[Katun]

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I haven't spoken with RD in detail about this headphone, but we are probably referring to the same thing. There is some driver resonance or ringing in the upper midrange or lower treble at where I think is around 6.5kHz. This is the effect that made my jump out of my chair. It's very serious IMO. I (and RD) tend to live day to day with very well behaved cans with no appreciable resonances and ringing, so it's likely we are more sensitive to this effect. I believe that RD was trying to work on stuffing the earcups in hopes that any damping material will dampen this ringing effect.
 
I don't think anyone has taken measurements of these headphones so far, but the proof should in the CSD plots (which are really good at showing stored energy in the drivers) once get my hands on these headphones.
 
As far the the HD650s slowish muddy undefined bass, it's because they have high second and third order non-linear distortion in the bass. This effect too can be measured and plotted. It's a simply matter of presenting and visualizing the data properly. It's actually very possible to correlate what we hear with meaningful sets (as opposed to a bunch of non-meaningful) of measurements.
 
In the end, the measurements don't really matter. Measurements are only a tool to communicate certain aspects of a headphone's sound to people who understand them and have seen many of them in relation to what they have heard. There is no guarantee that bad measurements will mean that a headphone will sound bad to most people. However, there is a stronger correlation with good measurements to good sound.

 
Well, I certainly do appreciate that you are are explaining in an effective, yet civil manor...

 

[litster]

Quote:

I haven't spoken with RD in detail about this headphone, but we are probably referring to the same thing. There is some driver resonance or ringing in the upper midrange or lower treble at where I think is around 6.5kHz. This is the effect that made my jump out of my chair. It's very serious IMO.

 
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tdockweiler, believe it or not, I have seen Purrin listen to a brand new headphone and within 10 seconds, draw a frequency response plot, give critical and accurate judgment of it's sonic qualities/flaws and THEN proceed to measure it. After processing his measurements on his uber-computer and measurement rig...guess what....the frequency response plot looked EXACTLY like the one he drew out.
 
There aren't many ears I would trust but I do trust Purrin's.
 

 
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There is something strange going on with these headphones. WhenI heard them at Headroom table T.H.E. SHOW: Upon a certain musical passage, I jumped off my seat and immediately ripped the headphones off my head. I had to put on the HD650s on the rig next to me to restore my sanity. I'm sure RD will be sending me this modded pair soon. However, I doubt however skilled he is, he is going to be able to fix these.

 
I would like to see that frequency response plot of that strange, 6.5kHz ringing sound drawn after purrin's 10-20 seconds of listening to the K550 and then see how that compares to  the graph drawn from purrin's uber-computer and measurement rig.

 

[purrin]

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Personally, I bet "specific individuals" are sick and tired of reading all this K550 hype, especially from notable reviewers, and somehow want to prove, "Oh, I must have more critically accurate ears than you, because the K550 sucks, and you said it's awesome" by means of absolutely pointless, relentless bashing. Or perhaps it's because they hate fads and have to combat the surplus population by concentrating their efforts into over-exaggerating negatives to prove their ground? Regardless, talk about low class. You know, it's one thing to say a headphone has problems, even serious ones; but a lot that's been said here makes beating a dead horse look like an olympic sport. I mean, honestly, how the heck are you supposed to interpret elephants taking a crap on your head? Is there really an audible experience that can possible match that? (Not necessarily in a literal sense, obviously. Although, even THAT line has been blurred...) Personally, I wouldn't even resort to classifying stock earbuds as that. And of course, by saying that I'm sure some would think, "That's because he's just got easier parameters in judging headphones while I'm far more strict because I've got the better ear and/or am harder to please." Okay, whatever. But I honestly hope that one would realize that my (or anyone else's for that matter) interpretation of "awful" or "acceptable" or "awesome" is probably going to be different than another's. And in this case, it better be!
 
And no, I'm not defending the K550. Nor would I take anything personal. Just thought I'd point out some of the lunacy that seems excessively prevalent.

 
If you are referring to me, you assume too much. I didn't know about the existence of this headphone until I found out RD mentioned he was modding one a few days ago. Nor did I know that it being hyped. A few people mentioned that it was on the thin side of things, but that was about all I heard about the K550. At T.H.E SHOW, one of my friends mentioned it was at the HeadRoom table (kind of hidden away int he back somewhere), so I decided to walk over and have a listen the next day. 
 
I was seriously offended. I still stand by my subjective impression of this headphone: the elephant taking a massive dump all over the street. And yes, I wouldn't classify stock Apple earbuds like this either - because while they suck - they are not offensive. As far as over exaggerating, this headphone may actually win out over the HD700 for the "Peak of the Year" award. It's actually that bad, at least to me.
 
As far a beating a dead horse, what drew me here was not the need to beat a dead horse, but rather the mocking of what RD had to say about the resonance issue. RD may not have been able to explain in the most precise words what he was hearing, but he definitely was not hearing stuff that wasn't there.

 

[Katun]

Quote:

 
If you are referring to me, you assume too much. I didn't know about the existence of this headphone until I found out RD mentioned he was modding one a few days ago. Nor did I know that it being hyped. A few people mentioned that it was on the thin side of things, but that was about all I heard about the K550. At T.H.E SHOW, one of my friends mentioned it was at the HeadRoom table (kind of hidden away int he back somewhere), so I decided to walk over and have a listen the next day. 
 
I was seriously offended. I still stand by my subjective impression of this headphone: the elephant taking a massive dump all over the street. And yes, I wouldn't classify stock Apple earbuds like this either - because while they suck - they are not offensive. As far as over exaggerating, this headphone may actually win out over the HD700 for the "Peak of the Year" award. It's actually that bad, at least to me.
 
As far a beating a dead horse, what drew me here was not the need to beat a dead horse, but rather the mocking of what RD had to say about the resonance issue. RD may not have been able to explain in the most precise words what he was hearing, but he definitely was not hearing stuff that wasn't there.

 
Of course I'm assuming too much, I'm glad I made it obvious enough. That's all I've got when trying to piece together the smidgens of useful information regarding how "wretched" these sound.
*That said, no, I wasn't entirely referring to you. I know RD is hiding in the shadows somewhere. At least you explained the sound issues in a previous post, and I appreciate that. Unlike...*
 
In that case, kudos. I'm glad you can clarify your seemingly outrageous post as accurate! I think that's quite hilarious actually. Not being sarcastic in any of that either.
 
Fair enough. RD got the ball rolling yesterday, so when you popped up with similar "spam-esque" impressions, I honestly didn't know what to think.

 

[purrin]

I do have to apologize for my behavior. I sort of assumed that since turds had already been flung all over and smeared all over the walls of this thread, it would be acceptable to start off like that.

 

[Katun]

Quote:

I do have to apologize for my behavior. I sort of assumed that since turds had already been flung all over and smeared all over the walls of this thread, it would be acceptable to start off like that.

 

 

[MuppetFace]

Quote:

 
There is something strange going on with these headphones. WhenI heard them at Headroom table T.H.E. SHOW: Upon a certain musical passage, I jumped off my seat and immediately ripped the headphones off my head. I had to put on the HD650s on the rig next to me to restore my sanity. I'm sure RD will be sending me this modded pair soon. However, I doubt however skilled he is, he is going to be able to fix these.

 
See, here I was thinking I was losing my mind.
 
I hate these headphones... and everyone is telling me that they're incredible, that I need to go easy on them because they isolate really well, etc.

 

[Watchmaven]

Guys, as the new kid on the block, I have to speak up.
 
I've been away for a couple of days and trying to get caught up on some threads to help me make a decision. Reading the last 80 or so posts, I feel like I'm at the playground of an elementary school for gifted children: Big impressive words coupled with prepubescent behavior. When I first joined Head-Fi, I was impressed with the community and willingness to help someone new like myself, learn as much as possible about this hobby. I could have easily asked what the finest headphone available was, buy it and not come back. But I got the impression that Head-Fi was about something more than that.
 
Everyone is entitled to their opinion and this forum should be open for everyone to express it but keep in mind that hundreds of people may be reading your post intended to needle and individual. Any one of those people could become a contributing member but choose to go somewhere else for fear of being ridiculed because they like or dislike something different from someone with an attitude problem.
 
I own the 550's (not for long) and will happily share my opinion on another post. I'm not going to let a couple of knuckleheads ruin what's been an otherwise positive experience.

 

[rhythmdevils]

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What's even more annoying is when someone doesn't like a headphone and they go on and on about how much they hate it...

 
you know what's annoying?  When someone has no idea what they're talking about, very limited experience with headphones, goes on and on about how perfect their newest consumer obsession is, attacks anyone who doesn't like it, and tries to back up their preferences with pseudo facts and spoon experiments. 
 
The response I got here was akin to what I would expect if I walked into some kind of rabid fan club and started critiquing the object of their obsession.  The problem is that this is not a fan club.  This is a discussion thread.  What you saw me doing when i first joined this thread was adding to the discussion.  What we saw you all doing was freaking out because you couldn't stand the idea that someone didn't like your perfect precious little man toy.  The point of this thread is not to pat each other on the back.  The point is to discuss the K550.  Problems with the K550 are part of that discussion.
 
This thread is a disgrace.  It's a shameful display of prideful ignorance and serious attachment issues.  I suggest that in the future, if you don't want to hear anything negative about a headphone you already own, and you are more interested in patting your fellow owners on the back, start an appreciation thread.  If this was an appreciation thread, I never would have posted here at all.  (or read anything here either) and you would all be at peace.  (though we would wind up with a lot more confused and unhappy K550 owners)

 

[cce121]

Regarding comfortability,any owner with large ears is not satisfied with k550? Not to say angled-driver headphone always eliminate this problem. The driver is not angled so there might be some painful rubbing actions going on I guess.

 

[cn11]

That's exactly one of the biggest problems on HF, and it's been rampant for years... Attachment issues, taking critiques as affronts on personal worth, needing validation and feeling like part of 'the club', etc... Anymore these days I just chuckle at the times owners get their pride so desperately hurt when a piece of gear they have gathers some negative observations. 
 
I used to own and like Ultrasone for goodness sake (getting my first set of customs, and then the T50RP RP2, shone a beacon on its spiky treble and recessed midrange). It's a journey, you live and learn, move on to better things, and gain experience that sometimes shows you shortcomings of gear you never realized were there until you hear stuff without those issues. Big deal.

 

[Grado77]

 

 

[Katun]

Quote:

you know what's annoying?  When someone has no idea what they're talking about, very limited experience with headphones, goes on and on about how perfect their newest consumer obsession is, attacks anyone who doesn't like it, and tries to back up their preferences with pseudo facts and spoon experiments. 
 
The response I got here was akin to what I would expect if I walked into some kind of rabid fan club and started critiquing the object of their obsession.  The problem is that this is not a fan club.  This is a discussion thread.  What you saw me doing when i first joined this thread was adding to the discussion.  What we saw you all doing was freaking out because you couldn't stand the idea that someone didn't like your perfect precious little man toy.  The point of this thread is not to pat each other on the back.  The point is to discuss the K550.  Problems with the K550 are part of that discussion.
 
This thread is a disgrace.  It's a shameful display of prideful ignorance and serious attachment issues.  I suggest that in the future, if you don't want to hear anything negative about a headphone you already own, and you are more interested in patting your fellow owners on the back, start an appreciation thread.  If this was an appreciation thread, I never would have posted here at all.  (or read anything here either) and you would all be at peace.  (though we would wind up with a lot more confused and unhappy K550 owners)

 
When you post...?
 
You need to work on your argument, because this contains logic one would expect from an elementary student.
 
Not even worth my time to reply. Posts like this are helpless.

 

[SanjiWatsuki]

 
What's even more annoying is when someone doesn't like a headphone and they go on and on about how much they hate it...

 
Quote:

 
When you post...?
 
You need to work on your argument, because this contains logic one would expect from an elementary student.
 
Not even worth my time to reply. Posts like this are helpless.

Like Questhate, I don't own nor have I heard the AKG K550, so I don't have a vested opinion in this, but this thread is just silly. Katun, this just screams of "stop not liking what I like!" level of child-like arguments. It looks like Purrin has justified why he doesn't like the AKG K550 in detail and you disagree with his assessment. It seems less like "this is overhyped, I better be an edgy dissenter!" and more like he has spoken what he honestly hears. From my perspective, you're getting emotionally invested in what others say about a headphone, and that's just silly. Let's all take it down a notch and respect the criticism.

 

[Katun]

Quote:

Like Questhate, I don't own nor have I heard the AKG K550, so I don't have a vested opinion in this, but this thread is just silly. Katun, this just screams of "stop not liking what I like!" level of child-like arguments. It looks like Purrin has justified why he doesn't like the AKG K550 in detail and you disagree with his assessment. It seems less like "this is overhyped, I better be an edgy dissenter!" and more like he has spoken what he honestly hears. From my perspective, you're getting emotionally invested in what others say about a headphone, and that's just silly. Let's all take it down a notch and respect the criticism.

 
Okaaaaay....
 
I don't even own the K550 anymore. I got rid of it weeks ago...
 
Did anyone even read my post? Because so far, absolutely nobody has interpret it correctly.