[majkel]

Imagine a meeting - 3 high grade headphone amps, 3 great sources, including Theta Generation V DSP, DAC and drive, a couple of decent interconnects, and lots of headphones, amongst them:
DT990 Pro, SR325i, Sony MDR-7509HD, MB Quart (I forgot), HD545, HD595, K701. Then another meeting with some new headphones: K141, RS2, SBC-HP1000, HD600, ATH-AD2000, SR60, SR80, others. New tube driven CD, new hybrid amplifier.
Two times, many persons, different tastes, and we have winners: HD600, DT880 Pros, K141, 990 Pros.
In other room Stax with kicking ass SR-404 + SRM-727 and many others combinations (to be forgotten, SRM-727 is sooooo great, SR-404 as well). We also have losers - you already know. So, keep believing my comments are esoteric. AKG K701 sound weird, they more yell than sing but some people need it. I can't help it but must look for other headphones, sorry. Other poeple confirmed - K701 is something strange, artificial but if you like it - take it.
Talking about SR225 when SR325i are discussed is a total mistake. I don't like SR225's either. Want to save money on Grados and be happy? Buy SR60's and put bowls on them. Otherwise, look at SR325i or higher models. SR325i were the first headphones make me believe I hear live music. Nothing like that with AKGs. Company-wise I'm closer to Beyerdynamic or Grado, preserving respect for Ultrasone.

 

[smegger]

i have the k601 and grado sr 80 dude i really love my k601s i couldnt afford 701s and hate there ipod look lol.
The k601 however i really find expansive and very detailed still have to get it amped properly, i am half way through a max build, i also was told the k601 was very similar to the k501 which tipped my decision.
i bought these headphones blind and really am pleased. ill let u know more details soon when i get my amp finished.

o and final idea buy all three!!!!

 

[mappy]

Quote:

Originally Posted by majkel /img/forum/go_quote.gif So, keep believing my comments are esoteric. AKG K701 sound weird, they more yell than sing but some people need it. I can't help it but must look for other headphones, sorry. Other poeple confirmed - K701 is something strange, artificial but if you like it - take it.

Thanks for your suggestions. I'm sure you mean to be helpful, but the reason why I said esoteric was not because your Beyers and Grados are, but I meant that your post was completely off-topic.

The reason why I started this thread was, to get help:
1. Deciding between K601 and K701,
2. By comparing to my preference in sound based on headphones I own
3. From people with similar interest in music genre i listen to.

But your posts didn't seem to relate to any of those three things.

I appreciate that your general consensus amongst your experts in your listening tests were that K701 was total junk compared to Grado, but I've also heard many positive comments on K601/701 from within and outside this thread.


Quote:

Originally Posted by smegger /img/forum/go_quote.gif still have to get it amped properly, i am half way through a max build, i also was told the k601 was very similar to the k501 which tipped my decision.

I learnt good headphone amp makes all the difference, so I'm not sure if mine is up to standard... At least it has plenty of gain to drive my 600-ohm K240DF!
Yeah, if K501 is good for classical then so should K601? Then will some of its goodness disappear when going up to K701? Thats my headache.
O, and I hate the iPod look too!

Any classical listener strongly FOR K501/601 and anti K701?

 

[sejarzo]

Seems to me that you must decide on your own here, and take a lot of the comments with a grain of salt. Personally, I found the K601's to have a severe lack of bass and rather uncomfortable (the ear cushions are far too large for my head and rested on a bad spot on my jaw joint) and the K701's, while surprisingly much more comfortable, to have some of that initial "wow" character.....the sort of sound that makes me think there is something here that makes them sound "different" that in the end is really just a euphonic coloration.

I sold my K601's that I bought used here on the forum a few months later for only $10 or so less than what I paid, so I think you are unlikely to take a big hit if you find a used pair and end up not liking them.

The K601's sounded very sterile on classical recordings, IMHO.........based on a variety of mostly Telarc recordings, amped with a CK2III out of an 0404 USB or Musical Fidelity CDPre24.

 

[mappy]

Quote:

Originally Posted by sejarzo /img/forum/go_quote.gif K701's, while surprisingly much more comfortable, to have some of that initial "wow" character.....the sort of sound that makes me think there is something here that makes them sound "different" that in the end is really just a euphonic coloration. The K601's sounded very sterile on classical recordings, IMHO.........based on a variety of mostly Telarc recordings, amped with a CK2III out of an 0404 USB or Musical Fidelity CDPre24.

Wow thanks! Thats exactly the sort of opinions I wanted to get

Your comment made my balance lean slightly towards K601.. Thats how vulnerable I am

Telarc discs are precisely one of my problem area. They're generally single mic'ed and roomy acoustics, so I found many of my better headphones (SR125, K240studio) still unable to resolve some of the key details. Perfect for test discs IMHO

I'm sure many of you had similar mental debate like me when buying K701 vs. 601, so that's the sort of experience I wanted to hear. (they're so close yet so far away...)
The general consensus seems to be most people ended up happy with what they decided upon, which is great to say the least.

 

[slowpogo]

Mappy, I don't think I've seen it mentioned and you may have read it already, but the 701s require about 200-300 hours of play time before they sound their best.

All the negative comments in this thread about the 701s, in my experience, describe the 701s as they are new out of the box. Honestly, mine didn't sound very good at all out of the box. I knew they needed burn-in time, but even so, I felt a little ripped off, they sounded so cheap.

However, I hooked them up to an unused CD player in the laundry room, and let them run for two weeks, switching CDs now and then. NOW, they sound WONDERFUL. Decca recordings, such as those with Dutoit, sound especially nice; "ravishing" is the word that comes to mind. Solo string instruments sound incredibly lifelike. Good string quartet recordings are my favorite thing to listen to on the 701s; you hear the overtones, the rosin, everything. It's fantastic.

Again, the 701s sound harsh, plastic, artificial, etc., all that's been said above, when they are brand new. But run them for two weeks and you won't even recognize them, the difference is so great.

 

[ph0rk]

Quote:

Originally Posted by sejarzo /img/forum/go_quote.gif I found the K601's to have a severe lack of bass and rather uncomfortable (the ear cushions are far too large for my head and rested on a bad spot on my jaw joint) and the K701's, while surprisingly much more comfortable, to have some of that initial "wow" character.....the sort of sound that makes me think there is something here that makes them sound "different" that in the end is really just a euphonic coloration.

The k701's colored? That's funny, because that's what many people say in a disparaging way about the k601.

I found the k601 and k701 to have the same comfort - the biggest difference was the flat headband on the k601 vs the knobbed headband w/ k701. The earpads felt identical. The bass wasn't too terribly different, though i found more extension in the k601 and slightly more midbass hump in the k701.

I think they sound very similar, if you are sensitive to treble (or young and can still hear it all), I'd go with the k601 - I liked it better for that reason.

Something about the k701's bass and treble spike made me sell them after 2 days. I'm happy with the k601's, though. No honky vocals w/ k601, either.

 

[majkel]

Quote:

Originally Posted by mappy /img/forum/go_quote.gif 1. Deciding between K601 and K701, 2. By comparing to my preference in sound based on headphones I own 3. From people with similar interest in music genre i listen to. But your posts didn't seem to relate to any of those three things.

You see no relation, while I do. You enjoyed K601, want to buy something different, I warn you and I'm not the only person finding the K701's as I described. Guess what I was trying to tell you?

Guys recommending K701's mostly haven't heard K601 but one folk. I haven't heard the K601's and haven't seen them FS for ages. Looks like people are happy with them. K701 appear in the For Sale subforum quite frequently. Buy a used pair and check it. They will be already broken in which takes very long for the K701's.

 

[MaZa]

Listening K701 right now. I also suggest that you reconsider buying them, since you mentioned that you dislike dryness. They are VERY dry. They are one of the most detailed headphones I have ever tried, with fantastic soundstage, but its so "grey" from deepest bass to highest highs. It imposes this greyness and lifeless flatness sound to almost everything no matter how recording is produced. (bit exaggeration of course) This is also second headphone that gave me listening fatigue, other being DT990 '05, but for different reasons.
Its like uber-high resolution picture, but monochrome color. Out of memory, I greatly prefer DT880 '03 to this one. Its has more sparkliness on in highs (bit similar to Grado, but not that overdone), but still flat and neutral headphone from bass to highs. Much more pleasant to listen, no matter what genre.

To confirm this, I ordered DT880 back, to confirm that my memory is right on what I prefer.

 

[mappy]

Quote:

Originally Posted by slowpogo /img/forum/go_quote.gif All the negative comments in this thread about the 701s, in my experience, describe the 701s as they are new out of the box.

Quote:

Originally Posted by ph0rk /img/forum/go_quote.gif Something about the k701's bass and treble spike made me sell them after 2 days. I'm happy with the k601's, though. No honky vocals w/ k601, either.

Quote:

Originally Posted by majkel /img/forum/go_quote.gif You enjoyed K601, want to buy something different, I warn you and I'm not the only person finding the K701's as I described. Guess what I was trying to tell you? Guys recommending K701's mostly haven't heard K601 but one folk.

Thanks for more useful comments!
You're all quite right. The whole thing started when I was convinced at buying K601, then becoming curious about K701 as possibly a cheap yet significant (?) upgrade.

What I gather from all your comments so far is:

K701: Very wide soundstage but dry and tonally un-thrilling.
Those who like it seems to be due to its lack of tonal coloration ("warmth" of K601 or high freq bump on DT880, etc) and due to its spatial coloration.
Special "fairy-dust" (harmonics? stereo widening?) that gives it the magic touch. Many positive comments but maybe not what I am looking for.

K601: Those who chose this over K701 seems to have done it due to tonal character. K601 has more tonal charm (warmth? hi-mid thickness?) that makes people prefer this over K701, although it has not as deep soundstaging or extreme high/low freq reproduction. (more conventional?)

DT880 Pro: I've learnt a lot since I started this thread, and DT880 opened up a big new path for me, thanks to majkel, MaZa, and others who recommended it to me. This one seems to have quite a keen high-freq bump and big soundstage, and ideal for classical. I'm a still a bit skeptical because it put me off-guard, but I'll look into this deeper.

I have to go and see if there are any dealer that I can test DT880 Pro, and check out its "sparkliness". I do enjoy high-freq extension but i can't really enjoy a treble boost as say my SR125.

 

[ph0rk]

I found the frequency comparisons on headroom to be pretty helpful - I knew I liked the curve on the DT-250 (more or less) and compared several headphones to it.

Assuming their measuring method is sound, their graphs support my impression that the k601 has flatter bass extension than the k701, relative to the midrange.

edit: url too long.
Graph

Unfortunately that graph (and others) would lead one to believe the k701 has more bass quantity than even the senn hd-650. The measurements are made with a max amplifier though, so probably not an entirely accurate indicator of what your real-world performance might be.

 

[kool bubba ice]

The 601's are more fun & musical..

 

[mappy]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ph0rk /img/forum/go_quote.gif I found the frequency comparisons on headroom to be pretty helpful - I knew I liked the curve on the DT-250 (more or less) and compared several headphones to it.

Yeah, thanks. I've been using those graphs a lot, but I didn't bring it into this thread because it creates more debates and arguments than i can handle

At least one thing I can say is that tonally i was bit cautious of K701 because the graph showed as much bass as anything I own, and DT880 looked exactly like K601 with a hint more treble. (it would've been great if there was a graph for my K240DF, just to see what sort of EQ i do enjoy)

I stop talking about graphs now!

people please please restrain from starting arguments about how graphs are not to be trusted! I know it very well. The graphs also don't show any spatial characteristics (soundstage, depth), which I value greatly.

Quote:

Originally Posted by ph0rk /img/forum/go_quote.gif I think they sound very similar, if you are sensitive to treble (or young and can still hear it all), I'd go with the k601 - I liked it better for that reason.

Interestingly, I did a high-freq test on my family members ("raise your hands when you cant hear anymore" test) and both my parents (retired citizens) had unexpectedly terrible high-freq perception! So best to enjoy music (in moderate volume) whilst still young!

I don't want to sound rude, but I have a worry that those over-trebly cans are designed to compensate for older age groups?

 

[Goh]

The K601s are my ideal all-round headphone, because of their comfort, aesthetics, soundstage and sound signature, which is just a bit warmer than neutral and thus more musical.

The biggest compliment I can pay them is that whenever I think about buying another headphone, I can always think of a compromise to the K601 sound I'm currently enjoying, and no longer feel the need to "upgrade."

However, I don't listen to much classical music. I think the detail and soundstage of the K701 might work better for you. Why not buy the K701 used, try it out, and sell it if you don't like it? That way, you'll have more knowledge of what you do and don't like and can make a better choice down the road. The for-sale forums here are great for that.

 

[violeta88]

I wanted to chime in on one of your questions relating to the K601 vs. the K240S. I used to own a K240S a couple of years ago, and they are nothing like the K601's. The K240S are not very detailed and are super warm. The K601 is extremely detailed and is much better suited towards classical. I wouldn't exactly call the K601 warm, but they are not cold and sterile either. I would imagine the K701's are similar, though I can not confirm that. Hope this helps.