[dyna10x]

Hi
I wanted to know between hd600 & K701 which one is harder to drive or more dependant on a good amp for performance? The reason I ask is I am trying to determine if my integrated amp (rotel ra840bx2) could drive the K701. I was able to test a pair of hd600 on it and they sounded fine. I then ran the hd600 through a musical fidelity xcan v3 and there seemed to be little difference apart from some tube smoothness. I could easily live with the hd 600 through the rotel. Based on listening to the K701 through a marantz amp I realy like them. Any thoughts or advice would be appreciated.

 

[ksu06]

From experience, the K701 were definitely harder to drive than the HD600.

 

[Il Mostro]

I agree that the 701/702's are more sensitive to good/bad/inadequate amping. It is not just a matter of having enough gain to drive them to sufficient volume, but I have found that without adequate power these phones sound congested and have flabby, uncontrolled LF. The Senns, while definitely better if fed the right juice, do not fall apart to the same extent with less than ideal amping.

 

[jh4db536]

+1 harder for HD600. I had my 701 balanced and through many high power solid states that i owned at points in time. I didn't notice much difference with the 701 compared to the 600 in the same fashion. I am not even convinced that the 701 needed to be amped by anything more than a portable eg mini^3, pico, or predator from what i remember.

 

[Slash47]

K701 sound very poor unless you have a lot of power. My Elekit just sort of does it, but I listened to 'm through a 300B tube amp with a couple of watts and they still improved a lot. They're very messy and metallic out of a portable amp. I also had a Meier Audio Corda Arietta with BUF634 output and that failed in every way. It started clipping before the bass even did anything. (Nothing wrong with that amp btw, it sounded great with my HD595.)

The HD600 need a small kick in the backside to fire up, otherwise they're not resolving and a bit dark. But they're definitely easier to drive, although I personally don't like them. (Too much lower mids for me.)

 

[vorlon1]

I agree, the K 701s are harder to drive than the HD 600s on any of my amps.

 

[MacedonianHero]

I own both the HD650 and K701 and on my experience the K701s are much harder to drive properly. They are the most amp dependent headphone I have come across.

 

[Valens7]

The K701 is considerably more difficult to drive than the HD600. Or the HD650 for that matter. When I owned the K701, I had to explore the entire range of my amp's volume control. If I were in your position, I would sell the K701 for funds. You could always come back to it if you get better amplification for it. Of course, if you like it how sounds now then go ahead and keep it. Having a varied stable of headphones is a good way to go.

 

[tomb]

It's not power they need so much as current. Many amps that can drive HD600's well may have large voltage swing capability, but not much current (OTL amps, for instance). So, you could still have a powerful amp (based on voltage), but it may still not be sufficient for the K701. A corollary is that portable amps are often limited in current by virtue of their battery power and are not good choices, either.

This is why you often see people mention a Hybrid with a healthy output stage, a discrete output stage SS amp such as the GS-1, or a MOSFET amp such as an M3 or B22. All of these can produce healthy doses of current to make up their power, which is what the K701 wants.

 

[Slash47]

I found the K701 are unique in that they need both current and volts. I tried amps with buffer outputs which supply more current then my current tubes, yet they sounded flat and lifeless and gave substantially less bass. And they sound best when my amp is set to high voltage.

 

[David58117]

I just purchased a K701 recently, and I'm sort of confused over these posts because I'm driving it pretty well with the $12 Fiio E3. I listen to classical music primarily, and aside from the flatness (which I'm attributing to only having a few hours on them), if there's a well done recording, it's going to sound like it through these headphones.

It's definitely not a "poor" sound coming out of it (again, depending on the source), the normal volume I listen to is around 60% for the IPOD Classic and portable CD player, and the sound is detailed and clear if the recording is.

I'm definitely very interested to hear what a quality amp sounds like in comparison, but the Fiio E3 is performing very well, based on my needs. I do plan to upgrade once I get the money in (assuming I can hear a significant difference), but I just wanted to state it doesn't take a monster of an amp to get a good sound out of these. Atleast in my experience, with what I listen to, and to my ears.

 

[dyna10x]

Thanks for your input everyone. I had a listen to the K701 through a top of the range marantz int amp headphone output at a hi fi store and as I said they sounded fine to me. I could only test my int amp headphone output with the hd600 to see what it is like and to try and determine if it could do justice to the K701. Unfortunately I cant get my hands on the K701 to test at home.

 

[MomijiTMO]

Quote:

Originally Posted by David58117 /img/forum/go_quote.gif I just purchased a K701 recently, and I'm sort of confused over these posts because I'm driving it pretty well with the $12 Fiio E3. I listen to classical music primarily, and aside from the flatness (which I'm attributing to only having a few hours on them), if there's a well done recording, it's going to sound like it through these headphones. It's definitely not a "poor" sound coming out of it (again, depending on the source), the normal volume I listen to is around 60% for the IPOD Classic and portable CD player, and the sound is detailed and clear if the recording is.

If you haven't heard them with a proper [low-fi] amp then you'll never know what you are missing out on. From my experience, unamped the k701 had sloppy bass and the soundstage wasn't there. An amp changes the game, completely.

 

[ksu06]

Quote:

Originally Posted by MomijiTMO /img/forum/go_quote.gif If you haven't heard them with a proper [low-fi] amp then you'll never know what you are missing out on. From my experience, unamped the k701 had sloppy bass and the soundstage wasn't there. An amp changes the game, completely.

Completely agree. The K701 sound "fine" unamped in the sense that I did not perceive really glaring weaknesses. However, you definitely aren't hearing it at its best!

 

[VALIENTE]

Quote:

Originally Posted by dyna10x /img/forum/go_quote.gif Thanks for your input everyone. I had a listen to the K701 through a top of the range marantz int amp headphone output at a hi fi store and as I said they sounded fine to me.

dyna10x happy new year to you.
I have to add more information about K701.
Maybe this could also help.

http://www.head-fi.org/forums/f4/gra...g-k701-463718/