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BeHik
28
Dec 31, 2014
Hello there! Received my pair of AKG's (#000024) today's morning in Kazakhstan. They are of great build quality and definitely on par with my Austrian Q701's. A little bubbles here and there on membranes, which is common thing even with Austrian made AKG's. I have em on my Q701's too, but to a lesser extent though. It seems they do use slightly different molding forms for outer grille and inner side of the cups, thus they are slightly different. Plastic is of good quality and there is almost no smell out of the box. And comfortable they are (no "torture bumps")! They also feel lighter than Q701's in hands and on head (didn't weight them yet). And most importantly - first impressions: they do sound AMAZING! those 3db of bass boost are instantly noticeable. Warmer and more intimate sound than Q701's but still with great soundstage and imaging, crisp highs and lush mids. It's a bit too early to go into details yet, as i need time to burn them in and then carefully listen for a couple of hours on various tracks.
A few comparison photos : http://imgur.com/a/Lyqvq
Now for the rattle thingie. I have it on the left side and I've made a quick video that shows the problem here:
A few notes: It seems to me that on the same level of volume K7XX drivers do tend to move more on lower frequency than Q701 drivers thus we have the dome break-up on K7XX. (or maybe im imagine things). Rattle on left cup cuts off after 65hz. I can make my Austrian Q701 rattle either, but on much higher volume, the left driver tend to rattle more on Q701 either.
I do not experienced rattle issue during music listening yet even at ear-bleeding levels , though i didn't tried any bass heavy music yet. 3 o'clock on O2 is as far as i go during my ordinary listening (usually its 12-2 o'clock). Had some rattle during 20hz part of "Heart beat track" from Chesky 's Ultimate Headphone Demonstration Disc (5 o'clock O2 2.5x gain (default)).
I am going to let them burn in for some time now, for more fair comparison with Q701, as they are a year and two month old and been in heavy use. Also interested if rattle settles down after some burn in.
Paul.M
48
Dec 31, 2014
BeHikExcellent Video! Exactly what is happening on my set.. Thank you for uploading it. Now we have visual proof for the folks at MD to show the AKG warranty people.
Yakov
1420
Dec 31, 2014
BeHikComparing the two visually... the 7xx look a lot "cheaper".
Probably gonna sell mine.
zondaf
8
Jan 1, 2015
BeHikMy right side starts to break up at 2 o'clock and the left side at 3 o'clock. I also tested with the O2 on 2.5x gain. My normal listening level is on 1x gain at around 10 o'clock. I also tried my old uDAC-2 and it starts to rattle at 1 and 2 o'clock. The uDAC-2 is putting out under 40mW at that volume so the K7XX still shouldn't be having that issue since it's rated up to 200mW. Is it possible AKG used a softer diaphragm on the K7XX? Did they intend for this or was it a mistake during manufacturing?
BeHik
28
Jan 1, 2015
zondaf2.5x gain is default (unless u used custom setup options or build it urslef with changing gain values) setup with JDS Labs O2, by pushing switch u getting 3.5x gain. 11-1 o'clock on default gain is my usual listening volume with Q701 depending on the track. But if i would want to have fun an listen loudly - 3 o'clock on default gain is perfectly listenable with Q701. Now, the thing IS that the left driver starts to rattle very soon, and goes up to 65hz while right driver does its job fine, same as Q701 drivers (they starts to rattle at 3.5x gain 3 o'clock). So its definitely not how it supposed to be. Listened to a few bass heavy songs for test and it is rattle on some of them on 3 o'clock. Definitely going with the solution MD and AKG will come up for us, as it would be great to have perfectly working pair. Now, should i pm MD, or how it is done?
zondaf
8
Jan 1, 2015
BeHikI have custom gains with 1x and 2.5x. I think all of the diaphragms have the breakup problem. Some seem to breakup at a lower volume than others. Most people probably aren't testing them at a high enough volume(105-110dB with music and not test tone) to hear the problem. I'm not sure they can find an easy fix because they would likely have to redesign the diaphragm to be stiffer and that would change the frequency response. The cone breakup at low frequencies is probably how they are getting the increase in bass.
BeHik
28
Jan 1, 2015
zondafHad same thoughts too about the way they increased lower frequencies, but as i know for sure - for the most part of that 3db bass boost and overall sonic changes responsible that memory foam earpads - they has very different sonic performance/better isolation than that of K702/Q701's. I'm absolutely agree on the topic of dome breakup and design, but it is possible to have same or closely matched performance of two diaphragms on one set of headphones. More so - it's one of the arias where manufacturers tend to do their best (driver matching).
duplissi
10
Jan 2, 2015
BeHikMy pair has the bass rattle in the right ear, and it seems to have lessened with use (Definitely still there), so I am too curious if it can go away with extended use. I contacted MD support about it and I am waiting to hear back about the next step. Its so disheartening too! these headphones sound amazing.
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