Recording - November 2019 - 42

REVIEW

AKG K371 and K275

Over-ear, closed-back, foldable studio headphones
REVIEW BY GILES REAVES

've long been a fan of AKG
headphones. I use the classic
K240 model for studio work
when tracking and overdubbing, and also occasionally as
a mix reference. More recently I've used the less expensive
K242 as well as the impressive
K550 for work in my home studio. I was eager to take these
new AKG phones for a spin, as
they are promoted as being specifically for studio work.
While I don't tend to mix entirely on headphones, they are
handy as an additional monitor
option when mixing. The goal is
to ensure listeners get a similar
experience listening to the mix on
headphones or speakers (as much
as possible). This means the headphones need to sound good.
I also need my phones to work
well for tracking and overdubs
in the studio. This means that
they need to fit and feel good.
Here, comfort factor is as important as the sonic qualities-I
can sometimes end up spending
hours a day with phones on my
head. It's no fun working extended hours on ill-fitting or overly
bright sounding headphones.
With all that in mind, let's take
a look and listen!

AKG K371

The K371 features an oval-shaped
over-ear design. These phones are foldable, which makes for easy storage.
Simply twist the earpieces 90° and enjoy the satisfying click as you rotate to
fold. This is important when working in
smaller spaces (for storage) and when
42 RECORDING November 2019

traveling, and to that end, they also
come with a nice cloth carry bag.
The earpieces look small compared to
some other AKG phones but feel very
comfortable when worn. Because of the
fit and light weight of the K371, you can
completely forget you're wearing headphones even during long sessions.
I love that AKG has thoughtfully provided three detachable cable options: 4'
and 10' straight, and a 4' coiled cable
that extends to 7-8'.
The connection from the cable to the
phones is a locking mini XLR, which is a
very nice touch-no way will this cable
pull out accidentally. This is an indication
of the overall build quality, which is topnotch and looks like it will last for years.

AKG K275

The AKG K275 is a round cup, closedback, over-ear design. These phones
fold a little differently than other folding
phones, including the K371. It's difficult
to explain, but once you get the hang of

it, folding them makes total sense. Note
that unlike the K371 they don't lock into
place when folded. They also come with
the same cloth carry bag as the K371 for
storage and travel.
The K275 is a tad heavier on the
head than the K371 by 1.25 ounces,
and as with the K371, the build quality
is impressive.
The K275 uses the same robust mini
XLR for attaching the cable as the K371,
but this model comes with only a single
coiled cable. This is a little disappointing
to me since I personally never seem to
get along with coiled headphone cables. They are heavier than the included
straight cables and can pull against you
slightly as they stretch when you move
around. They also seem to catch on anything and everything nearby. The struggle is real! Then again, maybe it's just
me. Since I was reviewing both models at
once, I was able to ditch the coiled cable
and swap it out for one of the straight cables generously provided with the K371.

Recording - November 2019

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