[rawrster]

My version of the HD600 is probably the newer version. I bought it used and the person I bought it from didn't have it that long but don't know when the HD600 changed to a newer version. Maybe the sound coming out of my dac/amp is good enough where there's no veil
 
I have always wanted to try the HD650 and almost did recently but the bass does worry me about them so a bit iffy if I want to buy them but I'll have a better idea once the DT880 comes back.
 
 
I got my K601 used so didn't notice any changes since it was well past that. The only complain I have with the K601 is bass extension since the extension is not quite as good as some other phones I've used.
 

 

[tdockweiler]

Ok, this is strange, but it seems like after a solid week of listening to the K601, the bass has improved. Even rock music sounds quite good and it definitely has more bass than my K702 for sure. I don't know why everyone says the k701/K702 has more bass! Even the graphs seems to reflect that the K601 has more (even sub-bass), but I'm going by my ears.
 
I also noticed this improved bass after a week on my first pair.
 
I was thinking of recabling this with cheap Mogami wire, but the metal inner grill is a pain to remove. I'll have to come up with some special tweezers to pry it off. I probably don't want to bother unless I can drill a new hole and make it dual entry. As it is, the stock cable seems just fine, so I may just skip it until I can get a better look at the drivers and feel more comfortable about it.
 
I sure hope AKG doesn't discontinue this headphone. That'd be very stupid of them considering it's one of their best IMO. Technically not as good as the K702, but I enjoy listening to my K601 more. I sure wish my Sextett LP sounded good, but it sounds awful. Probably not a good pair. Sound clarity is so bad.
 
Meanwhile my K702 is downstairs and has been burning in further for the last 3 days. Hoping it's annoying treble goes away..I should have a new cable for it finished soon too. Just cheap stuff for now, but it's a nice upgrade.
 
Love the soundstage (not just size) of the K601 so much that it's hard going back to the HD-598, but I still probably like them equally. Maybe K601 has a slight edge, but none of them are going anywhere. If I get rid of any of my headphones it'll probably be the HD-650 before any of them. HD-650 started looking real bad when I recabled my HD-598

I also found I like the HD-650 better when I EQ down the bass, but I hate using an EQ.

 

[evgenrave]

My K601 made in China and 1 year warranty. Does anyone still such an assembly?

 

[Ze_Blitzkrieg]

 
Quote:

My K601 made in China and 1 year warranty. Does anyone still such an assembly?

 
My K601's came with a "Made in China" sticker on the headband, along with it being printed on the box.  I contacted AKG and got this as a response:
 
 
 
[size=small][size=10pt]Hello,[/size][/size]
 
[size=small][size=10pt]AKG[/size] product has been manufactured in Austria, Poland, and China. If you have concerns that your product is counterfeit, please cont an AKG Account Specialist (888-286-9358 x3276) to confirm that the dealer you purchased the headphones from are indeed an authorized dealer.[/size]
 
[size=small][size=10pt]Thank you,[/size][/size]
[size=small][size=10pt]Greg[/size][/size]
 

 

[Marximus]

"Ok, this is strange, but it seems like after a solid week of listening to the K601, the bass has improved. Even rock music sounds quite good and it definitely has more bass than my K702 for sure. I don't know why everyone says the k701/K702 has more bass! Even the graphs seems to reflect that the K601 has more (even sub-bass), but I'm going by my ears."
 
Admittedly, I have the Bass Booster setting on iTunes activated, but the bass on these is pretty awesome.  Excellent impact and space.

 

[zomg]

#1561 reporting in.
I've got them for one year or so, and they're great, especially since I now have the E9 to amp them properly.
I just wanted to know if anyone tried Sigur Ros (album ()), because I was kinda disappointed. I didn't felt involved at all.
Then I switched to my SRH840's, and it was a lot better. I can't really put my finger on it, but I'd say it has to do with sounstage and maybe bass/bass impact.
That's weird because I happen to think they're OK for rock.
Some kind of post-rock issue perhaps? Or is it just me?

 

[tdockweiler]

Has anyone else recabled theirs yet? I finally got the metal grill off and it required me having to buy a special pair of tweezers! Once I got those it was easy.
 
If I did recable them I'd want to make it dual entry or what's the point? It would be Mogami and I'm not sure if it will be worth it in the end. The AKG cables seem quite decent, so it probably won't be as huge of an increase in sound as going from stock HD-598 cable to Mogami.
 
Then there is the chance I kill my headphone. At this point I might not bother.
 
Anyone else try?
 
I think there might be an easy way to put the cable through the metal grill (by making a hole bigger) instead of drilling through the plastic.
 
I'm a little worried about soldering wires to those tiny posts, but it shouldn't be too bad. If things go wrong I can just solder back on the old wires I guess.
 
Still have been using these headphones the most. My HD-598/HD-650 and K702 hasn't been on my head at all lately. K702 is still burning in (at the 70-80 hour mark I think), but not going anywhere. Probably will sell off the HD-650 eventually. It's nice but doesn't match my preferences really and it's not as comfortable as the K601.

 

[paulb09]

A few people in here mentioned recabling recently, but they were both for balanced set ups I believe, and otherwise I don't recall anyone saying they had recabled or the results it had produced. I would agree that you'd want to make it dual entry, else you'd still be using the headband wire anyway.

 

[tdockweiler]

Quote:

A few people in here mentioned recabling recently, but they were both for balanced set ups I believe, and otherwise I don't recall anyone saying they had recabled or the results it had produced. I would agree that you'd want to make it dual entry, else you'd still be using the headband wire anyway.

 
Yeah, that's the thing that bothers me. There is a metal wire that goes between the ear cups and then from the metal rod/wire there is two completely different thin wires connecting back to the driver.
People always say that single entry cable upgrades are OK on the K601/K702, but I still think it's not worth it unless you make it dual entry. Maybe there is still some small benefit.
Now I'm glad I didn't buy a $300+ cable for the K702 (not that I would) because I think with the K702 it's the same way.
 
I now can understand a little why I didn't hear much of a huge difference when I made a K702 cable. Upgrading my HD-650's cable was a nice upgrade, but not so much with the K702.
 
I'm guessing many people do remove the internal wires of the K702 and can still make it single sided. It may be a pain doing that.

 

[mikeaj]

What's next, recabling your amp and aftermarket silver PCB traces?  These are in the signal path as well and pretty much make as much of a difference in the audio frequency range.

 

[tdockweiler]

Quote:

What's next, recabling your amp and aftermarket silver PCB traces?  These are in the signal path as well and pretty much make as much of a difference in the audio frequency range.

Yes, maybe I will do that next. It's not like it's expensive. Around $6 and can't hurt...
 
Strangely I can't tell the difference between interconnect cables (Cardas and Monoprice), but can with headphone cables quite easily. Some more than others.
 
I've been wanting to make a Mogami interconnect cable for awhile, but I'm perfectly happy with my $2 Monoprice cable.
 
I still think headphone cables are the only cables that I can hear a difference with..I can't even do that with speaker cables.

 

[mikeaj]

For the record, that wasn't a serious suggestion, though I'm in no way stopping you from running off and doing what you please!
 
See here, for example:
http://www.head-fi.org/forum/thread/405217/my-cable-test-enterprise

 

[tdockweiler]

Quote:

For the record, that wasn't a serious suggestion, though I'm in no way stopping you from running off and doing what you please!
 
See here, for example:
http://www.head-fi.org/forum/thread/405217/my-cable-test-enterprise

Thanks for your permission. I see you're one of those people....I don't even know what the point of your post was ....

 
 
 
 

 

[mikeaj]

What's "one of those people?"
 
Anyway, I'd encourage others to read, think, and listen for themselves, and draw their own conclusions.  I was offering an alternative viewpoint to steer potential K601 buyers and current K601 owners towards relaxing and focusing on the things that matter, rather than pursuing expensive cable tweaks that have never stood up to any serious investigation.  It's like recommending people not to try different TV-infomercial weight-loss supplements, etc. without knowing first what they're getting into (you can find testimonials one way or the other for sure, but the doctors say...).
 
edit:  I'm not sure if that came out the right way.  No offense intended at all.  I'm sure most members have nothing but the best of intentions, including you.

 

[tdockweiler]

Haha, Ok, now I get it. I'm the same way sometimes. I always heard people say non-stop that cables makes zero difference and that it's just a waste of money. I listened to this for so long and believed it. Eventually I decided to try out headphone cables with my own ears and know for sure if it was really just snake oil. I came to the conclusion that cheap DIY headphone cable upgrades were a worthwhile upgrade. Even the 80 cent/foot Mogami made improvements, but no massive changes unless the stock cable is really awful. HD-598 stock cable and Mogami recable is a huge upgrade (night and day..really) and I wish I knew why. It really cleared up the sound. I don't know if it's just because the Mogami is thicker or higher quality or what.
 
I said it earlier, but I can't really hear a difference between speaker cable and interconnects, but I can with headphone cables. I wonder why it's so much easier? I always heard that "wire" doesn't sound like anything, but I also don't believe this after trying Canare cable. Canare added too much bass and rolled off the highs on my K702. I'd say that's quite a big difference!
 
I always suggest to people who are interested in cables to start out with the cheap wire and build their own cables and see if they can hear a difference between stock. I can and if they can't it just a $20 loss.
 
I doubt there will be a huge difference between the 80 cent budget Mogami and the $8+/foot DH and Cardas cable, but some day I'd like to try with my own ears. I always said that even if it's a 5% improvement over the Mogami that it'd be worth it for my favorite headphone. Whenever I hear people say that a cable will improve a headphone by like 25% I'm thinking to myself..."Yeah, Right!". I wish. Maybe I'm wrong, but it seems quite impossible.
 
$300+ headphone cables kind of make me sick, but I think it's mostly because there's such a massive markup and I'd rather make it myself. I just have my doubts that it would make enough of a difference to justify it's price tag. Hope I'm wrong.
 
Personally I love making my own cheap $30 Mogami headphone recables and hear a difference. That's all that matters to me. Making DIY cables is a fun hobby. I wasn't trying to suggest someone go out and buy a $400 cable upgrade

 
I love the K601 so much that even a 3% increase in sound quality for $10 worth of bulk wire would be a pretty nice (and cheap) upgrade! The AKG stock cable is really thin, but it's not as horrible as the HD-598 stock cable I think.
 
Quote:

What's "one of those people?"
 
Anyway, I'd encourage others to read, think, and listen for themselves, and draw their own conclusions.  I was offering an alternative viewpoint to steer potential K601 buyers and current K601 owners towards relaxing and focusing on the things that matter, rather than pursuing expensive cable tweaks that have never stood up to any serious investigation.  It's like recommending people not to try different TV-infomercial weight-loss supplements, etc. without knowing first what they're getting into (you can find testimonials one way or the other for sure, but the doctors say...).
 
edit:  I'm not sure if that came out the right way.  No offense intended at all.  I'm sure most members have nothing but the best of intentions, including you.