They have dry bass, analytical, cold, and emotionless sound, cloth pads are itchy, treble is piercingly sibilant, your wallet will be much happier if you control yourself. Don't buy impulsively, you need to eat. Lol
Funny thing. I would never say AKG is my favorite house sound, but after surveying my collection, I have more AKG than any other make.
I have K501, K612, K712, K545, K550, K551, Q701 as well as some other minor models I don't remember. Wow, what gives?
I've heard that thin, analytical quality in the K501, K550 and to a lesser degree the K551. But I wouldn't say that about the Q701 or the K712.
Out of the AKG models I own, the Q701 and K712 are on the opposite end of the spectrum. They actually have a nice warmth to them, especially the K712.
Treble on these two is quite balanced and appropriate, and this is coming from someone who cannot stand hot treble.
But I've heard all the "thinner" sounding models sound great, too. A lot of it comes down to successful system matching. Sometimes a combo will sound horribly thin and unlistenable. But the same cans in another context can sound glorious, if somewhat unbalanced.
If possible, give a listen in person if you can. It's really hard to know exactly how a set of cans will work for you by written description alone. There are so many nuances that can't be fully communicated in words.
Btw, not all of the AKG models use those cloth pads anymore? K501 has them, probably some of the others, but Q701 and K712 have velour. Can't remember which the K545, K550, K551 use.
