[chrisftl]

the majority of people talking about akg's are not vilifying it.
 
people don't like akg's because of personal preference; that's all there is to it. i'm happy with mine, will not be selling it, and what the bass lacks in punch it makes up for with smoothness. i hated it at first - now i love it. it is in every sense of the word a "great" headphone and if you really think the slander outweighs the praise, use the forum search. this is still one of the most talked about headphones on this website; there's bound to be more praise than slander, or at least equal. two sides to every story.
 
i've seen some GROSS over-exaggerations about 701's from respected head-fi'ers that have been here longer than me and probably know more than me. everyone thinks they're critics.

 

[wberghofer]

 
Quote:

[…] this is still one of the most talked about headphones on this website […]

That’s quite true! Sure there’s a lot to talk about a headphone which demands academic titles in audiometry and philosophy, unshakable faith in several hundred hours lasting burn-in voodoo and skulls made of massive concrete from their users before they shall be able to recognize the undoubted, great uniqueness of this product
 
Don’t get me wrong: I’ve used and liked the K701 for two years, and I still like it, but there’s something fundamentally wrong with a headphone which makes it so hard to eventually love it.
 
Werner.

 

[Mad Max]

 
Quote:

the majority of people talking about akg's are not vilifying it.
 
people don't like akg's because of personal preference; that's all there is to it. i'm happy with mine, will not be selling it, and what the bass lacks in punch it makes up for with smoothness. i hated it at first - now i love it. it is in every sense of the word a "great" headphone and if you really think the slander outweighs the praise, use the forum search. this is still one of the most talked about headphones on this website; there's bound to be more praise than slander, or at least equal. two sides to every story.
 
i've seen some GROSS over-exaggerations about 701's from respected head-fi'ers that have been here longer than me and probably know more than me. everyone thinks they're critics.

Smoothness?  It's quite textured all throughout, and really nice texture at that, I think, even in the bass.
 

 

[rsgladwin85]

I have a pair of K702's waiting for me back home.  I've owned them for a few months and haven't even been home to listen to them, and never previewed them.  I bought them, along with most of my other cans for one simple reason......I wanted to try highly reputable cans from several manufacturers to see which sound signature I preferred.  So far the only ones I have not fallen in love with for one aspect or another are my Sennheiser HD595's.  They are however growing on me, just not so much for music.  I seem to enjoy them for watching videos more than anything.  Great accuracy IMO. 
 
I have both the Valhalla and the Lyr, so I will get first hand comparison with these cans with both amps.  If this topic is still on the first page when I get that chance I'll post up my opinions.  As with anything and from anyone's mouth, thats all they ever can be is opinions. 
 
I think the main point is that no two people will hear a set of cans exactly the same.  These definitely are not the only ones that have gone through phases of a lot of people selling them or trading them off.  I personally would do the same thing if they were not absolutely stunning to my own ears in one way or another.  I want to hear as many different cans as possible, and if I dont like one enough to say I want to dedicate time to it, I might as well let it help me fund my search for auditory bliss.  Basically, I'd say give it a try and if you like it....great, and if you dont, then all you can do is try again.

 

[kiteki]

Why is this thread so popular.
 
How much do the AKG k701 sell for 2nd hand now anyway, roughly?

 

[aoceni]

110-130£ here in Sweden =)

 

[Redcarmoose]

This thread is popular just because of politics. A process by which groups of people make collective decisions. The term is generally used to describe Republicans or Democrats or Ford and Chevy. k701s being a Chevy. There is a lot of em out there, so a lot to talk about. No one is right or wrong, just opinionated.

 

[rymd]

Quote:

Why is this thread so popular.
 
How much do the AKG k701 sell for 2nd hand now anyway, roughly?

 
I don't know about ebay or other places, but on Head-Fi, it's been around $200-210. There's a $190 one that's been sitting for a few weeks too.
 
 

 

[kiteki]

the k701 is popular because it says "Made In Austria".
 
$200 is too much, unless you have a powerful desktop amp and want a really smooth sound with weak bass and highs.
 
No wonder everyone is "trying" to get of it

 

[Mochan]

I love the K701. I still have mine. It's my second "high end" headphone (at the time anyway; first was the DT770) and I plan to keep it for a long, long time. It's the complement to my LCD2. I prefer the K701 to the HD800.

 

[wberghofer]

 
Quote:

[…] 2 o'clock is fudgin' loud! […]

 
The DAC I use delivers ≈ 1.5 volts on the RCA output. So according to the chart posted by grokit on June 14th the position of the Valhalla’s volume knob is “loud”, but not yet fudgin’
 
Werner.

 

[naurispunk]

Quote:

No wonder everyone is "trying" to get of it

Trying to get RID of it
 

 

[naurispunk]

Quote:

$200 is too much, unless you have a powerful desktop amp and want a really smooth sound with weak bass and highs.

I actually starting to agree with wberghofer (or whoever said that) that $200 is perhaps way too little.  People don't whine about HD800 needing an amp because if you buy headphones for $1500 and expect them to run without an amp you are a moron. But somehow it feels ok to buy high end headphones (701) for $250 and expect them to run out of your portable mp3 player.
 

 

[EYEdROP]

Nobody likes the 701, DT48, HD800, etc... Most people like natural sound, not neutral. Headphones like the 701 are more for sound engineers doing work. For general music listening, most will prefer HD650, D7000, etc...
But once you get used to a neutral sound, you wont want to go back to a fun sound. I like my sound dry, predictable, normal, no glamour. Just plain sound but clear. Most people want to have each and every song to sound amazing and have hard hitting bass and wide sound stage, crystal highs, sound good no matter what... Neutral headphones dont do that.

 

[Alghazanth]

Quote:

Nobody likes the 701, DT48, HD800, etc... Most people like natural sound, not neutral. Headphones like the 701 are more for sound engineers doing work. For general music listening, most will prefer HD650, D7000, etc...
But once you get used to a neutral sound, you wont want to go back to a fun sound. I like my sound dry, predictable, normal, no glamour. Just plain sound but clear. Most people want to have each and every song to sound amazing and have hard hitting bass and wide sound stage, crystal highs, sound good no matter what... Neutral headphones dont do that.

Wait, what? HD800 is the most popular flagship.
 
Absolutely agree about natural vs neutral though.I adore the HE500 and T1, hate cans like the K701. I also love the HD800, though not quite as much the aforementioned two.
 
While I still love the fun, very engaging sound of the D2K/D7K I 'grew up on', I much prefer the eargasmic natural sound that in my experience only the T1 and HE500 manage. They just make everything sound amazing, and unlike the Denons, don't have you headbanging to the bass song after song. Don't get me wrong, I still enjoy that sound very much, but it's just not as... fulfilling as what a "natural" can does. The T1/HE500 bring me the sound I always expected out of top tier audiophile cans.They bring everything to you the way it should be, headbanging fun songs make me want to headbang, creepy atmospheric music creeps me out, relaxing music makes me lay back and relax. And in a genre as diverse as Metal, they are just the best. I don't find myself wishing for more soundstage, more/less bass, etc... it's all here as it should be. It's really something special and for people like me who enjoy listening to music rather that analyzing it, it's the exact reason the K701 is not liked.