[Mad Lust Envy]

Wobbly bass booster PC360. You lost me there. Sorry.

 

[Ultrazino]

Luckily it was the last sentence and you should have gotten the rest.

 

[weipim]

both are very amazing headphones, however if their price are similar and you don't want to wait for the 598 to drop in price, then q701 is a no brainer, assuming the you like both their sound signature equally. however I still recommend the 598 for out of box comfort and easier to drive. the q701 will always leave you under the shadow of k701, despite I don't believe k series are superrior to the q series at all

 

[Ultrazino]

 
Quote:

the q701 will always leave you under the shadow of k701

 
Uhm... they are exactly the same...
 
OMG, I need to leave this thread. To TS: Go outside and find a shop that has the headphones you are looking for. Then put them on and try them. That is all.

 

[tdockweiler]

Did someone say the HD-598 is not warm?! Huh

That's news to me. If someone was comparing it to an HD-650, then sure. To me, even the K702 is warm, but the the HD-598 is even warmer. This to me is what makes it's mids so good. It's a good balance between the two types of signatures I like. I usually prefer something a little thinner sounding and analytical, but the HD-598 gets the pass from me. If it wasn't warm, it's sound just wouldn't be the same IMO.
 
I also don't agree that the HD-598 is like a baby K702. To me, the KRKs come closer to that description, but they're closed. I don't ever consider the HD-598 to be bright and analytical. Fairly bright, but not really.
 
The HD-598 and Q701 are two of my favorites.
 
The HD-598 is slightly smoother sounding than the Q701 and more forgiving of crappy recordings. The Q701 is fairly forgiving, but not as much as the HD-598. The HD-598 can actually tame some harsh recordings, but very slightly. They can still annoy me.
 
Id say the HD-598 has more bass impact and the bass on the Q701 just sounds a bit different. The Q701 definitely has more treble, but it's still smooth unlike the K702.
 
To my ears, the HD-598 probably has the larger soundstage, but this varies and I haven't done any side by side comparisons. I think the Q701 has the better and more accurate soundstage though.
 
Now the mids...the HD-598 mids seem warmer, slightly fuller sounding and more textured at times. This makes them so addicting to listen to. Unfortunately the HD-598 loses out on sound clarity a bit to the Q701. Q701 also has that clearer sound with more detail. I've found the HD-598 very detailed, but it's not overkilll. I actually would rank it above the HD-650 and HD-600 in this area.
 
With the Q701 and HD-598 you can't go wrong with either. I'd say there is  no winner and they're both good. That's why I kept both. I use both about equally. HD-598 is nice because it actually sounds good from even a Clip (don't ask me how!)
 
BTW I don't think the Q701 sounds the same as the K702. It's best to try them both out before saying this. Some will and some won't hear a difference. I just know that the K702's treble is really bothersome for me, but on the Q701 I have, it's not a problem. I actually find the Q701 much warmer than the K702 too. Mids are much fuller sounding. Mids on the K702 felt a bit lean for some reason. Same amp and everything.
 
 

 

[IPodPJ]

Quote:

The HD598 is like a baby K701, that doesn't need as much juice as the K701. However, the K701 properly amped will sound more refined overall. They are quite similar in terms of overall sound though, with the K701 being just ever so slightly brighter while the HD598 is close to what I consider neutral, but still tipping towards slightly bright.

Not even close.  The tonality is worlds apart.  The HD598 is much more tonally balanced, with a very forward sound and good bass response while the K701/702 has a more expansive soundstage but is very recessed and lacking in any sort of bass.
 

 

[Beagle]

Quote:

Not even close.  The tonality is worlds apart.  The HD598 is much more tonally balanced, with a very forward sound and good bass response while the K701/702 has a more expansive soundstage but is very recessed and lacking in any sort of bass.
 

Wrong.
 
The HD598 has no bass below about 100Hz and no top end after 10kHz. The K701 has the correct bass quality/quantity and naturally balanced treble. 
 

 

[leng jai]

Exactly. Some of the responses here leave me scratching my head. The HD595 (and by extension 598) is far more tonally balanced than the K702. They are very much an all round phone whereas the AKGs are definitely skewed towards the upper mids. Soundstage wise theres simply no way the 595/598 is bigger. The K702s have a far bigger soundstage which is at times a detriment to the sound.
 
Quote:

Not even close.  The tonality is worlds apart.  The HD598 is much more tonally balanced, with a very forward sound and good bass response while the K701/702 has a more expansive soundstage but is very recessed and lacking in any sort of bass.
 

 

 

[tdockweiler]

Quote:

Wrong.
 
The HD598 has no bass below about 100Hz and no top end after 10kHz. The K701 has the correct bass quality/quantity and naturally balanced treble. 
 

This gets my vote as the most idiotic response I've read in at least a week. No bass below 100hz? Maybe my sarcasm meter is not working today. I hope you're joking. If so, please stop, because it's not helping anyone.
Saying the K701 has natural balanced treble and the HD-598 doesn't is just plain weird. Have you even heard the HD-598?
 


Quote:

Exactly. Some of the responses here leave me scratching my head. The HD595 (and by extension 598) is far more tonally balanced than the K702. They are very much an all round phone whereas the AKGs are definitely skewed towards the upper mids. Soundstage wise theres simply no way the 595/598 is bigger. The K702s have a far bigger soundstage which is at times a detriment to the sound.
 


 

I don't think anyone said the soundstage of the 598 is larger than the K702. I did say the soundstage is perhaps larger on the 598 compared to the Q701. Didn't say it was. To me, the soundstage of the Q701, AKG got right. I've found it a lot smaller (yes, due to the recording etc) and more accurate than that of the K702/K701. You no longer have the airplane hangar like soundstage like found on the K702.
 
HD-598 isn't that comparable to the K702 IMO, but the Q701 has a few similarities with a good amp.
 
BTW am I the only one that finds it's weird that someone describes a headphone as tonally balanced, but has a very forward sound? It is that possible? I don't know how, but the HD-598 does have forward mids, but does in fact sound quite balanced.
 
When you listen to the Q701 and HD-598 side by side, it's obviously the HD-598 sounds as if it has more bass. Maybe less low bass, but I haven't compared that yet. I stopped trying to over-analyze all my headphones.
 
Q701 barely has any bass impact also. Maybe a little bit, but definitely not for everyone.
 
Here's a graph just to annoy people:
 

 
Look at that HD-598. Absolutely zero bass under 100hz. Yes, that was sarcasm.
 
 
 

 

[gohanssjn]

Just a note in case price helps:  the Sennheisder HD 598 is still on sale at ElectronicsExpo.com for $168.85 after shipping if you use coupon code BOUNTII and choose Standard Shipping.
 
http://www.electronics-expo.com/sennheiser-hd-598-open-circumaural-headphones-beige
 
Mine come in tomorrow
 
EDIT:  And yes, they are an authorized seller listed on Sennheiser's site.

 

[mhtn]

Quote:

Just a note in case price helps:  the Sennheisder HD 598 is still on sale at ElectronicsExpo.com for $168.85 after shipping if you use coupon code BOUNTII and choose Standard Shipping.
 
http://www.electronics-expo.com/sennheiser-hd-598-open-circumaural-headphones-beige
 
Mine come in tomorrow
 
EDIT:  And yes, they are an authorized seller listed on Sennheiser's site.

Yup.  Picked up one too and it should be delivered today   This is my second purchase.  Didn't know how good it was until I sold it.  I will get my chance to compare it with my Q701
 

 

[Beagle]

Quote:

This gets my vote as the most idiotic response I've read in at least a week. No bass below 100hz? Maybe my sarcasm meter is not working today. I hope you're joking. If so, please stop, because it's not helping anyone.
Saying the K701 has natural balanced treble and the HD-598 doesn't is just plain weird. Have you even heard the HD-598?
 
 
Here's a graph just to annoy people:
 

 
Look at that HD-598. Absolutely zero bass under 100hz. Yes, that was sarcasm.
 

 
Graphs are like the English language. Things that look similar don't always sound similar. Like choice and choir.
 
And yes, I've heard the 598. That's why I made the comment.
 

 

[wendell c]

thanks for that info, purchased the 598 from electronics expo with coupon. good deal!

 

[EinZweiDrei]

i once thought about getting the hd598 but i keep hearing about the build quality of some of the sennheiser headphones.
hd555, hd595, hd558, hd598 and other senns with similar build tend to crack on the side.

 

[RayleighSilvers]

There are so many conflicting opinions on here 

 I'm trying to research on whether the 598's are right for me, this thread isn't helping at all, lol.