Superlux HD 681 vs AKG K712 PRO: Which Headphones Are Better?

Tested using Methodology v1.8

Updated Jul 29, 2025 07:45 PM

See Superlux HD 681 Review

TypeOver-ear

Noise CancellingNo

EnclosureOpen-Back

WirelessNo

TransducerDynamic

MicNo

TypeOver-ear

Noise CancellingNo

EnclosureSemi-Open

WirelessNo

TransducerDynamic

MicNo

Recommended in 1 article:
Under $50

Our Verdict

AKG K712 PRO

Superlux HD 681

The AKG K712 PRO and the Superlux HD 681 are both great audiophile headphones if you like a balanced sound. The AKG are better built and have a more comfortable fit. They also have a smoother treble response that can lend itself to longer listening sessions without the worry of ear fatigue.

Variants

K712 PRO

HD 681

Review

See AKG K712 PRO Review

Check Price

Standard

K712 PRO

Standard

HD 681

Standard

K712 PRO

Standard

HD 681

Standard

K712 PRO

Standard

HD 681

Standard

K712 PRO

Standard

HD 681

Notice: Two or more of the products selected have been tested with different test methodologies, so some of the results below aren't directly comparable. Learn how our test benches and scoring system work, and read more about the latest changes to our headphones test methodology.

Threshold

0.10

Neutral Sound

8.0

7.9

Treble Accuracy

8.0

6.9

Mid Accuracy

8.5

9.1

Bass Accuracy

7.0

7.4

Full Comparison

Neutral Sound

8.0

7.9

Commute/Travel

4.0

4.1

Sports/Fitness

5.1

Office

4.8

Wireless Gaming

4.6

4.3

Wired Gaming

6.7

6.2

Phone Calls

1.7

1.8

Design

Style

Design Picture 2

Type

Over-ear

Enclosure

Open-Back

Semi-Open

Wireless

Transducer

Dynamic

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Comfort

8.0

7.5

Comfort Picture

Weight

0.65 lbs

0.5 lbs

Clamping Force

1 lbs

0.9 lbs

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Controls

0.0

Controls Picture

OS Compatibility

No Controls

Ease Of Use

No Controls

Feedback

No Controls

Call/Music Control

Volume Control

Microphone Control

Channel Mixing

Noise Cancelling Control

Talk-Through

Additional Controls

Breathability

7.1

6.8

Breathability After Picture

Avg.Temp.Difference

3.9 °C

4.8 °C

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Portability

5.2

5.4

Portability Picture

L

8.3" (21.0 cm)

8.0" (20.3 cm)

W

7.3" (18.5 cm)

7.2" (18.3 cm)

H

4.3" (11.0 cm)

3.5" (8.9 cm)

Volume

253.74 in³ (4,158.04 cm³)

201.00 in³ (3,293.79 cm³)

Transmitter Required

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Case

5.5

Case Picture

Type

Pouch

No case

L

N/A

W

N/A

H

N/A

Volume

N/A

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Build Quality

7.5

5.5

Build Quality Picture

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Stability

5.5

6.0

Stability Picture

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Headshots 1

Angled Picture

Side Picture

Headshots 2

Front Picture

Rear Picture

Top

Top Picture

In The Box

In The Box Picture

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Sound

Sound Profile

Normalization Frequency

1,500 Hz

Bass Amount

-3.28 dB

-4.2 dB

Treble Amount

-1.51 dB

1.6 dB

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Frequency Response Consistency

8.6

7.8

Consistency L

Consistency R

Avg. Std. Deviation

0.29 dB

0.44 dB

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Raw Frequency Response

Raw FR L

Raw FR R

Bass Profile: Target Compliance

7.0

7.4

Bass Profile: Target Compliance

RMS Deviation From Target

4.1 dB

5.5 dB

Low-Frequency Extension

96.52 Hz

27.29 Hz

Low Bass

-7.52 dB

-7.23 dB

Mid Bass

-3.68 dB

-2.34 dB

High Bass

0.04 dB

-1.53 dB

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Mid-Range Profile: Target Compliance

8.5

9.1

Mid-Range Profile: Target Compliance

RMS Deviation From Target

1.99 dB

1.01 dB

Low Mid

0.01 dB

-1.12 dB

Mid-Mid

-1.83 dB

-0.96 dB

High Mid

-2.29 dB

0.38 dB

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Treble Profile: Target Compliance

8.0

6.9

Treble Profile: Target Compliance

RMS Deviation From Target

3.02 dB

3.39 dB

Low Treble

-1.91 dB

-0.24 dB

Mid Treble

-0.79 dB

4.05 dB

High Treble

-9.01 dB

-1.81 dB

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Peaks/Dips

7.7

Peaks/Dips Graph

Peaks

1.65 dB

1.1 dB

Dips

0.7 dB

2.39 dB

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Imaging

8.5

8.1

Group Delay

Phase Response Mismatch

Weighted Group Delay

0.14

0.26

Weighted Phase Mismatch

6.74

12.02

Weighted Amplitude Mismatch

0.71

0.76

Weighted Frequency Mismatch

2.02

1.71

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Passive Soundstage

7.9

7.8

PRTF

PRTF Accuracy (Std. Dev.)

4.42 dB

1.58 dB

PRTF Size (Avg.)

7.05 dB

6.36 dB

PRTF Distance

16.65 dB

11.68 dB

Openness

9.4

9.2

Acoustic Space Excitation

7.4

6.7

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Virtual Soundstage

0.0

Virtual Soundstage

Head Modeling

Speaker Modeling

Room Ambience

Head Tracking

Virtual Surround

No App

Weighted Harmonic Distortion

8.7

7.6

Weighted Harmonic Distortion

WHD @ 90

0.083

0.145

WHD @ 100

0.096

0.313

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Test Settings

Firmware

No Firmware

Power

Passive

Connection

Wired

Codec

PCM, 24-bit, 48kHz

Test Instrument

Audio Precision APx517B

EQ

No EQ

ANC

No ANC

Tip/Pad

Default

Microphone

No Microphone

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Isolation

Noise Isolation - Full Range

1.6

2.6

Noise Isolation - Full Range Graph

Noise Cancelling

Overall Attenuation

-4.61 dB

-5.95 dB

Isolation Audio

Bass

0.09 dB

0.18 dB

Mid

-0.61 dB

-0.14 dB

Treble

-13.2 dB

-19.85 dB

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Noise Isolation - Common Scenarios

2.8

Noise Isolation - Common Scenarios Graph

Airplane Noise Attenuation

-5.04 dB

Airplane Noise Isolation Audio

Office Noise Attenuation

-5.31 dB

Office Noise Isolation Audio

Street Noise Attenuation

-5.59 dB

Street Noise Isolation Audio

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Noise Isolation - Voice Handling

Female Voice 1

Male Voice 1

Female Voice 2

Male Voice 2

ANC Wind Handling

ANC Wind Handling Graph

ANC Wind Noise

N/A

Leakage

3.6

4.3

Leakage

Leakage Audio

Overall Leakage @ 1ft

55.56 dB

52.9 dB

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Microphone

Microphone Style

Integrated

In-Line

Boom

Detachable Boom

Mic

Recording Quality

0.0

Microphone Frequency Response

Recorded Speech

N/A

LFE

N/A

FR Std. Dev.

N/A

HFE

N/A

Weighted THD

N/A

Gain

N/A

Noise Handling

0.0

SpNR

N/A

Noise Gate

Speech + Pink Noise Handling

N/A

Speech + Pink Noise Audio Sample

N/A

Speech + Subway Noise Handling

N/A

Speech + Subway Noise Audio Sample

N/A

Active Features

Battery

0.0

Battery Type

No Battery

Continuous Battery Life

N/A

Additional Charges

N/A

Total Battery Life

N/A

Charge Time

N/A

Power-Saving Feature

Audio While Charging

Passive Playback

Passive Headphone

Charging Port

None

App Support

0.0

App Picture

App Name

No App

iOS

Android

macOS

Windows

Equalizer

ANC Control

Mic Control

Room Effects

Playback Control

Button Mapping

Surround Support

Show Text

Connectivity

Wired Connection

9.5

9.1

Cable Picture

Analog Audio

Yes

USB Audio

Detachable

Yes

Length

9.80 ft (2.99 m)

8.00 ft (2.44 m)

Connector

1/8" TRS

Latency - Analog

0.2 ms

Latency - USB

0 ms

N/A

Recorded Latency

Recorded Latency Connection

Analog

Show Text

Bluetooth Connection

0.0

Bluetooth Version

No Bluetooth

Multi-Device Pairing

NFC Pairing

Quick Pair (Android)

Quick Pair (iOS)

Line Of Sight Range

N/A

Latency - SBC

N/A

Latency - aptX

N/A

Latency - aptX Adaptive (High Quality)

N/A

Latency - aptX Adaptive (Low Latency)

N/A

Latency - LDAC

N/A

Recorded Latency

N/A

Recorded Latency Codec

No Bluetooth Audio

AAC Support

PC Latency (aptX HD)

N/A

PC Latency (aptX-LL)

N/A

iOS Latency

N/A

Android Latency

N/A

Wireless Connection (Dongle)

0.0

Line Of Sight Range

N/A

Latency - Dongle

N/A

Recorded Latency

N/A

PC Compatibility

Analog

Audio Only

Wired USB

Non-BT Wireless

Show Text

PlayStation Compatibility

PS4 Analog

Audio Only

PS4 Wired USB

PS4 Non-BT Wireless

PS5 Analog

Audio Only

PS5 Wired USB

PS5 Non-BT Wireless

Show Text

Xbox Compatibility

Xbox One Analog

Audio Only

Xbox One Wired USB

Xbox One Non-BT Wireless

Xbox Series X|S Analog

Audio Only

Xbox Series X|S Wired USB

Xbox Series X|S Non-BT Wireless

Show Text

Base/Dock

0.0

Type

No Base/Dock

USB Input

Line In

Line Out

Optical Input

RCA Input

Dock Charging

Power Supply

No Base/Dock

Check Price

Standard

K712 PRO

Standard

HD 681

Standard

K712 PRO

Standard

HD 681

Standard

K712 PRO

Standard

HD 681

Standard

K712 PRO

Standard

HD 681