[Pianist]

   
I didn't say the K612 was brighter sounding, but if you volume match the bass and the treble to similar levels to the K701/Q701, you'll notice that there's a upper mid hump that's abrasive, and it scratches against your eardrums. I compared directly between the two, and I don't think mine was defective as I've also owned the K601 and they sounded pretty much identical.

 
Fair enough. However, measurements do indicate the opposite - the Q701 is clearly the brighter of the two headphones. K701 is also brighter than the K601. Let's compare the three using the comparison tool on Headroom: =3591&graphID[]=703&graphID[]=2931&scale=30]http://graphs.headphone.com/graphCompare.php?graphType=0&graphID[]=3591&graphID[]=703&graphID[]=2931&scale=30
The measurements indicate that K601 is flatter and less peaky than both the K701 and Q701... Where's the upper mid hump? It's not there on the graphs...
 
 
@whitedragon551: I haven't heard the AD900X, but I am actually pretty sure that it is inferior to the K612 in technical capabilities. Why? Because the AD900X is supposedly an update to the AD900 and I read that the differences between the two are minor in sound quality. Here's the measurement of the original AD900. Frequency response looks pretty nice, but there's more bass roll off than on the K612, quite a bit more distortion in the low frequencies and significantly more noise in the impulse response and 300Hz square wave measurements. I think this translates to well balanced sound, but with looser, less controlled low end and perhaps a grainier, less refined sound in the rest of the spectrum vs the K612. Also, check out the measurements of the more expensive AD2000. What a nice mountain range above 2kHz...

 
DT880? Certianly a good sounding headphone. Clean, clear, quite resolving and refined. Well balanced, except for some rather annoying emphasis around 8 kHz. Soundstage is nice and wide and there's a good sense of space and air. However, imaging/instrument placement is not particularly sharp and noticeably less defined compared to that of the K612, HD600 or Fidelio X2 IMO. Let's just say that DT880 doesn't sound as transparent as the aforementioned three headphones. I can't say it lacks resolution or clarity, but I do feel that the mids are kinda lacking in timbre richness I suppose. The mids on the DT880 sound a tad... bland. Maybe too neutral? Maybe, but my HD800 has very neutral mids as well and yet sounds far more lively and involving. Nah, I think DT880 just lacks the quality of the mids of an HD600, X2, K612, HD800... and many other headphones. I think that this may be partially the result of its inferior driver and/or housing design or perhaps excessive/non optimal damping. Dt990 has less damping than DT880 and I think the mids on teh DT990 are richer and overall sound is more refined and clearer than that of the DT880 because of this. However, DT990 suffers from excessively V-shaped response with the mids simply lacking sufficient presence relative to bass and treble to sound natural. If you want great mids, I would avoid most Beyerdynamic headphones. Their T1 has pretty nice mids though, but it better have it considering that it's a $1k+ flagship headphone. T1 has other issues though... I read that the DT250 250Ohm and DT150 have great mids though, but they are closed back and won't sound as nice overall as the open headphones like K612 I think.

 

[viralcow]

   
Fair enough. However, measurements do indicate the opposite - the Q701 is clearly the brighter of the two headphones. K701 is also brighter than the K601. Let's compare the three using the comparison tool on Headroom: http://graphs.headphone.com/graphCompare.php?graphType=0&graphID[]=3591&graphID[]=703&graphID[]=2931&scale=30
The measurements indicate that K601 is flatter and less peaky than both the K701 and Q701... Where's the upper mid hump? It's not there on the graphs...
 

 
I was a bit confused about that too. I suspect the K612's tonal balance which emphasizes that particular region even though it measures differently. I also think the pad shape distorts the graphs a little bit (the K701 sounds more diffuse).
 
I've brought this topic up in the K601/612 thread and at least one other person agreed with me. 

 

 
I agree, the K7xx isn't as abrasive in that area. I found different amps and tube rolling can change how brash and forward the K612 can sound. Pad rolling to K7xx pads can eliminate than brashness and forwardness as well. My K612 was being borrowed for a while, been using the HD 600 in the meantime. I get the K612 back along with a Q701 tomorrow. Which I'm happy about since I haven't tried either on the Schiit Lyr 2 yet.
 

 

[Pianist]

   
I was a bit confused about that too. I suspect the K612's tonal balance which emphasizes that particular region even though it measures differently. I also think the pad shape distorts the graphs a little bit (the K701 sounds more diffuse).
 
I've brought this topic up in the K601/612 thread and at least one other person agreed with me. 

 
I agree that K612 is just a bit shouty in the upper mids compared to more neutral headphones like HD600, and believe that it is the only small flaw in the otherwise perfectly balanced headphone. I also find K612 pro a little thin sounding in the mids as well, probably due to that upper midrange emphasis. However, I don't find this to be problem. I guess it may seem more pronounced than it really is because apart from this issue, K612 is damn near perfect, so it's like a grain of sand in your shoe - just one tiny thing in there and it already makes walking seem a lot less comfortable and annoying. I can see how those who like heavy music genres and like to listen at pretty high volume levels may find this to be a problem though. However, I think the K700 series have exactly the same issue, but even worse because they emphasized the treble more. Q701 had too much glare in the upper mids through mid treble to 10 kHz to my ears which affected the tonal balance in a negative way. By comparison, I don't find the slight upper midrange push of the K612 to be as detrimental to its overall tonal balance. In fact, K612 is one of the most tonally balanced headphones I've ever heard, perhaps even more balanced overall than the stock HD800, because the latter has more of issue with the 6 kHz peak than K612 does with its upper midrange (2kHz) peak IMO. Honestly, out of all headphones I've heard thus far, probably only HD600, Fidelio X2 and HD558/598 sound more tonally balanced to me. However, the Sennheiser HD500 series are inferior to K612 in any other aspect of sound quality apart from tonal balance IMO.

 

[whitedragon551]

So far it seems like almost everyone prefers the K612Pro in this price range.

 

[Pianist]

  So far it seems like almost everyone prefers the K612Pro in this price range.

 
It's because it really shouldn't be priced this low (shhh - don't let AKG hear! lol). K612 is actually at least a $250 headphone that's priced far lower online nowadays for whatever reason. Actually its MSRP is around $250 if I am not mistaken. See the scratched price on amazon.com? That's how much it should really cost... Even at that price, I would consider it a better value in many ways than HD600 at $356 that it is currently going for on amazon.com. HD600 is better overall I believe -  a bit more transparent and natural sounding, although not with all music types. However, K612 can beat HD600 in a number of aspects of sound and for instrumental music for example, I think K612 actually sounds better than HD600 - more dynamic, more refined, more detailed. Yes, I think K612 Pro is actually the more refined and detailed headphone. HD600 just nails the tonal balance so well that it appears to be more natural sounding for a lot of music. Technically and in terms of sound signature as well, I think K612 is closer to HD800 than HD600 series. On another audio forum, I read about K612 being described as "a poor man's HD800" and I feel that it's actually quite true from my own experience AB'ing the two.
 
On second thought, it's hard to say which is better between HD600 and K612 because they sound quite different in signature. K612 sounds drier, with a wider soundstage - more analytical and precise. HD600 sounds more involving with more depth to the soundstage and more richness/fullness to the sound. I was listening to some pretty low bitrate music recently though and found that K612 seemed to reveal more compression artifacts, or at least revealed them more clearly than HD600, so I believe that K612 may be the more accurate sounding headphone.

 

[whitedragon551]

Im leaning to the AKG K612Pros as I like the looks and have wanted to try some AKG stuff. How does the 612 stack up against the HE400S? I havent been able to find anything on this comparison.

 

[zazex]

 
627 pages is a little much to read.

 
Right.
 
My point was only that they're well known and highly regarded enough
to be the subject of a thread that size.
 
Though the K612's at $140.00 definitely seem worth trying!

 

[393699]

I would suggest the K612 Pro paired with the Fiio E12. You can then just EQ down the 2 kHz region by -2 to remove the upper midrange grain. I have had these two for a while now and they work very well together. The E12 pairs perfectly with the K612 Pro, and really brings out the best capabilities of the headphones. You will be impressed.

 

[whitedragon551]

  I would suggest the K612 Pro paired with the Fiio E12. You can then just EQ down the 2 kHz region by -2 to remove the upper midrange grain. I have had these two for a while now and they work very well together. The E12 pairs perfectly with the K612 Pro, and really brings out the best capabilities of the headphones. You will be impressed.

 
I have already purchased the AKG K612Pro's from recommendation on this thread.

 

[akshaysehgal12]

Guys i am hoping to get one open back headphones for serious music listnening. Clear flat open and wide soundstage. Did some research and i felt i could afford k712 pro. Haven't heared them yet. There are few more in the list beyerdynamics 880 premium or pro's shure 1440. I had tried s1840 at hongkong airport they were just amazing but it is above my budget for now. I need to know few things before i could buy are they serious worth of this money. I have been listening through ath m50x and ckx9is since 1 year. I really enjoy both except the bass in ckx9.
How good are they against hd 598 or beyer 880's in terms of soundstage and flatness.
As it is termed refrence grade is it not good just listnening music if not mixing or recording.

 

[mrflarp]

For a clear neutral sound and very wide soundstage, the K7XX is fantastic. I've seen it likened to the K702 for sound profile, although I haven't tried those specifically (or the K712). I recently (today actually) got a pair of the DT 880's (Pro, 250 ohm). It is certainly more neutral sounding than the DT 990's, and even though it's listed as "semi-open", it still has a great soundstage. I haven't spent enough time with the DT 880's yet to really be able to compare them to the K7XX (or much of anything else really). Initial impressions though, they sound great on the Vali (using m9XX as the DAC at the moment). Both the K7XX and DT 880 are very comfortable, so if you have long listening sessions, that's a definite plus.

 

[CLVPTRVP]

This post was a great help for me too. I'm starting to lean towards the AKG 612 and the AKG 702 myself, as I do need a good open back headphone that isn't too bassy and has a good midrange to it. Thanks for this.