After receiving my disappointing Z700's, I sought out to find the truth behind this phenomenon. I found a guide on eBay, but it wasn't thorough enough for my liking. Given my highly anal personality, I thought I'd shed my two cents on this subjct. Don't be a sucker like so many of us have been.

First of all, not only are Z700's fakes of V700's, but there are fakes of the Z700's as well. Let's call these the "3rd Tier". These are the ones you hear so much about with the low quality cord. The cord is "shiny" and the jack doesn't have the "screw-on" feature for the 1/4 adapter. Avoid at all costs.

Now, there are "Genuine" Z700's. These feature a high-quality cord nearly identical to V700's, but they're still fakes and they still suck. Here are the notable differences from a truly genuine V700:
#1 - The plug is painted with black lines, instead of Sony's customary green lines.
#2 - The logos on the ear cups are "painted" silver, much like old G.I.Joes were painted, instead of real metal logos like the V700's.
#3 - The ear cups aren't as comfortable as the V700's. However, I don't notice a difference in sound quality between Z700's and V700's.
#4 - The eBay seller is in Asia.

The Moral of the Story
Just spend the extra $40 on real V700's. Your ears will appreciate it.  And you don't wanna be throwin' down beats in the club and have somebody recognize you're wearing fake cans on your head, man. How embarressing. Be a cool rich kid and get the good stuff.