AKG - K702

AKG K702 are my favorite in this price range. Positive: - Incredible sound stage - incredible value for money - relatively light Neutral: - open back, so you'll hear everything around you (might be a pro or con for you) Negative: - The rubber band mechanism breaks quickly, but I just glued them fixed to the perfect position for my head. - Made out of plastic. - Lack a little bass, but you can just remove the stickers on the bass reflex openings to get a slight boost (google K702 bass mod).

AKG K702 & the very underrated Sennheiser HD 250BT

There is no best, it's subjective. Though I would generally prefer open-backs over closed backs, especially when you're just using them in your chair and not a noisy environment. "Audiophile grade" is also not a clearly defined term. There are a lot of good options available for under 1000$, I would recommend ordering a few different pairs and comparing them. Like, as far as open-backs are concerned, get a Hifiman Arya, Sennheiser HD 6XX and maybe a Beyerdynamic DT1990 (note that there's two versions, you can get some great deals on the older MK1 but it has a very spicy treble). If you really need/want something closed, your options will be more limited, you could try a Senny HD620 and Beyer DT1770. Personally, I think the AKG K702 (open) for 180 USD is an incredible deal, but some don't like the mid-heavy sound. And there's no doubt there are better headphones to be had for three or four times the price, but they won't really sound three of four times better, and whether it's worth it spending so much is up to you.

That leather strap is a bit too stiff to be 100% comfortable I reckon

Depends on head shape I guess, I've modded my K702 by adding a headband cushion from a spare pair of K731 headphones and that improves the comfort of K702 for me.

AKG K702, been using them for over 10 years now, only had to replace the micro xlr cable that it came with.

I have used AKG K702/K612 with a Fiio E10K for years, but im tired how the headstrap always wears down so fast, and the side things always break, and become uncomfortable to use after the side things lose tension. I was eyeing some of the Beyerdynamic ones like these, but Im worried about headstrap confort. And tbh Im kinda stuck on which ones to choose.

As a woman I want it to be clear I'm not interested in you approaching me with compliments on my form or your bro advice. So my K702's and raybands only work 7 times out of 10.

Try DT 880 Pro and K702 And buy a good DAC Welcome in the rabbit hole ;)

Sennheiser HD700/800/800S AKG K612/702/712 Phillips SHP9500/SHP9600

Prime day usually has the Sennheiser HD 598 on sale for less than $100 dollars. I bought mine for $79.99. They are usually $200.00. The sound stage is very good and won’t hurt your ears like the DT 990. I’ve been an audiophile and gamer for decades. This model is a steal for the price. The AKG k702 is a headphone that has an even bigger more precise sound stage but not as much bass. The sound stage sometimes exceeds the environment they are supposed to be recreating. You can find these for $200.00. Right now I’m using the Audeze LCD GX and it’s hard to justify the price when comparing it to those two models. There is more detail but not 5x as much

Not as wide as an AKG k702. These are totally worth it.