[Novirius]

I have the AKG K702 (Without the bumps) right now. I may end up returning them if I am unable to make them comfortable in the next few days. I will not pretend to know audiophile terminology well, but I will try my best to outline my wants.

Sound:

I really enjoyed the sound signature of AKG K702. I liked the soundstage, neutrality, and detail -- I will be using these for gaming. I don't mind sacrificing bass for detailed mids and highs. I have tried AKG K702 with Brainwave XL Gel pads and I preferred the stock sound. Compared to the M50x and TAD500, I much preferred the K702 sound signature.

Comfort:

The problem I had with these is that they pushed the area under my ear and caused discomfort. In the past, I have used ATH TAD500 and found them comfortable other than the earpad resting on my earlobe -- thus, causing discomfort after a few hours. I have tried several AKG headphones at Guitarcenter and found the AKG K240 Studio to be comfortable. Unfortunately, they do not have the sound signature I am after. I did not find Beyerdynamic DT770 that comfortable for the same reasons as the K702.

If there's anything I can do to make my preference/situation clearer, feel free to comment below. Ty for your help!

 

[serman005]

Not exactly sure of the budget here, but if comfort is an issue, I would suggest you look into a Senn HD598 or HD599 and see if the different signatures (598 and 599 are pretty similar--599 has more bass, so maybe a 598 for you?) might suit you. Another nice option could be a SoundMAGIC HP200--a very underrated open headphone IMO that could potentially work.

 

[Novirius]

How do those compare to HD6XX in comfort? I'm probably stretching the limit of my Amazon return rate at this point, so I want to make sure I get it "right" on the next buy. Ty for your help!

 

[Novirius]

After looking into it, I want to thank you for opening my eyes to the HD 598. I'm just out in the wild thinking HD650 were defacto better, for my needs, than the HD598. I'm still open for suggestions, but I really like what I'm seeing about the HD 598.

 

[PurpleAngel]

I have the AKG K702 (Without the bumps) right now. I may end up returning them if I am unable to make them comfortable in the next few days. I will not pretend to know audiophile terminology well, but I will try my best to outline my wants.
Sound:
I really enjoyed the sound signature of AKG K702. I liked the soundstage, neutrality, and detail -- I will be using these for gaming. I don't mind sacrificing bass for detailed mids and highs. I have tried AKG K702 with Brainwave XL Gel pads and I preferred the stock sound. Compared to the M50x and TAD500, I much preferred the K702 sound signature.
Comfort:
The problem I had with these is that they pushed the area under my ear and caused discomfort. In the past, I have used ATH TAD500 and found them comfortable other than the earpad resting on my earlobe -- thus, causing discomfort after a few hours. I have tried several AKG headphones at Guitarcenter and found the AKG K240 Studio to be comfortable. Unfortunately, they do not have the sound signature I am after. I did not find Beyerdynamic DT770 that comfortable for the same reasons as the K702.
If there's anything I can do to make my preference/situation clearer, feel free to comment below. Ty for your help!

By discomfort, do you mean the AKG K702 have a tight grip on your head?

 

[buke9]

After looking into it, I want to thank you for opening my eyes to the HD 598. I'm just out in the wild thinking HD650 were defacto better, for my needs, than the HD598. I'm still open for suggestions, but I really like what I'm seeing about the HD 598.

For gaming I would not pic the HD-650’s as they have a narrow soundstage but good on detail many think they don’t as they are not bright but for music and with a Bottlehead Crack the mids on them are just awesome. As @serman005 suggested the SoundMagic HP-200’s are also very good in this price range.

 

[Novirius]

By discomfort, do you mean the AKG K702 have a tight grip on your head?

The top is fine, but the pads push into my jaw and hurt

 

[Novirius]

For gaming I would not pic the HD-650’s as they have a narrow soundstage but good on detail many think they don’t as they are not bright but for music and with a Bottlehead Crack the mids on them are just awesome. As @serman005 suggested the SoundMagic HP-200’s are also very good in this price range.

I'll take a look at those when back home. I was previously looking into those, hd598, he400i, akg 240studio, and akg k553. Any idea what to add to the list/experience with those?

 

[buke9]

I'll take a look at those when back home. I was previously looking into those, hd598, he400i, akg 240studio, and akg k553. Any idea what to add to the list/experience with those?

I have the HE-400, He-400S and vintage K240 Monitor 600 ohm.

 

[Novirius]

I have the HE-400, He-400S and vintage K240 Monitor 600 ohm.

How do you feel the clamping force of the HE400 is? I really liked the K240, but I think the sound signature is not what I'm looking for. I've heard mixed things about the HE400 soundstage -- probably because it gets compared to different things. I hear it's larger than HD600 but smaller than HD598.

 

[ProtegeManiac]

The top is fine, but the pads push into my jaw and hurt

Loosen the clamp force first since that's the first factor. Unfortunately unlike the metal arms on Sennheisers and Grados you can't just bend that so you're going to have to stretch them over something, like using it like bookends, on a row of books wider than your head.

Note that this will wear out the pads so you might as well put on the Brainwavz pads, which might also be thicker. And this takes about a week or so. Even then, no guarantees since there's a limit to how far it can stretch. You can't actually make it bigger to fit your head, you're just guaranteeing that it doesn't revert to the default size that the packaging squeezed it into since ya know they need to keep the box size as efficient as possible to fit more into each crate and into each container van.

Also make sure the earpads are properly oriented. A thread from a couple weeks ago or so had it turn up that the pads were on wrong, with the thick part on the bottom. They're supposed to be towards the rear to give the drivers a toe-in angle relative to your ears the way speakers would be set up.

 

[Novirius]

Loosen the clamp force first since that's the first factor. Unfortunately unlike the metal arms on Sennheisers and Grados you can't just bend that so you're going to have to stretch them over something, like using it like bookends, on a row of books wider than your head.

Note that this will wear out the pads so you might as well put on the Brainwavz pads, which might also be thicker. And this takes about a week or so. Even then, no guarantees since there's a limit to how far it can stretch. You can't actually make it bigger to fit your head, you're just guaranteeing that it doesn't revert to the default size that the packaging squeezed it into since ya know they need to keep the box size as efficient as possible to fit more into each crate and into each container van.

Also make sure the earpads are properly oriented. A thread from a couple weeks ago or so had it turn up that the pads were on wrong, with the thick part on the bottom. They're supposed to be towards the rear to give the drivers a toe-in angle relative to your ears the way speakers would be set up.

Hey, I'm the same poster lol. I decided to just change headphones since I think it's a bad fit for me. I just don't know which headphone would be the closest match to it and be more comfortable.

 

[ProtegeManiac]

Hey, I'm the same poster lol. I decided to just change headphones since I think it's a bad fit for me. I just don't know which headphone would be the closest match to it and be more comfortable.

Oh LOL alright if you just get a new one maybe try the K553? It's somewhat similar but it has the opposite issue - the default fit is more for bigger heads that people who would otherwise find the K7xx/6xx series comfortable initially reported that the bass is absolutely non-existent in the K550. They re-tuned the dampening materials if not the drivers themselves in the K553 to get the bass back for that fit but otherwise the fit is the same.

In case the fit is too loose the "small head mod" can still work, not to mention it has metal arms that you can bend inward.

 

[Novirius]

Oh LOL alright if you just get a new one maybe try the K553? It's somewhat similar but it has the opposite issue - the default fit is more for bigger heads that people who would otherwise find the K7xx/6xx series comfortable initially reported that the bass is absolutely non-existent in the K550. They re-tuned the dampening materials if not the drivers themselves in the K553 to get the bass back for that fit but otherwise the fit is the same.

In case the fit is too loose the "small head mod" can still work, not to mention it has metal arms that you can bend inward.

After a bit of research, I think I'm down to Beyerdynamic T90, HD598, and K553. Do you have any experience with the other two headphones? I'm hearing great reviews about the HG598 soundstage, mids, highs, and comfort.

 

[ProtegeManiac]

After a bit of research, I think I'm down to Beyerdynamic T90, HD598, and K553. Do you have any experience with the other two headphones? I'm hearing great reviews about the HG598 soundstage, mids, highs, and comfort.

T90 can be bright and even brighter if it fits a bit tight. You can adjust it but if the K702 is tight on you it's even harder to assume these can be adjusted to be looser.

HD598 is OK, probably the better choice. Won't have the K702's depth but that's the closest it gets but with different ergonomics save for the HD800(S).