[ThurstonX]

  Haha, if it works why not let the world know 

 
Oh, I'm not shy.  Notice how colorfully I did it again 

 

[Chris J]

Audiophile approved audiophile tape!

 

[Nexigen]

I have the Q701 for about a good two weeks now, over 80 hours of listening already.
The sound is fenomenal. As a producer, I really enjoy the crystal clear natural sound they produce.
Soon I will get the Fiio E17 AMP which should make it even better, I will tell my findings once I got it.
 
There is one downside though, and that is the headband. These bumps on it are terrible.
I read a lot about it and noticed that other Q701 owners have a similar opinion about it.
After wearing the Q701 for a longer time the bumps actually reshape my head.
I'm actually getting concerned it will stay like this forever.
I don't want to cut the bumps, but is there another way to make it more comfortable ?I
Is there some way to soften them up ?.

 

[scottzg]

   
 
There is one downside though, and that is the headband. These bumps on it are terrible.
I read a lot about it and noticed that other Q701 owners have a similar opinion about it.
After wearing the Q701 for a longer time the bumps actually reshape my head.
 

There's no way to soften them up.  I've read of people cutting them off, riveting in a new headband, covering them in various materials... They'd be better if the headband was installed upside-down!  

 
Here's what i did with a shoelace, about a year ago.  Works nicely, although i wish i had had a black shoe lace on hand.
 

 

[ThurstonX]

  I have the Q701 for about a good two weeks now, over 80 hours of listening already.
The sound is fenomenal. As a producer, I really enjoy the crystal clear natural sound they produce.
Soon I will get the Fiio E17 AMP which should make it even better, I will tell my findings once I got it.
 
There is one downside though, and that is the headband. These bumps on it are terrible.
I read a lot about it and noticed that other Q701 owners have a similar opinion about it.
After wearing the Q701 for a longer time the bumps actually reshape my head.
I'm actually getting concerned it will stay like this forever.
I don't want to cut the bumps, but is there another way to make it more comfortable ?I
Is there some way to soften them up ?.

 
Since they were designed for studio use, AKG may quote you on that 

 
If you're unwilling to remove the bumps, the best thing I can think to do is wrap something soft around them.  This will only work if you're not at the limit of the headband's extension.  I removed them, then wrapped half a folded bandana around.  I've got a few millimeters worth of wiggle room.  Originally I had what I thought was thin foam over where the bumps were (so, under the bandana), but it proved too much.  FWIW, I'm 6' 5" with a commensurate head.
 
If you read back in the thread, and maybe other threads, you'll see some fine replacement work done with leather.  I'm pretty sure they removed the bumps though.
 
Good luck.

 

[ThurstonX]

Recently I replaced the foam under the cups (so, driver side) with various materials.  Rob80b mentioned it in this thread.  Specifically he mentioned wool felt (as opposed to synthetic felt you can get at, e.g., Walmart).  Having tried different foams (you know me and my foams , synthetic felt (and that doubled in one test), and various combinations, the wool felt I got from Amazon turns out to be the best.  I did compress the rings in a vise (between two clipboards) for a couple days, as it's rather thick, which caused the mesh filter to touch my ears.  Much better now.
 
My goal was to filter out some of the ringing harshness of electric guitars and some vocals, while not sacrificing too much detail and soundstage.  A lot of my tests took too much away or didn't do enough.  This wool performs beautifully.  Almost makes the ol' Qs... dare I say it... fun 

  I find myself listening to them more now, though that may be the ongoing brain burn-in period.  Gotta try 'em with lots of different music.
 
Anyway, for anyone looking to alter their Qs to this side of pleasant, give it whirl.  I like having a collection of rings from which to choose.  It takes less than a minute to swap them.

 

[Nexigen]

Hmm maybe cutting is the best idea after all.
 
I can't fathom how these bumps got through the design iterations at AKG headquarters.
I'm pretty positive that about 99.9% of all the people who wore an AKG Q701 longer than 4 hours agrees on the fact these bumps are an absolute pest.
Perhaps all the testers had a whole lot of hair.

 

[DaemonSire]

  Hmm maybe cutting is the best idea after all.
 
I can't fathom how these bumps got through the design iterations at AKG headquarters.
I'm pretty positive that about 99.9% of all the people who wore an AKG Q701 longer than 4 hours agrees on the fact these bumps are an absolute pest.
Perhaps all the testers had a whole lot of hair.

 
Couldn't agree with you more.  I absolutely HATE the bumps and was getting the same dents in my skull.
 
I didn't like the idea of cutting them off so I (well my wife ) made a pad for me out of some scrap fabric and memory foam.  We basically made a pouch and folded some memory foam in there.  Then made a separate wrap to hold it onto the headband.  Works well enough for me.  And the nice thing with the pouch is when the memory foam eventually gets compressed to the point it isn't helping, I can just swap it out for some fresh stuff.  V1 of the mod was sealed
 
Now as ThurstonX said, it very much depends on the size of your head. I don't have the biggest head and I'm about at the max of the headband extension.
 
Some people say the bumps don't bother them and find it comfortable...I couldn't imagine it either!  At least in the new AKG iterations (Annies, K712, etc.), they did away with the bumps and went smooth.

 

[johanchandy]

It was comfortable for me until I got a haircut, now I get splitting headaches wearing these . I'm planning to replace the headband with a DIY one.

 

[CloudMoose]

First post, but I've been lurking head-fi for a while now. I've had the Q701 since the start of December and have been in love ever since. Previously, I only had the UE900.
 
I too had a problem with the lumps being painful after a few hours of constant use. I drilled out the "Rivets" holding the headband in and replaced the headband with a section of an old leather belt cut to size. Secured it with some thumbscrews from a spare computer case and some nuts.
 
Besides the off balance feel you get from having the cable connect only on one side, I can hardly feel it while wearing them for long sessions now.

 

[johanchandy]

  First post, but I've been lurking head-fi for a while now. I've had the Q701 since the start of December and have been in love ever since. Previously, I only had the UE900.
 
I too had a problem with the lumps being painful after a few hours of constant use. I drilled out the "Rivets" holding the headband in and replaced the headband with a section of an old leather belt cut to size. Secured it with some thumbscrews from a spare computer case and some nuts.
 
Besides the off balance feel you get from having the cable connect only on one side, I can hardly feel it while wearing them for long sessions now.

I was just searching Google where I could get leather scraps nearby to make a headband, cutting an old belt seems like a great Idea! I hope I can find one wide enough.

 

[jumper]

I'm pretty close to pulling the trigger on the Q701, are there any issues with buying AKG's or headphones in general on eBay?  I'm asking because Amazon has them for $199 but they seem to be the newer 'made in China' version and eBay still has sellers offering the 'made in Austria' version for the same price.  It's also easier to get verification on this subject from eBay sellers than an Amazon vendor.  The country of origin is not a huge deal to me but if it's all the same I'd rather have the original made in Austria.  I'm just not sure how safe / legit buying on eBay is when it comes to headphones.  

 

[GorillaSceptre]

Wow the bumps are that bad?
 
I'm glad i got the made in China version's then, the bumps are so soft now that they almost sit flush with the head band. but if you get the China versions you have to give them a couple of day's to stretch out, cause damn those suckers are tight at first.

 

[Fuzziekiwi]

  I'm pretty close to pulling the trigger on the Q701, are there any issues with buying AKG's or headphones in general on eBay?  I'm asking because Amazon has them for $199 but they seem to be the newer 'made in China' version and eBay still has sellers offering the 'made in Austria' version for the same price.  It's also easier to get verification on this subject from eBay sellers than an Amazon vendor.  The country of origin is not a huge deal to me but if it's all the same I'd rather have the original made in Austria.  I'm just not sure how safe / legit buying on eBay is when it comes to headphones.  

Just make sure they are an authorized dealer.

 

[CloudMoose]

  Wow the bumps are that bad?
 
I'm glad i got the made in China version's then, the bumps are so soft now that they almost sit flush with the head band. but if you get the China versions you have to give them a couple of day's to stretch out, cause damn those suckers are tight at first.

Have a Chinese pair and this was not the case with mine, a month later they still hadn't softened up.