Smooth, clear sound.

None for me.

I'm not an expert on audio equipment, I have a loss of hearing in my left ear. I have some good speakers, VMPS,626R, Onkyo, etc; but I wanted to hear the music better. I bought these AKG headphones on ebay... They're great! I listened to Emerson Lake and Palmer to try them out... Lucky Man... I had a tear in my eyes, I could hear things I never heard before. Next I listened to Pink Floyd... Unreal ! For me, these AKG K271 M2 are excellent. The music came through so easy. I found myself straining to hear notes ,and words, like I was listening to regular speakers...force of habbit. I didn't NEED to strain. Everything was RIGHT THERE!

almost excellent tonal balance: firm low bass plus wonderful mid and detailed treble. price !!

almost none. to be real picky, I dislike the single cable design and on/off switch.

Sorry, almost same review for my other beloved phones ! I've been using vintage phones all these years and never thought much of the rave reviews of newer models. How different can they be, how can they be any better than a vandy or logan ! But when I listen to 580 it blows me away and now my speakers have been collecting dust. Well .. not really, since I put plastic cover over them. No I won't sell the main rigs because listening to lifesize performance still serves as a reference. After using 580 for some time I feel the need for a closed-ear phones and decided to try Senn H25sp. Got them quite cheap with specs almost similar to highly rated original HD-25. It sounds very 580-like and blocked outside noise extremely well - but my ears start to hurt after 30 minutes or so. Having liked Senn's 'house' sound I decided to try HD 265 closed phones. Wow ... bass sounds like hammering my head ! Returned it the very next day and exchanged for K271s, with all the good review and that. Good heavens, what an incredible sound ... vocals sound very close and real ! And low bass just sits there waiting to be heard, not overpowering like the 2 closed Senns. Mid and treble detail are very sweet. Overall this is a very smooth phones and I almost always fall asleep when listening to this phones on the floor. Luckily it is not as comfort as 580, the pleather is not warm to your ear (like most closed-ear phones) but pad is a bit thin that my ear touches internal scratchy pad. However, sonic quality makes me want to listen to this phones more than to 580. Although rated at 55ohm impedance, it is not as sensitive as hd580 so it might benefit from use of amplification. Now I'm asking myself what am I doing here writing this review wasting so much time, heck, English is not my main language in the first place. Well, I truly believe that this phones almost represents best bang or value and everyone considering headphones listening to audition K271s. It's almost a joke to me getting this quality cans for almost the same price of SR80 and much cheaper than ultrasone. I haven't tried K501 as it's unavailable in my area but I'l sure snatch one when it's here.

Similar Products Used:

sr80, hd25sp, hd265, hd 580, hd 595, various vintage senns

Fantastic transparent sound. Wont lie to you if your source material sucks.

Took a LONG time to break in. I had it running at moderate levels for about 7 days CONTINUOUSLY, connected to my ipod before the harshness in the treble was replaced with some of the silkiest highs i've ever heard.

This headphone is all you will ever need. So clear, so refined, brings out all the subtle nuances you've never heard before. Unfortunately it's so truthful that it brings out all the flaws in my mp3s. I primarily use it in the night in conjunction with my Yamaha DSP-Z9 and Pioneer DVD S969avi, so i dont wake up the rest of the family. It's very comfortable, with a head band that i imagine will fit snugly on most skulls.It is a bit heavy though. The cable is about 10 feet which is more than enough for my uses. Overall, i think its a great buy.

Similar Products Used:

Sony MDR-E70LP (not in the same class, but a great in ear headphone nevertheless)