[mourip]

Hi,

I just bought a used pair of AKG K1000s. They are in great shape and have remarkable sound. They have a serial number of 05059. I was wondering what the serial number of a brand new model would be. Also anyone know how long they have been making these?

Thanks,

Paul

 

[Beauregard]

My brand new ones are SN 11458.

Alas... I couldn't get comfortable with them - the dreaded head-in-a-vice feeling. Major disappointment since they sound so damn good - but they're going back.

I think AKG introduced the K1000s around 1990.

Enjoy yours!

Enviously,
Beau

 

[mourip]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Beauregard My brand new ones are SN 11458. Alas... I couldn't get comfortable with them - the dreaded head-in-a-vice feeling. Major disappointment since they sound so damn good - but they're going back. I think AKG introduced the K1000s around 1990. Enjoy yours! Enviously, Beau

Thanks for the SN#. Looks like mine are broken in

The jury is still out for me regarding these phones. I also have a new pair of HD650's which I bought at the same time with the idea that I would keep one of the two. The 650's are wonderful and comfortable. The K1000's do not hurt my head but do feel odd because of the way they sit and also their completely open structure. The sound with my modded Sonic Impact amp is, however, remarkable. I will probably keep trying them for a while to see it I can get used to them. It sort of amazes me that AKG has not come up with a better support structure for these. Right now it is a bit like wearing a pile of coathangers on your head... fine unless you move

Best,

Paul

 

[lan]

You can bend the metal frames to more your liking. I've worn a pair of K1000s at a meet which was very loose.

Did you guys also space the temple pads far apart?

 

[tkam]

Quote:

Originally Posted by mourip It sort of amazes me that AKG has not come up with a better support structure for these. Right now it is a bit like wearing a pile of coathangers on your head... fine unless you move Best, Paul

You could always do what I did and get the k1000 drivers put in the cd3000 housing. Gives you the best of both worlds that great k1000 sound (with more/better bass) and the cd3000 comfort.

 

[Beauregard]

Quote:

Originally Posted by lan You can bend the metal frames to more your liking. I've worn a pair of K1000s at a meet which was very loose. Did you guys also space the temple pads far apart?

I experimented with the temple pads ad nauseum, as well as head position, angle, fooling with the headband, etc. I did some very judicious stretching to see if I could loosen them up but wasn't willing to experiment too much with a new item under 30-day evaluation. I figure if folks like Todd are willing to extend such a courtesy, then they should get their products back in like-new condition.

Quote:

The jury is still out for me regarding these phones. I also have a new pair of HD650's which I bought at the same time with the idea that I would keep one of the two. The 650's are wonderful and comfortable. The K1000's do not hurt my head but do feel odd because of the way they sit and also their completely open structure. The sound with my modded Sonic Impact amp is, however, remarkable. I will probably keep trying them for a while to see it I can get used to them. It sort of amazes me that AKG has not come up with a better support structure for these. Right now it is a bit like wearing a pile of coathangers on your head... fine unless you move

mourip,

Heheh... got a chuckle out of that description.

The K1000s were supposed to be the basis of my once every ten year audio fix and I regret they didn't work out. The good news is that I switched to Plan B - HeadRoom Maxed-Out Home with Senn HD650s - am most pleased after a week of listening! I've used an original HeadRoom Home with 580s for over ten years and have loved the combo. I hoped that the new amp and latest Senn phones would give me "more better" of what I was used to but was worried about what degree of improvement I'd be getting for the expense. Even with my old CD player, I'm getting exactly what I wished for... the "same sound" but distinctly improved in all dimensions!

I didn't order the HeadRoom/Senns until I was 90% sure that I wasn't going to keep the K1000s so it's just speculation but I think I may have gone with the Senn based set-up even if there weren't comfort issues with the AKG. I love the HeadRoom crossfeed implementation and have gotten so used to it being the way that headphones sound that I'm not sure how the K1000s would have proven out over time. Their presentation was fantastic for pop music but I found myself feeling err... embarrassed when listening to symphonic or chamber music. Like I'd arrived at a concert and found myself standing in the middle of the woodwind section or was an unwanted fifth member of the string quartet! I think if comfort hadn't interefered, I'd be more apt to consider the K1000s as the basis for a second system than as my primary means of enjoying music through headphones.

Best,
Beau

 

[fmplautus]

Oh, thou who are not of stout ears...you hath proved unworthy of the great red caliper...be gone.

 

[Beauregard]

Quote:

Originally Posted by fmplautus Oh, thou who are not of stout ears...you hath proved unworthy of the great red caliper...be gone.

Ha!!!

 

[mourip]

Quote:

Originally Posted by lan You can bend the metal frames to more your liking. I've worn a pair of K1000s at a meet which was very loose. Did you guys also space the temple pads far apart?

Moveable spacers, huh? Whoah, your are right... I missed that. I just looked in the sparse manual and it mentions it but just barely. That does help some. Actually I do not find them that uncomfortable.

I am still tweaking my Sonic Impact "rebuild" and found that someone's suggestion of putting a 5-10 ohm resistor in parallel to the phones did make a big improvement... much more balanced sound. BTW, you can do this without opening the box . Just put the resistor ends into those nasty speaker clips between the pos/neg terminals, one per channel. Use a good size wattage. I had a couple of 5ohm 10 watt wirewounds in my box that worked well. This keeps the amp seeing something closer to it's expected load.

I have a lot of experimenting left to do with these phones. I have not yet hooked them up to my old homebrew 6BM8 single-ended spud amp yet. That amp has not seen much use since I made a gainclone amp and especially since I learned about the SI. I never thought that I would turn to the dark side but these new SS amps are quite remarkable.

Best,

Paul

 

[Nigel]

Anyone else tried the parallel resistor tweak when driving the K1000's?