Impressions from a Layman
AKG K361 and K371 / Drop Panda / AirPods Max
Ok, nothing major or so formal, but I wanted to share some quick anecdotes from my wife's sister, who is not an audiophile at all.
Wife's Sister. Non-audiophile. Layman. Blind Test
(I placed headphones on her head, she didn't know which was which; hasn't heard any before)
Song: Santa Tell me
Artist: Ariana Grande
She proceeds to go back and forth between them as I place them on her head, while I type notes as shown in her commentary below.
APM (fourth headphone tried): With the last one [APM], the voice and the other instruments came through sparkly. I could hear all of them. It sounds like...three layers of sounds. The beats from the bass...kind of reverberate in the background. They linger after they are hit. It's nice, because it creates another layer of sound. It's almost like...surround sound?
Panda (third headphone tried): The other one [the Drop Panda] sounded muddled. The headphones also felt heavier.
K371 (second headphone tried): *tries on the K371; shows visible critical 'meh' face*
Static-y [referring to K371 on head]. There's so much static! The other one that sounded like 3 layers, I could hear all the sounds. In this one, it sounds like the static is breaking up the sound of her voice.
K361 (first headphone tried on track): Her voice is the most prominent part. I guess people might like that more. I like the bass. It doesn't linger, like you don't feel it. I like that [with the APM] you feel you're in the song. In this one though, her voice feels more forward than anything else.
*I proceed to tell her that some critics prefer K361/K371 as I point to them*
*She responds with a shaking head and grimace of disapproval*
Not blind testing anymore. She continues choosing tracks, but now picking up each whichever headphone she wants as she goes.
Song: Tatooed Heart
Artist: Ariana Grande
APM (first headphone tried on track): *bobs head back and forth*
Goosebumps! I've heard this song a lot before [I haven't heard it this way before]! This song sounds...really good on these! You should try these *tells my wife to put them on*
So this song has violins in there...and there are drums...it builds...it feels like you're right on the stage with them.
Panda (second headphone tried): Didn't get goosebumps with this one. *proceeds to move on to K361*
K371 (fourth headphone tried): These aren't as comfortable. Like, the weight is all on top. Wow, that's like...*scoffs* That part of the song that builds, that was really nice on the Apple ones, were flat. It didn't build the way the Apple ones did. The end point was just not...exciting. It doesn't do the song justice.
K361 (third headphone tried): Definitely less bass. Doesn't sound as grand as on the Apple ones. With those, it felt like you were on stage and the percussion was on you. It was so present and just so good. You can hear it in this one but it doesn't give you the same feel. But I liked these headphones more on this song than I did on the Santa tell me song.
Song: Bring Me Love
Artist: John Legend
APM (second headphone tried on track): *see K371 notes*
Panda (third headphone tried): The bass drum isn't prominent on this one either. It's not very clear on this one either [like the K371 wasn't clear]. I just like that bass to be prominent in my music. That's how you keep tempo.
K371 (first headphone tried): *no notes at first; places APM on head before saying anything*
I think this has to do with the pads themselves and how it fits I your ears. With this one, you know how when in a movie someone is listening to headphones and the camera pans out from them listening to music, to showing the audience a scene? Where the character is still listening to the music, [the K371] sounds like how you still hear that character's music but you're also listening to the scene sounds. The music sounds distant, like you're not really hearing the sound yourself. Maybe this is because the pads sit on your ear a certain way? When I listen to the Apple ones, it feels more immersive.
The bass is very muddled. For a song like this, the bass kind of like grounds the song? In a way that just like...it's just very nice to listen to on the Airpods.
K361 (fourth headphone tried): It's just very voice forward. Yea...so with these two *points to K361/371*, it feels like they take the bass away, like in a movie, when they want you to move your attention away from a song. It sounds like you're listening at just a surface level.
Her Summary
In short, my preference is the AirPods, for my taste. I can see someone who just wants to listen to the voice of the artist, would choose these two..the "k's."
The Panda are more comfortable than the K's, they have a nicer weight to them. Very comfortable.
The AirPods, I think because they completely surround my ear, but not touching my ear...they're just very comfortable. They also have a very nice bass to them. Personally I would get the AirPods, not knowing anything about their prices.
*I tell her the prices and ask which one she would get*
That makes sense.
*I ask her "so what do you think?"*
I would have to listen to these [the Pandas] a little bit more. At that point, at $400, I would pay $550 for the AirPods, because the overall listening experience was just so nice for me, for what I listen to. I like that immersive bass feel. And they're really comfortable and they have good weight to them. I personally don't use headphones that often, so I can see having a pair of headphones for a very long time. I would buy a pair of these.