Headphone Reviews

AKG K267 Tiesto ($349)
Sometimes I feel like an old geezer. Who the heck is Tiesto?

I read a bit of his Wiki page, and, as many of you undoubtedly know, he's a hugely popular European DJ. The first of his kind ever to spin discs live at the Olympics (2004 Athens). As I write this I'm listening to his MOG.com radio channel on the K267 and, well, yeah, not really for me. No surprise there. But if you're a fan you should read on, because in the final analysis these headphones are pretty good.

The AKG K267 Tiesto is a full-size, around-the-ear, sealed headphone. Construction is metal plastic and leather in roughly equal measure. The ear-cup surround and most of the "3D-axis folding mechanism" is aluminum. Ear pads are a nice, pliant grade of artificial leather. Major parts of the headband and extending arms are plastic with some metal components. The headband pad is a fabric covered foam, but the top of the headband is a chunky piece of black leather embossed with "AKG".

Two male Mini-XLR connectors are available at the bottom of each ear-piece allowing the user to plug the headphone cable into either side. The headphones come with two cables: a 10 foot straight cable, and a 15 foot coiled cable. Both cables have 3-pin female mini-XLR connectors on one end, and 1/8" mini-plugs on the other. A screw-on 1/8" to 1/4" adapter is provided for plugging into full-size headphone jacks. I'd love to see AKG make a smartphone compatible cable with mic/remote for this and other headphones they have using the mini-XLR on the headphone end. (If you'd like a 6 meter cable so that you can walk around your office or kitchen while listening, the long Q701 cable, though bright green, is compatible. AKG part number 0110E03470.) A plush, but simple, draw-string bag is also included.

Stylistically, I think the K267 falls a little flat. The overall color scheme is matte silver and black. I like the look (and function) of the 3D-axis hinge assembly, and the outside of the earpiece with rotating bass control switch (a cool feature I'll talk about on the next page) and Tiesto logo. But the logo button finish is a bit plain, and the silver dots on the headband just look oddly out of place. The headband pad seems a bit too large and clunky as well. Given the competitors in this price range with really terrific looks (Sony MDR-1R, V-Moda M-100, Yamaha Pro500, Sennheiser Momentum, and, of course, Beats Studios) I think AKG fell a bit short in the looks department.

The ergonomics of these headphones are fairly good. The folding mechanism works well to make the K267 more compact for storage and transport, and does a good job of providing the degrees of freedom needed for a good fit on the head. The earpads are soft and pliant, though a bit cozy. My ears do significantly touch the inside liner over the baffle plate, but the covering is a somewhat spongy material, so they seem fairly comfortable for me. The headband pad is ample but a bit stiff; it does contact a good portion of the top of my head to distribute the weight widely, but I didn't find it quite plush enough for listening sessions longer than about two hours or so.

To me it seems the oddest part of the ergonomics for a DJ headphone is the lack of ability to rotate one earpiece out of the way for DJ use. I could easily just slide one earpiece behind an ear though, and they seemed fairly stable on my head in that configuration.

Lastly, there have been a few reports of the K267 breaking at the hinge at the end of the headband. I had no problems with mine, but a single assembly that provides the 3D-axis movement is, of necessity, quite complex.

So...a bit of a mixed bag on the physical headphone itself. On to the sound quality, and that dandy bass switch...