AKG K702 Sound Crap?
Sep 3, 2017 at 3:26 AM Post #46 of 57
Louder easily sounds better because you hear everything
Yeah I did notice that while comparing. Thats one reason its really hard to compare because if I change the volume just a tiny bit the difference can be huge.
I did try to get them to the same volume while comparing.(and that's hard)

Most likely the music you listen to doesn't even have any soundstage to be imaged to begin with
Probably. I mostly only listen to electronic(for example edm, melodic house, pretty much everything electronic)
Mostly music thats being uploaded on youtube by channels like SuicideSheep.
I did compare the 2 headphones on youtube music and flac files. Because most of my music is on youtube.
On youtube I liked the g430 much more while one flac files the K702 sounded clearer to me. Though the differences are so damn small.

It's for people who need to use a headphone but really would much rather use speakers, except they can't
I never had any speakers so zero knowledge about that

This is why if I don't get the vibe that somebody has some background in speaker audio I try to sway them away from AKGs and just go with Grado.
Do you maybe have any recommedations on which headphones to get after the K702? I did think of K712 or Fidelo x2 but no one told me anything about Grado yet.
 
Sep 3, 2017 at 11:18 AM Post #47 of 57
Yeah I did notice that while comparing. Thats one reason its really hard to compare because if I change the volume just a tiny bit the difference can be huge.
I did try to get them to the same volume while comparing.(and that's hard)

Easiest and generally as accurate as one can get without actually getting a response graph in a dead room would be to run a 1000hz sine wave and use a dB meter.

Also if you're not using an amp that can get the K702 to the same dB level without piling on distortion or noise, then you're not hearing the K702 as it should sound. That said, all the other considerations I posted are more likely the problems here. On top of that, you listen to EDM. As much as I can listen to some kinds of EDM on my HD600 and would do so on the K702, that's also because I would primarily choose these headphones for power and symphonic metal. Definitely not what I'd recommend to anyone who listens almost exclusively to EDM.


Probably. I mostly only listen to electronic(for example edm, melodic house, pretty much everything electronic)
Mostly music thats being uploaded on youtube by channels like SuicideSheep.

Some EDM have imaging but most of them don't. I mean, you don't even have a drum set that needs to pan left and right for drum rolls, which cymbal is getting hit, etc.


I did compare the 2 headphones on youtube music and flac files. Because most of my music is on youtube.
On youtube I liked the g430 much more while one flac files the K702 sounded clearer to me. Though the differences are so damn small.

It has a lot less to do with whether it's YouTube or FLAC and more with the genre and mastering quality. Convert FLAC or rip a CD to 320kbps and it's what you get from YouTube, assuming the one on YouTube is from the same album master. If it's background music I just use Spotify or YouTube, although the latter has video so if I want to watch live music or music vids (which is really helpful if what I'm listening to would also have visuals like these).

I never had any speakers so zero knowledge about that

Basically the position of the instruments on stage need to be replicated relative to each other and downscaled in size on playback. For a genre that for the most part is more known for playback of prerecorded layers/tracks from a Macbook rather than live instruments (not even amplified guitars, much less a symphony), there isn't much to replicate really. There are exceptions, like how some vocal parts will be imaged to the back and off to one side, but for the genre in general there's really not much in the way of imaging.


Do you maybe have any recommendations on which headphones to get after the K702? I did think of K712 or Fidelo x2 but no one told me anything about Grado yet.

K712 will still be a lot like the K702 but with more bass. Maybe less of the deep soundstage but still essentially too similar even with those differences and bottom line, not what I'd recommend for EDM.

X2 is great with imaging but it does have a lot more bass. Easier to drive so as long as you don't have a problem with high output impedance or an outright crappy circuit you don't need to worry about power output vs distortion and noise.

Knowing now that you listen to EDM Grado might be great if you listen to the kind that has hard upper bass hits and can make do without a lot of very low freq bass, also they aren't really designed for imaging either. But I'd probably recommend the X2 more than any Grado except the RS2 and RS1, but these also cost way more than the X2. Or get the Superlux HD330 - it's like the SR60 but with a lot of bass, although its improved isolation is offset by higher power output needs vs Grados. Efficiency is on par with teh K702 although with a 150ohm impedance at least output impedance isn't a problem. I use this on my gaming rig. Overall still not as clean as my amp with my HD600 but I'm not as critical for that application.
 
Sep 3, 2017 at 1:10 PM Post #48 of 57
Convert FLAC or rip a CD to 320kbps and it's what you get from YouTube, assuming the one on YouTube is from the same album master.
Not exactly, youtube has its own algorithms and its audio compression varies on the video resolution of the video, so with youtube, you're very likely to get less than 320kbps audio and even 'improvements' made by the uploader or utub algorithms... So you can increase the audio quality by using 1080p or the such, but by default you're likely getting lower quality audio.

Btw another headphone possibility would have been the hifiman 400i, but it's a bit late at this point.. I have the Q701 and I'd assume it should be leagues ahead of anything turtle beach... If not, powering them likely is an issue, as well as the recording quality. If you're only listening to electronic music, your brain has adapted to how those electronic sound sounds on your TB and anything else would sound off... Plus there's no real frame of reference for artificial electronic noises, so eventhough the AKG might be presenting them more accurately, if you're used to how they sound on the TB and that's what you consider sounding 'good', you might very well think the more accurate AKG might sound worse.

That's a huge issue in audio generally, even ignoring recording quality... And it kinda sucks when you get into high fidelity to realize that so much material just 'sucks' in terms of audio quality, and sometimes using something 'better' might even make those bad records sound 'worse'... But didn't you say you had an O2? Just use it... And try to listen to music using real instruments and vocals. Vocals usually tend to be easier to evaluate than instruments, as all of us are used to voices, but yeah I'd try to listen to some high fidelity stuff just to get a better idea of headphone performance, but sadly sometimes it's not the music we prefer... Oh well, if all you're listening to is electronic and to your ears the TBs sound best, then don't fret and sell/return your new headphones! :)
 
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Sep 4, 2017 at 12:10 AM Post #49 of 57
Not exactly, youtube has its own algorithms and its audio compression varies on the video resolution of the video, so with youtube, you're very likely to get less than 320kbps audio and even 'improvements' made by the uploader or utub algorithms... So you can increase the audio quality by using 1080p or the such, but by default you're likely getting lower quality audio.

By the time they hit human ears though differences aren't really audible (unless it's a good master screwed up by those same algorithms), much less to the OP.
 
Sep 4, 2017 at 7:06 AM Post #50 of 57
By the time they hit human ears though differences aren't really audible (unless it's a good master screwed up by those same algorithms), much less to the OP.
Well depends... Maybe... But certainly there's a significant difference listening to 240p or 360p vs 1080p, just the amount of compression applied to lower resolutions is significant. But above that yeah agreed it should be sufficient. :)

https://www.tutorialguidacomefare.c...p-2160p-max-bitrate-which-compresses-youtube/
Bitrates
Standard quality uploads
Type Video Bitrate Mono Audio Bitrate Stereo Audio Bitrate 5.1 Audio Bitrate
720p
5,000 kbps 128 kbps 384 kbps 512 kbps
480p 2,500 kbps 64 kbps 128 kbps 196 kbps
360p 1,000 kbps 64 kbps 128 kbps 196 kbps
HQ :
Type Video Bitrate Mono Audio Bitrate Stereo Audio Bitrate 5.1 Audio Bitrate
1080p 50,000 kbps 128 kbps 384 kbps 512 kbps
720p 30,000 kbps 128 kbps 384 kbps 512 kbps
480p 15,000 kbps 128 kbps 384 kbps 512 kbps
360p 5,000 kbps 128 kbps 384 kbps 512 kbps
 
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Sep 4, 2017 at 10:04 AM Post #51 of 57
Well depends... Maybe... But certainly there's a significant difference listening to 240p or 360p vs 1080p, just the amount of compression applied to lower resolutions is significant. But above that yeah agreed it should be sufficient. :)

https://www.tutorialguidacomefare.c...p-2160p-max-bitrate-which-compresses-youtube/
Bitrates
Standard quality uploads
Type Video Bitrate Mono Audio Bitrate Stereo Audio Bitrate 5.1 Audio Bitrate
720p
5,000 kbps 128 kbps 384 kbps 512 kbps
480p 2,500 kbps 64 kbps 128 kbps 196 kbps
360p 1,000 kbps 64 kbps 128 kbps 196 kbps
HQ :
Type Video Bitrate Mono Audio Bitrate Stereo Audio Bitrate 5.1 Audio Bitrate
1080p 50,000 kbps 128 kbps 384 kbps 512 kbps
720p 30,000 kbps 128 kbps 384 kbps 512 kbps
480p 15,000 kbps 128 kbps 384 kbps 512 kbps
360p 5,000 kbps 128 kbps 384 kbps 512 kbps

Since I see the point of YouTube being that it has video, I very rarely watch below 720p unless it doesn't have any music, ie, like reviews or vlogs. And these days, mostly 720p 60fps, so I get more frames of legs.
 
Sep 4, 2017 at 2:44 PM Post #52 of 57
Well depends... Maybe... But certainly there's a significant difference listening to 240p or 360p vs 1080p, just the amount of compression applied to lower resolutions is significant. But above that yeah agreed it should be sufficient. :)

https://www.tutorialguidacomefare.c...p-2160p-max-bitrate-which-compresses-youtube/
Bitrates
Standard quality uploads
Type Video Bitrate Mono Audio Bitrate Stereo Audio Bitrate 5.1 Audio Bitrate
720p
5,000 kbps 128 kbps 384 kbps 512 kbps
480p 2,500 kbps 64 kbps 128 kbps 196 kbps
360p 1,000 kbps 64 kbps 128 kbps 196 kbps
HQ :
Type Video Bitrate Mono Audio Bitrate Stereo Audio Bitrate 5.1 Audio Bitrate
1080p 50,000 kbps 128 kbps 384 kbps 512 kbps
720p 30,000 kbps 128 kbps 384 kbps 512 kbps
480p 15,000 kbps 128 kbps 384 kbps 512 kbps
360p 5,000 kbps 128 kbps 384 kbps 512 kbps

What codec is used for audio? and why use 3x the bitrate compared to mono? hmm puzzles
 
Sep 4, 2017 at 3:24 PM Post #53 of 57
I bought them 3 days ago and used them all day long because I thought its finally time to upgrade form my 60$ Turtle Beach headset.
But now after listening, everytime I switch to my turtle beach I find them better. They sound more clear in highs and vocals. Vocals also seem to be more present and on the K702 sometimes the "S" sound hurts me.
The only improvement I see is the bass. Its stronger and more clear.
I mostly listen to electronic music.
What am I doing wrong? I feel like I wasted alot of money.

You like what you like. Personally, I found the K701s (never had the K702) underwhelming when I owned them. I always recommend finding the cheapest phones that make you happy...and that goes for everything in life.
 
Sep 4, 2017 at 3:58 PM Post #54 of 57
He could always buy a better amp instead of another similarly priced headphone. The Audiolab M-DAC would be a very good choice to improve the K702's sound. The M-DAC would improve the K702's, very noticeably better. Particularly the K702's bass frequencies.
 
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May 4, 2018 at 7:58 PM Post #55 of 57
I must be one of the few people that doesn't think the K702s are light on bass. When driven even reasonably well, I believe they are being pretty true to the recording you're listening to. In fact, even through my little FocusRite iTrack I use for recording, these headphones are brilliantly articulate and very very pleasant for listening to all genres of music I've tried. It's the first time in a very long time I've sat, listened to music, and immediately started singing a long to everything. The last time I did that was with my father's stereo which, to be fair, my 702s wouldn't pay for part of an interconect lol I firmly believe that when these are driven with sufficient power they are brilliant. I'm also positive I'm still not hearing these in their best state as:
1. I haven't broken them in yet. I've only done about 5 hours of listening on them striaght out of the box
2. This FocusRite, although doing an admirable job, just can't provide all of the power needed from USB power only. More of these companies should look at supplying proper power so that everything gets the power needed at the right time and use USB power only mode as a "travel" mode or the like but tha'ts a different subject for another forum.
 
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May 5, 2018 at 4:28 AM Post #56 of 57
After using these for quiet some time now I can agree with you. I tried multiple other headphones now (HD580, M40x, DT880) and these out of all I tried still sound the best to me. I think it's the bass and voluminous sound these give me. The bass sounds smooth and not hard hitting like many other headphones. I understand whats soundstage now and I definitely prefer a big soundstage. They still lack the sound in the middle a bit though. I do agree that the bass isn't light and goes down deep.
The HD580 still has better highs in general and vocals, so I had a long time where I couldn't decide which I like more. I was able to create an EQ that makes the sound more similar to the HD580 but still with the great sound of the K702, so now these are by far my favourite.
Download EqualizerAPO, try it out and tell me if you like it: EQ
1. I dont think break in changes much, maybe a bit less sibilance
2. They need a bit less power than the HD580, my O2 amp can easily power them.
 
May 5, 2018 at 1:09 PM Post #57 of 57
2. They need a bit less power than the HD580, my O2 amp can easily power them.

This is very wrong.
The AKG K702 needs at least 5 times the power needed for HD580.

What you need to know is that the volume pot doesn't give you an idea of how much power the amp is providing.
The volume pot gives you an idea of how much voltage the amplifier is providing.

On paper, both K702 and HD580 need similar amount of voltage.
When you place certain amount of voltage on a 300 Ohm headphone, it drains very little current because it has high resistance to the current flow, this leads to little power consumed from the amplifier.
When you place the same amount of voltage on a 60 Ohm headphone, it drains much more current because it has less resistance to the current flow, so this leads to much more power drained from the amplifier

It not unusual that you feel the HD580 needs just a tad more voltage than the AKG K702, this is mainly caused by the difference in sound signature.
Since the AKG is brighter and relatively forward it can sound somehow louder than HD580 when volume matched at say 1kHz.
So in real life it's common to set the volume on the Sennheiser a bit higher because the softer treble allows that.
 

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