[ourfpshero]

this thread got my attention
http://www.head-fi.org/forums/f4/sup...er-oem-407150/
so i did a search on ebay, made an offer and got a new superlux hd681 headphone. a little research shows there are 3 versions -flat, balanced, and regular- and some peeps seem to like them.

look at the pics- seem familiar- an almost exact copy of an akg k240! the materials arent as soft, the headband is thicker vinyl and the earpads scrunch from their cheaper foam filling. also the headband does not slide around as easily as the akg's. however the fit and finish is great with no flaws one sees on counterfeit headphones. going to superlux's site shows they are a legit (except for the design copies) company.

these dont come in a box- they are mounted on a piece of cardboard and shrink wrapped. a cheap blister pack! comes with a screw on 1/4" adapter and a carrying bag. so far so good.

1st i tried these off my laptop- sound was very nice, decent lows and highs, vocals ok. i was surprised- so i fired up my pc. x-fi to little dot 3 amp. pulled out an akg k240m 600 ohm for comparison. in music the akg is cleaner sounding, much flatter respnonse. the superlux has more bass and highs though. the highs are definately not as sweet as the akg. the bass is very nice though. sounds like an akg sextett and an audio technica a500 had a kid! a fun sound- not a flat sound. i used dance music, rock music, male and female vocals.

next some gaming. left 4 dead and unreal tournament 3. its no contest- the superlux has a bigger soundstage and the nice bass seals it. of course the k240m is not a gaming can. so i grabbed my jvc harx700 (i figured they compete in same price range). the jvc sounds muted in comparison, highs and mids not as present. the jvc has a ton more bass though.

these go for $45 shipped on ebay. for that price this is a great entry level open air headphone. it competes against an audio technica ath-ad300 (never heard it, but fwir its not too good), and a philips hp910 (great sound, lousy construction)

the driver is covered with a thick cloth pad and the speaker enclosures appear to be stuffed with a foam pad. might be easily moddable

pros
-price
-sweet bass, decent mids and highs
-construction appears to be of nice quality

cons
-heavier than the akg
-highs can get irritating on certain notes (the m16 sound in left 4 dead. to be fair other headphones are like this)
-doesnt have that 'old-world appeal' of an akg k240

 

[tvrboy]

I'm not sure the LDIII amp can really drive the 600 ohm K240 well... perhaps you are not getting an accurate comparison. Even if the superlux sounded as good as the K240 I wouldn't buy it. When I am buying non-consumables, I try to spend my money on products designed and built with integrity, used if possible. I certainly don't buy blatant knockoffs or copies. Every time I see someone walking around with an (obviously fake) Louis Vuitton purse I think they must be a very pathetic person.

 

[ourfpshero]

Quote:

Originally Posted by tvrboy /img/forum/go_quote.gif I certainly don't buy blatant knockoffs or copies. .

time to give up your dt48e and yuin pk3!

these arent claiming to be akg k240 though the design is obviously copied. however, headphone designs are copied extremely often! even among the biggest companies

icemat/plantronics (lawsuits here, plantronics backed down)
sennheiser/creative labs
dj headphones! the worst! beyer, senn, denon, ultrasone, sony, yamaha, pretty much all of them share the same headband design and many share the cup design too
every damn thing from the seventies and much from the eighties (insert dt48e here)
earbuds and iems just have a few basic designs (yuin here)

this is an industry of imitators, trend followers, and licensed designs

 

[dcpoor]

so beyer ripped themselves off with the dt48e?

/me confused.

 

[ourfpshero]

Quote:

Originally Posted by dcpoor /img/forum/go_quote.gif so beyer ripped themselves off with the dt48e? /me confused.

lol- the design is like many other headphones. i have some numarks from the 70s that look very very close.

back to topic plz

 

[dcpoor]

lol, the dt48's were developed in the 1930's...

 

[ourfpshero]

i'm sure beyerdynamic is the lone exception -it has looked exactly the same since 1937

dont you have another thread to troll?

 

[dcpoor]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ourfpshero /img/forum/go_quote.gif i'm sure beyerdynamic is the lone exception -it has looked exactly the same since 1937 dont you have another thread to troll?

Oh yes, I'm trolling when I point out the ridiculousness of your claim that the dt48's are a ripoff of some headphones from the 1970's...

 

[ourfpshero]

not a rip off but the headband and yoke design used in the modern dt48 is exactly the same as 100 other headphones from the seventies. even the original 1937 dt48 looked the same as radio operator headphones of the 20s and 30s

it's what this industry does now get over it

 

[Pandemonium1]

sad..from a taiwan company
plz dont judge us by the actions of minorities >"<

(extremely proud taiwanese owner of k271 studio)

edit: im buying a pair of HD681 just to laugh at them

 

[EugeneK]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pandemonium1 /img/forum/go_quote.gif sad..from a taiwan company plz dont judge us by the actions of minorities >"< (extremely proud taiwanese owner of k271 studio) edit: im buying a pair of HD681 just to laugh at them

Noes! Purchasing just encourages them!

Talk with your wallet.

 

[nadavnaz]

I tried these in Holland, they were used to act as speakers for a Nord Stage put on display in a store there. They were quite good!

 

[Pandemonium1]

Quote:

Originally Posted by EugeneK /img/forum/go_quote.gif Noes! Purchasing just encourages them! Talk with your wallet.

too late
my ordered pair arrived today

ok this is my first review im still quite new at headphones and audios..be nice

first impressions- the mids and highs wont come out..on higher volumes they become unstable...the mids especially didnt come out in anyway (i listened to some piano music)...might need equalizer
the bass were ok but i found them sometimes rasp and piercing. im not a bass head but i must admit the bass were actually pretty nice at times
needs to burn in? not sure if i really believe in burning in

its odd how they decided to copy te design off AKGs but chose not to go for the clear and warm mids and highs the akgs are known for

conclusion-i DID buy these for fun so at the price i bought it for i think its actually ok...if i was forgiving ill say its a great pair of headphones at that rip off price (150RMB...23 USD!)...and its bass is especially nice...plus the cups were pretty big too..bigger than my 271s

EDIT: It feels as if somebody had poorly equalized these headphones
on some music it is hollow while on otheres it is rich. It always works well on rock music though. on some frequency it refuses to come out nicely while on others it gives out loud and ..not very clear, but quite good

P.S.- i judged these headphones with my k271s

 

[AudioHipster]

Bought a pair these Superlux HD 660 for a make offer price, a sick cheep price for how these sound. they are flat and sound much like the 240 they have a little less bass they are smooth and you can here detail I like them, don't see any reason why they wont last as long as the 240's in question. Superlux makes products for other companies I will be trying out their other products because I was so impressed with the 660 and have read reviews on other products they make so will be trying out their microphones in the studio.

 

[AudioHipster]

Sorry too much Buffalo Trace... I wrote HD 660 but it was the HD 661. I have yet to try the 660, there is another headphone they make the HD668B very cool design: Superlux I don't think they are ava in the US?