then your opinion interest me greatly.... And i want to know if my impressions match your own in some way about the K340....
JAnonymous5150
Thanks for your appreciation....
But you know a greater number of headphones than me by far,
For those who are interested these are my first impressions of the AKG K340s:
Over the last several days I have spent somewhere around 15 hours or so listening to the AKG K340s on various rigs, running all manner of musical genres through them. Let me just say that I'm not aware of a pair of headphones with this level of imaging and detail that can be had today for this kind of money (sub $250 is common market price, I got mine for $150).
Before I got ahold of these, I did some research that left me expecting a pair of headphones that had to be EQed to be listenable because of a fatiguing upper mid peak and an obvious and similarly fatiguing inconsistency between the performance of the dynamic unit and the electrostatic unit. Once I got to listening to the K340s I found that both issues, if you want to call them that, were highly overstated and that the suggested rememdies that I tried took away the unique character of these headphones that I really grew to like. With that in mind, all of these observations refer to the sound of the K340s without EQ.
The K340s do require a good, strong source of amplification, but, IME, most decent desktop headphone amplifiers should be able to cover their needs. For instance, my JDS Labs El Amp 2+, which is pretty standard desktop headphone amplifier fare, can drive the K340s with power to spare. I tried them on a few other more powerful amps and didn't find that they scaled to perform better so that's another area where I found myself disagreeing with some of the opinions I read before I acquired my pair. @Davidzak64 was kind enough to give me the tip to plug in the K340s when I first got them for a while before listening to make sure the electrostatic system was energized otherwise they can sound lifeless so I'll pass that on here to future owners.
For tuning, the K340s are pretty typical AKG: Fast, articulate, non-emphasized/neutral bass that reaches deep and gives you exactly the levels of bass that are supposed to be present in detailed, high quality fashion. Mids that are open, very detailed, and very revealing, though somehow the K340s mids are more forgiving than those on the 700 and 800 series. Treble that's well extended, capable of resolving the smallest micro details with fast transients and plenty of air. There is an upper mid peak that I can see some finding fatiguing, but I found it well within my ears' range of tolerance and had no problem with it.
The stars of the show are the detailed reproduction qualities which are present in spades throughout the K340's sonic range and the precise imaging capabilities that are equally apparent. The low end is particularly impressive with how controlled and articulate it remains even on the most crowded and demanding tracks. It makes listening to some of the prog stuff I have been diggin' lately a joy. The K340's soundstage is maybe just a touch less wide than the x7xx AKGs I own, but with better depth and decent height as well. The truly spectacular thing is how the headphones are able to place and layer sources and sounds within that stage, putting plenty of air between them making it easy to "look inside" the music and analyze exactly what's going on with any given source. For headphones in this price range and for a lot more, I have never heard an equal to the K340s in this regard. Period.
The dynamic-electrostatic combo does create a unique timbre and presentation that isn't the most natural, but, to me at least, is enjoyable all the same. I'm not going to attempt to describe it here, it's just something you have to hear. I tried a few different folks' EQ settings for these heasphones and did my own experimenting, but at the end of the day they all took away from this unique quality and I'm not willing to give that up because it's a big part of the draw and the charm of the K340s.
Basically, if you're looking for a unique pair of headphones with incredible imaging and detail retrieval for $250 or less, the K340s are as good as it gets. I'm really glad that the K340s I saw on this thread reignited my semi-dormant desire to own a pair of these headphones. I plan to keep them in my collection for a long time to come. I've never heard anything like so they've created a space for themselves in my collection that can't really be filled by anything else I'm aware of so I guess the K340s have made themselves irreplaceable.
I also want to take the opportunity to thank @Davidzak64 for answering all my questions about the K340s, the different versions available, and for sharing his thoughts on various points and issues I have encountered in my introduction to these awesome phones. Just when I thought I was done with acquiring gear for a while the shop owner who put me in touch with the seller I purchased my K340s from has told me that he's got a line on a pair of K1000s in ridiculously good condition...
I hooe that people find this useful and helpful ir at least an interesting read.
P.S. Ignore any typos. Typed on my phone. I'll edit later at some point, but ran out of time at the moment and don't want to leave an anxious reading audience waiting on tenterhooks any longer.
P.P.S. I originally posted this on a thread about which heasphones you're listening to now because some users were interested in my opinions on the K340s. @Davidzak64 and @jonathan c also encourage me to post this here so more head-fiers and potential future buyers of the AKG K340s would be more likely to find it so thanks again guys.
You had more expertise than me about headphones.... The list of what you own is impressive and your review of the K340 make sense to me....
My main experience is with room acoustic homemade....
I like to think I have decent ear and I'm very proud of the gear I own, but keep in mind that anybody can throw money into a hobby and have an impressive gear list. The example I always like to use is precision long range rifle shooting which has been a hobby of mine ever since the Marine Corps saw fit to put me behind a .338 in Afghanistan and Iraq. You will find plenty of dudes shooting at their local ranges and rifle clubs with $10k or more of custom rifle and high end optics in their rigs that are consistently struggling to group shots especially as the distances increase and then you'll see the guys out there with an old worn in Winchester/Remington/Savage and a $700 scope putting these wallet warriors to shame.
It has only been the last 5 or 6 years that I have been able to own really high end equipment, but I soent decades before that enjoying midfi values on my starving musician's budget. If you look at my collection you'll see that I still have a soft spot for some of my favorite midfi all-stars. Point being, I like to think that I have the gear, the experience, and the passion. Thanks for the kind words. I'm not sure when I'll have time to get around to trying out some of your mods, but I'll be sure to keep you posted on how they work out when I do. My K340s aren't going anywhere, that's for sure!
I owned both K1000 and K340 and now I still own the K340. The K340 was a much more versatile headphone in my ears.I just read reviews of many top headphones costing often more than 2 thousand bucks....
It is very instructive to read reviews very attentively and read between the lines and note the thing which no one speak about most of the times....
I am very lucky by the way to own this headphone which kills any upgraditis in the egg.....
I even read by someone who owned the K340, perhaps KT88 himself i dont remember , that the K340 after optimal modifications, rival the successor K1000 flagship in transparency in spite of their difference ....And beat it with bass extended and deep....I dont know for that, some owning the two here could comment about this....
But if it is a great testimony about the K340 when no AKG successor ever could kill it or put it on shame or make people ever forgot about it ....Certainly not the ex-flagship K701 which i own and which is not a bad headphone at all compared to most but which cannot hold a candle compared to the "solar" K340.......
The real reason for my post now is this: the K340 is an headphone acoustically able to reveal much about a recording condition, and his specialty will be acoustic instrument, it sound marvellous with them, but it will detect heavily studio trafficked recording in particular.... It is not particularly interesting to use it with recording which are "artificial" or "commercial" in a bad sense....They dont forgive them and dont hide "artificialities" and reveal in a fatiguing way the gluing of tracks in studio .... This is their defect for me which is the opposite face of their main quality : it is an headphone with an acoustic new tool : 5 passive resonators and it reveal the acoustic atmosphere of a recording very well ....
In most reviews people insist on the hybrid technology but the introduction of passive resonators are not less impressive, especially in an headphone which, contrary to the K240 with the same passive resonators, are able to create with these 2 drivers deeper bass and higher highs and articulated contrasts than the K240 .... Here with the K340 the acoustic difference made by the presence of these resonators work at the maximum possible positive effect....
I will not repeat what their very informative marketing sheets says , but read it attentively.... I know they are right and it is not unscientific publicity from them at all, because what they did in a way can be transposed in room acoustic.... In a room too we can use Helmholtz passive resonators and diffusers in a way to "crossfeed" the speakers mechanically to improve the soundfield and make it expansive around the room and around us .... I know because i did it.... This was the reason why my speakers/room beat all my headphones....
But my room/speakers did not beat the K340 which is able to recreate this soundfield "out of the head" in a kind of virtual room around me....When the recording make it possible.... If the recording is not so good anyway the sound resemble more a real natural open sound in a room than it resemble an closed headphone sound, even when the sound in many recordings is itself only around my head or inside it for other recordings ....
