The strain on the chord causes the wiring in the inside to eventually become distorted and weaken, to eventually fail, which is the principal reason I am replacing my 601s, despite the ratty appearance

The sound is okay to decent, probably because the drivers are new, so I really can't fully qualify the sound, but it sounds 7/10ish currently, where despite degraded wiring I would rate the 601's around a 9/10

Eventually, the wires broke and I had to do some soldering to fix it, which was a pain.

Basically a wire just comes loose in the right earcup and needs to be resoldered, but unless you're experienced with this kind of thing, you have to go through AKG's parent company Harmon to get them fixed, which is an unfortunately lengthy and irritating process

Removable cable so if you damage the wire you won't be screwed.

The internal wires are so cheap and thin they tend to break, and broke within the first year of use

I can have full conversations while wearing these headphones, as ridiculous as I may look.

, i've never really heard about this "burning in" myth but 3-4 weeks in i definitely hear a difference as far as tracks that were a bit hot/distorted when i listened 3 weeks ago at a loud but capable level are now cleaner and can take the same volume levels, might be placebo who knows, the china move to have these made over there from Austria must be why the price is so low as they do initially lightweight and "plastic" but keep in mind these are meant to be used in studios not thrown in backpacks and worn on public transportation, the brainwaves pads added some weight that makes them feel more "expensive" in a way, however the key component, the driver seems to not have been compromised for cheaper parts like the housing/build as i a/b tested these with an Austrian built pair my buddy