Trunks159
Headphoneus Supremus
- Joined
- Aug 2, 2012
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So I went to best buy today and what did they have on display?... two headphones that I have been dying to hear the akg k545 and the p7. Now I have to hear the l2...not available yet and unfortunately bestbuy doesn't have philips hp's
My longtime favorite portable headphone was the momentum and since replaced/bested by the sony mdr 7520 and yamaha hph mt220.
I was expecting the k545 to be smashed by the p7.... Not the case at all
The k545 held its own in everyway. It does have a much more flimsy feel than I thought but the mids are great, the bass is adequate and tastefully done. Timber went to the p7 with a slightly larger soundstage.
the k545 had better instrument seperation, bass response, and soundstage with similar mids but slightly less emphasized. This is all from a short listen but I was really surprised how much I preferred the k545 to the momentum. It was like a no brainer type of preference, not even close. I preferred it to the psb as well. I well never repurchase a momentum.
But to be honest the p7 sounded a tad better but it wasn't that noticeable at first. The p7 had better timbre, similar imaging, more depth, and was captivating in instrument presence. Both sounded similar in the bass with the p7 sounding tighter a little. Neither have the bass interfering with the rest of the fr. It did not however sound 150 dollars better... not even close. maybe more like 50 dollars better. So given a choice and a budget I would go with the k545. The k545 was the easy choice of all the headphones that were on that specific display.(since the p7 was mounted on its own bowers and wilkins display). But that p7 is no joke. Also I preferred the fit of the p7. The p7 build though with the small metal headband extension felt loose.
the k545 looks cool. When I saw the k550 I was like whoa those are the coldest looking headphones ever made. Not so with the k545 which barely caught my eye. The black is very low profile.... so low profile that I barely noticed it and kept staring at the k545 letters to reassure myself that it was the new hp. The other colors would pop out im sure but they didn't have em.
Also since I am rocking out to the jvc dx700 at home I the k545 would make the better choice.
The k545 cups were a lot smaller than the k550 but my ears fit well inside. The pads were very soft. The fit was odd at first, you have to adjust the headband snug to the head for the top of the cups to fully seal the ear.
The k545 is definitely an improvement over the k550 sonically, it is tons more natural and when compared to other headphones with good mids it doesn't take the back seat. It was very clear as well.
I think overall though I prefer the yamaha hph mt220 and sony mdr 7520 to both in a lot of ways.
Thanks. Couldn't get to Best Buy today. Too much work to do.