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K402 , k402 MEH owners


NBPK402

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Since 1976, I have had AKG 240's that have been a world wide recording studio standard ever since.  They are so good, they still made today at a ridiculously low price for that sound quality (six passive bass radiators help a lot).

 

I recently got a pair of $269 Monoprice Monolith M1060 headphones (more comfortable than the AKGs) that are open back Planar Magnetics (technology similar to Carver Platinums) that were reviewed as sounding as good as $1,200 headphones. I agree, they are terrific, but not that much better than the good old AKGs, although they do have the most incredible midrange detail I've ever heard, especially on vocals.

 

Some of the prices people pay for headphones today borders on the RIDICULOUS. Thousands of $$$ for the phones and more Thousands for a frikkin amplifiers in the MILLIwatt ranges to driver them. Some ignoramuses pay up to $10 Grand for the combo to get similar sound. But hey some of them are "pretty" so you have to pay tons for that!

 

For recording on my Zoom H6, I have the Heil AMT 422H's because they are about 12 db more sensistive and closed back for isolation and minimizing the use of AA batteries in the unit on location. IOW they get really loud with the volume control closer to Zero than 10. At about $150, those sound really good too, but not quite as good as the other two.

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Since 1976, I have had AKG 240's that have been a world wide recording studio standard ever since.  They are so good, they still made today at a ridiculously low price for that sound quality (six passive bass radiators help a lot).
 
I recently got a pair of $269 Monoprice Monolith M1060 headphones (more comfortable than the AKGs) that are open back Planar Magnetics (technology similar to Carver Platinums) that were reviewed as sounding as good as $1,200 headphones. I agree, they are terrific, but not that much better than the good old AKGs, although they do have the most incredible midrange detail I've ever heard, especially on vocals.
 
Some of the prices people pay for headphones today borders on the RIDICULOUS. Thousands of $$$ for the phones and more Thousands for a frikkin amplifiers in the MILLIwatt ranges to driver them. Some ignoramuses pay up to $10 Grand for the combo to get similar sound. But hey some of them are "pretty" so you have to pay tons for that!
 
For recording on my Zoom H6, I have the Heil AMT 422H's because they are about 12 db more sensistive and closed back for isolation and minimizing the use of AA batteries in the unit on location. IOW they get really loud with the volume control closer to Zero than 10. At about $150, those sound really good too, but not quite as good as the other two.
Thanks Claude, how do they compRe to the k402s?

I had some Drop xxx6 headphones on order and FedEx lost them, so now I am looking for a nice pair of under $500 headphones that I can use as a reference fir the k402 sound. I figure if I get a goid set thay sound similar to the MEHs...then I can compare my in room sound with others via comparrisons to the headphones.

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2 minutes ago, Negatron said:

Thanks Claude, how do they compRe to the k402s?

I had some Drop xxx6 headphones on order and FedEx lost them, so now I am looking for a nice pair of under $500 headphones that I can use as a reference fir the k402 sound. I figure if I get a goid set thay sound similar to the MEHs...then I can compare my in room sound with others via comparrisons to the headphones.

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The Monoliths are the best sounding of the 3, but it's still a personal preference and OPINION. I have to admit that having MEH horns comes closest to the sound of headphones than most other speakers because of their phase coherence, but the heaphones sound better except you can't FEEL the bass in you body with any headphone, even though you hear every note in great detail.

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The Monoliths are the best sounding of the 3, but it's still a personal preference and OPINION. I have to admit that having MEH horns comes closest to the sound of headphones than most other speakers because of their phase coherence, but the heaphones sound better except you can't FEEL the bass in you body with any headphone, even though you hear every note in great detail.

What would you say is different in the sound between rhe 2? The price is def in the area I am looking for, and I like open back headphones. The last open back ones I had were the ATH 7s, as I recall from the late 70s and I loved them. I drove them with my Yamaha 1010 integrated in classe A mode. 

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12 minutes ago, ClaudeJ1 said:

but the heaphones sound better except you can't FEEL the bass in you body with any headphone, even though you hear every note in great detail.

 

I beg to differ.....  I proved it.

 

I was 18 years old.  I had my Yamaha 100 watts/channel receiver in my bedroom along with my Electrovoice Interface D's (good to 28Hz at 106 db)

 

I put my (what might have been these very AKG) headphones on as I didn't want to bother anyone.....I cranked up some Aerosmith.

 

I was laying in bed just amazed and captivated at how good it sounded but especially how I could FEEL everything.

 

Then, my red-faced mother barged into my room eyes bulging, breathing fire & brimstone...."WILL YOU TURN THAT DOWNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN" 

 

I was perplexed.

 

Well.....it seems some dumbazz forgot to turn the speakers off.  So whilest I was jamming to the headphones amazed at their tactile feel.....  the D's were screaming their guts out shaking the room/house and really ticking her off!

 

The irony is I was trying to be 100% considerate and use the headphones.  I don't think she believed her teenager son though as her proof was in the pudding with the volume blaring.

 

Oops.  Sorry Mom....  I really do love you!

 

 

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Before I started chasing decent speakers etc, I went down the rabbit hole of high end headphones and amps. The best I have is Stax SR-007a phones with a KGSSHV Carbon amp.

This combo is amazing, but is stupid expensive.

For a reasonable price, the Drop Sennheiser HD-6XX are a deal at $220. That and one of the THX amps, Drop, Monoprice, or SMSL makes a great system for not too much cash.

I have the Monoprice amp, and it compares well with my Elekit TU-8600 which cost 5 times as much.

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Before I started chasing decent speakers etc, I went down the rabbit hole of high end headphones and amps. The best I have is Stax SR-007a phones with a KGSSHV Carbon amp.
This combo is amazing, but is stupid expensive.
For a reasonable price, the Drop Sennheiser HD-6XX are a deal at $220. That and one of the THX amps, Drop, Monoprice, or SMSL makes a great system for not too much cash.
I have the Monoprice amp, and it compares well with my Elekit TU-8600 which cost 5 times as much.
The 6xx is the one I had coming, but Fedex lost it. I also have a Schiit Heresy amp coming. How would you say hour headsets sound compared to your speaker setup?

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7 hours ago, Negatron said:

How would you say hour headsets sound compared to your speaker setup?
 

My better headphones, LCD-3, HD-800s, and especially Stax are more accurate and neutral, but for slam and presence, my speaker setup rules.

I am using a large Infinite Baffle sub system (4 18" in 2 manifolds) below 40Hz, RF-7IIIs from 40Hz to 400Hz (until I get around to finishing my Quarter Pies) and ZXPC 10" x 18" horns with HF200 drivers above 400Hz. I have a QSC PLX-1804 on the RF-7IIIs and a DIY First Watt F5 on the horns, and 700 watts for each sub driver. Sounds pretty good and will peel paint.

If you haven't heard an IB sub, you should try to. Mine is flat to 12Hz, super low distortion and very high output.

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7 hours ago, Negatron said:

The 6xx is the one I had coming, but Fedex lost it. I also have a Schiit Heresy amp coming. How would you say hour headsets sound compared to your speaker setup?

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When I shot film for tv news in the early '70s, we used Sennheiser HD 414 phones. They were open air with flat foam earpieces. Safe to use, as you could still hear what was going on around you but sounded great for monitoring your signal you were recording. They were only $30 then, which wasn't really that high. My older son still has the pair I used.

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Just got notified that Fedex found my headphones after 2 weeks, and they are delivering it to my Texas address today. Looks like I will have my Mass Drop 6xx h(Sennheiser) headphones after all.

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Was looking for AKG 240 out of curiosity.

From what I could find, there were several models in the history of these cans.

Except in differences in sensitivity (in the beginning they were 600 ohms), only the first model had 6 passive bass radiators.

 

Later the AKG simplified them.

These days they are 55 ohms.

A man can buy two models: K240 studio and K240 II.

Except some cosmetic differences between the two, 240 IIs are a bit pricier because they come with two sets of ear pads, one is fake leather and the other velour.

Studio model is supposedly phasing out. Both are made in China, not Austria any more. But for the price, you can not beat them.

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On 7/16/2020 at 2:26 AM, parlophone1 said:

Was looking for AKG 240 out of curiosity.

From what I could find, there were several models in the history of these cans.

Except in differences in sensitivity (in the beginning they were 600 ohms), only the first model had 6 passive bass radiators.

 

Later the AKG simplified them.

These days they are 55 ohms.

A man can buy two models: K240 studio and K240 II.

Except some cosmetic differences between the two, 240 IIs are a bit pricier because they come with two sets of ear pads, one is fake leather and the other velour.

Studio model is supposedly phasing out. Both are made in China, not Austria any more. But for the price, you can not beat them.

I paid $79.00 US plus sales tax for mine in 1976, they sound as good as any modern headphone and I still see their unmistakable outer look in photographs of musicians wearing them in all kinds of recording studios in the last 40 years or so!

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  • 2 weeks later...

I finally received the Sennheiser 6xx headphones that Fedex lost for 3 weeks. I really like them, but they are def a bit darker sounding than the 402MEH.

 

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On 7/14/2020 at 9:30 PM, Marvel said:

 

When I shot film for tv news in the early '70s, we used Sennheiser HD 414 phones. They were open air with flat foam earpieces. Safe to use, as you could still hear what was going on around you but sounded great for monitoring your signal you were recording. They were only $30 then, which wasn't really that high. My older son still has the pair I used.

it's funny you say , this but disc jockeys in the 70's used to love these and  they even used them as singles ,  there was nothing that small , and that comfortable to mix records and if they got damaged , they were very cheap to replace , and these products put Sennheiser on the map  , and look where they are today , they even own the Klein + Hummel  Monitors that are used in Recording studios

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I listen to my 402 horns, and sometimes switch to Audioquest NightOwls.  I can’t swear that they sound just the same, since in a way, it’s like comparing the sound of an electric guitar with an acoustic one.  I don’t find them different enough from the 402s to be distracting, and they’re really comfortable, to the point where I’ve sometimes fallen asleep while wearing them, and have woken up with no pain or even discomfort. 

 

The NightOwls are close-backed, but there’s also the NightHawk, which is very similar, except open-backed.  They came out first, and I listened to a demo pair, but I found that the sound was good, but not quite right for me, so I didn’t buy.  Later, when the NightOwls came out, I tried them and bought them on the spot.  To my ears, they come closer to the sound of speakers than any headphones I’ve heard before.  Bass drums, in particular, can be palpable with the right recording.  This is something I’ve not experienced with any other ‘phones.  I should mention that I usually listen to them through the AudioQuest DragonFly Cobalt or DragonFly Red headphone amp/DACs. Those tiny amps add a lot of both punch and clarity.  Sometimes the little Cobalt just stays on the headphone cable, where it’s barely noticeable.

 

Similar to what parlophone 1 mentioned about the AKG 240s, the NightOwls and NightHawks come with two pairs of ear pads, one pair wrapped in Ultrasuede, and the other pair covered in “protein leather”, to enable you to tune the sound a bit.  The difference is not huge, but it could make the difference between liking the ‘phones and really liking them.  I think it’s a good idea.

 

I’ve never regretted paying the original $899CAD price for them, since they’re that enjoyable to listen to.  However, the designer left the company, so for reasons unknown to me, AudioQuest discontinued them and is clearing both the NightOwls and NightHawks at $399-499CAD.  The equivalent US prices were $699 and 299-399USD.  If you can find a pair, they’re a real bargain at those prices.

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