[YellowSloth]

Hello Headfiers,
 
A couple days ago I ordered a Koss Portapro. Because I know there are a lot of fake Portapros, I wanted to buy it directly from Amazon and not through another seller. Now I received them, but I am not sure if they are the real deal, and now I can't remember if it do was directly sent from Amazon. The box I received is a black cardboard box with "Koss Porta Pro Classic" written on it:
 

 
The headphones were in the plastic container on the right, and that shoved in the big box on the left. Another picture:
 

 
 
So far I see nothing wrong. The picture of the Portapro is somewhat lifted (embossed?) from the box so it stands out. The same on one side, and on the back. It did come with a small pouch, but no 3.5 to the bigger jack adapter. So far so good, but then I checked my headphones for signs of being fake, and one I found is this one:
 

 
 
At some places on the internet, such as here, tell me how to spot a fake Portapro, and one of the points, point 11 almost at the end of the page, tells me that if the part number on the Portapro on that spot is four, it is a fake one. And I have fake there. The other things which could be signs of this Portapro being fake are discolored pads or the head pad and ear pad being different in color. (Not in my case.) And even my jack has the white label:
 

 
 
Is it save to assume that these are real and Koss just changed the number on the earpiece? I don't have any equipment save mine own ears to test these headphones. The packaging do is a lot different from those I see around the internet. Can anybody give me some insight?
 
Here is a picture (not mine) from someone who has put the same box as I have and the older one next to each other:
 

 
Many thanks in advance!

 

[JK1]

The Portapro was a good value when it was released many years ago. Now at around $40 or more there seems to be better options for a portable headphone such as the $12 JVC HA-S160 or the $50 Sennheiser PX100II. I did buy the Portapro many years ago, but wouldn't buy one now. Koss even makes the Sportapro, which sounds virtually identical to the Portapro(I have both) but looks different and is around half the price. The HA-S160, PX100II, or even the Sportapro would be better choices than the Portapro.

 

[YellowSloth]

I just found some more information from a German website, which proved my suspicions. I think my model do is a counterfeit one, and I will try to return it.

 

[RoMee]

I saw the portapro for sale at kmart a few weeks ago and it had the same "black box" packaging. If the one with the box is fake than all the portapro at kmart and sears are fake.
 
If you bought it straight from amazon and not a 3rd party seller than it should be real since amazon buys their stuff direct from the manufacturer. This is what I was told in their forum a couple of years back.
If you're still not sure than email Koss.
 
Here's an unboxing from with the "box" packaging. 
 

 

[Daffiestlime]

I think they are being sold in plastic cases that look kinda similar to that one over here in Norway, without the box though.

 

[cpnfantstk]

Quote:

I just found some more information from a German website, which proved my suspicions. I think my model do is a counterfeit one, and I will try to return it.

Thats very interesting.. My pair of Portapros seem to be totally fake. Matches every description on there as being a fake one.Although the website itself is not screaming authenticity either(lol).  What puzzles me though is if I put the portapro drivers on some KSC75 clips, they sound exactly the same as the drivers from the KSC75s ( they use the same driver but different coating). So what the heck. I have read that someone received a replacement pair of Portapros from Koss that had the #4 stamped on the inside so I doubt that is a true way to tell if they are fake. Chances are you got the real one. I bought mine from ebay for cheap so I take it as a learning experience but the sound seems to be authentic having a somewhat darker sound and heavier bass than my Ksc75s . Put them on the 75s clips and they sound identical. Strange how much a headband alters the sound so much vs the clips. Hmm.. Just a suggestion, grab yourself some AKG K420 or AKG K422s, They  can be found on sale  for cheap and the sound is in a different league of the Portapros. Great clarity with some good thumping bass. I prefer the much cheaper Ksc75s over the Portapros also.

 

[Sycho]

I saw some pairs of PortaPros at Canada Computers the other day in a glass case where the put in their selection of headphones for security; there are two boxes for the PortaPros, one like the ones you have being the black one (regular classic one without a mic or control), and another in a white box (with the mic and the controls for the iPhone). I can ensure you that the box you have  legit. As for the headphones, it's something you will have to find out. Here are the images:
 

 

[RamblinE]

They only released the KTC model 18-24 months ago. The rebranding of the basic model as "Classic" and it's repackaging into a box seems to be a simple way to differentiate the two models. I just bought a pair today at Sears and am comparing their build with my broken pair which had come in the plastic bubble packaging. They look/feel the same.

 

[kakolykia]

Good day, gentlemen.
I have some bad(?) news: looks like in Mother Russia there are only Koss headphones witn part number 4 (although, i bought them in special audiophile store)
So, draw your own conclusions.
Cheers.
 
 
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