AKG K701 Professional Premium Open-Back Studio Recording Reference Headphones

It's an absolute travesty that Samsung has forced AKG to drop their pro audio products! I would happily recommend these to both casual audiophile looking for great soundstaging, and recording professionals requiring monitoring and reference headphones in situations where leak isn't an issue. The profile is pretty flat with no noticeable unflattering (or tremendously flattering) peaks. A common complaint is that they lack response in the low end. This is false - sub 500hz response is actually fine, with a natural roll off, but I think these listeners are used to flattering closed back headphones. The lows are full, honest and never muddied with the mids. The K701s exhibit superb clarity that avoids harsh peaks anywhere in the 5-15khz range and the directionality and soundstaging are exactly as broad as one should expect from quality open backed cans. The build quality is a little plastic my and cheaper feeling, though this does make them light and flexible, plus the open backed design and satiny cup pads help with avoiding too much heat retention for long mixing or recording sessions. Being sub-100ohm means that they can easily be driven from most computer soundcards, smartphones and audio interfaces without the need for an amplifier, though they do of course benefit from a quality DAC amp regardless. Overall, you're getting great reference headphones at a superb price, that also double as very decent multimedia headphones when compared to audiophile grade open backed headphones several times the price..... Except you're often not, because you can't buy them new unless it's old stock with a retailer. Samsung/AKG: why do you do this? Nobody cares if you slap an AKG label on a laptop or tablet. They care about great products like these headphones. You are stifling innovation, and it shows.