The $100 Budget King - Review 

I want some of these, DMX.

I've been watching a bunch of your reviews recently. Really nicely presented and I like the balance between objectivity and subjectivity. I see you reviewed the K553 a few years ago and gave it a pretty good review. Supposedly the MKii are identical to the pro aside from detachable cable. Your review of the K553 pro seemed a bit more positive overall compared to these. I was wondering if you still rate them highly as a reference headphone or if something has come along since that you would recommend over them.

These probably are some of the most comfortable and best sounding closed-backs around the price that I've tried. I got rid of them after a year just because the infamous build quality always bothered me and I always liked my HD 569 a little more in both the comfort and sound signature. It's always tough for me to find closed-backs I like.

My mom and friends think im crazy for spending 300 dollars on headphones and 150 on amp and headphone pads

Your intros and outros are always so damn enjoyable

In this price range I believe Yamaha MT5's with Brainwavz pads are terrific, they punch way above their weight class, seems that they don't get enough attention.

I am like that with the Razer Black Shark V2s. I have 16 different headphones laying around, but right next to these I have the "58x", "38x", and "Orbit S" but for some reason, I grab these a lot (I keep the dongle and these plugged in at all times...Same with the Orbit S). I do know that the main reason is comfort. These are just very pleasant to wear (yes I have them on now lol), but also the weight and the sound. I just love them. Oh and the 38x plugged into the Razer THX dongle sounds really good also...58x does not most likely because of the 150 ohms.

Something something something, commenting for the algorithm because I dig your content.

“And then you’re kind of screwed.” Massive understatement.

Hi DMS! Love the info and the channel! Would you be willing to go into de 200-300 category for closed/open back king?

Great video! Congrats! I would like to have your opinion on the Soundcore life q30... Lot of buzz on those for the money... Thanks! :)

Great review. I am thinking of getting these. How well do you think they would work for communications and occasional music. I'm a ham radio operator and I want a comfortable head phone. Thanks, Tim

Good morning DMS, how are you today? Enjoy your thanksgiving 😄

Would love to see you do some album reviews on for example Black Sabbath, Joji or Billie Eillish or something. Or just give a quick opinion on them. And you really should appear on the Abyss channel in the videos where they're anwering questions.

hi @DMS,i'm looking for a headphone to pair with my sony walkman a55 that's under 150 usd(not 149 usd though),and i have been watching your videos recently and thought about buying either philips shp9600 or akg k371,maybe hd599 according to the comment below.i really don't know if there're any other better headphones,can you suggest me,i'm new to being audiophile and want a headphone that really sounds good at its price range,maybe the golden standard for its price range

Man! The shipping cost and fees really hurt people living outside US like me. Still gonna try Grado for once.

It is a surprisingly balanced pair, much better than their bassy K371 offering!! Really good value for money

I listened to both a the guitar center, and I bought the 371. It’s more fun and neither should be used for mixing. Monitoring is fine, as mine seal well.

AKG must have some serious issues going on because the K361s I bought and returned didn't sound good at all. The low end was lacking heavily and the mids were recessed. I also had to pay a stupid restocking fee.

I had to return mine unfortunately as there wasn't enough padding on the headband for me and it was hurting the top of my head. I've had this issue with other headphones that others have deemed comfortable though so you'll probably be fine

Metal571 loved the 371...love the division of opinions.

Bought them. Gave them to my daughter for online school. I would describe them as uninspiring, but not too bad. I’d take the Koss Porta Pro, KPH30, or KSC 75 over them for sure. Are the “technically” better? No, but they sound better, if that matters to you.

AKG 553 MK II vs AKG 361, who you got, and why?

I took your recommendation. I love my K361. The quality issues seem to be fixed! They are very comfortable and fit similar to Bose QC series. They sound great except with poor quality recordings there is some upper muddiness.

Could you make a guide about getting into like amps and power supplies and stuff for beginners?

So glad my k371 sounds nothing like the review of that and of this. I must have been lucky. Had it almost since day one and no issues yet. It also doesn't have tons of bass at all. It has substantially less bass than most of my headphones and I don't own many bass heavy headphones.

I love your room

Review the Takstar Pro 82! It's only $55 in our country and I'd like to hear your opinion about it. How would it compare to these headphones or the SHP 9500 and 9600?

i really like the look on these, looks like a nice travel headphone

how does it compare to the SHP9600 which is now under 100 on amazon

@DMS - A lot of the time this year it was only $79 on Amazon. Would you say, when the HD599 is on sale for $99, it's the best entry level headphone for most people ??

Where can I buy the cable that isn't shorted to mono that you used for these headphones?

Would you consider reviewing the K275 or K245? Both are the same price or less and seem to be built way better.

Eyyy guys, did anyone tried some Samson sr850s? What are your opinions on them? Thanks in advance.

Hi, thanks for the good video. I want to know that you gave 7 detail, 19 tuning, and 14 comfort point to AKG k361. But if the K361 was a Bluetooth model, which points would have you given?

Love my K371. As a retired performing musician, I want to hear the details. And man, do I get them.

How durable is the headband ? Do they fall off easily ? I wanna get them and convert them to bluetooth so I can wear them at the gym

if you want a budget king, check out the Koss kph30i you would not expect the sound out of those little guys

361 is a bit thin to me, mine don't have much bass or punch. but for me it's more pleasant than 371. In 371 it was a WALL OF EVERYTHING multiplied by wide scene, I got tired too fast

I agree seal is important for wearing this headphone. I always thought that there is a hole in the mids and there is no bass. After watching this review, I think I can safely assumed that my thin arm glasses just make it sound trash.o

Please do a more headphone reviews from a price range ($200-$300, $300-$400...

Hi DMS, Sennheise HD 450BT is on sale for $99 rn. Any thoughts? Is it good for its price rn?

Another one I bought - ordered a minute ago :) Now you got me to buy the Aria, 560s, Tygr, Bose qc 45 and these. Not sure what to work on now. The next price range is not possible for me. I would buy the AB-1266 if I could.. like at least 8k with dac and amp.. but that's more than I earn in 5-6 month :D (nurse) Also my wife would kill me :) She really likes the 560s tho and the Bose that I bought for her (there was extreme noise on her work for some months) Maybe the bro3 speakers can do the trick? Compared with my nice old denon ampdac? Any ideas how I can get max sound for min money? I really want that AB-1266 out of the body thing :) btw. it REALLY makes the 560s better if you guys autoEQ them with wavelet on android or APO+Peace on pc/laptop.. Crinacle's suggestion. And I ranted about it before: buy a hidizs s9 pro for your cellphone/laptop. This is by far the cheapest (also portable) way to get great sound.

I got my hands on the K361s a bit under a year ago and love them, but the earpads are already shredded. Does anyone have any experience with swapping in some Brainwavz pads? I know they fit, but it's hard to find much info about their sound profile when paired with the K361. I'd be looking at Brainwavz's micro suede or one of their cooling gel options due to heat in summer (I live in Australia). I've heard Dekoni's pads are great, but their K361 pads aren't sold here.

your room looks really interesting.

I’m thinking about either getting these, the ath -m40x, or takstar pro 82s. Which one do you think sounds the best?

I got these and I treat them like kings and then I see him doing all sorts of movement and I'm like "nooooooooooo"

Do ksc75's edge these out in imaging? I know for certain that they beat the k361 in soundstage but I'm not sure about imaging.

Drop + THX AAA ONE review when?

can you get a seal when you have a really tiny head..? like really really small

I really like my K361 but the build is horrible. The headband snapped when I try to put them on my head after 6 months of use. I am gluing them together now. So... I am pretty pissed.

I find it funny how the harman curve for speakers is way more neutral and not bass boosted at all so why is it that a headphone should have boosted bass. I think people on scientific forums should listen to things with mild bass and they will see it sounds much cleaner and you hear more detail. I think bass should be slightly elevated above the straight line most planars have but not to this level. Maybe about 2 or 3 db just to give a sense of power.

What is it like with glasses on?

Harman count with professionals too and lots of companies use the Harman frequency response including recivers amps and pre amps and yes the prefer for most of people.

Is anyone else experiencing "boomy" vocals on this particular video? Levels keep spiking 🤷‍♂️

Would you say a K371 is worth the $50 extra just for the mini xlr connectors? I wanted to get the K361s but I'm worried about not finding cables in case the stock breaks basically (and AKG isn't selling replacement cables for some reason).

Can you look at the Status CB-1? They've had a good reputation for a while and I'd like to see what you'd think. They're pretty cheap too, $60 on amazon.

Mine are BEAUTIFULLY well built!!!

Guys I have a question, do I NEED an amp for them or can i just run the music off of my computer or phone? Is the sound mostly the same without powering them with an amp?

Hi how would you say this compares to the phillips 9600?

Please recommend a closed back headphone for checking mixes and occasional mixing with removable cable. So far, have used M50X/40X, both are bass heavy resulting in a mix with anaemic lower end, HD280 Pro...sounds ok, but that damn cable is a mess to carry around and it lacks details like 40X/50X. HD25 II: my go to for now, but they do get really uncomfortable after an hour or so. Is there anything available for mixing ? NDH 20 isn't comfortable at all. I've started using a cheap IEM ( IE40 pro for mixing)!! Nobody is bothered about us, the mixing/ mastering people who need closed headphones for mixing at times. Budget: 500USD max, don't want spend more on closed back.

How do they hold up against the Sony MDR-7506?

Surprised the Blon BL30 isn't taking up this space

Can you review the K245's?

You should make a new headphones recommendation ranking for holidays 2020 (like another tier list would be great)

Thanks for this great video. Would you recommend this over Sennheiser HD 350BT?

lets face it he only likes it because its light and comfortable while not sound horrible likewise i had Sundara, Arya, DT1990, DT700 and i find myself wearing an old HyperX Cloud II most of the time because its very comfortable, zero clamp force after stretched out and light and most of all it had this forwarded sound that allow me to hear faint noise alot better especially useful for gaming and watching ghost hunting videos on youtube lol moral of the story, expensive headphones/audio stuff dont really matter, you wont really care for the sound detail because most of the time you are just in casual listening mode and pick the one that make you feel good always

hifiman sells he400se in chanes markets for 90 usd planar under 100usd 😎

How do you compare with Sennheiser hd 280 pro?

You should try the $49 AKG K245, probably the best value I've ever come across in a headphone. Sounds like the HD 6xx series but with sub-bass.

How good are they at keeping the sound inside? (I don't want them leaking whilst recording)

@DMS and what about the k361 vs Ath m40x for music production?

Just picked up the tygr300r on a Black Friday deal.

I have a set of bose qc 35ii that I need a closed back sub 200$ for gaming and comfort listening, mostly lofi and instrumental casual music. Any advice or suggestions?

Please review the Koss KHP7 Wireless.

ahh. I kinda want those but the build quality is just kills them for me.

Honestly I'd get Fidelio X2's at 99$ discounted instead of those AKG's and Grado's. Without even blinking.

have you noticed some cracking with it? I just received mine today and there is some distinct cracking left & right every 10-12 secs.

The SR80e is just not a comparable option where I live because the price is almost double compared to the K361

For me, as the measurements say, K612 looks higher end compared to K361/K371. It's sad that the bass are rolled-off ! It's also bad we can't have THE closed version of it at almost the same price...

I wonder how this AKG compares to a Beyerdynamics DT770pro. In Europe they are to be found for around this price as well.

So its a headphone to buy while you wait for a pair of Argons , got it.

review of the Sabaj d5

But is it better than the KPH30i's

First, also keen to watch. And see what Xmas present I get myself

Can you please review the audeze penrose?

Please get the hifiman he400se, its only $99, cheapest planar to date

Can you review the Samson SR850? I've seen many reviews that say that it's comparable to the AKG K240, but for under $50. I just got one for under $30.

That massive 8khz peak kills me. I had the same issue with the K371 it gets very sibilant at times.

Would love to see you get your hands on the new WYZE headset. They're making a ton of claims that I think you could put to the test.

I've been wearing headphones the wrong way my entire life 😁 2:12 that should be your new dating profile picture and your RU-vid profile picture 😂😂😂😂😸😆😆😆😆😆 3:00 I'm sure somebody will make that a company for headphones and speakers

Would you take this over the AKG 553?

This or bose QC35. If there is better at that price range then which ones are the best?

Do these beat the Sennheiser HD 280 Pro (New/Old)

Got it for 40$ barely used (almost new), feels like a good deal - was lucky to see a private ad for it right after watching ur video 😌 Also got a used HD558 for 25$ now I can rest a bit.. until buying a used HD560S in a year 😉

Hi, are there any recommendations budget headphones for mixing? Maybe around 150 to 200$, Thanks

At that price the DT770pro and AKG K245 are a better choice imho. I tried all of them in-store and found the K361 to suck. The K245 is open back, much better build quality (metal frame) and sounds somewhat like a DT990pro with the highs a bit more recessed and the bass a bit more muddy. Still a better choice than the K361 imho.

Do you think the bt version is worth it for about 20e more?

I have that same air purifier in your background.

Am i doing something wrong? I have these but i dont hear any bass? Like i have the hd58x and they sound like they have more bass ...idk tho km normie so