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AKG K181 DJ UE Reference Headphones – Flash Sale

overview

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reviews28

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ALL PRODUCTS / AUDIOPHILE / AKG

AKG K181 DJ UE Reference Headphones – Flash Sale

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Product Description

Previous AKG offerings on Massdrop like the open-back K7XX and the closed-back K553 share a lot of great traits: both boast an expansive soundstage, bassy goodness, and a killer price-to-performance value. However, the large size of the headphones and their long stock cable make them unusable on the go Read More

overview

specs

reviews28

photos0

discussions336

Customer Reviews

3.9

(28 reviews)

(12)

(8)

(2)

(5)

(1)

NielJM

May 24, 2018

Verified Buyer

The headband clamping force can be an issue for very long listening sessions, but as mentioned here, they are probably not meant to be used that way. For myself, since it would seem I have a relatively small head with ears almost flat against the side of my face, I have no real issues with this for listening a couple of hours or so.
Sound presentation is "fun" to listen to, especially for techno and edc, the bass boost can be a little too much, adding a lot of mid and sub-bass to the mix, with a hint of reverb which is not that great for already-bass-focused music, but exceptionally good when added to "Hotel California" Hell Freezes Over Album, which makes the bass boost seemingly great for acoustic live music (strange, but maybe that's just me, ha!) The bass boost is especially NOT for rock/metal as it will overpower everything, and everything will sound confused. A suggestion is to test the bass boost for the proper application, and use it sparingly where it is better applied to. It seems to me a balanced presentation, with nothing held back, except for being bass-forward (which I believe AKG's target tuning) and is well presented for what it is for. Good detail retrieval without being harsh or sibilant, good mids surprisingly for both male and female vocals, and a tight bass (with bass boost off). My only gripe is that the "mono switch" absolutely does nothing for me, idk if its just my unit or its just the way it is. Not really a deal breaker for me as I don't see myself using the mono switch at any point of my listening sessions.
I've owned (still do) the K 271 mkii for almost 10 years now, then recently the K7xx MD edition. This is certainly something else, which again proves that AKG can "own" a broad spectrum of sound presentation catering to all genres of music, applications, and a wide audience base.
Overall, a good purchase! No regrets here!

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rogerh

May 22, 2018

Verified Buyer

I needed to replace my old Sony MDR-V6 and saw these on drop. Very comfortable, great sound & a good price through MassDrop. I still have the MDR’s with new cushions, but find myself using the AKG’s more. It was a great buy.

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Enestfn

May 23, 2018

Verified Buyer

It can be painful to wear them when you first get it. But overtime it loosens and becomes much more comfortable. Has good sound but I wouldn't recommend using bass boost.

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jdpowers

May 26, 2018

Verified Buyer

I have a pair of Studio Beats headphones that sound great..but I am always on the look out for other good sounding headphones. These compare very close to the Beats as far as Im concerned. I think they are comfortable, sound great, I like the deep bass and always keep it on, and I like the way they fold up. I would definitely buy a pair for someone else for a present. Reading the comments below reminds me that...everyone is different! Some people wont like them for various reasons, and others like myself will like and appreciate them. Not everyone will like a certain item, and thats why companies make different models, trying to please everyone. So for anyone looking for a good pair of headphones, be sure to look for the frequency response...most general headphones are 20-20k, but the better ones, like these, are 5-30k so you hear a wider frequency range, it really makes a difference!!

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RENERIZE

Nov 9, 2019

Verified Buyer

Loving these set of cans

Great light weight great sounding able to take whatever sounds I throw at it and they deliver. Love how portable they are. How they fit has to get a bit of gettin used to though.

Recommends this product? Yes

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Kerry_Maxwell

163

Apr 25, 2019

Verified Buyer

The official headphone of the Spanish Inquisition. I forgot I even had these in my drawer, but busted them out to see if the pain I remembered was just a nightmare I had. These induce almost instant agony on my ears, which is a shame because they sound half-decent. I have a large head (size 8+) so these might be bearable for those with smaller craniums and less nerve endings in the ears, and/ or masochists. I cannibalized the cord for another pair of AKGs, so I upped the rating one star.

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JJDeviloper

191

Jan 27, 2019

Verified Buyer

For the price, you get one of AKG's best closed back headphones. Only downside is that they are on ear, not over ear. For the price these usually drop for, they are difficult to beat. And the bass boost is fun, and sounds great for bassheads or songs that sound better with more bass. The only more popular AKG closed back is probably the K550/K553, well beyond the price of this model. The build quality is also decent, with good quality plastic.

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yeah_cheddar

Jan 11, 2019

Verified Buyer

Really uncomfortable during long sessions, the tightness was likely the reason, they have a high clamping force, made the tips of my ears hurt after a while . One of the ear outputs stopped working about 5 months in. Audio quality was great, did use them pretty frequently and traveled with them a lot.

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iHobo

May 28, 2018

The sound quality for the price is fantastic. Heavy in the low end but still clear in the highs. Clamping force is quite high - but the sound and cost more than make up for it.

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EhEh-RON

May 23, 2018

Verified Buyer

They sound decent for the price, especially for movies or things you may want some extra bass for, but they fit far too tightly. It makes sense that DJ headphones would be designed to fit tight and not come loose from bouncing around, but also because it helps drown out external noises.
At the same time they are completely uncomfortable. I stretched mine over the box they came in for a week and they feel a little better, but when I wear glasses it presses my ears against them so hard, it hurts.
Before I stretched them over the box I used them at work for a day and it felt like my head was pressed in a vise when I got home.
I would not recommend buying these unless you are a real DJ and headphones falling off your head is a big problem for you.

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Showing 10 of 28

Recent Activity

drstock56

Can't leave a review, so I'll comment here. I am a female with small head and small ears. These are the most uncomfortable headphones that I own. In addition, the sound is badly muffled. Maybe it's a defective pair. I am extremely disappointed. Should have spent the money on an extra pair of Koss Porta Pros.

AdamLop213

Was an error in the time, it said it was supposed to last until 16:00 (8:00 PM) yesterday but ended at 08:00 (8:00 AM) instead, I was weirded out when I got an order confirmation at 8 in the morning... Maybe contact support?

Yabadaba

guess they ran out