[Kouzelna]

Maybe so, lot of great bands from there and Norway.  But there are shows/festivals all over the place every summer there.  And they are dirt cheap.  I pay around $50 - 75 for anywhere from a 3-7 day festival, with free camping, cheap beer (about $1 per .5 liter on tap, where I live), and loads of great unregulated fun.  Can't file insurance claims over there if you get eaten by an alligator, so you are pretty much left alone to do whatever you want.
 
You can check 'em all out here:  www.MetalStorm.ee
 
Awesome fun!

 

[Chris J]

Quote:

Maybe so, lot of great bands from there and Norway.  But there are shows/festivals all over the place every summer there.  And they are dirt cheap.  I pay around $50 - 75 for anywhere from a 3-7 day festival, with free camping, cheap beer (about $1 per .5 liter on tap, where I live), and loads of great unregulated fun.  Can't file insurance claims over there if you get eaten by an alligator, so you are pretty much left alone to do whatever you want.
 
You can check 'em all out here:  www.MetalStorm.ee
 
Awesome fun!

Hey!
You'll get brain damage listening to that stuff!
 
Are we off topic or what?

 

[Kouzelna]

Dude, I'm a headphones guy.  I wear earplugs at Metal shows.  I mean, of course!
 
Now we're back on topic. 

 

[Chris J]

Don't get back on topic!

 

[coasteray]

Quote:

Sorry to be so late to reply, in the middle of a big move.
 
It's been too long since I owned the 598 myself, so I can't comment too much, except to say that - at least when I had them many years ago - there was a huge diff between them and the 600/650 cans.  The bigger ones were a dramatic step up, although the 598 was no slouch.  I was just taken aback by how much those were an improvement, because I loved my 598.  Keep in mind that I am not a big fan of the 600/650 sound, however.  I like the openness and treble of the AKG much, much better.
 
A headphone amp is a HUGE DRAMATIC improvement on about any headphone.  All of my headphones sound dramatically different either amped or unamped, so it's worth the money as I think anyone on this forum will agree.  And generally you do get huge improvement in bass, though on a 598 I don't know what that improvement will be.  But it will certainly likely be better.
 
I have generally been able to find 650 used for about $300 or $350.  But before you commit, make sure you hear the DT880 / 600 ohm, and one of the AKG series (702 is my fav, though I haven't yet heard the Q yet).  They are all in the same family but all with very different sounds, so hear them all and buy the one you love before you plop down the cash.  Any of them to my mind would be a vast step up on an already great sounding 598.  But be sure you hear them all amped.  The AKG especially is hopeless unamped.
 
Have fun!

 
 
Kouzelna, thanks for the response.  I really would like to hear the AKG K702 and the Q701.  I've read that the K702 is a headphone you either love or hate, so to speak and that the Q701 is supposed to be a smoother version of the K702.  Seems the two issues with the K702 are the perceived "lack" of bass and overly abundant highs, I guess.  Have you experienced this, or are these just negative comments from guys who like bigger bass and are over-reacting to the AKG's highs?  I even read one poster on this forum who said he thought the soundstage of the K702 is too wide in terms of instruments being too wide and far apart (think of instruments on the left and right, and too much space between them in the middle), not just the soundstage itself.  I have no idea about that. 
 
Any ideas as to the "best" amps?  Matrix?  Schiit?  Etc.
 
Quote:

I was at a Head Fi meet a few weeks back and ran into a guy with a pair of K701s or 2s, we traded 'phones for several minutes or more.
We both agreed that the differences were very slight, I thought the Qs were very slightly warmer, but nothing very significant. Hard to remember now if anything else sounded different, but for the most part they were very, very similar. I'm not sure if I could reliably tell them apart in a blind test!
Really the differences were almost insignificant.
We were both surprised by this.
I seem to remember we both used my Matrix M for the comparison.

BTW another guy tried my Qs and took them off after 30 seconds and said they were too bright.
LOL

 
 
I find myself debating between the K702 and Q701 phones.  Then I end up debating between either of them or the Beyerdynamics DT880.  I've read some very nice comments about the DT880s, too, like better bass and better-controlled highs than the AKGs, and perhaps a slightly less-forward mid-range.  I don't know if I can ever be fortunate enough to listen to all of these various cans anytime soon, and especially in the same place.  It's aggravating, so I have to rely a lot on what guys are saying in the forums.  If they don't know, who will?   Any experience with the DT880s?
 
Thanks, guys, for the responses so far. 

 

[Chris J]

Quote:

 
 
Kouzelna, thanks for the response.  I really would like to hear the AKG K702 and the Q701.  I've read that the K702 is a headphone you either love or hate, so to speak and that the Q701 is supposed to be a smoother version of the K702.  Seems the two issues with the K702 are the perceived "lack" of bass and overly abundant highs, I guess.  Have you experienced this, or are these just negative comments from guys who like bigger bass and are over-reacting to the AKG's highs?  I even read one poster on this forum who said he thought the soundstage of the K702 is too wide in terms of instruments being too wide and far apart (think of instruments on the left and right, and too much space between them in the middle), not just the soundstage itself.  I have no idea about that. 
 
Any ideas as to the "best" amps?  Matrix?  Schiit?  Etc.
 
 
 
I find myself debating between the K702 and Q701 phones.  Then I end up debating between either of them or the Beyerdynamics DT880.  I've read some very nice comments about the DT880s, too, like better bass and better-controlled highs than the AKGs, and perhaps a slightly less-forward mid-range.  I don't know if I can ever be fortunate enough to listen to all of these various cans anytime soon, and especially in the same place.  It's aggravating, so I have to rely a lot on what guys are saying in the forums.  If they don't know, who will?   Any experience with the DT880s?
 
Thanks, guys, for the responses so far. 

 
I have a pair of DT880 600 ohms and a pair of Q701s.
 
They sound quite differenent.
I agree with your comments about the DT880s, sounds true to me, yes I get better bass from the DT880s, but the mids are less forward.
I like the sound of the Q701 with my Matrix M Stage.
But I like the sound of my DT880s from my vacuum tube La Figaro 336.  The DT880 is a more neutral headphone, but some recordings just sound too dull when I use the DT880s.  OTOH, the DT880s do have a touch of sibilance which seems to drive some people nuts. For me, the sibilance is very mild when I use my tube amp.
 
Swapping amps sounds OK, but I'm not always crazy about the sound of the DT880 from the Matrix: it sounds bland with most recordings. But it just works with some rock recordings!
 
The Q701 from the 336C sounds even brighter, and I have never been able to listen to this combo for more than a few minutes, it just sounds second rate compared to the Matrix & Q701.  One thing about th Q701s, some recordings seem to lack foundation and cojones when I use the Q's.....not enough bass.  That's one reason I like the DT880s: fuller bass.
 
IMOH, I like the sound of both 'phones and both amps with the right recording.

 

[coasteray]

One thing I'm concerned about with the DT880 is the semi-open build.  Does that shrink the wideness of the soundstage as compared to a real open-type phone?  I've been thinking of buying another headphone, and the soundstage aspect is important.  So far, I've been looking at the K702 vs. the Q701, and the DT880 vs. the DT990, and comparing the two pairs to themselves and with the other pairs.  Four phones, and I'm betting they're all different.  To top it all off, I own the Sennheiser HD598.  I'm curious how its soundstage compares to all these others.  I really don't want to end up duplicating the HD598 soundstage.  I have a pretty good idea of the bass, mids, and highs of these phones, so I'm down to just figuring out the soundstage issue.
 
Amps:  I'm interested in a tube amp, but a solid state is not out of the question.  So many brands and models, quality concerns, and prices.  I'd like to hear some more of who has what, and why.  Thanks.

 

[Chris J]

One thing I'm concerned about with the DT880 is the semi-open build.  Does that shrink the wideness of the soundstage as compared to a real open-type phone?  I've been thinking of buying another headphone, and the soundstage aspect is important.  So far, I've been looking at the K702 vs. the Q701, and the DT880 vs. the DT990, and comparing the two pairs to themselves and with the other pairs.  Four phones, and I'm betting they're all different.  To top it all off, I own the Sennheiser HD598.  I'm curious how its soundstage compares to all these others.  I really don't want to end up duplicating the HD598 soundstage.  I have a pretty good idea of the bass, mids, and highs of these phones, so I'm down to just figuring out the soundstage issue.
Amps:  I'm interested in a tube amp, but a solid state is not out of the question.  So many brands and models, quality concerns, and prices.  I'd like to hear some more of who has what, and why.  Thanks.

K701 vs Q701: you can't go wrong with a pair of Q701

DT880 vs DT990: the DT990 has a bass and treble boost compared to the DT880, or you can also say the DT880 are the flatter of the two.

The AKGs have more soundstage than the Beyers.
They all sound quite different compared to the Senns.
If you want to use tubes with the AKGs, you will need an expensive tube amp which is output transfromer coupled as the impedance of the AKGs is too low for a cheaper OTL ( output tramsformerless) tube amp. Which may be why some folks like to propogate the myth that the 70x series need an uber expensive amp.

OTOH if you get 600 ohm Beyers you can easily use a cheaper OTL tube amp and be happy!