Pre-Introduction:

 

I am in no way affiliated or work for Shozy, and for this review, I did not receive this item as a review sample. I’m a 19 year old college student who likes his music and his ears (in particular), and would hope that in the future, teens could appreciate the audiophile community the same way I do. Enjoy! 

 

Keep in mind that all the pictures, while looking small on the page, were taken by a high-resolution camera. I just didn't want to clutter up the page with large pictures. So feel free to click on them to see them in full resolution throughout the review!

 

Introduction:

 

Portable players have been around for quite a while, but they have generally followed the rule of thumb – you pay for the sound you get. What that means is that if one goes cheap, he’s usually stuck with something inferior than the more expensive item. For example, the Fiio X1 lacks things the X3 has, and the X3 is not as great as the X5. But for people who can’t afford expensive gadgets and do-dads all the time – college students like me, for example – you just gotta do your research and hope that you have the best item for its price range. But the rule of thumb stays.

 

Not today.

 

Today, we have up for review the Shozy Alien. Frankly, before I got one, I never heard of the company, although, to be fair, I’m not knee-deep into head-fi all the time either. But I stumbled across @H20 and @shizeo ’s thread about the Alien, and started seeing post after post praising this “thing”, whatever it was. Not one post saying it sounds “meh”, or a single post not surprised about how good it sounds. I only read until page 80 (out of 125[?]), but I have delved into the thread trying to look for one person who could “see through the hype,” and came back empty handed. You can see for yourself - http://www.head-fi.org/t/733349/a-little-about-the-shozy-alien/15 Happy reading!

 

I’ve been lucky enough to be able to receive one secondhand at a deeply discounted price, and haven’t been happier. There’s a few things you should know as background though, so let’s start with the basics.

 

Notice: I’m going to be listing some things for a while that may make you unsure of whether the Alien has what it takes. So if you feel like giving up or having a bad impression of its capabilities in middle, please do yourself a monumental favor and scroll to the “Sound” section to really see what the Alien is all about. That’s the main point in all of this.

 

Packaging:

 

Forget the packaging. It’s never done anything for you, and to be honest, it’s only there in case it breaks. But for those who care, it was a pretty standard case, nothing special, as it should be. Save it for the sound, right? Here’s a photo from google since I can’t find mine at the moment:



 
Build and Quality:

 

As you can see in the pictures, all metal, and quite sturdy at that. In fact, mine was dropped by the first owner onto some kitchen tiles, and besides for a small dent or two (you may see it in the pictures; don’t freak out, yours doesn't come like that) no signs of wear or tear, and functionality stayed to a T for all the time I had it as well (~6 months?). So for all of you that want to run this over with a truck, look for something with a brick housing, but for all daily users and even the occasional drop, this stays fine. Plastic wears out, metal stays metal. Kudos to Shozy for making the housing of the Alien of this material. Where the parts connect, it’s very smooth, so much so it’s easy to forget that they are indeed two separate pieces (3rd picture) and be like “how in the world did they carve this?” The four screws are very small and unobtrusive.

 



                                                         Velcro ^^^^ on the back.
 

 
As you’ll see from the pictures, the Alien has a unique shape, which make it really easy to hold in your hand. Unfortunately, I don’t have a great picture of me actually holding it optimally, but take my word that it’s pretty ergonomic.


 
The only thing I was worried about in the beginning was that when I would tap it in different places, I would get a slightly hollow sound once in a while. However, this is probably due to the shape of the circuitry inside. Do NOT think it is loose in any way, though. I've shaken this thing more than any alcoholic mix and nothing moved around inside, so it’s safe to assume that the circuitry and mechanics are pretty well secure. Note: all dents in the picture came from the fact mine was dropped. This does not in any way reflect on Shozy.

 

Buttons:

 

Since this player has no screen (I’ll get to that), all functionality relies on the buttons. The 4 buttons surrounding the center are very solid and durable (metal as well), but I do feel that more attention could have been paid to the middle one. Maybe it’s only just mine, but the center button feels a bit cheap, and the click isn’t all that satisfying. However, it works, which is really why it’s there. I’m nitpicking too, because for the price, there’s nothing I know of that comes close to the general build of the buttons. Most others are plastic, these are metal. I feel like I’m taking that for granted already. The buttons look a bit small when you first get the Alien, but for a normal sized hand like mine, it’s spaced finely and I never mix up the buttons. As for what the buttons do:

 

Middle: On/Off. Done.

 

Up: Raises volume, when held pauses the song.

 

Right: skips to next song, when held skips to the next folder.

 

Left: Same as the Right, just backwards.

 

Down: Now this is a big one, because for a while, everyone thought it just decreases volume. But it has a few more uses too; here we go:

 

First long press: Album repeat mode (folder repeat)

Second long press: Default mode

Third long press: Shuffle mode

Fourth long press: Default mode

 

The general playback is straight, not shuffle, so this was a pretty big breakthrough. But more on that in the next section.

 



 
Size and Portability:

 

Much smaller than my hand. Not Ipod nano 6th gen. small by any means, but still pretty convenient. It looks a lot bigger in the pictures, so here's some comparison pictures for you to get a general idea:





First picture, from left to right: Heir Audio Rendition 1 Amp, Shozy Alien, Fiio E12, Cowon J3. The screen player in the other pictures is the Cowon J3.
 
Compared to the much more expensive players (more on that later) that people end up saying are better technically (more on that later too), the Alien really is portable. Keep in mind the size as well when we get to the sound comparisons later.
 

UI and Playback:

 

So here’s how it is. It has no screen. No screen, but it's more of a pro than a con. Hear me out, please. You’ll see why.

 

Count me in the camp who bashed at the Shozy Alien time and time again for not having a screen and *still* only getting 8 hours of battery, and one of those who scoffed at head-fi when people said it’s actually a *plus* not to have a screen, but I do find I'm enjoying my music more without having to look at the screen and be like "which song is this?". Honestly, it’s something to get used to, but a lot of delight once you do get used to it.

 

You’re an audiophile? Then use your ear. It’s definitely better than being prejudiced against a song because of its name or artist.

 

For that reason, I should say that the Alien should only be used for your top 10-20 albums, at most, since navigation can only be one folder at a time. The way you have to deposit your folders into the SD card of the Alien can only be one folder deep. Meaning you can’t have a folder within a folder, or else it won’t read it. You can have songs on the surface, and folders (with songs in them) on the surface. But a folder with a folder in it on the surface won’t work. Basically, only have one folder deep at most.

 

Startup takes 2-5 seconds, which can be annoying at first but becomes fine after a while. Clicking does what it’s supposed to do, without any problems in my experience. Unfortunately, the Alien starts from the beginning every time it turns on, so if you accidentally turn it off in middle of a song, you have to navigate back to it. I’ve never so far turned it off by accident, and I’m not that meticulous when reaching for the buttons either. But if you plan on putting 2 hour orchestras or compilations on the Alien, look elsewhere. To my knowledge, there’s no way to navigate to the middle of a song, so you skip by accident, game over. Adding a fast-forward button is perhaps something I would greatly appreciate if Shozy did in the future; most of the other DAP’s I’ve handled has that feature by default.

 

Here’s my understanding of the light on the Alien and what it means (per color):

Playing: blue/green

Pause: blue

Battery empty: green

Charging while off: red

Finished charging while off: no light

 



 
SD Card and Storage:

 

This seems also like a bummer when you first hear about it. No onboard storage. Everything comes from the MicroSD Card. You can’t even access the MicroSD from the Alien, you have to put it into the computer. The world has ended.

 

Fear not, there’s hope for the Illuminati.

 

All jokes aside, let’s remember what the primary purpose of the Alien is. For your 10-20 very best albums. Even if they’re all Flac (stay tuned, this will be important later), it’s not going to be more than ~16-32 gb. Honestly, I never used any of the onboard storage of any of my other players. Why would I use the 4gb in the Sansa Clip Sport or the 8gb in the Cowon J3 if I could just load everything onto a 64gb MicroSD for $20? In my opinion, it’s a lot easier not having to keep track of two separate storages, one of them being small. I think some other DAP’s also eliminated onboard storage, but I haven’t checked to see which ones. To me, a minor detail considering the rest of the things you might want to focus on. Why did Shozy do this? I personally think it’s to keep the circuitry as clean as possible so that the sound can stay as mind-blowing as it is.

 



 
 

File Types:

 

The one bummer, to me, is that the Alien only plays Flac and WAV, not MP3. For most of you on head-fi, however, I doubt your 10 best albums are in any format other than SACD and Flac, but then again, maybe some of yours are. Conversion seems like a pain, but consider that foobar converted 80 of my quality mp3’s to high quality WAV’s in 40 seconds; .5 seconds per song (and no, I do not have a supercomputer). So although a folder of 80 songs may be really frustrating to navigate through, you can convert your 10 best MP3’s to WAV or FLAC in seconds. It’s more of an initial inconvenience than anything; you do it once and then you’re done. Now if the player had a screen, then MP3 support would be so much more crucial, as you would be loading a ton more songs onto it. But where it stands, it’s more than fine, and all worth it for the sound. Almost there.

 

Battery Life:

 

Battery life is pretty short compared to my J3; only 8 hours per charge, although I’m pretty confident Shozy is being cautious in their specs because I get around 9-10 hours. I actually contacted somebody from the Shozy team to ask why is it only this much when there’s no screen, and he actually showed me that the battery is quite a capable one. So it’s actually the power the Alien needs to eat (ugh) to keep the sound as spacious and as grand as it does, rather than Shozy skimping out. Remember that the Fiio X5 only gets 10 hours and the DX90 only 8.5 hours, and that the Alien sounds better than both of the- whoops -not yet, not yet. No spoilers until the sound section.

 

Headphones to drive/Not to Drive? – Power Output and Impedance:

 

Specifications:

File support : 16 & 24bit wav and flac files at 44.1khz

Headphone impedance range: 8－32 Ohms

Signal to Noise Ratio: > 98dB

Output Power：2 * 55mW（16 Ohms）

Battery runtime：~ 8 hours

Charging Time：~ 2 hours

External power supply：5V DC

 

As you can see by the output power, it’s not meant for full size headphones above, about, 35-40 ohms I would say. It’s a portable player, and works best with IEM’s. Now, I’m not really much of an IEM guy, so although I do have a pair or two, I’m going to be using this with a full on home-based headphone a lot of the time. How? Use an amp, and a good one at that.

 

Because I spent months moving up the chain (relatively, anyway) of amplifiers, from the Topping NX1 to the Fiio E18 to the Fiio E12, and just yesterday to the Heir Audio Rendition 1 amp (which I will hopefully review soon), and it still gets better each time. Once I reached the E12 I thought I was doing well with the DAP-Amp-Headphone match, but then a few people told me I’m limiting the Alien’s magic, and they were right, although I hate to admit it. The E12 with the Alien sounded *amazing*, and I mean that. But it scales up really well, so if you’re going to be using an amp with this, keep in mind that for a good while, the DAP will probably be better than the amp. For anyone on a budget though, the E12 still does really well with the Alien, don’t get me wrong on that.

 

(Volume

 

Another thing to note is that the Alien, although not enough to power powerful headphones, can get really loud. Like, really loud. Much louder than the Clip Sport, or the Cowon J3 could even get close to. But I have to warn you that if you tune the volume all the way up, which you won't if you want to keep your ears intact, it distorts quite a bit. How do I know? Because I was trying to amp this with the E12 and the K7XX's, and as a rule, if it's not a line out, I try maxing the volume on the player before I go to the amp knob. This you will need to set it a few levels before the max, which is fine since even on average volume my E12 was still only on the 10 o'clock mark (outta 5 p.m., so to speak). A few levels before the maximum volume on the Alien is still crazy loud, so I wouldn’t worry about that.

 

Keep in mind that the Alien is a great source player if you want to enjoy your music, and you could pair it up with a top tier amp and, say, a HE-6 and be really happy. With an AKG K7XX (like me) or a HD600, paired with a good desktop amp, you can really do well. But we’ll talk about that in the next two sections.

 

Drumroll, please:

 

Sound:

 

This is where it’s at. Page 7 so far in Microsoft Word and my eyes are basically bleeding, for this. First, let’s put this up against a few other players sound wise to give you a general idea:

 

Sansa Clip +/Zip/Sport: Wut? U mad?

Ipod: Okay, next.

Cowon J3: My beloved, favorite player until I got the Alien; Alien wins night and day.

DX50: Alien wins.

DX90: consensus has it that Alien wins again. A bit of a tricky one though.

Fiio X3: Alien (duh).

Fiio X5: Still the Alien.

 

Okay, let’s get serious. Time for the big boys, shall we?

 

Astell & Kern AK120: getting closer, some rather the Alien over this, some aren’t so sure. Definitely not a one-sided win here. http://www.head-fi.org/t/733349/a-little-about-the-shozy-alien/1620#post_11446627 Other reviews say that it actually paces the AK120 in the sound department.

Astell & Kern AK120 Titan: Only have one legitimate reviewer’s opinion on it, but according to his friends, the AK has more microdetails but the Alien wins “in the sound quality department.”

Astell & Kern AK100ii: I haven’t listened myself, this person has http://www.head-fi.org/t/733349/a-little-about-the-shozy-alien/600#post_11170299 he picks the Alien over the AK “nine times out of ten”, because although the AK may be better in most regards, the Alien has an addictive sound to it that's hard to let go of. Another person says that they prefer the AK100 Mk2. Yet another says he A/B’ed the 2 and enjoyed the Alien more unamped. http://www.head-fi.org/t/733349/a-little-about-the-shozy-alien/510#post_11155219

Astell & Kern AK240: I would think we’re abusing our right to compare here, but they say that although the AK240 is more detailed and refined than the Alien, the Alien’s not lagging too far behind. Others say they’re roughly in the same area SQ wise. Either way, the takeaway from this is that the Alien's sound is nothing to laugh about.

 

Essentially, even if you want to say most of these are from Alien fans, keep in mind most of them have sold off/traded at least the earlier players mentioned once they got their Alien. And I remember most of them being highly skeptical in getting a Shozy Alien because they had the AK player. When it comes to the AK players the comparisons get a little more intangible, and the A&K players are from 5-10 times the price, but it’s good to know that the Alien isn't a complete letdown even compared to those. Remember the form factor of this little thing as well. Comparing this to the A&K players isn't much of a fair fight to begin with, considering this is thinner than a Fiio E12. The A&K, on the other hand, is built to satisfy all music listeners, even the ones looking for the microdetails that the Alien may or may not provide.

 

The sound of the Alien has been described as organic and natural to its best. No more “okay” sounding music, unless it’s your music, that is. The Alien took everything I’ve personally thrown at it to another level; the first day I got it, I listened to the OCRemix album “Deus Ex: Sonic Augmentation” on a loop for 4 hours straight. For 4 hours straight! And I was grinning the entire time.

 

Because, to quote from Shozy, there’s “no OS, no fancy UI, no memory in-built & no card reading circuit; All we can give you is the best replay quality we can squeeze out for the price.” And that they have. Well. Really, really, well. Do you want an end game DAP for less than $1000? Then this is it. Hundreds of posts on the Alien thread could confirm everything I’ve said until now, and more. The highs are natural, mids natural, bass natural, and it all flows. It’s all organic. It sounds like it was meant to be. Soundstage is spot on, imaging is perfect. Details are vivid. Microdetails aren’t Summit-fi quality, but still great nonetheless. To me, though, the immersion factor is its crowning glory. Because it’s so organic and natural, you get sucked into it in the first 5 seconds, again and again. To me, it never gets old. And when I go back to my Cowon J3 (for some reason [?]), I get annoyed with the sound until I realize it’s the player, not my headphones being plugged in wrong. Who needs every microdetail, when you get melted into the music as the Alien does? That’s why I think, imho, people will be picking this up 9 times out of 10. It has an immersion factor that actually makes you comfortable with the music, which is something no one wants to give up on.

 

I have not tried hard/soft rock, rap, or pop, as I'm not a fan of any of those genres. But for acoustics/instrumental, classical, electronic, vocals, piano and violin, and edm I can affirm them all, so there's no reason the Alien wouldn't take the cake with the few genres I haven't listened to on it. I would like to say that the Alien sounds best with real instruments, so I don't look like I'm glossing over the sound part, but honestly it's just not true. It takes all my well made electronic music and makes it sing as well. 

 

Frankly, I have no idea how Shozy pulled this off. I don’t know how anyone could have pulled this off. I thought everyone was pulling my leg when they said it sounds more amazing than almost anything else. But here I am, addicted to the Alien, writing a review on it that’s longer than my Comp. 2 research paper.

 

They’ve gone miles ahead than anything within its price range – oh, what? You want to know how this is priced? Must be super expensive, considering all that I have said, right? …he probably meant $500 when he said on a budget…

 

Price and Value:

 

$170. A. hundred. and. seventy. dollars. Really? Could this be any more of a smack to the other audiophile players? You get what you pay for, so a sub-$200 DAP beats the daylights out of the $500 range ones and still is competitive up to over $1000 sound wise speaking. I will never go into business again. This time, the rules have failed. By eliminating the extra luxuries, Shozy created a circuit that is top notch at what it does, and is very cheap for its performance as well.

 

Price? Ipods cost more than this. Value? You all know by now my position on that. I’m sitting here at 1 in the morning, writing for 5 hours straight because although I have not found the cure for cancer, here may be something that can relieve the stress until then. For all you hardworking fathers that enjoy your music, for all the teenage college students that are on a serious budget, this should be on the top of your list. Does it have a screen? No. UI? Meh. Built in memory? Not a chance. Mp3 support? Nope. But it excels at what you buy it for in the first place, which is to play music. You can’t afford an AK? Here’s the next best thing. Be a minimalist. Enjoy your music like you should. Shozy has broken the system for DAP’s, and we can all enjoy that now.

 

Conclusion:

 

I would recommend this 100% to people on the go that want their audiophile tastes intact. However, for people who use their players a lot (4+ hours a day) on the road, or have all their music in Mp3 form, you might want a backup player for ALL your music. Case in point: I picked up a Cowon J3 (with a 60 hour battery life) for $120, and the Alien for about the same price. Although I will choose the Alien sound wise any day, it’s good that I have the J3 just in case I do want a screen. The Sansa Clip Sport for sub-$40 serves this purpose great as well. And you know what, I’m never actually using my J3 these days. I’d rather listen to basically the same albums over again on the Alien; goes against what I stand for, but nothing I can do about it. But for someone who does want a player both for their home setup and for their portable rig when they do go out an hour or so to work every day, you really cannot go wrong with this DAP.

Is it the best player out there? I'm sure there's better.

 

But why fret over the Abyss when you have the HD800's? 

 

I am happy with my music. Goal achieved.

 

Fin.

 

-Avishai

 

More picture(s):

PreIntroduction:

 

I am in no way affiliated or work for AKG or Massdrop, and for this review, I did not receive this item as a review sample. I’m a 19 year old college student who likes his music pure, and would hope that in the future, teens could appreciate the audiophile community the same way I do. Enjoy!

 

Keep in mind that all the pictures, while looking small on the page, were taken by a mid-resolution camera. I just didn't want to clutter up the page with large pictures. So feel free to click on them to see them in full resolution throughout the review!

 

Introduction:

 

There have been (at least for a while) the “kings” of price per performance in the headphone market. Starting with the lowly mod-able Monoprice 8323, jumping up to the Audio Technica ATH-M50’s, and then the Sennheiser 600/650 to name but a few. People are always on the search for a new budget king, and that’s sort of why the Massdrop/AKG K7XX made such a stir. This may be fitting to go in the “king” category.

 

You see, AKG had quite a few headphones in the K7 family, including the K701, Q701, K702, K712, and K702 Anniversary edition. I can imagine someone new to this thinking-

 

“What does all of this mean? …I’m bad enough at spelling as it is, now I have to remember 5 similar-but-different names of headphones and their differences?!?”

 

Well, fear not. All you gotta know is that the last two I mentioned (which you don’t even have to remember their names) are/were about $450 in stores, maybe $400 if you get a deal. The K7XX (the headphone I’m reviewing) sells for $200 list price, and will probably stay that way.

 

Now, if price was an indicator, which it usually is, you would probably think that the K7XX is worse off than the $450 ones, right?

 

Wrong. Well, mostly, anyway.

 

From what I understand, the K7XX was a collaboration between AKG and Massdrop, an online community where people can participate in group buys, which usually means lower price. The new K7XX edition is an improvement on the $450 pair. Why is it so cheap? Because Massdrop got a quote for 2000 people willing to participate in the group buy, all within a span of 6 days.

 

If Massdrop could assure that 2000 people buy this product in a week, then AKG would be more than happy to lower the price to $200. The buyers win, because they get a quite superior headphone for a greatly reduced price. AKG wins, because they can sell thousands of headphone straight from the get-go. Massdrop wins, because whether or not they get a share of the earnings (which I have no idea if they do), Massdrop as a website gets a lot of publicity, and chances are if you buy something once from them, you’ll buy again.

 

What happened? Massdrop sold 2782 (if my memory serves correctly) pairs of the K7XX in a week. They reinstated the drop again another 2 times that I’ve seen, both selling in the hundreds. So everybody’s (or almost, anyway) been happy.

 

I’ll go through some of the major points, as well as some things you should be aware of. Enjoy!

 

Packaging:

 

Standard, looks nice. I’m not much of a believer in packaging to begin with, so here’s 2 pictures. Otherwise, we’re done.
 

 
Build Quality:

 



Overall, it’s quite good. The cups feel solid. However, from what I picked up here and there, the more expensive models it’s based on (the K702 Anniversary edition, and the K712) are better built. There’s been some talk of the earlier ones being built in Austria while these were built in China, but honestly, for all the hype that China-built stuff aren’t good, these are built quite well.
 

The K7XX is built quite interestingly, though. Instead of an extension in the headband that you could make longer/shorter based on your head height, these stretch to your head through some elastic string on each side (scroll a bit down to picture 1). While I’m comfortable with the elastics themselves (they seem sturdy enough), although I was afraid the tension will wear out after a year or two, the plastic piece connected to them had my full concern (picture 2). I thought they would snap, break, or a combination of the two well within two years. From the time I've had it though, everything works well, and my initial concerns were for naught. It is strong plastic though, so perhaps it's built to last.

 

However, from those who’ve had the earlier models (which operate the same way), it seems that my concern is only an initial reaction. They’ve said that the elastic/plastic pieces work well, and as a reminder, they’re backed by a two year warranty. So if you feel alarmed like me, relax a little. They’re most probably going to last.

 

Along the top are 2 separate things, interesting as well. There’s the leather headband (picture 4, second row), which is quite comfortable, and is what you rest your head on. The previous models had uncomfortable bumps on them, so the K7XX being “bump-free” is a relief to many familiar with the AKG family. On top of the headband, though, there’s two long plastic pieces running almost directly parallel to the leather headband. This is really hard to explain, so please look at picture 5 (second row) to see what I’m talking about.

 

Those two long plastic pieces thingamajigs are, to my understanding, what keeps the cups connected. So I was also initially concerned with those, as the plastic…doesn’t feel too sturdy at all. However, I am brand new to the AKG headphones, and if they did it well until now with previous models, who am I to judge? Just to be aware though, don’t treat this like a Lenovo Yoga Flex 2.

 





 

Cups and Pads/Cushions:

 

The cups are really nice, all black… they look SO much better than the Q701’s, which many are green, or the K702’s, which are white and black, or… 

 

…This is a full-sized open back headphone, and you’re not going outside with these. This review is not for aesthetics, and it’s not going to be a decoration on the wall but on our ears. So, yes, it looks nice. All black, a step up color-wise from the other models in my opinion. But that’s it. I’m not spending 2 pages on comparing the color themes, for crying out loud. 

 
Cushions are very comfortable, reminds me of those memory foam pads. Big enough to cover most sized ears without a problem. In fact, these are huge to people who haven’t seen many full-sized headphones before. But that’s just the way these types of headphones are made.

 

There’s also a comfy inner cushion as well, directly covering the driver opening. So for those who feel that their ears are going to touch the inside of the cups, there’s padding for that as well. How considerate.

 

Both indicate they can be worn for hours without too much of a problem, although since the cups are so big you may have to readjust them on your head once in a while.

 

Ehm, I had a problem when I first got them, which was since these are so much bigger than my ear, in which position do the cups go over your ears… do you want the front of your ear touching the front part of the pad or the back of your ear touching the back part of the cushion? Although this sounds ridiculous, there is a different sound depending on which way you do it. I settled on pushing the cups forward, i.e. keeping my ear mostly towards the back part of the cup.

 

Awkward time over. Next section. 

 

Sound:

 

Here we go. This I’m familiar with.

 

First off, these headphones are quite lively. You can hear from the sound that they were meant for listening/relaxing, rather than mixing and studio purposes. Sounding very natural, which is a feat not all headphones can brag about, the K7XX in my honest opinion leave the “everything has to be exact and dry” category to enter the “be happy with me” one. While staying fairly accurate and natural, this pair knows how to twist the EQ here and there to make it sound impressive.

 

Lows/Bass: I’ve heard that people complained about the previous AKG models being “bass-lacking”, so AKG added a bit of a boost to this one. Nice and welcome, and doesn’t friggin’ take control of the frequency like those who say “oh, it’s not overpowering” and then they show you V-Moda’s. These are a part of the frequency, nothing more. You won’t feel like these have too much at all, while still staying prominent. They just have a slight boost. I am an anti-basshead as well, if there’s such a thing, so hopefully I can gain your trust with that.

 

While great in quantity, clarity, and size, to me they could have been a tad more controlled on the lower end. I did come from a closed back studio headphone, but even compared to many openback’s I have tried (Beyer T90, specifically) the bass seems a little “out there,” rather than controlled where you know when it begins and ends. The effect is one where it takes you into the music, rather than leaves you to dissect the sound. I think AKG may have done that purposefully, so that it can immerse you better, but more on that later.

 

Mids: Acoustics (guitar, cello, etc.) sound great and natural, although that should be a given based off the natural quality of these headphones. Vocals can be a bit tricky though. Either it’s my choice of amp (more on that later) or the headphones themselves, but unless the recording is mastered well (and not 3/4 of the pop songs out there), I’m personally left a little bit unsatisfied with the vocals. Even with well-recorded music and a good amp, the vocals don’t jump out at you. Or maybe my vocals aren’t that well recorded after all. Either way, if vocals are a big part of your music, brace yourself. It will show you the bad in those, if there are any. Any type of instrument sounds great with these though. Basically anything but vocals get a +1 from me.

 

Highs: Done quite well; I have no complaints about these. They still have that “snap” I’m so fond of, and quite a relief too. Drums sound better than I can ask for, although when mixing in with the type of bass the K7XX provides it perplexes me a bit.

 

Coloration: not much to say here, besides for that there’s really not much coloration going on here. Quantity differences, yes. Coloration, no.

 

Soundstage: Wide, oh wide. I mean height and depth too, not just wide. Big sound from a big headphone, although this is really famous with most of the AKG lineup. Definitely helps in terms of “getting into” the music. Very 3D-sounding, especially given the imaging. Natural + Soundstage = WIN in this case. Helps with the immersion factor tremendously (later section).

 

Imaging: Done well, although higher-end flagships may do it better. Nothing to complain about here.

 

Frequency Shape:  If I had to say, it would be slightly V-shaped, due to (what I think, anyway) a slightly boosted bass and treble. Not ATH-M50 V-shaped, only slightly.

 

Detail & Extension: Detail retrieval is as good as it needs to be, in my opinion. The bass is quite extended. However, the mids could use a bit more of detail, in my opinion. Studio headphones in particular are going to shine more in the detail department, but that doesn’t mean these are bad in any way.

 

Coherency and Flow: Very, very well done. AKG took a loud and big type of sound for the bass, a slightly smaller one for the mids, and a very precise sound for the highs, and made it all flow together. If all three parts of the frequency was like the lows, it would sound quite muddy. Everything like the mids, it would sound lacking. All like the Highs and there would be no way to immerse yourself in the music; it would be too techinical. AKG took all three and fused it into an interesting but enjoyable sound.

 

Immersion Factor: Crowning glory of this headphone, in my opinion. Technical details are really only there to help you hear what’s in your music, but we often forget about how enjoyable and immerse-able your headphones let your music become. The K7XX zones you in as if you’re at the center of the entire piece, which can only be done through all of the above.

 

Genres: EDM/Rave music, do not sound great with these, in my opinion. EDM thrives off of sharp and concise bass, and a natural sounding headphone won’t do much good for EDM either. Imagine a “natural” EDM instrument, if there was one. Blegh. Regular electronic sounds great though, but don’t expect this to be a dubstep headphone. Classical isn’t the shining glory with my amp right now, due to the amount of bass present in the setup. It still stays quite enjoyable though, even when not at it’s true best. Anything natural sounding (i.e. most instrumental music) and anything that thrives off a huge soundstage (psychedelic music, for example [Shpongle]) will sound really great.

 

I hate “fun” headphones. Like, really hate them. But sometimes studio headphones make your listening very dry and unlively. What AKG did well here is provide life to the music. I spent quite a few months before the K7XX with only a Studio headphone, and I have to say that the K7XX makes me much happier. Is it flat? No. Does it have a bit of extra bass? Yup. Is the frequency strung flat to the HD800’s? No. But if you’re ready to leave because it’s not as accurate as studio’s (and I don’t mean Beats), remember the LCD Flagship lineup. Are those LCD’s priced $1000-$2000 flat either? Not really. Also have a little boost in the lows, and some other frequency tweaks to my ear that make it sound more enjoyable.

 

For these reasons, I would say that the K7XX is an extremely immersive and enjoyable headphone. People who are looking for a high quality recording headphone should steer clear of this; it’s very likely to space out into the music instead of focusing on the recording itself. To say it in another way, these are more geared to a listener's perspective than a recorder's perspective. Their crowning ability in my opinion is how fast you can really "get lost" or space out with these headphones (they're great to relax). For a recorder, that may turn out to be harmful; you don't really want to space out when singing, you want to focus on what you have to do.

 

I would consider other high-reference/studio headphones as a 4k resolution screen, while the K7XX is IMAX at 1080p. Not everything is about the resolution; the type of screen makes a difference too.

 

And in this respect, AKG couldn’t have done better.

 

Amplification:

 

I really, really didn’t want to come to this section, because it’s so darn tricky. But here’s what I learned so far:

 

The K7XX are rated a 62 ohm headphone. 62 ohms aren’t usually enough to warrant a powerful amplifier, and most definitely doesn’t need one by any means. HOWEVER, akg’s K7 family are the quite opposite of that; they usually need quite a bit of power (and a good sounding amp, obviously) to sound good, more than the 300 ohm HD600’s from my understanding. I’ve tried the K7XX with a few low-mid tier amplifiers, and it friggin’ changes every time. Imagine how hard it is for me to do a review sound-wise when the EQ changes with every amp I own/have owned.

 

So if you think you can get away with this headphone without an amp, don’t. It absolutely needs one, I cannot stress this more. I’ve heard reviews saying that almost any good amp will do, and, to my understanding, that’s not entirely correct. Let me show you what I mean:

 

Nuforce Udac-2 dac/amp: Sounded pretty good for the first pairing, albeit not so “full” sounding. Vocals sounded awful, it was like the K7XX was a recording quality nazi.

 

Fiio E18: Colored, and awful sounding. On top of that, I always needed to push the volume up a little more, or else it sounded teeny. You know if you have to push the volume up that the headphone is not getting enough juice…

 

Schiit Magni 2 Uber: More than plenty of power, maybe almost a bit too much. Overall sound in the mids is too abrasive to my ears, and when the bass hits, it hurts my ears. Low gain was better, but still didn’t sound too great. Overall detail, clarity, etc. of the highs, mids, lows were slightly better than with the (next) Fiio E12.

 

Fiio E12: Finally, a good sounding pairing. The E12 is on the lower side of amps, though, so keep in mind that it will sound a bit more “warm” or “wet” than higher-end amps. Not colored in any way though, so that’s a plus.

 

Aune B1: For a standalone amplifier, the B1 sounds absolutely fantastic with the K7XX - smooth, very musical, and a real pleasure to listen to. Better than with the Fiio E12,, in my opinion, but both sound great, so don't "feel bad" if you don't have the money to buy the B1.

 

Heir Audio Rendition 1 Amplifier: A big name for a decent amplifier; while a mid-tier amp, and really great with all lower impedance headphones I’ve tried (Bang & Olufsen H6, KRK KNS8400), I’m basically getting a smaller version of the problem that the Fiio E18 had. I’m not feeling that the Rendition 1 is giving a full sound, although it’s possible that’s coming from the fact a just left a quite warm amplifier for a colder one. I hear all the details and clarity a mid-tier amp should, still, it leaves the K7XX underpowered. It becomes a little fatiguing as well.

 

CEntrance DACport Slim: This is the pairing that you should get if you're on a budget. The Slim is a DAC/amp all in one, and is quite small too. It was actually made with the K7XX in mind, so it's no wonder they work really great together. This pairing will get a good 90% (just to throw out a number) of what you'll hear from this headphone, and it's a beautifully sounding pair. I highly recommend this  pairing - especially since as DAC/amp's go, $100 is really not asking for much, much less for a powerful, good sounding piece of equipment.

 

Grace/Massdrop m9XX: I don't think anyone who has some vague form of a budget will actually be buying the m9XX, but I'd like to say that the K7XX scales very, very well with higher-end equipment such as the m9XX. In fact, with this DAC/amp (m9XX), it sounds like something double its actual cost - knocking out the HD600 and HD650, in my opinion.

 

…So, what you can hopefully take from this is that the K7XX, to me, can get quite picky. It may be why my vocal collection is getting different impressions from me as I move along. The CEntrance DACport Slim is the best budget-oriented choice to pair the K7XX with, but the Magni 2 is definitely not. Keep in mind you must have an amp to make the ‘phones sound their potential, and that these will scale wonderfully with higher tier amps. Basically, when moving up, you’ll really only need to replace the amp and/or source player, not the K7XX; the mark of a truly good headphone.

 

Price & Value:

 

As other reviews have said, for $200 there’s nothing like it. The soundstage, 3d presentation, and immersion factor coupled with quite impressive sound totally destroys most headphones in its price range. Ath-M50X? Not even close. I don’t know any closed-back headphones across the price spectrum that has presentation like this one. One head-fi’er told me during a meet that after this, it starts getting into the law of diminishing returns, so here’s a great place to start – and end, if you’re on a budget.

 

Now, the Sennheiser HD600’s can be had for ~$275 slightly used throughout the year, and $260 on black Friday. To me, they are both budget kings though. The HD600’s excel at a more balanced sound, and are great for recording purposes. The new K7XX is fabulous at listening to music to enjoy it, and immerses you like a boss. So I can’t say that one is better than the other, rather they are two very different types of headphones to be used for different purposes.

 

Conclusion:

 

Giant killers? Maybe. Either way, you won’t find out unless you find at least a good amp that pumps out a decent amount of power. For beginners, this is the one headphone you’ll be satisfied with in this price range, just watch out for the cost that amplifiers can cost you, and stick to the ones known well to work with it. The E12 is a great beginner option, but you will have to shell out ~$100 for that – not really great for people on a budget. The DACport Slim is the same price, but is a DAC as well, so it justifies the cost just a bit. Keep in mind though that it’s a completely different beast than probably any closed back headphone you’ve worn until now. Feed it right, and it can be a monster.

 

For the people familiar with headphones, I can’t bring frequency charts like other reviews do, but to my ear it can be a giant killer, with the right equipment. It won’t be to the same level that the HD800’s are, or the HE1000. But sub-$1000 it provides plenty of competition, and wins most of them, to me. Keep in mind the ear I’m using is the same one that was used in a blindfolded test of mid-high tier headphones for a bet with a friend, as well as during the HE1000 impressions, so you might want to trust me a bit beyond my age. Either way, though, expect to feed this well, and for the amplifier to be lagging behind the headphones for a while. Keep in mind the reminders on the build quality, although most say they shouldn’t be a problem. This isn’t a “basshead” headphone, although it is a bit bass-prominent, which may leave you with mixed feeling for your classical collection. Try to couple it with a bass-light amp, if you have one. Either way, it provides a really interesting sound that’s hard to miss; enjoyable, huge, and very immersive.

 

Quick Summary/Short Version:

 

1. These headphones are HUGE. To new users of open-backs.

 

2. That said, it provides amazing soundstage/imaging, and are very comfortable. Headband has no bumps, and earpads are of memory foam.

 

3. Very decent amount of detail. The extension is okay, while still decent; I don't feel it to be lacking.

 

4. Very natural sounding, so for anything that was quickly digitalized and/or vocals that weren't recorded perfectly, you WILL hear it with some amps. The upside and downside of any real decent headphone.

 

5. YOU NEED a great amp for these to sound their full potential. Since I upgraded to the Fiio E12, the pairing was good, although limited by the E12… These headphones scale with the amp you use.

 

6. Highs are great, still natural sounding, so maybe it doesn't have that snap drums have with studio headphones; it's more of a satisfying "thump". Precision is accurate, detail is great, and for an very open headphone, you can't ask for anything more.

 

7. Mids/Vocals sound freakishly natural, so any pop artists that use only "okay" recording equipment won't sound amazing with certain amps. These headphones will only sound as good as the recording, as any should. Not very forgiving.

 

8. The bass boost is very welcome and heard, but not overpowering. Could be a bit more controlled in my opinion, but maybe I'll change my mind after a few days with these. Edit: after a while, I feel that the bass, while not as controlled as some studio headphones, are there to suck you into the music, and suck you in it does.

 

9. It's interesting to have a bass boost in a natural and neutral headphone like these, but it surprisingly all fits together.

 

10. No rattling in mine, and everything sounds great.

 

11. I have not seen a more decent $200 headphone, and that is saying a lot. This to me is -by far- the best headphone in its price range - the HD600's was for years, but now this a cheaper, different, and more unique option. For every the criticism's in this review, there's another 3 positives with this new, affordable, and incredible sounding headphones.

 

12. These headphone make the music blend in together, while the instruments stay separate. Studio headphones - these are not, but reference they are and make a very good casual listening headphone too. Again, I don't like coloration, but even though these aren't studio 'phones, they are very natural in their presentation.

 

13. EDM/Dubstep will almost never sound great on a open natural-sounding headphone, and these are no exception. You probably want this if you have a lot of instrumental music, vocals that you can swear by that they had good recording equipment, and even electronic music that has no dubstep/scratching.

 

14. The Piano Guys, Lindsey Stirling, and most of OCRemix's albums (especially Deus Ex Augmentation) really shine with these.

 

15. Thank you to 1bentley4ever for catching the upper treble spike. It gives the impression of a more sharp headphone, while retaining bass. I wouldn't say these are U-shaped, but they seem to have a very slight V-shape sound.  

 

16. These headphones are great! I don't feel a need to upgrade anymore, although I wish picking an amp for this beast would be an easier matter...

 

Hope you enjoyed! Suggestions/criticisms are welcome.

EDIT: Head-fi didn't really let me scratch my old first impressions and post this new review, so I had to "edit" my previous impressions and use the same post date.... Post date for the review is 5/17/2015. Thank you!

 

Other picture(s):

 





 
 

First off, let me say that if you value clarity and like the details in your music, this is for you. I can't stand skullcandy headphones with its booming bass and muddy mids and highs. This is really one of most detailed headphones for the price, and there is a truly nice extension on really part of the music that is playing; whether it be a cello, guitar, piano, edm, or something in between. This headphone reveals details I never knew existed in the music. As I said, if you like details, and lots of them, the KRK KNS 8400 is the best match for you. Not to mention this is THE clearest headphone I got for the price (at $85) and even going up to... really anything besides for the ath-m50's, which for sure don't have the level of detail this does. 
 
Remember that the 8400's are monitoring headphones - they are neutral and flat sounding. Keep in mind that nothing will jump out at you with a level of lively attack, for lack of better words. That being said, SINCE there are no sharp peaks anywhere in the sound chart, you could listen to these for hours on end without feeling fatigued. From previous headphones where I couldn't listen for more than 45 min. at a time, my first time with these I listened for 8 hours straight on a plane without ear fatigue. And it only got better from there. Definitely a huge plus if your an avid listener.
 
Don't think though that these will suck the musical part outta the music and make it boring. On the contrary, I like "feeling" the music and getting into it - these definitely are good for casual listening too.
 
Isolation is quite amazing from what I'm experiencing - I can't hear people when I have them on. And these don't even have active noise canceling.
 
Comfort is great - besides for being able to listen to these for 8 hours straight, the earpad comfort has been great from the start and just got better over time. Keep in mind the top of the headband can get a bit stiff - maybe you might want to replace that with something a bit more comfortable. Earpads are memory foam and a barely feel it when it's on my head.
 
These are amazing; definitely an audiophiliac sound on a low budget. Keep in mind though the flat-ish sound, the soundstage being a bit small, and the 8-foot cable. 
 
If you enjoy and appreciate your music, ignore what everybody else says and get these. I've listened to a lot of headphones and this one takes the cake.
 
Oh, and make sure give it some burn-in. LOTS of burn-in.
 
You cannot fool these headphones. If it's a lousy recording, you will hear it. A lot. If it's a great performance though, well, you'll hear that too.
 
Enjoy the KRK!