Review on AKG K361BT Bluetooth Studio Headphones - Over-Ear, Closed-Back, and Foldable by Brian Cox

NOTE. I've since switched to AKG K371 (no BT variant) and they solve almost every problem I've had with them. This is an interesting set of glasses. I'll get straight to the next analysis: - These headphones have surface material that scratches VERY easily - They have an annoying mini XLR cable, which is thankfully detachable, but it's 4-pin and very difficult to replace unlike the Standard a 3 pin mini. XLR with standard cable without BT K371. Also, the cable itself is really *very difficult to unplug with a button, and I have big hands playing guitar. - The hinge system is downgraded to ridiculously stupid. They're designed to be "portable" (but they're marketed as professional studio headphones, so why?) and for that reason they've redesigned the way they attach the earcups to the headband, which unfortunately has to be problems leads to many problems. are featured throughout AKG's new K line (361, 371, and both BT variants). What are these questions? 1. Well, there are a number of noise leaks because it puts excessive pressure on the top of the cup and as a result leaks from the bottom. 2. The physical cups are on an adjustment bar, which is very sensitive to adjustment and often doesn't stay in place properly. It's so dumb how badly it performs, because remember there's a major audio leak problem where all the low frequencies leak out afterward. So the only alternative solution is to swap out the cushion or adjust the headphones so that the ear cushions and headband angle can *somewhat* compensate. BUT IT DOESN'T WORK PERFECTLY IF THE CUPS ARE ADJUSTED BY BREATHING. Let's not even talk about how inoperable it is without this audio leakage issue. An attempt to reinvent the wheel completely failed.3. The way the pressure is applied to the cup is pushing with excessive force over the top of the ear where there is a small pressure point on the head. The result is a headphone clip that causes a slight headache when used. I believe they reduce the clamping force as stated on headfi.org but then I believe this affects the sealing of the cups themselves resulting in more sound leakage. So these climbs are just one big negative review. To compound the injury, AKG designed the ear cushions differently for the k371 and k371bt. The K371's are recessed differently and so the newer BT variant I'm testing is very, very close to the ears due to the different and thinner pads. In fact, with my head the right shape and the size of my ears, MY EARS ARE KEPT INTO THE HEADPHONE DRIVER. This is unacceptable in this price range and for "professional studio headphones". I cannot move for more than an hour without severe pain and irritation in my ears. They meddle ruthlessly and that is the main reason I decided to return them. The sound is ok. I myself enjoy the roundness of the bass, if a little bloated. Bluetooth: - Only one connection can be established with one device at a time. The codec's time-limited options offer commercial-quality sound, but are subpar for audiophiles or "professional studio" use. I assume this feature is not intended for professional use. Reach I seems VERY good! What a big surprise. Presumably they should be about as good as the Apple Air Pods and better than pretty much everything another user I spoke to has tried. The controls are ridiculously bad. They are touch sensitive and I'd say I can get them to work (like play, pause, etc) 15-20% of the time. The volume control is just as bad if not worse for me. Closer to 10% of the time I would say without exaggerating. Finally, we touch on replacing pads. I switched to a perforated "tilted" pad from BRAINWAVZ, and while I didn't mind the original low-end sound signature, this pad replacement produced a much more balanced low-end sound and also made the signature much more interesting. upper mids and highs. They add a bit of airiness, get rid of the bassiness of the bass, slim it down overall and, to my delight, also reduce some of the harsh mids that can sound "squeaky" in the sound. Pad's original answer. Finally, one more thing definitely worth mentioning and commendable that you haven't mentioned is that the perforated pads create SIGNIFICANT breathability in the can earcups, which not only adds "airiness" to the top edge of the treble register, but is also very helpful during long recording sessions. In the past, standard ear pads not only killed ears with pain and irritability, but also sweated and got VERY hot during reasonable 1.5 hour recording sessions. These new BRAINWAVZ hole pads for the ATX line are noticeably more breathable which may seem obvious but I didn't expect it to be much better. Humidity never exceeds 60% of what the original pads reached after an hour and a half. And that's a huge difference. Also on the subject of these overlays and "overhead" landings. They sit half on the ear, half deflated because there is an inward tilt going towards the inside of the cup. Now, I'm sensitive to this idea myself, but somehow it doesn't cause any noticeable discomfort or fear. I don't really know why that is, but I'm very grateful. Verdict: I love the sound, the fact that the cable is detachable, and the Bluetooth audio is actually pretty damn good compared to others. But there are too many other questions. Of course, with additional spacers, 3 or even 3.5 would make sense IMHO. But with a number of fundamental issues, such as the crazy hinge design (why are they adding a "portability" design to the FFS studio headphones?) and the resulting horrible loss of sound, as well as very poor Bluetooth controls, an odd clamping force headache, and a very poor design of the ear pads. These design flaws are so fundamental that they are unforgivable to me as a consumer. And remember that my body measurements are very average. Maybe slimmer, more athletic, with a normal sized head and ears. I don't want to sound harsh, but the problems are so simple that I think they deserve something devastating. My final rating will be 2-2.5 stars.