AKG K 272 HD High-Definition Headphones

Are this supposed to be Hifi? 
 
I got these from work when I asked for sound canceling phones. No these are not that, although pretty good on isolation. But what disappoints me most is that there simply isn't any low frequencies. Rock and heavy metal sounds just awfully blant. They lack detail too. Using them with a Porta Corda III USB.
 
Maybe I am spoiled with my HD800 phones at phone, but I would expect more. I just can't use them or my old HD650 in an open office space. Need to find some better closed phones it seems.
 
Pure crap, don't buy these!

I tested these headphones with few songs, on my ibasso dx50 and can say that these offer a disturbing sound & nothing close to High Fidelity,i personally use a pair a pair of Supelux HD-330 and they are much better than akg 272.
The sound for AKG is heard like coming from 10 meters long tubes attached to your ears on one side an on the other end a one way baffle speaker of good quality.

Awesome pair of headphones for rock and techno music!
 
I originally went down to a local audio store to audition a pair of grado 225is when these caught my eye. After almost an hour of going back and forth between the two pairs i finally decided to go with the akgs. If properly driven their clarity and definition is great, however the soundstage is fairly small since they are closed.
 
I'm not hugely versed in hifi audio equipment but i'll try and describe their characteristics as best as i can.
 
Highs: Fairly sparkly, some great detail on cymbal crashes and despite being closed they sound fairly airy on these depending on the song. Otherwise not too pronounced, definitely not a bright headphone.
 
Mids: Not very agressive, but still well presented, some good clarity in them although far less bite than a pair of grados.
 
Lows: While auditioning these at the store i found they had just the right amount of bass, but since ive gotten them home they seem to emphasize lower notes a lot more. although something i think these headphones really do well is that even though they can produce a fair bit of thump, i can still hear the bass player actually playing the notes which i really like.
 
Overall i think these are a great mid-fi pair of headphones, they are very easy to listen to and are quite clear. I'm really enjoying them so far and can't wait to spend some more time with them.
 
I apologize if this isnt a very detailed review, im not the best reviewer
 
EDIT:
 
turns out i had a loudness setting turned on that was causing increased bloated bass, mids and highs are so much more upfront now and bass is significantly reduced, now i see why it has a bass light reputation here.
 
Apparently my receiver likes to veil mids as well, plugged them into the headphone out on my computer just out of curiosity and the mids were back! The sound of these headphones keeps on changing for me as i discover flaws in my setup haha

These headphones are awesome. They truly are. I did happen to have some bad experiences with them, but my pair was defective (most likely). It happened that a piece of plastic snapped in half and a screw inside broke, leaving the right earcup hanging. That said, the guys at the Hi-Fi shop took the headphones in to see if they were fixable. Turns out, that was not the case, so they gave me a new pair of headphones. These are great. Just wearing these is amazing, due to the self adjusting headband which provides the most comfortable fit. Another nice thing is that the headband is not too light, it provides some resistance, which is nice. The lack of resistance is a problem that i have experienced with the Audio Technica audiophile headphones, which have a wing mechanism similiar to AKG's. Those headphones just feel like they are a feather on your head, but the AKG do feel solid. They feel like they're there, and to me that's a nice feeling. It feels secure. There's no point in having a headphone so light it feels like it's not there, when it's gonna slip off in a second.
Talking about the audio quality, i have to apologize for not knowing much about the technical terms. The way i would describe these is "lush", as in, the sound is very balanced and it feels silky smooth. It is by no means an audiophile grade headphone, but that's not what it's supposed to be. AKG never really delved into the audiophile side of headphones, and that's not necessarily a bad thing. Having a "lush" headphone does not mean it's accurate, but fun and easy to listen to. It's kinda like a break from the very cold and emotionless headphones that are known as audiophile headphones. If i had to give a "natural" comparison, audiophile headphones are to 'Ice' as the AKG K 272 are to 'Water'. The audio is not as cold, but not teeny. The actual balancing is really good. The trebles are very present but not overwhelming in any way, they also don't peek like some tend to do (primarily the Skullcandy headphones, which are not worth talking about). The mids and vocals are clearly the best part about these headphones. The voices are sharp, and very defined. It literally feels like you're wearing two headphones. One for the instruments, one for the vocals. And they don't overshadow the rest of the audio either. The vocals are right were they should be.
If anything, the only thing to complain about when it comes to the sound is the bass, as i found it to be a little lacking in some situations, but still there, and good sounding. It's something that's not hard to get over anyway. It's easily dealt with.
I used to have bad impressions about these headphones, but scratch that. If you're gonna ponder on whether or not to buy these headphones, don't bother. I'd easily buy them blindfold.
Highly recommended.

    This was my first pair of audiophile headphones, and they got the job done.  They are overall pretty nice sounding, and very easy to listen to for prolonged periods of time.  The only thing I was never happy about with these headphones was the complete lack of bass presence.  While the bass is tight and controlled, and decently well extended, it lacks any real punch or energy to it.  I don't believe a headphone should be overly bassy, but a slight bass emphasis can help to create an overall more full-bodied sound in all registers due to harmonic resonance, which I believe to be a good thing, so long as it's done tastefully.  Also, the highs on these headphones can become indistinct or even a little bright with certain tracks, for that slightly-jagged-around-the-edges feel.
 
    In spite of all I have just said, I still think these are a great set of cans.  To be perfectly honest, I preferred them to the AKG K701 overall, because, while that headphone does indeed sound considerably better than these when properly amped, these don't really require an amp (although it helps), and overall, are much more comfortable than the K701 line due to their light weight and non-bumpy headband design.  They are also less fatiguing for long-term use.
 
    Although I have not owned the AKG K271 mk II, I have researched both headphones quite a bit.  They use the same driver, and are virtually the same headphone but there are a few significant differences worth mentioning.  For starters, the mk II include a two sets of pads, one velour and the other leatherette (or pleather), so you have a choice, whereas these include only one.  Also, the mk II include a detachable cord, and include both a coiled and a straight cord, so you can switch up the cord depending on your applications.  Now, it might seem like I'm recommending the mk II, but having demoed both headphones, I finally decided on the 272.  Why?  For two main reasons.  First of all, the mk II had an automute feature where the headphones would turn off if the band were lifted off the head.  While this seems like a cool idea, it would also make the headphones harder to burn-in.  So I didn't like that.  But also, and to me much more relevantly, while these sound "slightly" less refined than the mk II, they also isolate significantly better (a difference of four decibles).  At first, I thought it was just the placeebo effect, but sure enough, Headroom's data sheets confirmed my suspicions.
 
On the basis of the comfort and isolation alone (if you need it for any sound applications), I am happy to recommend this headphone.  There are better sounding contenders out there (like the newly released AKG K550s that are a new favorite of mine), but for half the price, these ain't bad at all.
   

Value:
I paid a steep price for them, you can get it for about $129 nowadays from some places, which would drive the value a lot higher. Still okay IMO.

Audio Quality:
Doesn't distort, doesn't cause ear-fatigue which I'm usually sensitive to, authentic and unemphasized, precise lows, natural mids with good separation and detail, and smooth, non-fatiguing but clear highs. I can't spot a huge frequency response hump in either end or the middle, seems natural and transparent, just the way I like them.

Design:
I guess they have some retro value, the suspension system looks funky, I don't like the aesthetics or colour a lot to be honest, but it's very comfortable, durable and functional.

Comfort:
Only the Sony XB-500 are more comfortable and lightweight from the full-sized phones I've tried. The velour pads are slippery against long hair, unlike the XB-500's pleather.

Very lovely, but I suspect the AKG K271 MKII isn't worse + comes with nice extras, so if you can, audition both!

Very comfortable! Sound is great, although the bass may be a little weak sometimes. I'm not a bass-freak so that's okay for me though.
Replaceable cable is great, also the ear-pads are replaceable which is also great. I find the leathery ones to be most comfortable and fit my head the best.

These cans are super comfortable and the sound quality (amp'd) is very very good , i have not heard better! Although these are closed back they do let out a lot of sound if listening at high levels ,which i guess doesn't matter if you use them at home! I love these for home use and have even used them before in trains and they block out quite a bit of sound ! Would recommend ! I think these are not talked about enough on head-fi.

These were my first hi-fi close headphones, moving from Sony mdr-v700DJ (yuck).  I use these mostly for heavy metal for reference.
 
Firstly, bass is tight and punchy, at least as fast as Grados, but not as fast as k701 (is anything?) but doesn't have quite enough impact in the lower bass.
 
Isolation is great, no sound leaks out, and not much in.  Comfort similarly is good, they are light and don't threaten to fall off if you lean over - thats a good thing right?
 
They are not what I would call dark, not compared to ah-ad2000 or Shure 840, have a rather up-front presentation, but instrument separation is good.  Sound is coherent and fairly musical, and relatively warm

Yes there is a tendency to sound nasal when under-amplified, so there may be better mobile choices.

They can sound a bit harsh at times, maybe due to the upfront presentation, maybe due to the abovementioned 'mid-high fuzziness,' but this really isn't a deal breaker.

For rock, and heavy metal they do very well.  For pop music there are probably better headphones for vocals.  Classical music tends to sound a bit flat and unmusical, and soundstage isn't the best, so not a great choice for classical.

If I payed $200 for them I would be quite happy...

 

Every time I put these headphones on I have to get used to some little nuances. That's because with some records, the mid-highs sound ever so slightly more hissy than with my Audioengine A2 look-a-likes, and my subwoofer is way more muddy and loud than the articulate, accurate bass of the AKG K 272 HD. The initial impression wears off after the first few minutes, from which onwards I really start liking the sound of these cans.
[EDIT: I confess, I didn't want to write this because I thought all the hi-fi people in here would flip at me but honestly, with equalizing by +3dB at 20-80Hz region and a -2dB at 14kHz onwards or by just putting the bass boost to level 2 from FiiO E7, the sound is much more pleasant and warm from these cans, while retaining their accuracy and fast nature. I don't perceive any negative effects after equalizing, they still remain accurate and fast.]

AKG K 272 HD shines with Benassi Bass and other raw sounding effects in music, which might be a partial reason why I like chiptunes and dubstep nowadays so much. There isn't much to say about vocals with these cans, they sound good but not exceptional. Some very nasal female singers sound really hissy, since the cans give them a boost of their own due to the mid-high fuzzyness (which might just aswell be the general sound-signature of neutral headphones, don't know. Anyway it goes away with the equalizing). With orchestral music and soundtracks the mid-high fuzzyness makes the track sound a bit noisy or sterile, but the bass boost setting in the FiiO E7 compensates that well when set to level 2. I've read the sound stage on these isn't too good, but at least in games I found them really good at pointing out enemy locations based on footstep whether they came from above, below, or somewhere else.

They're a tad sterile and nasal without EQ, but with it they're absolutely terrific. I was considering getting a crapton of other cans while these weren't satisfactory, but to me these are just perfect when I get rid of the excess sharpness.
 

Not much to says here, it's not a bad headphone, but it's not up to what I was used to.
 
Unfortunately, my 3 years-old daughter killed my Audio-Technica ATH-A900. I hesitated a lot between going to a higher end AT, going DT770, or going AKG.
 
I Chose AKG, and it's not in par with my expectation, Ath-a900 beats it in every way in my humble opinion.
 
Sound is dark and oppressing. Electronica has got good beats, but it's not joyful enough.
 
Tonal balance isn't that bad, maybe a slight bump in 60-80hz to hide lack of lower end bass
 
I often read that ATH-A900 got recessed mids, I prefer to say that they are not proeminent
But I swear K272hd are even more recessed, and very "Forward in the head" kind
 
Soundstage sounds weird, good left/right, but it lacks the depth of ath.
 
Not comfy enough ! First days were painful because of high pressure done by cups. Enough pressure to run with it without loosing it... It better suits my daughter.
 
Higher impedance makes it slightly harder to drive by PMP & phone, but it's still doable.
 
All in All, I'll keep this headphone, mainly for my family (this one has less breakable parts than Audio-Technica). but I'll gonna upgrade soon to an Ath-w1000w