[fewtch]

Quote:

Originally Posted by spaceconvoy Inches might as well be feet as far as I'm concerned. One of the (many) reasons I didn't like the K240s is because the sound came from ~3 inches away from my head. It was so tangible you could measure it, and it was really distracting and unnatural. For me, the best soundstage I've heard was my A900LTD. There was definite space between the instuments, but it was still inside your head, like you were in the middle of the action. So it sounds like I'd hate the K501, but I'm still holding out hope for the K701.

I'd say the K501 is almost a diametric opposite from the K240S... with an illusion like the sound is coming from many yards away (well, with classical anyway). I'd say it isn't a very natural sounding headphone at all, but it's amazingly coherent throughout the spectrum, which goes a long way toward making up for its faults IMO. Nice and detailed while avoiding analytical tendencies as well. Just beef up the bass response a bit and I'd easily choose it as my main headphone for everything, at least for non-critical listening (I do have this sickness of liking to listen analytically from time to time

).

 

[Azure]

Quote:

Originally Posted by spaceconvoy From RnB180 in this thread: "501s have a front row in your face sound stage that is wide but flat, 601s have distant sound stage, a treble more recessed then the 501's and larger bass presence." I couldn't find any direct comparisons between the K701 and K501 soundstage, so maybe I'm totally off base, but I'm assuming the K601 and K701 are more similar than different in terms of presentation.

Quote:

Originally Posted by spike33 Where are you getting all this incorrect info? K701 is more forward and punchier. K501 is laidback with wider but flat soundstage.

Quote:

Originally Posted by fewtch For what it's worth I don't agree with RnB's observation on the 501, unless it's simply comparative to K601/K701. To my ears (compared to HD580 and DT880) the K501 has a very distant soundstage/headstage that sounds similar to the back row of the concert hall. It's not that wide because it is so distant... soundstages get wider the closer you get to the stage. I do agree that it doesn't have a lot of depth, except for the aforementioned distance.

Uhh...so, which one has the absolute widest soundstage? Which one has better instrument separation and imaging? Which one is more "airy and crisp"? Lastly, which one has better mids?

 

[daveDerek]

how does the K601 compare/fit in wrt to the 501 and 701?