AKGPro Audio K371 Wired Over-Ear, Closed-Back, Foldable Professional Recording Studio Headphones, Studio Monitor Mixing, Podcast, DJ Stereo Headsets, Black

Judging by the majority of audiophile reviews of these on YouTube, these are well tuned, reasonably "detailed" with very average for the price "technicalities", mediocre build pair of headphones.I disagree. First, materials are awesome - great plastics, great headband, very hygienic, 7/10 comfortable.Pads are almost great - they lack like maybe a couple of millimeters of depth for my ears, though they're sewed smartly, and plush, and easy to clean.The adjustment and folding mechanism looks junky on videos, while in the real life it's sturdy, clicks are very precise, controllable, the joint seems sturdy.And these are very, very compact when folded - I carry them in my fanny pack, this is ridiculously convenient for a full size headphones.Cables suck, all three of them, they're like kings of microphonic effect, you need a replacement. Btw, choose Hart Audio cables, they're awesome.If it's hot, you need an AC in the room, since in 2-3 hours K371 will become hot and sweaty. Plus, since they slightly touch my pinna, I can wear them like 4 hours tops.And no amp is needed, you can drive them out your finger probably.Sound isolation is mediocre - I found it worse compared to Elegia and DT770.Ok, now sound.Out of the box AKG K371 sucks. Like a lot. It's like really bad. It's dry. It's low bass. It's shouty. It doesn't make any sense at all.But give them time. I don't know if that's pads burn-in, your brain's burn-in or driver burn-in and it doesn't matter actually. The fact it - that you need to run them on your head for quite a while to get to the point when they start to sound good.And OMG they change. I do have DCA AEON Open Flow RT, DT770 250Om and Focal Elegia, plus I have experience with many other cans and iems in very different pricing brackets.AKG K371 shocked me. I couldn't believe my ears.They're very balanced overall, mids are tight, natural, vocals are distinct, natural and well placed - not too far, not too "intimate".Brass instruments and electric guitars got some very pleasant bite.Bass is just how I like it - it's neutral. And yes, there is a very, very notable rise in sub-bass, but that's really much closer to how speakers sound in real life.Highs do not attract much of my attention, they're balanced. You can hear hits on hi-hats, you can hear a pretty ok decay on cymbals, there is nothing bothering me at any volume level (I'm looking at you, almost every other headphone I've heard).They're reasonably wide, way outside your head and there is a perceived soundstage depth, not to Elegia's level, but K371 is not flat at all in this department. Just place them kind of slightly forward on your ear and you're fine.Regarding the detail - I don't know, really. I don't feel that my planars or Elegia, both EQed to Harman and non EQed, are like more or less "detailed". I'd say I stopped listening my DCA AFO RT, that's for sure and I LOVED that headphone. Now AKG spoiled them for me and just can't.Elegia is still a thing of it's own and makes a lot of sense compared to AKG still. Elegia is the punchiest headphone I heard ever, it's textured and "physical" and no one else is close (I never auditioned 900MK2 or first gen HE-6). K371 is not flat, they're also reasonably textured, and that bite on brass is not available on Elegia, not to speak of light weight and portability of AKG. And the price.AKG K371 is better that Beyerdynamic DT770 250OM in almost every aspect. DT770 still got a ton of spare parts, a bigger comfy earcup and the stock cable is significantly better.I apply Oratory 1990 EQ to K371, but only up from 1KHz, changes are minor, but improvement is noticeable.With no EQ they actually do not sound "close" and with Oratory's EQ up from 1KHz they disappear slightly more. I know, right? No one was telling me that in any review.To sum it up. AKG K371 broke my 15+ years of audiophile experience. I'm puzzled, pleasantly surprised and don't know what to think.It looks as neutral FR is almost everything, with some place for speculation in punchiness and soundstage topics.I don't know. Like, buy these, try them out, give them time, be open minded, don't listen to overs, don't look at the price, be ready to change your opinion and accept that your previous experiences, opinions and spending stopped making any sense.I had a dream, that a perfect sound will become available to anyone sometime far in the future, but apparently that future is now.

To preface this review, audio is always subjective, especially when listening for fun. I prefer neutral headphones. I like to hear the whole track in a very analytical and detailed way. That means the lows, mids and highs are all evenly represented without any washing out, muffling or muddying of any piece of the song. My daily driver for all kinds of music is the Audeze LCD-X, a high end reference headphone that is considered by many to be too analytical and detailed for casual listening.I've been in the market for closed back headphones for a bit now. I initially was planning to get some Meze 99 classics/neos. They are phenomenally light and comfortable and exceptionally well built. but after trying them I found that they tend towards being heavy in the bass which I found muffled the mids and left the highs with something to be desired. The other thing I didn't like was that the Mezes will "woof" leaving the enhanced bass muddy and fuzzed out, which is something a lot of people enjoy. I'm not one of them.Now, onto the AKG 371s. These headphones are neutral. Not quite as neutral as the LCD-X. But comparing these AKGs to a pair of headphone that cost more than five to six times as much is unfair. But I think it's warranted since they punch up extremely well given their price tag. The 371s trend towards neutral sound, leaving the bass tight and clean, not overpowering the mids while leaving the high clear enough to listen to without becoming fatiguing or painful. Playing games with them is great, I can hear everything from the booming explosions of grenades and tank shells to the high pitched crack of gunfire while hearing footsteps all at once without it becoming muddled together or painful to listen to. Music is fantastically clear and enjoyable to listen to, they are easy to drive so you don't need a dedicated amp to get them to that comfortable volume you want. Even when I'm sitting six feet from a noisy swamp cooler that clarity sticks around making it easy to listen to what I want without damaging my hearing in the process.They are light, but sturdy. They don't feel cheap, and have metal in the right places. They also have a removable cable, meaning they're way more likely to hold in the long term. They also fold up for easy storage or transport. The pads are leather and very plush, but big enough to accommodate my elephant ears. And on that note I've worn these for upwards of ten hours at a shot and they haven't gotten hot or uncomfortable to wear in that entire time.The only real negative I have is if you have long hair, the hinges and pads might grab it if you're lazy when taking them off leading to a bit of pulling. But two handing them on and off completely mitigates that issue.In short I love these headphones, and they're the best ones I've bought in this price bracket in a long time. They're not bass cannons, but they also weren't meant to be. If you want that bone shaking bass, look elsewhere.But, if you want to hear what's really going on in that booming bass note. Or even just pick out some new bits of detail in your favorite song, maybe give these a shot. They'll be different to your classic gaming headset or Beats. But different can be fun.