Portable headphone recommendations under £150

Hi,

I'm in the market for some new headphones and have been reading a lot of reviews/recommendations on here.  In the end it comes down to personal taste/preference but I get the sense that at least a lot of people here will have personally tested out a lot of different headphones so can speak from experience.

I used to have a pair of Denon AH-D1001, which I loved.  They accentuated exactly what I wanted them too and although they didn't have a lot of bass they were exactly what I wanted.  Their build quality was crap though and when I sent them back the second time to be replaced under warranty I was sent a pair of AH-D1100s.  These I do not love.  They are very comfortable, are built better and have more bass, but are completely lacking in the clarity that the other Denons had.  Voices sounded better, and the high end, especially cymbals/hi-hats, were more pronounced and defined.  I also recently picked up a pair of Phonak PFE Perfect Bass earphones and while I like the sound I find they still slip while walking around, which causes the bass to virtually disappear, and after only a month of using them 'something' has happened and the right earbud is barely producing noise.

I have been reading a lot on the ATH-M50s, Beyer's DT770s and a number of people also mentioned the Shure SRH840s.  From what I've read on the M50s I worry that they're going to be the same as the D1100s; targeted at a more mainstream audience who aren't as focused on the clarity of the sound and instead want BASS.  I'm sure they will still sound good, but added to this they seem really bulky and I will be using the headphones on the tube/buses/planes so want something a bit smaller, and in the UK they're not nearly as affordable as they are in the US anyway. 

I will be pairing them with an Fiio E7 headphone amp, which has a bass boost function, so if the headphones have less bass I'm sure I can use that to bump it up a notch.  This also costs about £65 over here, but I'd rather get this and a pair of £120-150 headphones then spend over £200 just on the 'phones (like the Denon AH-D2000).

I listen to all types/genres of music, and I like the bass but it's not the biggest concern.  Given all this, any recommendations would be really helpful!

Thanks!

I have been looking mostly at new models.  After the problem with the Denons I had physically breaking twice (while still sounding great) I'm wary to buy them used.  You also won't get any warranty if they're used.

I'm only seeing those new on Ebay here as well and they're as much as the Denon D2000s. Aside from the price they'd probably be amazing!

Thanks for the suggestion, I just think they're too expensive.  If I was to get something like that then I wouldn't have the money to get the Fiio E7.  I'm really hoping to find something comparable for closer to the £150 mark so I'd have the extra left over to pick up that headphone amp. 

Is the premium in cost just because they're more portable?  How do they compare to the other headphones I listed?

I'm not ruling anything out yet!

Closed.  I have some HD-580s (although I don't use them much anymore) and otherwise at home I usually use speakers.  But I want something that sounds good and I can use travelling or in the office and that won't bleed sound to people around me.  TBH those Beyer T150Ps are really tempting!

Thanks.  I'll have a read up on some Ultrasone models.

Thanks mate, I really appreciate the input.

I've read up on the ES7s a bit.  They look like they'll be the same type of thing as the Denon AH-D1100s; good bass and generally good sound but not what I'm looking for.  The Ultrasone HFI-680s and 780s look good from what I've read so far.

Thanks, not familiar with those at all.  Sounds like they're more for monitoring purposes, but some of the AKGs I've heard are the same and they're really impressive.