[cr0wnest]

The K7XX is not as bright/harsh as most AKG cans, but the K7XX can get sibilant with some music, choice of an amp that pairs well can help to control/reduce the sibilance / harshness.

That's good to know, I might pick one up after all. Thanks!

 

[HungryPanda]

Mine is stuck in customs in the UK right now. Arrived there at 11:47 am but now tracking says "consignee contacted for payment" at 20:35. On a Friday as well so I will have to wait till Monday and see if I get notification.

 

[DavidA]

That's good to know, I might pick one up after all. Thanks!

My primary amp choice for the K7XX is the Ember with a neutral tube like RCA clear top or Gold Lion while my GF and another friend like the Aune T1 Mk2 with either Gold Lion or Siemens Lorenz tube.

 

[johnnyb]

I am considering picking up the red edition one on Massdrop right now but I have my doubts. I used to own the K612 Pro but eventually sold it off as I found it too harsh in the 6khz - 8khz region. Will these sound similar to that?

The K7XX has full low-mids which warm the upper frequencies. Haven't found it to be harsh with a good amp.

 

[wega03]

I am considering picking up the red edition one on Massdrop right now but I have my doubts. I used to own the K612 Pro but eventually sold it off as I found it too harsh in the 6khz - 8khz region. Will these sound similar to that?

I have the 7xx and the 612, personally I enjoy a little more the 612 the sound is wider and brighter than the 7xx, the 7xx is to dark for my taste but still I enjoyed.

 

[WilliamLeonhart]

That's strange because I sold the k612 to get the k7xx because the soundstage on my old k612 is not as big. I'm not sure which one is brighter but to me the k7xx is another level of refinement. And I've never found each of them to be harsh, using the Little Dot I+ to drive both. That said the k7xx can be said to be warmer with more prominent bass and sounding fuller as well

 

[cr0wnest]

The K7XX has full low-mids which warm the upper frequencies. Haven't found it to be harsh with a good amp.

I have the 7xx and the 612, personally I enjoy a little more the 612 the sound is wider and brighter than the 7xx, the 7xx is to dark for my taste but still I enjoyed.

Interesting... Does the low mids drown out the upper mids and highs in any way? I listen to mostly J-POP female singers so upper mids are important to me. My amp and DAC are rather neutral sounding though, so if its not harsh to begin with, I should be fine with my current set up

 

[Mechans1]

I can tell you that there is no way to determine what combination of things, other than complete roll off of upper or lower frequencies, will yield what one person calls warm and another harsh bright or sibilant.  The only way to know is to audition them.  
That said if you take as many opinions as possible into consideration certain trends do become apparent.  For the KXX  the upper bass and lower mids seem to be pronounced, and that the highest frequencies are not so  obvious.  Yes I own them and was rather surprised to read some reviews calling them sibilant.  Not to me but... read the first sentence of my post.

 

[cel4145]

That's strange because I sold the k612 to get the k7xx because the soundstage on my old k612 is not as big. I'm not sure which one is brighter but to me the k7xx is another level of refinement. And I've never found each of them to be harsh, using the Little Dot I+ to drive both. That said the k7xx can be said to be warmer with more prominent bass and sounding fuller as well

I upgraded from the K612, too. The K612 sounded drier to me, if that makes sense, with the K7XX a bit more lush warmth. As far as soundstage, I don't remember there being a huge difference. Probably depends more on what genre and what one listens for than major difference between the two.

 

[cel4145]

I can tell you that there is no way to determine what combination of things, other than complete roll off of upper or lower frequencies, will yield what one person calls warm and another harsh bright or sibilant.  The only way to know is to audition them.  
That said if you take as many opinions as possible into consideration certain trends do become apparent.  For the KXX  the upper bass and lower mids seem to be pronounced, and that the highest frequencies are not so  obvious.  Yes I own them and was rather surprised to read some reviews calling them sibilant.  Not to me but... read the first sentence of my post.

I wouldn't call the sibilant at all. But they could certainly be more revealing of sibilant/bad recordings compared to other headphones people have had/listened to.

 

[johnnyb]

Interesting... Does the low mids drown out the upper mids and highs in any way? I listen to mostly J-POP female singers so upper mids are important to me. My amp and DAC are rather neutral sounding though, so if its not harsh to begin with, I should be fine with my current set up

I enjoy both male and female vocals on these headphones. They are pretty neutral for vocals. Accurate, not enhanced, but not suppressed either.

 

[Rhamnetin]

Interesting... Does the low mids drown out the upper mids and highs in any way? I listen to mostly J-POP female singers so upper mids are important to me. My amp and DAC are rather neutral sounding though, so if its not harsh to begin with, I should be fine with my current set up

 
There is definitely no drowning out with the K7xx.  It's a well balanced headphone.  Female vocals sound very similar to the DT 880 for example, while male vocals have slightly more bass and presence (but nothing drastic).

 

[DavidA]

Interesting... Does the low mids drown out the upper mids and highs in any way? I listen to mostly J-POP female singers so upper mids are important to me. My amp and DAC are rather neutral sounding though, so if its not harsh to begin with, I should be fine with my current set up

For Jpop and Kpop I like my SRH-1840, it presents higher pitched female vocals smoother and fuller to me.  Its close in sound signature to a HD-650 but much easier to drive properly.  Its also more comfortable than the K7XX IMO due to the softer ear pads.

 

[jwbrent]

Looking forward to receiving my Red editions at the end of this month.
 
I purchased the K701s when they first came out 10+ years ago. I really tried to like them but they were just too bright sounding with music that had any complexity to it. I followed the advice of members here and kept putting more and more time on them eventually exceeding 500 hours, but they continued to be uncomfortably bright to me, so I sold them.
 
My hope is the 7XX provides all the benefits of the 701 design with a more neutral top end. I also hope the amp in my 240SS is sufficient to drive them.

 

[DavidA]

  Looking forward to receiving my Red editions at the end of this month.
 
I purchased the K701s when they first came out 10+ years ago. I really tried to like them but they were just too bright sounding with music that had any complexity to it. I followed the advice of members here and kept putting more and more time on them eventually exceeding 500 hours, but they continued to be uncomfortably bright to me, so I sold them.
 
My hope is the 7XX provides all the benefits of the 701 design with a more neutral top end. I also hope the amp in my 240SS is sufficient to drive them.

Your DAP will drive them to fairly high volume levels, but I can't say if the sound will be to your liking since I have never used a AK240 DAP.  While I've only heard the K/Q 701 once and it was a while ago, they were lean/thin and bright sounding to me, the K7XX is a lot better in that regard.  Never noticed any changes in the sound over time, mine have a least 500+ hours on them.