For the lulz I did a "blind" test too on my bro(16) and my sister (12) of the SA5K, K702, and pro 750.
It wasn't really blind, but they knew nothing about the legacy of said headphones or their costs.
They both ranked the K702 third place. Both said the pro 750 was awesome and easy to listen to and had amazing bass. My sister said the SA5K was very clear but didn't care for it, although more than the AKG. My brother was blown away by the SA5K. He said it was like a fixed version of the K702, just with a smaller sound.
Both commented on how cheesy and cheap looking the Ultrasone was
I can only hope they didnt complex it.
So, maybe we can conclude that thinking the K70X is a thin and boring sounding headphone is genetic?
Originally Posted by MacedonianHero /img/forum/go_quote.gif No they do....on the K701/2s!
(Well at least until they are fully burnt in).
I have never heard anyone describe the highs of the HD800 as strident? I certainly wouldn't and I'm a huge Grado fan.
6 moons chief editor feels that the HD800 has a pronounced treble brightness, that goes away with the ALO cable and burn-in....
He likes the HD800, Cryo recabled, and off the right amp.
He also likes the K702, also recabled, off the Burson HA-160 and feels that the Austrian can is up there sonically with the HD800, although in its own way....
He is certainly not an AKG employee and NOT a Sennheiser employee either...
All this boils down to the fact that not a single reference can gets everything right... they are good in their own ways and certainly have their drawbacks...
Originally Posted by lejaz /img/forum/go_quote.gif Yes, but it would be really funny if she then tried out the hd650 and said, "Wow, now that's what a headphone should really sound like!" I think that's the part Acix left out.
Actually, if they had been in the mix, she might have! It's a well accepted idea that women's treble sensitivity is higher than men's (if you are an evolutionary psycologist, it's because men had more need to, say, hear animal footsteps in the forest and women had more need to hear the cries of a baby. If you aren't, forget I said anything
). The smoother, darker sound of the HD-650 may have been quite appealing. And there would be nothing wrong with this.
Maybe men need brighter headphones to compensate for their inferior hearing.
Originally Posted by k3oxkjo /img/forum/go_quote.gif Actually, if they had been in the mix, she might have! It's a well accepted idea that women's treble sensitivity is higher than men's (if you are an evolutionary psycologist, it's because men had more need to, say, hear animal footsteps in the forest and women had more need to hear the cries of a baby. If you aren't, forget I said anything
). The smoother, darker sound of the HD-650 may have been quite appealing. And there would be nothing wrong with this.
Maybe men need brighter headphones to compensate for their inferior hearing.
sad
, this means that my ancestors were babysitters! :| damn
Originally Posted by Skylab /img/forum/go_quote.gif While interesting, and while everyone certainly hears differently, unless someone took the time to match the levels using an SPL meter to within 1db, the results are pretty meaningless (and I mean absolutely no offense here, just stating facts) - it is fact that (up to a point) people will prefer the louder of the two - if the K702 were even 3db louder, that could account completely for her preference for them. As I'm sure everyone on this forum knows, setting the volume control at the same point does NOT match the levels between headphones.
When I do headphone and amp comparisons, I painstakingly match levels to within 1dB for comparisons, using pink noise and an SPL meter. Even that isn't perfect, but unless this is done, there isn't a lot of point to the comparisons, other than being fun conversation
Interesting observation. It was exactly the other way around. The HD 800 was the louder one. I didn't have an SPL meter, but I matched the listening level of both and it was a little more than 2 dB in favor of the 800. I don't know if you've had a chance to listen to the SPL amps, but the volume knob appears to be measured in dB increments. If it's correct, all amps should show the dB on the knob position.
I had a very hard time to get above -4 dB on the auditor. It was unlistenable. Actually, the highs become piercing at -8. I will mention here that there was no distortion, whatsoever. Everything was smooth and clear.
Originally Posted by Acix /img/forum/go_quote.gif Interesting observation. It was exactly the other way around. The HD 800 was the louder one. I didn't have an SPL meter, but I matched the listening level of both and it was a little more than 2 dB in favor of the 800. I don't know if you've had a chance to listen to the SPL amps, but the volume knob appears to be measured in dB increments. If it's correct, all amps should show the dB on the knob position.
I had a very hard time to get above -4 dB on the auditor. It was unlistenable. Actually, the highs become piercing at -8. I will mention here that there was no distortion, whatsoever. Everything was smooth and clear.
How can the volume knob be measured in dB increments and be accurate when one is concerned about the actual sound level from a particular can? How does that work when each headphone you plug in responds differently to volume outputs?
Originally Posted by aimlink /img/forum/go_quote.gif How can the volume knob be measured in dB increments and be accurate when one is concerned about the actual sound level from a particular can? How does that work when each headphone you plug in responds differently to volume outputs?
It can't. I highly doubt the amp has any way to compute actual dB based on the sensitivity of the headphones
And the HD800 are 3dB less sensitive than the K702, although I have no idea how that amp would respond to the different impedances those two headphones present.
Again - doesn't mean one headphone is better than the other, and your girlfriend heard what she heard. Just sayin' - probably not the world's most accurate test.
Originally Posted by tranhieu /img/forum/go_quote.gif Interesting! Of all the headphones I have (only a few though) the K702 stand out the most, and I would really love to have a look at the hd800 someday. But strange thing I notice is your girlfriend's comment about the 'fun' bit of the K702. Quite rare to hear someone call them fun, especially against the high end model like hd800 (in fact I'm in love with their not being fun at all
)
Did your girlfriend have a try with any other well known headphones around here? Just curious.
Good point. I clarified this today and asked her if she recalled her experience there with the headphones. What she said was that they were "fun and complete". So asked her to clarify what she meant and she said that compared to the first ones she heard (the 800), the second ones had more definition between the sounds and instruments with a more smooth gradation between the highs and lows. This sounds to me that she thought they were more balanced. She said that the first ones hurt her ears in the high end and that the bass seemed too rumbly and exaggerated. I personally don't have any problem with the boost of the HD 800, I like it. I haven't tried it in the studio yet, but it seems fun to listen as a playback.
I asked her what she meant by complete because I was really interested to understand what she was talking about. She told me that the sound was more round (making a big round gesture with her hands) and that everything seemed to be in the right place. When I asked her what she meant by that, she said that she could hear all of the instruments clearly and that they seemed to be positioned correctly around her. On this I agree with her, I think she's referring to instrument separation. She also said that the 800s sounded like they were skewed in the high end and that everything seemed to be lopsided.
What she meant by fun is that the K 702s were more easy on her ears than the 800. She said that they felt like a relief, like they were soothing after hearing the 800s.
Again, this test was only with this particular set up. I'm not making the claim that these results would apply to all amps, just this particular test.
It could just imply that the K702's synergise extremely well with the Phonitor and that amps that make the K702's really shine, may not go too well with the HD800's.
Originally Posted by aimlink /img/forum/go_quote.gif How can the volume knob be measured in dB increments and be accurate when one is concerned about the actual sound level from a particular can? How does that work when each headphone you plug in responds differently to volume outputs?
Maybe the company can clarify this issue better. Please see the volume knob in the pic.
Acix,
As I'm sure you remember, I prefer the Ultrasone Pro 750 to the AKG 701. This does not mean that I don't like the 701. Actually, I do enjoy it's sound but not to the extent that I enjoy the 750. I have never heard the HD 800. I am telling you this as a preface to my actual (upcoming) comments in this post so that you know I am not "speaking" from any type of prejudiced or biased perspective.
I was curious to know if you think it is possible that your girlfriend might be patronizing (in a good way) you? She may be selecting the AKG 701 because she knows you well and has seen how much you enjoy it. Perhaps, sometime in the past you have told her how much you enjoy the 701? Perhaps, even though she was blindfolded, she could tell by the shape of the headphone that it was the 701. Perhaps she selected it and spoke disparagingly about the HD 800 because she wanted to please you. I'm not saying that this is defiitely what happened. I am saying that when there is testing of this type (and probably other types of "tests" too) the ideas that I have conveyed here should be taken into consideration. Perhaps she is so enamored with you that she didn't realize she was patronizing you. Perhaps she was listening emotionally with her heart rather than analytically with her mind.
It would be impossible for me to have any type of bias here because, once again, I have never heard the HD 800 and I have heard the 701 and generally enjoyed it's sound. One could argue that I might have a bias toward the 701 because I liked it's sound. This idea would be invalidated because, having never heard the HD 800, I can't compare it with the 701.
Your girlfriend sounds very nice.
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(Well at least until they are fully burnt in).
