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Tigertoaster
35
Mar 15, 2016
The K7XX made a safe touchdown at my homebase today - kudos to Massdrop for the fast, safe and accurate delivery of a nice crafted and very fine working piece of soundcan. However, I´m surprised, how bassy and dark they sound straight out of the box compared to my K612pros - but still nice, since the treble fits the nice experience I made with the K612 - a litte bit harsher at this point, but I think that gets shaped during wear in (also the K612 sounded a little bit harsh in the beginning).
Put my drop around 1400, serial still is much higher, although I like the serial "2223" - curiously, the package shows "Serial 1601", somebody had a bad day at the packaging area of AKGs facility?
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As you can see. the Sennheiser HD 600 is already lurking from above, provoking a show-down. It well get its chance, but this duel will be a tough battle :)
Hihat65
5
Mar 15, 2016
TigertoasterHi Tigertoaster, I also have a (brand new this week, Austrian made) set of k612's. I felt they were a bit dark at first but they have already opened up a lot. I LOVE them. Do your k7xx's seem muddy at all? The 612 are beautiful, so crystal clear with a nice tight, punchy bass response. I realize the 7xx's have that 3db boost in the low end but do you feel that they may not sweeten up with use? I would hate to have the low end overpower all else. I'm am in no way a basshead.
XxMRGAMERZxX
13
Mar 15, 2016
Tigertoasterhaha true i dont remember what number i was but i love them. the only thing that sucks is that Canada-post (Local Postage company) Charged me an additional $28 Canadian. and they said the box was 5 pounds which is outrages. regardless I am Happy with the purchase.
Only questions is where can i buy hi quality music Like Flac. only site in know is band camp.
Tigertoaster
35
Mar 16, 2016
Hihat65Hi Hihat65, before I try to answer your questions - some warning @ first: after experiencing quite a lot of headphones, I had to learn that the amp itself can put a huge influence in your listening experience and therefore can be a big game-changer. For example, my Fidelio X2 in my opinion turned out to be a litte bit too boomy, warm and treble/upper level detail-rolled-of at my FIIO X3, which I also used as my desktop DAC/AMP in 2015. After experiencing my Onkyo DAC-HA200, I found out that the X3 delivered WAY darker and rolled of musik to my phones - the X2 suddenly turned out to be a yet bassy but more defined, detailed and trebble-detail-lovely listening device. Therefore, it depends on which DAC/AMP your are using - even more if you are using a K6/K7 series AKG. The K612 in particular sucks a lot of power out of your Amp - that´s supposed to be a reason why the user-opinions are spreading so wide. The K612 imho needs a decent amount of power and an amp which is not extremely fond of shining on the bright side of the force ;). Using it even at a well situated smartphones or tablet/ notebook on-board sound is predestinated in ridiculous results - not only volume-wise, but even more in lacking detail, bass and treble articulation.
Could you please tell me which AMP/DAC you are using to- perhaps it will give me a hint, if your listening combination is either on the dark or on the bright side. In case your setup isn´t exactly a "dark lord", I would assume your listening preferences is very bright orientated. If that´s the case, please give yourself a favor and skip the K7XX for some decent Beyerdynamic (or Grado) headphones - the Beyerdynamic T90 could be your sweetheart: loooooots of detail, quite bright but not too piercing, spiced with a solid basement of dry and detailed bass that is not interfering any mid/ highs details.
My listening opinion of my own K612 (China made, around 400 hours on duty) at my DAC-HA200 does not tend to be "dark" in any kind, but indeed crystal clear. If I would be in need of finding the perfect all-in-one headphone, the K612 - in my particular opinion - would lack a bit of sub-bass and oomph. But I´m not a basshead either. Chosing between bass and detail, I would clearly prefer detail.
Tigertoaster
35
Mar 16, 2016
Hihat65Leaving this long and painful detailed preamble (sorry people, I´m german AND working as head of a QA department - worst case, I know ;) ) :
The K7XX opened noticeably after the first few hours - even from this point of listening (under 10 h) I would not call it "muddy" in any kind - there are lots of details around the whole spectrum (even at the lower end). Coming from a Beyerdynamic or K612, you could name it a slight bit veiled - but in a positive, laid back way (and not even close to the infamous Sennheiser veil). Treble details are a bit more defined, refined and destinct in comparison to the K612. Treble rolls off a tiny bit below the K612 upper deadend, but this promotes the overall listening convenience (the loss of treble detail imho is neglectable). Mid/upper bass still stays dry and present, voices (male in particular) are so beautifully tuned (this marks one of the big benefits of the K6/7 AKG range - very naturally but also present voice rendering- predestinated for listening to Podcasts / audiobooks / movies).
Pushing it to its extremes, the K7XX shows its superior peak rendering reserves in comparison to K612: a very suitable example I´m using to testdrive the treble behavior of headphones is Hans Zimmer´s "Stay" from "Interstellar" OST - the last 1:30 minutes. Be careful not hurting your precious sense of hearing by trying the end of this track with inpropriate volume - it´s a ongoing climax of multiple orchestrial and church organ layers finishing in nearly painful heights. The K612 manages quite well till the last 30 seconds but from this point it tends to lose treble and the elsewhere decent precision - the upper church organ layer begins to vibrate and distort - at this point the K7XX still manages to separate the multiple layers - no part is left behind ;)
If you´re a fan of the K6 or K7 range and you fear the lifted bass could destroy your beloved detailed mids and heigths - please be reassured: it will extend to a more powerful basement, but not at the cost of being "boomy, undefined". However you would lose a small amount of height detail and soundstage (I would guess 2-5 %), but imho it´s a more than fair tradeoff, since it gains a lot more general usability (if "one fits all" is an important issue to you).
Since today, I parted my music listening into two headphones - bass / laid back, convenient: X2. Demanding, complex, classical, "interrogation": K612pro. I think there´s a good chance to concentrate all needs into one headphone - but let me please have another 50 hours to evaluate this forecast.
Closing my thoughts with some selfmade "K7XX picture p0rn" - Good bye and good night!
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plkJack77
0
Mar 16, 2016
TigertoasterHello, i also have the K 612 and now i am waiting for my K 7XX to arrive but i fear that the K7XX wont have that AKG sound signature that i love (analytical, resolving, detailed).
I have read a lot of reviews that said they are dark and warm sounding. And i fear they will be warmer and bassier than HD600 ( i found them right at the edge of not being warm too much ) which i also had, but i eventually returned them because they were too expansive and i treated them like treasure and not like headphone for everyday use and got the K612 for less than half the money and i was amazed by how much they deliver for such money :D.
But the main question is: Do they sound like AKG with some added "funny-ness" to it or do they sound quite diferent (the reviews are misleading for me, and i never got a straight answer )?
The main thing i fear is that they will be too bass heavy...
Tigertoaster
35
Mar 16, 2016
plkJack77Referring to your main question: imho they still preserve the typical AKG signature (detail, treble, still analytical), but gaining some extra bass sweetness which suits them good. Makes them a more "rounder package" in my opinion. Since I have a new pair of HD 600 at my desk right now (got them exactly to the same price the K7XX set me back - so a real deal, too) I would say, they share a certain equal amount of warmth while bass-wise the K7XX is going deeper, but still on the dry side (no boom resonations/ reverbs). Main noticeable differences between K7XX and HD 600 are: Soundstage (AKG typical wide, but imitating a somewhat more defuse reverb , HD 600: obvious more intimate stage (like sitting as a orchestra member right in the middle of your colleagues). Also the HD 600 has a much more destinct mid emphasis, while the K7XX sounds more "democratic" (well rounded distribution). Sometimes the HD 600 tends to over-emphasise particular instruments in a strange/ awkward/ unnatural way (f.e. string patterns are given the main theme, while the lead instrument (vocals, solo instruments) get turned into background). But the HD 600 manages female voices far better, intimate, pleasing (sometimes you could almost imagine Norah Jones singing for you lying underneath the same blanket ;) ), whereas male voices sound a little more saturated, powerful and realistic using the K7XX.
Please take the initial experience of your K7XX with some grain of salt. Mine sounded very warm and almost muffled the first time I put them on to my ears - letting them play by themselves and returning after 3 hours offered a different experience to me. Also experienced this with my K612, whereas Sennheisers and Beyerdynamic did not differ significantly after some playtime. A big part of headphone reviews are only reflecting the initial experience, only few return to share their final experience. So, the percentage of reviewers having a certain issue is proportionally high...
Tlan
0
Mar 16, 2016
TigertoasterYou gotta break in the K7xx for a couple of hours. I'm coming from the K612Pro too. The K7xx starts to open up after like 24 or 48 hours. They have more detail and more bass than K612pro
Hihat65
5
Mar 16, 2016
TlanHi guys- mine shipped yesterday and I got them early this afternoon..so cool. I can already hear the potential in these cans. I agree with some burn-in time. The build quality is just as good as my Austrian k612 pro's. A very solid, substantial feel and soooo comfortable. I have Chinese k702's that are solid and fantastic but these 7xx's feel that much better. If AKG can keep up this level of quality the whole Austria vs. China thing will become a non issue. For Tigertoaster, I use a lowly Sony D - NE330 discman cd player and a PA2V2 by Electric Avenues headphone amp which I both love. I wish everyone who purchased the K7xx headphones the best of luck and as much enjoyment as I am experiencing. This was a lot of fun for me!
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