In your case I would be going for the HE-500 or LCD2. The HE-500 has a more forgiving and less strident treble with similar to better detail and imaging. Fuller midrange and a slightly laid back sound. The LCD2 is basically what you should upgrade to if you are enamored with the HD650 fully...

I also use the HD800's for my movie watching and PC gaming. The ambient noise, backgrounds, detail in busy scenes and all that make it a much more lifelike experience.   I think something like the DT880/AKG Q701 would be a good lower cost alternative for detail lovers in movie watching.  ...

I picked one of these up from a fellow headfier. Iroko 5/10.   There are a few similarities between these and the Grado PS*** series headphones. The bass is certainly interesting and bit addicting at least for certain types of heavier rock music. Anyone with these should check out Spirit...

The Mad Dog 100% needs an amp it is no where near as sensitive as the 240 or DT770. Maybe going the Shure 840/940 might be a better idea if you don't want to grab an amp as well. Shures though seem to have poor THD ratings on some of their models, which might be the distortion you are hearing...

My Favorite album for the year is Deafheaven: Sunbather         My favorite song is a weird one but a goody *for me at least*   Vicarious Redemption by Cult of Luna  

  Of course, I'm just saying it as something the OP should consider as well. I don't think he has heard any of the cans mentioned at all so it is impossible to know what his preferences for treble are at all.

Grado's just have that pure energy and that fat aggressive guitar + bass tone not nailed down by other headphones. I do enjoy more "technical" headphones a lot for Rock music as well, but with Grado's you can sit back and be taken away without worrying about the technicalities or if they have...

Grado 225i? Maybe 325i   Sennheiser 25 I II   Both of which are more aggressive in their sonic than many of the aforementioned. Grado's really do get the guitar tone down perfectly for that fat rich amped sound. The Senn's are bloody quick and aggressive for metal music.   V Moda M100's...

Wish I could have got a Bushmill's Grado before they sold out.   You should love the RS1's, they are a more refined and classy beast than the SR325, but still with plenty of energy. There are diminishing returns, but I'd be surprised if you didn't notice improvements at least in clarity...

*$1590 for the HD800's  - At Addicted to Audio and Headphonic.   $2099 for the AKG K812 ~ Marked from an original $2599 pricing I believe. At A2A, and also quoted on as $2599 on Headphonics forum.      

I mainly listen to Trance, House, Big Beat, Chillstep, Dubstep and pop genres on the TH900's of mine. I appreciate the slightly more open sound of the TH900 over the 600's. It was a no brainer to buy the TH900 for that extra 15% clarity, openness, smoother treble and slightly more impacting bass...

Just be aware that the Beyerdynamic T90 has a fair bit more treble than even the T1, too much for some peoples ears.

  Depends on the rock I'd assume. For more aggressive Rock music I've seen people swear by the HE-6 as one of the best there is.   In the shoes of someone going for 2 top end models I'd be going HD800 + Fostex TH900 for sheer variation and big differences between the sound signatures.

Portable use go with the Momentum.   At home the Mad Dog 3.2 smokes the Momentum in overall sound quality IMO. Better imaging, detail, I prefer their slightly better extended highs, deeper bass extension and I far prefer the mid range.

Like I said earlier, the Beyerdynamic T1 is very much top end and sounds very very good with all genres. Especially acoustic as well. It is expansive in the soundstage and imaging is very good for gaming. It could easily do both things comfortably.   In pure high fidelity it smokes the Grado...

I'm usually on the computer after work listening to music for 3-4 hours a night most nights of the week. I'm always actively getting albums, exploring other genres and listening to at least a new album every day. I'd like to thing that I enjoy more than just gear despite owning many high end...

The 4 pins on the XLR are for Balanced configuration with balanced amps. You can read about that elsewhere on the forums if you want to know what that is.   The Mad Dog is a Planar Magnetic, I have never found Planar's to distort much if ever at high volumes personally. The Mad Dog bass is not...

???   Connector - just get the single ended one without the XLR's.   If you mean the regular jack, then I'm worried haha. That is just a 1/4 inch and it would be all you need for studio work + Single ended option comes with a v moda 1/8 inch jack too.

The K812 will still be winner with some people even if it is not the undisputed king that some were hoping to topple the HD800. I'm sure a DIY method will be found for the treble. Even still the T1 was a similar for average measurements and review case for Tyll, but heaps of people enjoy that...

I feel the Hifiman headphones out there are top level at imaging - never felt let down by any of their planars in this regard. I feel the HE-4 was the overall best at it though. I'd have to re listen to the HD650 side by side with the 500 to see the center imaging thing - been a while.

Mad / Alpha dogs would 100% be the way I'd be shifting personally for recording. I'm not sure of other top options as they are some seriously fantastic mid - high end headphones. Most top closed models have vented designs that leak sound except them and ultrasones.

I see ATH-M50's everywhere around here. I wonder how many of them stumbled on headfi reviews/recommendations for em. B*** dominate however over the public hear second is SkullC's. Still I'm happy to see momentums and other models like the MDR-1R every now and then. It helps that I see the public...

Happy to hear that you are enjoying the PS500's. They certainly have a nice flavor to their bass response and overall tonal character. I love acoustic bass with them.

No particular order in the rank levels   First level   Stax Lambda 507 Sennheiser HD800 Fostex TH900   Second level   Audeze LCD2.2 Beyerdynamic T1 Ultrasone Signature DJ Mr Speakers Alpha Dog Hifiman HE-500 Grado RS1i + PS500 Heir Audio 4.ai     Listening preferences (no...

The HE-500 has better imaging, detail levels, treble detail+extension, better sub bass and lower distortion overall. It has a far faster response and is a fantastic all rounder. The HD650 is more laid back and has a fair bit less treble and liveliness. The 650 is more romantic "euphonic" but the...