Can't you just replace the head-band after an year or so? I think that would be a cost-effective solution to the problem. Look at new cans with replaceable head-bands.

I was comparing these and finally bought the MDR-1R. I would say that it is the most suitable for long term use - read, very comfortable. Warm sound , great vocals/mids and smooth treble. With the bass boost on the FiiO amp, the bass is also tight & deep, but without the amp it may not be up to...

Such high praises. Now I have to give the UE6000 a try!!

My reservations about Logitech aside, I don't see how a UE6000 can trump a DT770.

Not many and its obvious because its a bad idea. The power and weight will definitely be an issue. The one I know of is the Audio Technica ATH-OX7AMP headphones at almost 300 USD. Not worth it IMO; better to buy a discrete amp. An in-built amp is just a bad idea.

I can definitely say that the ATH-M50x should be a good bet in your budget. But, I think more importantly you should try it on and listen to some of your favourite tunes. It is neutral sounding , has very good isolation, tight bass and great SQ for the price. But IMO it is not good for long term...

I am using a Sony MDR-1R. If you can I would recommend getting the newer MDR-1A. It has really good mids, smooth treble and good bass. With the bass boost on the E10, the bass should be more than sufficient. The warm sound and comfy padding is great for long duration listening. Not to mention...

A FiiO E06 should probably solve your volume problems. Happy listening 

If you're playing it from a Mac I would not recommend buying a discrete DAC because Mac's already have a pretty good discrete kind of in-built DAC.    I would recommend the FiiO E11K at 60 USD as a pretty good value for money and you would really like the E11's soundstage when playing...

The E10K has a discrete DAC with amp. So what is the point in buying the Xonar DG? (it also has a DAC - i.e., sound card and a built in amp). IMHO, the surround sound is just a marketing gimmick when it comes to headphones. Software virtual surround works almost the same for headphones.   I...

  The E10K trumps the Sabre in every possible way I can think of !! Combine it with your E11 and you're going to be in for a treat 

It's a good headphone but a few months down the road, you should definitely buy an amp and honestly you're going to be in for a treat then 

I made a mistake and bought the E11, so gave it back and bought an E10K since it had a DAC and amp. Overall I like the E10K's SQ but I miss the 2-step bass boost and sound-stage of the E11. I plan to buy an E11K a few months later if it could improve my soundstage.   Lately I have realized...

Waiting for it    BTW, the permissible exposure for 80 dB is 8 hours but it is calculated on a continuous exposure right? What if it is more like 70-85 dB for 8 hours but varying ?

I am not sure about buying an E11K in the future for fear of degrading quality; And the sound is loud enough for me now in high gain and I don't have the money to spend on an amp. Maybe a Sennheiser HD 650 would be a good upgrade a year or two down the road.

I try to keep my sound below 80 dB. Something like 75-80 dB is my comfort zone. How about you guys?    P.S. I use an app called Sound Meter on my Android phone to measure the sound level. 

Same reason I bought the MDR-1R    On a short listen, I was impressed by the quality of sound of the M50x, but I am just a sucker for good looks, comfy padding and a warm sound; hence the choice of the MDR-1R.   But I'd definitely give the M50x a chance because most of the people who have...

If I'm not wrong, then the E11K can be charged while playing simultaneously (the E11 couldn't do that). The E10K and E11K are solid amp / DAC but it can only drive a max of 150 ohms. AFAIK, the E09K (QOGIR-E09K) is the only FiiO desktop AMP/DAC that can drive up to 600 ohm. Maybe you could try...

I am not too familiar with stand-alone music players but if the SE535 is too sensitive then you'd better go with a high-end player. Have you tried anything like a normal iPhone with PowerAmp or something?

In your case you cannot control the volume of the TV from your headphone wire volume control. Not all headphone jacks are built the same. Most of them will work with an iPhone because most of them are Apple compatible. I have had many cases when the headphone volume control works perfectly fine...

If the source is bad, there's not much an amp can do to clean that up. How is the hiss when you connect the DAC and laptop. Try hearing some music with WASAPI in exclusive mode.

For your budget, I'd make a beeline for the Sennheiser HD 650. Pretty much the best in headphones unless you're going to go way over the top like many audiophiles 

Coming from an on-board DAC to a discrete one should always increase your SQ but I'm not completely sure in your case since it looks like a high-end mobo you got there   If it's as good as an Apple DAC, then I don't see much point in investing in an extra discrete DAC. That said I like my FiiO...

The impedance for these headphones is only 32 ohm as per the Panasonic official website. So, the FiiO E6 should drive them pretty fine.

I would strongly recommend the Audio Technica ATH-M50x at 115 GBP (on Amazon UK). Excellent sound reproduction, tight bass and neutral sounding. Easily driven even without an amp. Although in you case with that small amp it should sound even better.    I think it meets all of your requirements...