AKG K812 Pro
Nov 15, 2016 at 9:21 AM Post #4,039 of 4,824
My slovakian version did not need any repairment.
Some k812 did need a repair - would be interested, which version - austrian/solvakian
 
Nov 16, 2016 at 4:21 AM Post #4,040 of 4,824
My Slovakiaian version hasn't had any issues.
 
Nov 16, 2016 at 6:53 AM Post #4,041 of 4,824
Very old "Made in Austria" units had some issues (those with low serial numbers), but most of them are already repaired and fixed. The newer Austrian units and the Slovakian units are obviously quite reliable. The "Made in Austria" units  (only available in used condition now) normally command a price premium over the Slovakian units, because of the tradition of the Austrian location and maybe also because of better​ expected build quality (cannot comment on this, because they just look the same to me). AKG was founded in 1947 in Vienna, Austria, before it was taken over by Harman a few years ago.
 
Nov 16, 2016 at 1:40 PM Post #4,043 of 4,824
Akg --> Harman Kardon ---> SAMSUNG
Samsung now is the owner of both


AKG is pretty much done. Even before this it was announced they were closing down their labs, letting go of those employees and everything was rolling into Harman's workforce and offices. The K812 is probably the last flagship headphone they'll ever produce.
 
Nov 16, 2016 at 4:18 PM Post #4,044 of 4,824
What about the AKG Mysphere 3.1? Any reason you think that won't get produced?
 
Nov 16, 2016 at 5:24 PM Post #4,045 of 4,824
What about the AKG Mysphere 3.1? Any reason you think that won't get produced?


We'll see, maybe it will and THAT will be the last one. Bottom line is they have none of the AKG engineers who made the AKG products great. Harman owns more than a half dozen subsidiaries competing in audio, and certainly don't have any intentions of replacing the engineering talent to create products that compete in HiFi, let alone the flagship level (which AKG gave up on for a number of years). All that's left is a brand. So I wouldn't be surprised if the MySphere never happens or if it does, that's the last of the old company's product ideas that make it to market.
 
As far as I'm concerned, AKG is now in the rearview mirror. And that sucks as someone who really loves their products, the K812 included, but I'd rather give my money to smaller companies who are dedicated to audio quality and innovation rather than some shell brand belonging to a behemoth like Samsung.
 
Nov 16, 2016 at 5:47 PM Post #4,046 of 4,824
 
AKG is pretty much done. Even before this it was announced they were closing down their labs, letting go of those employees and everything was rolling into Harman's workforce and offices. The K812 is probably the last flagship headphone they'll ever produce.
 
We'll see, maybe it will and THAT will be the last one. Bottom line is they have none of the AKG engineers who made the AKG products great. Harman owns more than a half dozen subsidiaries competing in audio, and certainly don't have any intentions of replacing the engineering talent to create products that compete in HiFi, let alone the flagship level (which AKG gave up on for a number of years). All that's left is a brand. So I wouldn't be surprised if the MySphere never happens or if it does, that's the last of the old company's product ideas that make it to market.
 
As far as I'm concerned, AKG is now in the rearview mirror. And that sucks as someone who really loves their products, the K812 included, but I'd rather give my money to smaller companies who are dedicated to audio quality and innovation rather than some shell brand belonging to a behemoth like Samsung.

 
Strange statements to make. Wish I could know the future as well as you obviously do and I don't mean that in a snarky way, but these doom and gloom pronouncements do sound premature.
 
TBH, AKG could use Samsung's firepower as far as budget, communication, and marketing is concerned.
 
Now, what you're afraid of, is that Samsung and Harman will somehow fail to build on AKG's engineering R&D and product history and go another route altogether. That's fair and legitimate in a way... but too early.

Wait and see...
 
Nov 16, 2016 at 5:56 PM Post #4,047 of 4,824
I don't think it's a strange statement at all. Samsung doesn't care about HiFi. They bought Harman to get into car infotainment systems. Tossing $8B at that market with this acquisition doesn't mean they have intentions of keeping all those Harman subsidiaries around. It really doesn't make sense to do that.

But have you read anything suggesting there's any reason to hold faith in Harman or AKG? They were closing up the AKG headquarters in Germany and getting rid of all remaining R&D there. Take all that away and it's just another junk Harman subsidiary. Why Samsung would care about the piddly profits AKG's brand might bring in is beyond me. In reality they'd be better off using Infinity or Harman as the brand and making more money with a wider array of average consumer audio products.

Bottom line for me is that in a market filled with companies that care about quality and consumers, AKG was already on the downward trajectory. Samsung acquiring them as the third tier of the deal seems pretty obvious to only further their demise for anyone who is familiar with acquisitions, especially of brands who have just cut their entire braintrust of innovation.
 
Nov 16, 2016 at 11:13 PM Post #4,049 of 4,824
   
How? In what ways? How did AKG not care about quality or consumers? 


Quality control issues (such as this model), cutting costs by moving production resulting in worse QC. I know several people who got dud K7XX and had to return them at their own expense to Massdrop, and there have been plenty of mentions of that. As far as quality goes in a larger sense, when you get rid of all your German engineers and management and kill off R&D, you've said you don't care about the quality they bring to the table as those responsible for the end product. Why would anyone continue to trust a brand that is only AKG on paper, and not the company who developed so many great products? 
 
The K812 also filled a void at the high end that lasted years without an AKG competitor to Sennheiser and others, so when you look at performance quality, AKG has been behind the market for a decade or more. I think the resurgence in headphones wasn't well managed by the company, which in part led to their acquisition by Harman. Samsung paid all cash to get 8,000 engineers and Tier-1 component acquisition, all to advance building out a car platform. Harman Kardon, JBL, Infinity, and AKG could all end up going away or being re-branded under one company that mass produces electronics and likely isn't as quality-focused as many dedicated competitors across the HiFi landscape. Give these a read and do some more looking. I can't find anything that suggest Samsung has any interest in supporting AKG, but I guess we'll find out for sure by 2018.
 
http://www.forbes.com/sites/greatspeculations/2016/11/16/why-samsung-is-buying-harman/#1be7992e23b3
http://www.wsj.com/articles/samsung-to-buy-u-s-auto-parts-supplier-harman-for-8-billion-1479107476
 

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