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AKG K553 Pro Studio Headphones
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AKG K553 Pro Studio Headphones
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Product Description
AKG’s latest revision to the K550 line is a complementary product to the open-back K7XX. Delivering noise isolation and bassy goodness in a closed-back design that won’t leak sound, the AKG K553 Pro Studio Headphone aims to provide a high-end listening experience at an entry-level price Read More
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A community member
Apr 6, 2015
Guys don't forget to upvote this so we may have them ship earlier ;)
TheFu
79
Mar 26, 2015
STOP • RIGHT • NOW • IF:
1. You whine about "US ONLY". Inform yourself why, and / or use a shipping forwarder / a friend.
2. If you try to CONVINCE people you NEED an headphone Amp for these 32 Ohm cans for them to sound EMPIRICALLY BETTER.
It shows you don't what you are talking about / you don't read the product description / are too lazy to do your research / shows you generalize. Any of which do not put you in ANY position to blame people / give out any advice.
THANK YOU for your understanding.
/rant
1. You whine about "US ONLY". Inform yourself why, and / or use a shipping forwarder / a friend.
2. If you try to CONVINCE people you NEED an headphone Amp for these 32 Ohm cans for them to sound EMPIRICALLY BETTER.
It shows you don't what you are talking about / you don't read the product description / are too lazy to do your research / shows you generalize. Any of which do not put you in ANY position to blame people / give out any advice.
THANK YOU for your understanding.
/rant
meisterEd
14
Apr 4, 2016
It is not a matter of ones life not being negatively affected by one event. One could say the same thing about many negative events and brush it all aside.
So shut up. Let these guys whine if they like, they got the principle and reason on their side. It IS spam if the product on offer is not available to them. If you're hoping Massdrop is going to send you a freebee for your ass kissing, you better think again.
Now go eat a carrot.
So shut up. Let these guys whine if they like, they got the principle and reason on their side. It IS spam if the product on offer is not available to them. If you're hoping Massdrop is going to send you a freebee for your ass kissing, you better think again.
Now go eat a carrot.
Xpfreak
92
Mar 13, 2017
No class warfare kick here, are you suddenly the professor of audiophileness? "younger men in this generation tend to just make up their minds to satisfy their own feelings and egos, so I am essentially talking to myself here. Nevertheless, I hit this thread with some truth and maybe someone will store it as a data point in their beginning audiophile journey."
Are you self aggrandizing here? Your foolish post will be quickly glossed over and forgotten by those younger men in this generation that tend to make up their minds to satisfy their own feelings and egos...
Have you taken your medication today? For your responses are quite unusual and queer sounding like someone that is living under a rock or schizoid...
Danny_Liu
1106
Mar 26, 2015
Heyo,
I hope you guys like the K553. I snuck a listen and thought the headphone did a lot of good things at the price (especially in terms of comfort for big-headed people like myself). It's a very bang-for-the-buck can, some of you might be pleasantly surprised at how far your dollar goes.
I'll be updating this post with reviews as they come in, so stay tuned!
Head-Fi Review: http://www.head-fi.org/t/760386/new-release-the-akg-k553-pro-featuring-a-killer-massdrop-deal
I hope you guys like the K553. I snuck a listen and thought the headphone did a lot of good things at the price (especially in terms of comfort for big-headed people like myself). It's a very bang-for-the-buck can, some of you might be pleasantly surprised at how far your dollar goes.
I'll be updating this post with reviews as they come in, so stay tuned!
Head-Fi Review: http://www.head-fi.org/t/760386/new-release-the-akg-k553-pro-featuring-a-killer-massdrop-deal
TheFu
79
Mar 26, 2015
True, "U. S. only" should be WAY more clear in the description. Come on, Massdrop.
Still no reason for everyone to whine your entitled asses off because a product not intended for you has been waved in front of your face :)
meisterEd
14
Apr 4, 2016
Complaining about spam isn't spamming. What's wrong with you? Not enough sunshine?
MeteoImpact
34
Apr 3, 2015
This article describes a lot of the terms you can run into with regards to hi-fi audio: http://www.head-fi.org/a/describing-sound-a-glossary
UnaSalusVictus
58
Apr 6, 2015
since you are clearly very new to this, in the EU they limit the output power/volume of devices to protect peoples hearing, this means that the firmware of EU editions of devices has an artificial limit making it so those who use the firmware ment for their region of the world will endup needing an amp far more so then those in the US.
I have bought EU editions of products 2nd hand and flashed the US or Oceania firmware to gain back output volume/power.
also keep in mind, it depends on the device, the 701's are higher ohm and lower sensitivity, thus to really get them to shine you need am amp in most cases, though the 701's being open backed are far from ideal to run on the go anyway, and a decent soundcard like an xonar should have ZERO need for an amp if you use the front headphone out.
fiio makes decent low cost amps, i have a 2 e3's and 2 e5's that i use at times, depending on what headphones im using, i dont need them for any of my IEM's as they are all easily driven by all my players to their full potential.
and, you dont NEED one, they work without it, and calling the CS line to ask.....kinda a rookie move, the people you get on cs mostly just read scripts and faq tables.....its not like they are actually the ones who design the products....
also, the pa2v2 was just a suggestion, for the money its one of the bet portable amps you can get, if you dont need portible but just wana use it with your desktop computer or the like, the O2 amp/dac would be a good option, its got its flaws though to.....
the zen amp is kickass, and gets over 50hrs battery life on 1 rechargeable 9v battery...(i wana build myself one!!!)
anyway, these cans shouldnt need an amp, if people want one though, http://www.mp4nation.net/fiio-e06-portable-audio-headphone-amplifier
thats a good starter amp, that wont cost alot(anybody reading this).
Fiio make good products, just for the money on their higher end stuff...you can get the same quality or better for less or the same money........look at the x5...neat device but the battery lifes horrible....
I have bought EU editions of products 2nd hand and flashed the US or Oceania firmware to gain back output volume/power.
also keep in mind, it depends on the device, the 701's are higher ohm and lower sensitivity, thus to really get them to shine you need am amp in most cases, though the 701's being open backed are far from ideal to run on the go anyway, and a decent soundcard like an xonar should have ZERO need for an amp if you use the front headphone out.
fiio makes decent low cost amps, i have a 2 e3's and 2 e5's that i use at times, depending on what headphones im using, i dont need them for any of my IEM's as they are all easily driven by all my players to their full potential.
and, you dont NEED one, they work without it, and calling the CS line to ask.....kinda a rookie move, the people you get on cs mostly just read scripts and faq tables.....its not like they are actually the ones who design the products....
also, the pa2v2 was just a suggestion, for the money its one of the bet portable amps you can get, if you dont need portible but just wana use it with your desktop computer or the like, the O2 amp/dac would be a good option, its got its flaws though to.....
the zen amp is kickass, and gets over 50hrs battery life on 1 rechargeable 9v battery...(i wana build myself one!!!)
anyway, these cans shouldnt need an amp, if people want one though, http://www.mp4nation.net/fiio-e06-portable-audio-headphone-amplifier
thats a good starter amp, that wont cost alot(anybody reading this).
Fiio make good products, just for the money on their higher end stuff...you can get the same quality or better for less or the same money........look at the x5...neat device but the battery lifes horrible....
nelson
5275
Apr 10, 2015
Great news! Our shipment of the AKG K553 Pro headphones just arrived our warehouse moments ago. Our warehouse guys are busy sorting the headphones at the moment, and we will start repacking them for individual orders shortly after.
We will be able to start get the orders shipped out first thing on Monday. It feels awesome when everything is nicely ahead of schedule!
Thanks for your patience and expect an update from us by the end of the day Pacific Time on 4/15.
We will be able to start get the orders shipped out first thing on Monday. It feels awesome when everything is nicely ahead of schedule!
Thanks for your patience and expect an update from us by the end of the day Pacific Time on 4/15.
SomeTechNoob
466
Apr 9, 2016
Just because it's their site doesn't mean AKG doesn't have a say. Massdrop are official distributors of this product. There are plenty of agreements between Massdrop and AKG. This specific pair is very similar to the K550, which is $200 in the US. Bringing this headphone to every country would basically make that set of cans completely irrelevant, and AKG doesn't want to do that. Limit the region by telling their distributors to do US only.
Tyler
2438
May 6, 2015
Good news group. We’re glad to report that all of the orders have been shipped out from our warehouse and are now on the way to you. Please allow 24-48 hours for tracking to get into the shipper's system and start updating.
If there’s anything else we can do to make your Massdrop experience better, feel free to contact us via “Contact Support” button in your transaction page: https://www.massdrop.com/transactions.
If there’s anything else we can do to make your Massdrop experience better, feel free to contact us via “Contact Support” button in your transaction page: https://www.massdrop.com/transactions.
eksuen
748
May 8, 2015
If you hover over the blue star next to people's names, it will tell you their participant number.
Shapez64
2
Mar 26, 2015
Extremely disappointed this is only available in the US.
I take it you understand there are still a few members of the human race living on the frontiers outside the USA, right?
We like getting good quality earphones for good prices too.
I'll even swallow your ungodly, disproportionately high shipping fees like a chump if that's what you want. I just want a nice set of well-made cans to listen too.
Tenryuu
240
Jun 17, 2015
The country with the highest amount of prisoners and one of the most religious places on earth can hardly be called good.
GUTB
238
May 4, 2016
Can't recommend these. If you are looking for lo-fi headphones, these could be classified as upper range of the lo-fi range. They suffer from an annoying metallic, empty character, and I could never settle on a EQ setting that was beneficial for all music. Compared with sub-$100 headphones, these are clearly superior in terms of resolution and dynamics -- and in fact, I still use them sometimes if I'm lying in bed, out in public, etc, as they are pretty compact for full size headphones, and run a good volume off of just about anything. They don't remotely compare to my TH-900 ($1,200) or HE-6 ($1,000), and were a step down from the HD600 ($330) and HE-400S ($300). They are a step above the HD668B ($40).
As lo-fi headphones, sound stage is basically non-existent (and along with it, so is imaging). Dynamics and speed are average. Resolution is upper lo-fi, and just a step below mid-fi headphones like the HD600. Micro-details are absent. Treble extension is decent. Bass is...hold on. I just got this Ragnarok, let me check what a 400VA 100,000 uF amp can do with the K553....okay, definitely better in terms of bass production than I remember them out of my other amps, but a 36 lbs amp can't transform these headphones. Bass is fairly articulate and tight, and puts out good energy, but it just won't extend that low -- and I'm talking about them plugged into a giant amplifier being fed by 4.6v balanced outputs from a large dual power-supply DAC. Your phone will drive these, but it WILL sound anemic in comparison -- please have expectations set correctly. I will say, one of my reference tracks (A Shanty in Old Shanty Town - Cephas and Wiggins) it does a good job with the kick-drum (deep, dark thumps) that is basically indistinguishable from my TH-900. Like ALL headphones, they benefit from a dedicated amp and high quality DAC -- if you are stuck with a certain budget, and need to make room for a good amp and DAC, I will admit that these aren't that bad, especially if you consider their portability.
As lo-fi headphones, sound stage is basically non-existent (and along with it, so is imaging). Dynamics and speed are average. Resolution is upper lo-fi, and just a step below mid-fi headphones like the HD600. Micro-details are absent. Treble extension is decent. Bass is...hold on. I just got this Ragnarok, let me check what a 400VA 100,000 uF amp can do with the K553....okay, definitely better in terms of bass production than I remember them out of my other amps, but a 36 lbs amp can't transform these headphones. Bass is fairly articulate and tight, and puts out good energy, but it just won't extend that low -- and I'm talking about them plugged into a giant amplifier being fed by 4.6v balanced outputs from a large dual power-supply DAC. Your phone will drive these, but it WILL sound anemic in comparison -- please have expectations set correctly. I will say, one of my reference tracks (A Shanty in Old Shanty Town - Cephas and Wiggins) it does a good job with the kick-drum (deep, dark thumps) that is basically indistinguishable from my TH-900. Like ALL headphones, they benefit from a dedicated amp and high quality DAC -- if you are stuck with a certain budget, and need to make room for a good amp and DAC, I will admit that these aren't that bad, especially if you consider their portability.
SomeTechNoob
466
May 6, 2016
It's alright. SHP9500 is still better imo - the AKG K553 has a decent soundstage for closed cans but it's a bit harder to pinpoint exactly where a person is in games like cs:go and whatnot.
Theerealist
0
May 6, 2016
SomeTechNoobI cannot open headphone game. My computer is not loud but I can hear fans with open phones and cannot with these. I can also hear every other noise my wife and/or cats are making. Gaming with open cans is far to much of a distraction while closed I can zone in without cranking the volume. Sure position, space and clarity may better on a q701 but I would have to kill my family or destroy my ears to be able to tell.
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