. I really was expecting the pads to make them bassier and darker with these pads, but it really had the opposite effect. I think this is partially due to the pads making the drivers aimed at your ear compared to being aimed directly at your head.

There is my input on the alpha pad K550s. It was really bugging me I could not find any information if the pads worked or not.

Thanks for the information!

 

[Androb]

K550 are absolute beauties. Gotta get one pair, I am not an owner of any closed headphones

 

[raidenwolff]

They are soooooo pretty I kid you not. If wouldn't mind if they were a tad bit heavier because I like things that feel substantial in my hand. But then again, that'd make it a bit more uncomfortable to wear for long durations.

 

[CyDe29]

  My brother just bought a pair of AKG K550s so he would have a closed back travel headphone and they sound pretty good. Anyways I wanted to bring up that Mr.Speakers Alpha pads fit perfectly on these headphones. I had an extra pair so I sold them to my brother and it makes the headphones much more comfortable and avoids your ear touching the drivers (if you are like me and have this problem). 
 
I also wanted to bring up that the sound actually is clearer and more crisp. I really was expecting the pads to make them bassier and darker with these pads, but it really had the opposite effect. I think this is partially due to the pads making the drivers aimed at your ear compared to being aimed directly at your head.
 
There is my input on the alpha pad K550s. It was really bugging me I could not find any information if the pads worked or not.

Would you say that the Alpha Pads reduce discomfort from heat? The main issue I have with these headphones is that wearing them for extended periods of time, even just 45 minutes to an hour, they begin to become uncomfortable because of heat and pressing against my ears.
 
Also, in another thread I started, someone mentioned that I should try to find velour ear pads for these, but searching around I have not been able to find any real confirmation on whether there are velour pads that fit the k550 (though technically I have the k551).
 
EDIT: Also, would you say that the Alpha Pads decrease bass? The reason I'm a bit hesitant to buy the pads is because with their $60 price tag I could just upgrade to some other better closed-back headphones.

 

[ratinox]

The main issue I have with these headphones is that wearing them for extended periods of time, even just 45 minutes to an hour, they begin to become uncomfortable because of heat and pressing against my ears.

Try a sock mod. It's inexpensive and won't change the sound too much.

 

[CyDe29]

Try a sock mod. It's inexpensive and won't change the sound too much.

Huh, now that is interesting. Are there specific instructions for the K550/551?

 

[gamefreak054]

  Would you say that the Alpha Pads reduce discomfort from heat? The main issue I have with these headphones is that wearing them for extended periods of time, even just 45 minutes to an hour, they begin to become uncomfortable because of heat and pressing against my ears.
 
Also, in another thread I started, someone mentioned that I should try to find velour ear pads for these, but searching around I have not been able to find any real confirmation on whether there are velour pads that fit the k550 (though technically I have the k551).
 
EDIT: Also, would you say that the Alpha Pads decrease bass? The reason I'm a bit hesitant to buy the pads is because with their $60 price tag I could just upgrade to some other better closed-back headphones.

To be perfectly honest I do not quite remember how they affect bass. They are my brothers headphones after all, and I just do not use them much. I will have to ask him. I personally never sweat with my Alpha Dogs, so I would imagine its less of an issue over the original pads. Though I will confirm every thing with my brother.
 
To be honest though the K550s have been so cheap lately even with the Alpha Pads it would still compete well within its price range for closed back headphones. I only paid $130 for a BNIB pair for my brother, and adding $60 to that price for better pads still makes it better than most closed back headphones in that range. The only thing that I would say beats it is a t50rp variant, and considering that those need decent amplification it is not ideal for everyone.
 
Also on the whole sockmod thing. Just be warned that the sock mod has some negative effects to the Grado Headphones when using this mod.

 

[DarkStorm90]

Do you recommend these cans at 140€ new? I'm not an audiophile but I'm searching for a good Hi-Fi headphone with a lightly warm sound (not too much analytical). The main source will be a FiiO E17

 

[Androb]

  Do you recommend these cans at 140€ new? I'm not an audiophile but I'm searching for a good Hi-Fi headphone with a lightly warm sound (not too much analytical). The main source will be a FiiO E17

I was ready to pay the double a year ago!