Hello!
First post here. I’ve had the AKG 712 pros for a few years and loved them. They’ve started to crap out so I’m looking to upgrade. Similar price point ($300-$400). I’ve been looking at the HD650 or potentially the HiFiman Sundaras. Any recommendations from the experts here? Are these two the best contenders? Anything else I should look at?
90% of usage will be music. Acoustic/singer-songwriter/electronic.
I’ve got a JDS Labs Element (Dac/AMP).
Thanks!
Welcome! Lots of good people here and tons of knowledge to be had.
I would personally go with the HD650s or 600s. I have the Sundaras but not enough time with them to speak competently on them. The 650s are THE open ear reference for me. They sound beyond amazing on tubes and very, very good on solid state amps. If you want closed back the Neumann NDH20’s are amazing and basically shut out the world. Those are the two best that I personally can recommend.
Welcome…What do you like/dislike about the K712? Acoustic and vocals would be great on the Senn 6 series (I use the 58x). I imagine for Electronic, the bass could be a touch anemic on the 712, a little more present on the 6 series, but not necessarily fully satisfying if you’re really looking for that thump.
Welcome to the forum! I’ve had the K712 for almost a year and love them, mostly because they are very comfortable and I really like their presentation.
That said, following @FiCurious question: do you want to get something similar or venture into new things? I don’t know about the HD650/600, but for reference I also have a HD58X and, IMO, vocals in them are out of this world. Acoustics and Electronic are, on the other hand, more of a different animal: the AKG gets that “in the room feeling”, like you were in a concert hall looking at a show; the Sens, on the other hand, look like you are in a studio hearing the artist record, a lot more intimate.
I’m looking into the Sundaras, as I think they would be closer to the feeling of the AKGs, but that’s me. Hope I could help somewhat. =)
@Andrew_Suliteanu having gone from k712 to 6xx(650) and sundaras, I would say the sundaras are your best bet. It’s a similar comfort. Not much clamp, decent pads. They both have a wider soundstage, although k712 is a bit wider, the sundaras have better accuracy and placement. Vocals and treble are better on the sundaras and bass can be comparable. Sundaras are just more neutral with better recreation,details, and separation than k712. The 6xx/650s are mids focus with a touch of warmth. Vocals sound best on these imo, but thats all i like about them, but only wanting to hear them on a tube amp. The comfort is ok on these and the clamp force can be mighty but may be stretched out. The sundaras are better built, mostly metal. The 6xx/650, 712s are mostly plastic. Honestly both headphones would be a nice upgrade and are reccomended heavily. Your amp is great to pair with these but could always go with more power, but no stress there. Jds labs make great amps. These opinions are my own and what ive experienced. I’ve been a happy owner of the 6xx/sundaras/712 and reccomended all 3. I hope this has helped and welcome to the forum! 