[realmassy]

Here's the link:
http://docs.google.com/leaf?id=0B6GksRkLWK6xYjBkYmExMTMtYjk2NS00YTBhLWE4OWItMzdkZTgyMzU3ZmM0&hl=en
I've changed the track to upload because I struggled with this yesterday. It's the last movement of the Symphony no. 9 by Dvorak (it's a well known music).
Let me know your thoughts about he horns...

 

[Acix]

looks like artifacts sound, maybe a compression effect.

 

[bhanja_trinanjan]

Quote:

looks like artificial sound, maybe a compression effect.

Aaah! Acix here at last!

 
Acix, are you talking about Realmassy's track?
 
Did you check out mine?
 
Realmassy, I am about to burn that Dvorak to CD..

 

[Acix]

 
Quote:

Aaah! Acix here at last!

 
Acix, are you talking about Realmassy's track?
 
Did you check out mine?
 
Realmassy, I am about to burn that Dvorak to CD..

I meant to the first one, the Mozart file. Give me few moments and I'll check the second.

 

[Acix]

On the second audio file, Wieniawski Violin Concerto No 2, the violin is too perfect (just kidding). Bhanja what did you find weird here?

 

[bhanja_trinanjan]

 
Quote:

Here's the link:
http://docs.google.com/leaf?id=0B6GksRkLWK6xYjBkYmExMTMtYjk2NS00YTBhLWE4OWItMzdkZTgyMzU3ZmM0&hl=en
I've changed the track to upload because I struggled with this yesterday. It's the last movement of the Symphony no. 9 by Dvorak (it's a well known music).
Let me know your thoughts about he horns...

Well... just gave that a listen and I didn't find the K702 to do anything wrong... perhaps I need to listen carefully and a/b against my Wharfedale Diamond 9.1 speakers.

 
Quote:

On the second audio file, Wieniawski Violin Concerto No 2, the violin is too perfect (just kidding). Bhanja what did you find weird here?

Firstly, the clarinet is a bit too distant on the K702... this hurts the musicality of the presentation.
 
At low to moderate volumes, the violin seems ok and the clarinet, although distant, has reasonable presence.
 
As I slowly raise the volume to the level of a real performance, I find the violin to sound all strings with a peak in the upper mids/lower treble and seem disjointed from its body overtones. And at this relatively high volume, the clarinet gets lost in the mix altogether!
 
On my speakers, the clarinet gets a fresh lease of life. It is sweet and full without that midrange suck-out and there is no treble/upper mid peak at all.... and the overall presentation has a lovlier tone.
 
But the K702 has an addictive soundstage on this one, which I appreciate... only if it could be a bit more lively tonally!
 
Just my opinion.... and the Wharfedale Diamond 9.1 is a well known budget monitor with a beautiful midrange that has won several accolades.

 

[realmassy]

Thanks for your impressions.
In my setup the horns tend to sound shrill, especially in the finale. This is odd because I use a Audio-GD combo (Roc and Ref.5), and these gears are known to be on the warm side of the neutral. I noticed that only on this CD.
Now, after these tests, can anyone recommend an upgrade over the K702?
I love these cans, I had the DT880s, the D2000s, the HD650, but the K702s are still here The HD650 are terrific in balanced mode, a sound signature completely different, but the detail retrieval and the sound stage of the K702s are in a different league.
I find the headphones now to be the bottle neck in my system, but I can't see many choices. The HD800? I'm worried about the hot treble. The LCD-2? I haven't tried them, but I read they're uncomfortable. Next week I'll test the HE5-LE, but I'm not sure they'll sound that good with classical music.
 
Quote:

Originally Posted by bhanja_trinanjan /img/forum/go_quote.gif
 
Well... just gave that a listen and I didn't find the K702 to do anything wrong... perhaps I need to listen carefully and a/b against my Wharfedale Diamond 9.1 speakers.
 

 

[Acix]

 
Quote:

 

Well... just gave that a listen and I didn't find the K702 to do anything wrong... perhaps I need to listen carefully and a/b against my Wharfedale Diamond 9.1 speakers.

 

Firstly, the clarinet is a bit too distant on the K702... this hurts the musicality of the presentation.
 
At low to moderate volumes, the violin seems ok and the clarinet, although distant, has reasonable presence.
 
As I slowly raise the volume to the level of a real performance, I find the violin to sound all strings with a peak in the upper mids/lower treble and seem disjointed from its body overtones. And at this relatively high volume, the clarinet gets lost in the mix altogether!
 
On my speakers, the clarinet gets a fresh lease of life. It is sweet and full without that midrange suck-out and there is no treble/upper mid peak at all.... and the overall presentation has a lovlier tone.
 
But the K702 has an addictive soundstage on this one, which I appreciate... only if it could be a bit more lively tonally!
 
Just my opinion.... and the Wharfedale Diamond 9.1 is a well known budget monitor with a beautiful midrange that has won several accolades.

 
Well, the violin is a bit to loud in the mix. on the other hand the composition is about the solo violin that need to be loud. I think the position of the violin in the stereo image is more important to reduce weight on the dynamic.
 

 

[fishski13]

 
Quote:

 
The K702 is excellent in a number of areas like bass control, timing, damping and imaging... but has a flawed tone,
 
Or is my source (Cambridge 640C) the culprit?

 
could be the source, but i've not heard the Cambridge.  i think i mentioned once before to you that you should explore rolling in another DAC.  with the tonally threadbare DAC1 upstream, i find it difficult to like the K70x - i actually prefer a cheap Pioneer or Oppo dvd player.  a DAC with more tone may be the ticket.
 

 

[lejaz]

@fishski13:
I wonder if that could be part of my problem...the DAC, because I'm still hearing the same problem with the mids that the OP has described...even with the recable. I did a lot of back and forth comparing, and the mids are still somewhat pale and diffused compared to other headphones and speakers I have. I suppose it's not necessarily a fault if you like that particular sound sig, But for me I find that to be a shortcoming...otherwise I'm very happy with them. I notice this problem a lot when listening to my own vocals (I'm recording an album), but also with Sinatra and other midrangy vocalists. I wonder if anyone has ever compared the 702 mids to the hd600 or the dt880?

 

[wali]

Who listen to Mozart anyway. Beethoven could beat Mozart in a knife fight any day.
 
Listen to  Joy Division on K70x you'll transcend time and space.

 

[SP Wild]

 
Quote:

@fishski13:
I wonder if that could be part of my problem...the DAC, because I'm still hearing the same problem with the mids that the OP has described...even with the recable. I did a lot of back and forth comparing, and the mids are still somewhat pale and diffused compared to other headphones and speakers I have. I suppose it's not necessarily a fault if you like that particular sound sig, But for me I find that to be a shortcoming...otherwise I'm very happy with them. I notice this problem a lot when listening to my own vocals (I'm recording an album), but also with Sinatra and other midrangy vocalists. I wonder if anyone has ever compared the 702 mids to the hd600 or the dt880?

You can reduce this problem a little by going warmer with your source - but it will still be present.  The closest I got to eliminating this phenomena is to completely mask the upper mid / lower treble with a lush tube amp that is slightly forward and bloomy in the mids.  This will smooth out the mid and fill it out with tonality and musicality - in my case, with zero loss of details, a slight narrowing of soundstage - although with more focus and superior imaging, enhanced midbass presence, impact and drive also helped overall.  More about this resonance here.

 

[lejaz]

Thanks for the interesting impressions SP. That must be a very nice amp. I read your impressions of it on another thread also. I have no funds for upgrading so I will have to learn to love the 702 as it is...flaws and all. Kind of like making love to a very beautiful woman who has slightly crooked teeth. It wouldn't be smart to focus on a minor flaw to her appearance and spoil your love making, eh? But for the purpose of being as objective as possible, I also agree that there is an over emphasis in the upper mids/lower treble. I notice it with cymbals and sometimes with guitars that sound overly bright and a little thin. Still,  I'm sure I will continue to enjoy making love to my music with my k702...they have a lot of virtues!
 
@wali:
If Bach was alive he would kick Joy Divisions butt with one hand tied behind his back

 

[fishski13]

Quote:

@fishski13:
I wonder if that could be part of my problem...the DAC, because I'm still hearing the same problem with the mids that the OP has described...even with the recable. I did a lot of back and forth comparing, and the mids are still somewhat pale and diffused compared to other headphones and speakers I have. I suppose it's not necessarily a fault if you like that particular sound sig, But for me I find that to be a shortcoming...otherwise I'm very happy with them. I notice this problem a lot when listening to my own vocals (I'm recording an album), but also with Sinatra and other midrangy vocalists. I wonder if anyone has ever compared the 702 mids to the hd600 or the dt880?

interesting.  i hate to sound like i'm throwing all tube amps into the "warm/lush/mi-rangey" camp, but with my own Bijou tube amp, in no way are the mids pale and diffuse with my Gamma2 DAC.  i've stated before that the BM DAC1 doesn't pair well with the K70x downstream, no matter what amp is in the middle - bright, bleached-out, and thin.  my B22 is warmer than any of my amps and is my first choice with the K702.  the Gamma2 is also warmer than the DAC1 with excellent detail and tone.  i've read that the PS Audio DL3 is a sweeter sounding DAC, but i've not heard one.
 
sorry that the cable didn't fix it

. 
 
i think the K601 are largely under-appreciated around here.  they sound very balanced and great out of any of my amps.  their bass is less prominent than the K70x, giving them a more mid-centric sonic character, and do not suffer from any upper-mid-range spikes.
 
i've owned the DT990/600 and the DT880/250.  if the 600ohm variants have a smoother treble response and better mid-range, the DT880/600 would be worth a gamble.
 
 
 
 
 

 

[SP Wild]

I would be perfectly happy running my K701's out of my ss amp - but the source must be warm to minimise the midrange discontinuity.  I like rabbit tooth on chicks - makes em cute and hugable.