Should I buy the AKG 701's??

[The Show 21]

I have a pair of Grado SR80s and Sennheiser HD595s matched with the Corda Headfive amp...My source for now is a basic integrated home theater system...Should I spring for the AKG 701s?? I listen to mostly R&B, hip-hop, rock, folk, and some jazz...Do I really need a third pair of cans? Would I really be experiencing something exceptional that I am not hearing with the Senns and Grados??

I can buy the 701s for $244 shipped from Northern Light...I'm new to this madness, but from your experiences, can I expect the price to be even lower in about 6 months or maybe a year??...or should I just take the plunge??...

Which are better for movie viewing, the 701s or the HD595s??...

Thanks guys for your help...

Or should I just get the Sennheiser HD650s? or just get a nice cd player?? any suggestions on a cd player??...

 

[Uncle Erik]

Quote:

Originally Posted by The Show 21 /img/forum/go_quote.gif Do I really need a third pair of cans?

Yes!

You what they say about wallets around here.

The K-701 is an excellent can, and the sound signature is very different from a Sennheiser or Grado. Most people here love them and at $244, you can't go wrong. Even if you don't like them, you should be able to sell them for around that much here.

 

[3x331m]

Quote:

Originally Posted by The Show 21 /img/forum/go_quote.gif Should I spring for the AKG 701s?? I listen to mostly R&B, hip-hop, rock, folk, and some jazz...

I think you can enjoy more with the Grado upgrade... perhaps sr225 or sr325i/MS2i (Up higher if you feel comfortable)? If you're happy with your Senns, you can keep them for your classicals.

I have all three of them, sr80, sr325i and K701. I only use the K701 when I listen to classicals. I no longer use sr80, just keep them for reference.

 

[Slaughter]

From what I have read, the 701 won't work as well for your r&b, hiphop and rock. Hopefully someone who has them can chime in here for you....

 

[strangemusic]

I too am thinking about making the jump from an SR80 to something more refined, and, eerily enough, also use a Headfive... I hear that the 701 and H5 are gorgeous together, but I have not been able to audition them. I'm listening to everything from chillout to house to classical choral to Nirvana to Primus.

I was just about to make a thread with pretty much this same question in it...

 

[akg_man701]

They work great for rock IMO, but I like the neutral analytical sound. I don't like the bass heavy sound of "rock" cans. The K701 has a very clean bass, but it's not

. It also gets better after burn-in. I also use a little EQ in Winamp and that's the best sound I've found with them.

 

[strangemusic]

"clean bass" sounds like a great idea to me! I play bass guitar, and the quick, articulated sound is much more appealing (to me) than something that sounds like STOMP STOMP.

 

[otprof]

I think you'll like the 701s, given your preferences. With music that has a prominent bass line (Moby comes to mind), I like hearing the notes crisp and clear. The bass is definitely not recessed, but you don't get the physical thump you do with other cans. I haven't heard any Senns for comparison, sorry.

 

[Davesrose]

Since you have the HD595, the HD650 may be something more different then what you're used to. I've heard that the k701 is roughly equated to the HD600 in terms of tonality: perhaps having a bit more soundstage and detail. So it's more of a stepup from the 595 rather then a different approach. The 650s, on the other hand, are a different beast.

I just got them, and I'm loving them for the genres you're listing! They have a lot of bass, but it's well balanced and articulate (really good for percussions IMHO). The only thing about them are that they scream at me to get high end equipment....hello Singlepower SLAM!!

 

[Duc]

The big upgrade you will notice with the 701's is soundstage and instrument seperation. Now this may or may not be a big deal for Hip-Hop. I don't usually listen to much hip-hop on my 701's but it is OK (The Roots, Mood, Outkast). I'm not sure how you feel about bass, but they do lack a commonly desired impact, they do however, have very tight and controlled bass. They really shine with Rock/Alternative and Jazz, because of this I tend to listen to more of these types of music on my 701's and more hip-hop on my 280's. The 701's will need proper amplification to sound right, running directly from the source will sound ok but be sub-par.

As far as CD players go, I'd look into the Cambridge Audio Azur 540c for a good entry level at about $350

 

[Hi-Finthen]

As always, the amp makes the resultant presentation of a given phones signature more or less so preferable.

The match of the H5 with the 701s is without a doubt preferable than with that of the 650s. Ergo, the 650s were returned to J&R in favor of the 701s paired to my HeadFive. No contest IME as to which was/is a better match.

I would go on to say, this IS NOT simply a preferance, as I cannot believe anyone could come to a different conclusion as to which better pairs with the HeadFives warm bass boost coloration, between the neutral balanced 701s and the warm, thicker bass bias of the Senns HD-650. I hardly cannot imagine anyones milage may vary.
However, I might suspect there are certain contemporary selections of music preferances of the contemporary listening culture which has as referance extreme bass heavy music they are looking to reproduce with headphones. There are always exceptions to my '70s Rock&Roll classics listening music preferance being more faithfully reproduced by the H5/701s rather than with the 650s I suppose.
I simply felt the drivers were better controled in the LF and gave way to much more mids detail revealed, with airy HFs with the 701s / HeadFive vs. the 605s and its strenths.

Good luck,

Stay tuned~

 

[The Show 21]

thanks guys for all the responses...im tempted to get the 701s now...and im curious about the 325is and hd650s, but more curious about the 701s...do you think i can expect an even lower price in about 6 months?? because i just got the sr80s and hd595s and i want to give them some time with my headfive...

on to my other question...what do you think about the marantz dv7600?...can you recommend another universal player in that range??...i know onkyo makes one that is decent and so does philips??...any suggestions??...much appreciated...slowly, i feel my grasp on practicality (and my wallet) slipping away...

 

[varro]

Quote:

Originally Posted by The Show 21 /img/forum/go_quote.gif thanks guys for all the responses...im tempted to get the 701s now...and im curious about the 325is and hd650s, but more curious about the 701s...do you think i can expect an even lower price in about 6 months?? because i just got the sr80s and hd595s and i want to give them some time with my headfive...

The k701 has allready lowered down to hd650 price, so not until AKG or sennheiser releases a new flagship model.

 

[Hi-Finthen]

I'm quite suprised Northern Lights & Sound is still offering these 701s @ that price of $244.

If anything I'll bet these suppliers will no longer be able to do so bringing their pricing more in line with the $300 line, rather than thinking prices will go lower...

 

[Yikes]

The number of members that are posting opinions about things that they have never heard amazes me.

I’ve read about it so I’m offering an opinion.

Do everyone a favor and if you haven’t actually heard a product don’t offer opinions about it.