I have both the AKG 702s and the Hifiman HE-500s. There is no question that the Hifiman headphones sound a lot better -- I love the AKGs, but the HE-500s are fantastic, much better bass, but better all around. NOW the only problem: I have had problems with my HE-500s: the ear pieces keep on detaching from the headband. They're held on by just two very small screws, a very flimsy arrangement; twice they've gone back to Audio Advisor -- I HOPE this time they'll just replace them; the plastic on the headbands which the earpieces screw into must just be fatigued or cracked. AA tried gluing them on last time I sent them in, and that worked for a while... I hope Hifiman is improving the mechanical design of these phones, which sound so good, but break so easily...