A little help for AKG K701 amplifer [Archive] - Audio & Video Forums

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0739085
08-28-2008, 03:54 PM
Hi! I'm a new comer here. Unfortunately I'm also a new comer to the audio field. So my problem is:

0. I'm just beginning to listen Classical music. (say, Mozart, Chopin, Bach..)
1. I'm a college student and my maximum expense for the whole set is 500$
2. I want to buy a good earphone which last for a long time and won't make me disappointed. The clues pointed out to AKG K701. It's excellent, not that expensive, and full range.
->
3. I found I need to buy something called amplifier to use the K701. But I really don't know how to choose. Because the limit of my budget, I can't make a mistake.
4. I also need to buy a CD player. There is a Panasonic studio player at my school, which can also drive CDs. But I really don't know what I should buy for I've never use CD players before. I used to listen CD directly in my PC.

Please give me a piece of your advice!

noddin0ff
08-29-2008, 04:35 AM
The AKG K701 look to be at the high end of headphones and of the more expensive. If you're new to audio, I'd say your overshooting your needs. They list at www.headphone.com (http://www.headphone.com/products/headphones/full-size/) at $449. You can pay half that and still get an audiophile quality headphone.

You'll hear anyone listening to a top of the line headphone like the K701 claiming you need an amp, because anyone who aims that high wants everything they can get out of them and an amp is par for the course for an audiophile.

But, one should listen first and then decide if you need a dedicated headphone amp. If you don't know what an amplifier is (as suggested in your post) you should learn more before making any purchases, headphone included.

If you still want to use a PC you can. No need to get a CD player.

My advice. Spend half as much on headphones, plug them in to your PC. I bet you'll be happy with the sound. If you later find you want more, save up, do some research, and plan for an upgrade such as an external DAC/amp in the $50-200 range, to add to your PC system.

welcome to the forum!

0739085
08-30-2008, 08:19 AM
Thanks! The K701 isn't that expensive, the price in Amazon is like between 250$ to 270$. So I guess I can afford it. Thanks for your suggestions.

noddin0ff
08-30-2008, 12:29 PM
Thanks! The K701 isn't that expensive, the price in Amazon is like between 250$ to 270$. So I guess I can afford it. Thanks for your suggestions.

Expensive is relative. It is expensive for headphones. I'd speculate that diminishing returns kicks in around $170. Beyond that you're paying significantly more for very small incremental gains in quality. To actually hear the gains you'd probably need to spend much more in the upstream components.

Reasoning shouldn't detract from enjoying the purchase of a really great pair of cans, but if one of your concerns was your budget...well, you could probably get a better 'system' with a modest reallocation of resources.

But, yes. $250 is a lot better than $449. Enjoy.

0739085
08-31-2008, 09:25 AM
Hi!

I'm sorry that I didn't understand your reply completely. I'm not going to buy now. Bard College is a place in nowhere, so I basically have to go to New York once to find an audition store to hear the sound. I want to ask if the 270 ones are worse in quality than the 440 ones?
Your words suggest that there exist not only a price difference, but a difference in quality as well. I really don't know.

Just as a note, my notebook order was canceled by Lenovo by some ugly reasons. So I might be able to spend more money once i got the refund. Still, thanks for your suggestions. I'll definitely go to an audition store to listen first.

Austin Kuipers
09-14-2008, 06:24 PM
. Hi, this is the first time I have posted to AudioReview, but since I have a pair of AKG K701s I figured this would be as good a time to start as any.


Expensive is relative. It is expensive for headphones. I'd speculate that diminishing returns kicks in around $170. Beyond that you're paying significantly more for very small incremental gains in quality. To actually hear the gains you'd probably need to spend much more in the upstream components..

I agree with the idea of diminishing returns, and your $170 price point seems valid, however, despite this, if one has the funds to spend an extra $60 on a pair of headphones(i purchased my 701s for about $220 on ebay plus $10 shipping), and is willing to do so to achieve better sound quality, by all means they should. when one spends, say, $10000 on a pair of speakers, hopefully that person understands that the difference between 10k speakers and 5k speakers is not the same as the difference between $200 and $5000 speakers. It is the price to pay for better sound

In terms of other components, 701's sound average through a ipod jack, but a $100 headroom amp makes them some of the best headphones available to the average person.
for the most part I listen through my computer, but for cds a good CD player can be found used for less than $100 in great condition. add a decent pair of interconnects for $40-50 and you have a headphone listening system that can rival any sub 5k speaker rig in terms of sound quality for less than $500 :2:

nightflier
09-15-2008, 02:34 PM
Another headphone you might want to consider is the Grado 225 or 325. They sell these at discount prices at many college bookstores and they are fairly easy to drive. Not quite the same headphone as the AKG, but a huge step up from the cheap earbuds that come with most iPods.

Also check out Headroom (www.headphone.com), they have a large selection and some fairly balanced reviews. Some other less expensive headphones you might want to give a try: Sennheiser HD555, AKG K240mk2, Beyerdynamic DT250-80.

0739085
09-15-2008, 04:06 PM
Thanks for you all! I'm trying to bid one AKG K701 in ebay right now. And I think I'm going to buy the totalbithead to drive it. I hope in this way I can save some money and get a "moderate" experience on K701.