AKG K-712 Pro

I always had a bit of interest in trying out some better known reference headphones, to see how they stack up to some of my other choices throughout the years, and to see what all the fuss about the sound stage was.

Sound - Really nice. Some frequency range differences were noticeable and overall was clearer than before, but the big difference was the wider sound stage. Going back to other headphones after a few days of listening, I kept thinking on wanting to come back to these because of it.
Running these from a Scarlett 2i2 headphone jack was completely fine, but an amp should be considered if you want slightly better clarity.

Comfort - 5 Stars without glasses, 4 stars with. The headband is really comfy with it's quick adjustment without much thought put into it, and the leather band takes away all parts where hair can get stuck into and pulled out.
The pads were a lot tougher than I expected, but still soft and spacious enough for my ears to be snugly fit, while having plenty of breathing room.
Because of that toughness though, I could still feel some pressure against the frames of my glasses, which got a bit uncomfortable at times. Also, the huge amount of space caused the pads to rub against my glasses and make creaking noises whenever I moved my head around. In comparison, a friends K550 had far softer pads that felt really nice to put on.

Quality - Solidly made, but some of the design choices make me question its long-term durability. Some parts are thin enough that they could easily break when carrying it around in the provided pouch. I'd look into a solid case that's smaller than the box these headphones came in.
The strings on the sides that stretch to fit your head, while convenient, are going to become weaker along the years, which will affect comfort.

Overall though, I'd still give it 5 stars since the comfort and quality issues can be modded around, while the sound itself is really good.

It came in a nice box, well-presented. It's light and feels light on the head. Hardly touches ears. The whole item looks and feels very high-quality, material-wise.
I intend to use these for listening to casual music. I need a relaxed listening experience and this gives me just it. It's amazingly detailed, with a very wide soundstage. If you want to focus on the music, you may do so but for that a Sennheiser HD650 might be a better choice, with relatively non-existent soundstage and in-your-face mids. The K712 feels more in the "front rows", rather than "on the stage"
Also, for immersive gaming (can't speak for competitive) these're amazing.
Don't let the 62 Ohm impedance fool you into thinking you'll be driving these just fine with your typical smartphone. You'll still get a good experience, but you'll most likely benefit a lot from a decent headphone amplifier.
For a casual gamer or listener, these might very well be the endgame.
If you want to get a similar experience, with cut corners in every aspect but mostly the cost,I suggest the fidelio X2HR. But if you have a good amp and can stretch your budget for the K712, you'll not be dissapointed.

Firstly I would like to add a little background. I own a pair of Austrian made AKG K601s for around 13 years and through the years I have listened to many other headphones (Sennheiser, other AKGs, Sony etc.), but to be honest none were more expensive than 200€. Sadly none came even close to the reference sound of the K601s. Although the K601s are still in perfect working order, I have decided to add the K712 PROs to my collection. I will therefore add some comparisons between the two.

I would describe myself as being very picky in audio quality, and can appreciate superb audio reproduction with low distortion and wide frequency response. The audio gear I am using is an integrated amplifier Denon PMA-1600NE+DCD-720AE and internal PC sound card Creative AE-5. Both can drive up to 600 ohm load.

It is without saying that I had very high expectations for the K712s, and oh boy do they deliver! I didn`t want to rush with my assessment too quickly when connecting them for the first time. I do believe in burn-in process from my past experiences with speakers and headphones. Listened to K712s for an hour and they were very good, but I let them play for about 20-25 hours before having a proper listen. I would say they needed about 50 hours to get to the point I stopped to notice further improvements in sound, so please have that in mind if buying. Just my humble opinion.

First thing that really got my attention is how much detail in sound these have. Compared to K601s, the detail in sound on the 712s is simply on a whole another level. Quality of the recording makes more difference and really pays off when it`s FLAC for example. Directly compared, the K601s now sound a tad more muffled. Soundstage is similar between the two and altogether phenomenal, but 712s are just slightly more intimate and less distant. I now see what they meant, when they said the K601/701 have a massive soundstage. I listen to a whole lot of genres, but mostly old rock, electro-house, pop, reggae, and the 712s can take on anything. They really do excel in electronic stuff, and if I`m really nitpicking, maybe being the weakest in classic rock in my opinion. Bass and treble being slightly better than mids, but altogether have a very natural and clean sound.

The 712s do have a less flat freq. response than 601s, but I do use the EQ for the 3-4kHz dip, which is noticeable if not corrected a bit. They respond really well to added lower bass on EQ. There is no sibilance in any music, so that is really nice when listening for longer durations. No ear fatigue for me. I was always impressed with 601s comfort, but 712s are even better. Clamping force si low and pads are really nice, so comfort is 10/10. Construction quality is maybe the weakest link for AKG brand, so I do handle them carefully, because the plastics on the headband can break and the elastic bands do stretch through years. I always hang them on the outer plastic part of the headband. They are Made in Slovakia.

In the future I will try to get a listen on Sennheiser HD600/650s for comparison. To sum it up, I would really be surprised if the K712 PROs would not be (one of) the best to at least 400€.

I was pretty confused when I tried these the first time. Plugged them in an swapped output from monitors to headphones and had to double check several times that my monitors were actually muted.

I don’t know how well they can go really low cause my current monitors are only flat down to around 40-80 Hz, but for mixing in a small home studio with sub-optimal acoustics and huge dips in room response they really great.

I would buy them again in a heartbeat.