[Happy Camper]

You'll get hints of nice sound unamped. If you realize the weaknesses going in and do get an amp that drives them well, I think a person can live with them. They will be nicer than portables because of the headstage but will sound anemic. An old receiver may be an option as they are cheap and will do decently until you can save the cash to get an appropriate amp. Ebay always has gear at a decent price. A 70s vintage is good and you don't need much in the way of wattage which will keep the cost lower.

 

[Arctia]

What the person above me said. You can still hear all the details, if you turn your volume up. The problem is at that kind of volume, the mid-high will be so loud, it will make your ears bleed. I know because I had an un-amped K701 for two weeks.

A good amp will make all the details more revealing, without having the harsh mid-highs blow your ears out.

 

[khaos974]

Contrary to what most people say, I think the K701 is quite listenable unamped, but the problem you'll run into is that if you're listening out of a computer, you'll be subjected to software volume control.

To be more precise, spacialisation and pacing are the less affected, sound texture and voices are okay (compared to the amped version) as long as you keep a reasonnable volume.

On the other hand dynamics and the instruments attacks and decays benefit from an good amp. But the biggest change is the control of the phones, how tight and how much an impact they have.

But I'd still expect a big improvement over what you currently have even unamped.

 

[120717]

I have an iBasso P3+ for my HD650s which are apparently hard to drive, I've noticed disapproval of my setup but I'm not sure if I can justify spending more on an amp than the headphones if it's not a night and day difference.

 

[AP3X]

I went through 6 headphones all unamped when making my headphone decision. The AKG K701 was the headphone that I liked the best. Among those other headphones where te HD600, HD650, HD595, DT800, Ultrasone 600, and the AKG K 701. No amp used, just a Macbook Pro, a Marantz receiver, and a PC with a X-FI Fatil1ty card. The AKG's sounded it great but clearly not up to it's full potential.

Last week I pulled the trigger on the Darkvoice 3322 amp.

 

[estreeter]

AP3X, I'd like you to look up the specs on your 'Marantz receiver'. I think you will find that there is an amp in there, and very likely a quite powerful amp at that. My CA integrated drives my headphones better than either of my dedicated DAC/amps.

 

[Happy Camper]

Marantz does pay attention to their headphone service. I was quite impressed with my friend's output on his receiver. Now the hp out of my pre is pretty bad.

Once the OP hears what tubes do, there will be no escape. He will be assimilated.

 

[tranhieu]

provide your headphones what they crave, if you really love them

 

[MacedonianHero]

Honestly it's like driving a Ferrari and staying under 100 km/h. Why bother? These babies can sound great properly amp'd and why not push them to their limit?

 

[sun_x]

Quote:

Originally Posted by AdamWysokinski /img/forum/go_quote.gif I agree. People buy K701s, pair them with weak amps or power them from laptops/iPods and complain that K701s sound lean and bassless, while the truth is completely opposite

- Absolutely!! I like that, that's true!

I just had that impulse to throw them away immediately and really wanted to cry when I first got my 701 without amp (plug into my laptop, sorry about that). If you are not planning to buy an amp, may be try something else. AKG701 really needs a very decent amp to bring out its full potential.

Good luck

 

[Zombie_X]

I'm in the minority here, but I think the K701 are very listenable when unamped. And I agree with Uncle Ericks' statement about power. They need a lot of power to truly shine. Trust me from my first hand experience.

An under amped K701 sounds very hollow, like you here silhouettes of the instruments. Well actually that over exaggerating, but they sound thiner when under amped, plus bass isn't as thumpy as when amped. of They do sound a lot better when amped.

 

[insyte]

For me the K701 sounded really thin without an amp. I really only started to appreciate the K701 when I paired it with a SS desktop amp.

 

[pbarach]

I have 702's (electronically identical to 701s), recently purchased. Plugged directly into my computer's headphone jack, they don't have much volume and there is not much bass impact at all. With an amp, they are plenty loud and there is ample bass impact. So in a pinch (and in a quiet room) they will work without an amp--but not at their best by any means.

 

[Duggeh]

I'm one of those who thinks that the K701 sounds wrong and odd even with the best amplification. Like an HD600 with some kind of intrinsic design fault.

So yeah, unamped, it'll sound different, but still fundamentally wrong and odd.

 

[Uncle Erik]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Duggeh /img/forum/go_quote.gif I'm one of those who thinks that the K701 sounds wrong and odd even with the best amplification. Like an HD600 with some kind of intrinsic design fault. So yeah, unamped, it'll sound different, but still fundamentally wrong and odd.

Which is the same reason I sold my K-701. The vocals were always "off" and the K-701 had a strong whiff of plastic about their tonality.