Headphones
AKG K 702 Black
Venerable industry leaders in recording studio headphones now give us the AKG K701 and K702 audiophile models, both top-of-the-line full-size reference headphones with fabulous punch, a wholly engaging "front-row" musical presentation, and complete competence across the entire audio spectrum. The K702 are nowhere near their sonic potential right out of the box; patience and a long 'break-in' period will be rewarded with a lovely headful of beautiful tunes. Truly top-notch world-class headphones.
Please check our official HeadRoom B-Stock outlet for great "open-box" discounts on this item!
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Product Features:
- Outstanding detail and impact from close tolerance aluminum voice coil design.
- Lightweight and comfortable, durable and well built.
- Easily replaceable ear-pads and cable for extended user life.
- Very well engineered by this excellent headphone maker.
- 2 Year Warranty
What's In The Box:
- 1/8" to 1/4" adapter
Applications:
AKG Acoustics in Austria has brought their considerable audio engineering skills into sharp focus on their high-end dynamic headphone designs and produced an astonishingly superb-sounding pair of cans in their flagship K701 and K702 models. Getting it absolutely right at this demanding level of reference-grade audio performance is tough and the K701/K702 get pretty darn near perfection. These headphones deliver a truly dynamic and texturally punchy sound, articulate and clear over the full audio spectrum. Precise musical detail connoisseurs should appreciate the clean punch and tightly focused bottom-end control of these headphones. Classical and acoustic music afficionados will likewise love the fact that the dynamic control moves right on up the frequency range to distinctly articulate every finger pluck and rosin-on-gut string texture present in the sound mix. About the only thing that we can possibly say bad about these headphones is that those who like a very laid-back, mellow-sounding, or heavy bass presentation might want to look elsewhere since these are certainly highly refined, audiophile-oriented headphones that deliver a deeply expansive soundstage image along with analytical detail and a liquid immediacy that demands your full attention. And... oh!... what a lovely musical demand it is!
The major difference between the K701 and K702 --other than the color -- is the K702 offers a detachable headphone cable while the K701 cord is a fixed hard-wired assembly. In the case of the K702, AKG has done a nice job equaling the audio performance of the world-famous K701 design. Both of these cans have a number of unique features that create a dramatic improvement over previous AKG 'best-of-category' headphones. Their dynamic range extension and clarity of musical detail & texture is directly improved by a revolutionary proprietary AKG Varimotion diaphragm that is designed to provide smoother pistonic motion and better acoustic resonance control. Further, AKG's revolutionary flat-wound voice coil design allows for greater concentrations of the magnetic field within the coil, thus driving the element diaphragm with more authority to deliver a cleaner and ultra-articulate response.
Our own HeadRoom experiences with the K702 echoes the widely held assumption that the headphones require a REALLY extensive chunk of burn-in / play-time to fully 'relax' sonically & sound its very best, so assume a similar MINIMUM 200-300 hours of play-time with the K702 before the audio pleasure of these cans is fully realized. The soft fabric 'ergonomically-perfect' earcup cushions are a soft velour material -- very comfortable -- and are designed to angle the drivers precisely at the ear for a more correct listening experience. The K702's fully detachable cord links to the headphones using a 3-pin 'mini-XLR' plug system that offers secure connectivity plus ease of cable replacement should it ever become needed. High-end after-market AUDIOPHILE cords are also available (see below). The headphone cord terminates to a 1/8" [3.5mm] plug with a 'screw-type' 1/4" [6.3mm] plug adapter included. We love the K702's cool blue-black color scheme, which we think is understated and rather sleek-looking. We also think most listeners will enjoy how amazingly comfortable these headphones feel on the head with their well-designed, albeit slightly oversize ergonomics. By the way, the headphone stand included with the K701 is NOT provided with the K702 model. Conclusions: A world-class A-1 audiophile reference headphone and heartily recommended! ... Thanks, AKG!
FYI: For listeners wishing to use the AKG k702 with portable audio players like iPods, MP3 players, & PCs/laptops, a dedicated headphone amp of some sort is simply a must for maximized audio performance due to the headphone's VERY low sensitivity -- despite its fairly efficient 62-ohm impedance rating. Our entry-level HeadRoom 'Mobile Line' portable headphone amps ($99-$159usd) will do the trick nicely but the more powerful, accurate, and dynamically-quick HeadRoom 'Micro' series of products come very highly recommended for this superb headphone.
Other Recommended Accesories:
For serious AKG K702 listeners, HeadRoom highly recommends investing in an upgraded K702 replacement headphone cord from Cardas Audio. Cardas headphone cords are renown for significantly improving dynamic range 'quickness' and extension, soundstage imaging depth & spatiality, and overall musical detail resolution clarity. It's certainly a quick worthwhile upgrade for audiophiles looking to make their beloved AKG K702 headphones perform at the very top of their game.
Cardas Audio AKG K702 headphone replacement cords are available in 10ft, 15ft, and 20ft lengths:
Cardas AKG K702 Headphone Replacement Cord
Specifications:
- Cord Type: Straight Left-Side
- Coupler Size: Large
- Manufacturer Warranty: 2 years
- Cord Length: 10 ft. (3 m)
- Weight: 235 g (8.3 oz.)
- Sensitivity: 105 dB SPL/V
- Driver Type: Dynamic
- Detachable Cable: Yes
- Connector Type: 1/8" with 1/4" adaptor
- Noise Cancelling: No
- Microphone: No
- Wireless: No
- Warranty: 2 Years
- Impedance @ 1kHz: 62 ohms
- Ear Coupler Type: Full-Size
- Acoustic Seal: Open
- Headphone Type: Full Size
Additional Resources:
- Manufacturer's Website
- AKG USA website
- Product Reviews
- Tom Martin, Playback
- Steve Guttenberg, CNET
Average Rating
Posted by Grant from Atherton, CA on 2010-05-11
Recommend Product: No
Pros: amazing sounds
Cons: anything not to do with the sound
-if you read the headroom reviews it is said that these are not the best for laid-back or bass sounds, which is basically all that i listen to... should have got them from this website.
-LEAK NOISE--> in order to get the maximum out of these headphones, you will need to turn the volume up more than normal, and at that point basically everybody in the room can hear what you are listening to, so i now use these only in solitude and earbuds for everything else.
-not very portable but i have managed to keep them in good condition despite throwing them in my athletic bags hoping for the best
I am going to say that i would Not recommend these headphones because nowadays the most popular genres seem to be the ones which these headphones were not made for. But i have not yet fully broken them in so I am hoping for improvement.
9 out of 10 people found this review unhelpful. Did you?
Posted by gthphotography from chicago on 2010-04-14
Recommend Product: Yes
Pros: Comfortable, astethics, sound, feel
Cons: None that I've found
Buy these. Do it now. Oh, and buy an amp if you're going to use them with a computer or mp3 player.
2 out of 4 people found this review helpful. Did you?
Posted by madelvice from Tacoma, WA on 2010-03-28
Recommend Product: Yes
Pros: Very comfortable, sharp detail, revealing, easily replaceable cord
Cons: A little sharp sounding out of the box, weak bass without amp, cord as durable as it could be
5 out of 5 people found this review helpful. Did you?
