You won't be dissappointed with the SRH440, they are balanced and don't have weak bass.  However, If you want bassy-heavy headphones you will need to look elsewhere.

I'm in a similar boat...  took the M50s home because the store didn't have the SRH440s in until tomorrow.  PLENTY efficient for use with a portable, great sounding, look good, seem pretty durable, cord not too long for portable, not too short for home, quiet to those not wearing them, and very comfortable...  I've been wearing them for about 6 hours now
 
Going to try the SRH440s out tomorrow too... just because they are about $50 cheaper and so highly regarded here.

While I liked the ES7s (and their big brothers) I've settled on the Panasonic HTX7, after comfort issues with the former, and found them to be phenomenal.  They sell on Amazon for right around 30$ and compete with many phones with significantly higher price tags.  There are also a few tweaks that help to balance out their rather energetic sound.  I'd definitely give them a shot and pass them along to a friend if you don't care for them.  Good luck with your search.

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earerror said:

Good looks, and portability....if you are those who dont give much importance to sound signature.

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I think the looks of skullcandy are overdone. I'm a simple guy, I like the looks of the Beyer dt770. And in the title it says:

Best full-size phones, with good looks, sound, and portability

DT770 for portable use O.o

I think the CAL! would be your best bet.
 
Actually, if you can get a pair of used HD25-1 (not II) i've seen them go for  less than 100 quite a few times, and they pretty much blow away everything listed so far. In pretty much every category (except looks, though i dont know what you consider 'good looking', as I like the simplicity of the hd25).
 
However finding them is a pain... not many people have the hd25 in the first place and fewer still have the hd25-1 and not the hd25-1 ii, and fewer still have a well used pair for sale
 
listened to a friends pair of the CAL and loved them, same with the hd25 which was considerably better... though not as comfy (but very close!).

DT770 need an amp and are far from balanced sounding. Overbearing bass, recessed mids, shrill treble.

That's the Pro 80 model for clarification

Quote:

duncandun said:

I think the CAL! would be your best bet.
 
Actually, if you can get a pair of used HD25-1 (not II) i've seen them go for  less than 100 quite a few times, and they pretty much blow away everything listed so far. In pretty much every category (except looks, though i dont know what you consider 'good looking', as I like the simplicity of the hd25).
 
However finding them is a pain... not many people have the hd25 in the first place and fewer still have the hd25-1 and not the hd25-1 ii, and fewer still have a well used pair for sale
 
listened to a friends pair of the CAL and loved them, same with the hd25 which was considerably better... though not as comfy (but very close!).

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I completely agree with you, the best portable headphones around $100 is a pair of used HD25-1.  However, it will be hard to find people willing to let the headphones go.  I personally turned down a pair of ES7 to get a pair of HD25-1 II.      
 

Now I'm in a dilemma!
I've always wanted a Panasonic RP-HTX7 purely for looks, and it seems the price and sound is good!
But I'm still wanting the more audiophile phones, the 440's or the M50's. Choosing between the two would be tough.
I heard a CAL! just recently today, and I thought they were good, but they seemed more suitable for video gaming/movies than the smooth, jazz music I tried it with.

While I think that reading about all of the options can be helpful you're ultimately going to have to listen to any and all of the cans before you'll know which you prefer.  I remember thinking that I  preferred a certain signature based on what I'd read online but, after listening to a large number of other options, settled on something I hadn't initially considered.  "Audiophilia" is highly subjective- a flat response doesn't necessarily imply a neutral or accurate sound. Also, don't let price reflect on the quality of a phone.  My $0.02.

This sucks! I have to decide by tomorrow on which headphones to buy.
So far, I'm still really torn between the Panny HTX7's, the JVC RX700's, the SRH440's, and the M50's. I'd prefer spending less money as I am a university student. But I really don't know which to get. I'm leaning to the HTX7's only because they look good and supposedly sound decent and can be modded. The 440's are tempting too..
 
EDIT: Would the 440's sound OK unamped through my Zune HD? When using unamped, what would work better; the 440's or the HTX7's? That will be my final verdict.

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dartmouth said:

This sucks! I have to decide by tomorrow on which headphones to buy.
So far, I'm still really torn between the Panny HTX7's, the JVC RX700's, the SRH440's, and the M50's. I'd prefer spending less money as I am a university student. But I really don't know which to get. I'm leaning to the HTX7's only because they look good and supposedly sound decent and can be modded. The 440's are tempting too..
 
EDIT: Would the 440's sound OK unamped through my Zune HD? When using unamped, what would work better; the 440's or the HTX7's? That will be my final verdict.

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How exactly are you planning to buy one of them with just $78 in your hand? Your lies are pretty funny.

Quote:

dartmouth said:

This sucks! I have to decide by tomorrow on which headphones to buy.
So far, I'm still really torn between the Panny HTX7's, the JVC RX700's, the SRH440's, and the M50's. I'd prefer spending less money as I am a university student. But I really don't know which to get. I'm leaning to the HTX7's only because they look good and supposedly sound decent and can be modded. The 440's are tempting too..
 
EDIT: Would the 440's sound OK unamped through my Zune HD? When using unamped, what would work better; the 440's or the HTX7's? That will be my final verdict.

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The 440's do not require an amp, they are only 44ohms which can be driven by your Zune
 

SRH440 are fine without an amp.
 
Here is a comment by Marcus on headphonic on the SRH440 that helped me decide to go with them. "Probably the best sub-$200 closed headphones around, build quality, sound quality and comfort all outdo the other closed alternatives. If you need a closed headphone and have less than $200 to spend, get these, don't bother with the rest!" This is based on AUS pricing however and the M50 costs closer to $300 there (though I wonder how he would feel about hem if they were of similar price-they are about $150 more))
 
I trust his recommendations since he bases them on his own personal experience and his customers experience all who have tested several models in store.  Its better than going on people who compare random heaphone (Panny HTX7) to stock ibuds and say they are the best thing they ever heard as they have absolutely no basis for comparison since they haven't heard anything else in the pricerange.