Hi guys, been lurking here for a bit and this is my first post.
I've been the very satisfied owner of a pair of audio-technica ATH-EM700 for just over 5 years now. A while ago, the padding on the earpieces started to come off and the plastic cord began to crack and fray. I use these headphones pretty much every day, mostly at work but also at home and when I took my iPod/iPhone on the go. They had a warm, superb quality sound - the best I've ever had in a pair of portable headphones, and even standing up against my full-size headphones they're probably one of the best pairs I've owned - and I really loved the fit and the fact they attached to the ear rather than using a headband or going in-ear like earbuds (which I normally don't care for).
I repaired the headphones as best as I could, but I thought it would be prudent to start looking into alternatives, especially ones I can wear at work. My biggest issue here is that I can't really drown out the world here - I need a pair of headphones where I can still hear my desk phone ring or coworkers calling my name - but I don't really want to sacrifice quality, either. I picked up a pair of Sennheiser CX-475 earbuds, and they are great sound-wise, but I still just can't really groove on having something in my ear as opposed to on or around it, so I'm considering returning them. (Again, definitely not a slight against the headphones themselves - they are hands-down the best in-ear headphones I've ever used.)
I've searched through a ton of threads and a lot of guides here and I'm worried there isn't a lot of crossover between smaller, non-earbud headphones and headphones that give me a very rich sound and full range like I felt I got from the ATH-EM700s. Am I out of luck? Are there any other suggestions?
Thanks for your time and any suggestions you might have, and thanks to all of you who post such excellent and thorough reviews and guides as well! :)
