Mine have been good durability wise, but I completely agree on the comfort issue.  I definitely cannot wear them for more than an hour or so.  The velour pads and headband get a bit irritating.  I was thinking of picking a pair of those new Focus pads from Hifiman's store.  They look to be a...

  Yeah, that made me a bit nervous with mine at first.  It's definitely a tight fit.   Enjoying the hell out mine, though.  I swap between the stock Electro Harmonix tube, an Amperex orange globe, a Bugle Boy, and a really nice Ei tube from Yugoslavia.  Wonderful little desktop set-up.

Lost my pair of these last year when they fell out of my jacket somewhere.  Finally decided to get a new pair since my Hifiman Re-400s are getting a little boring.  Found one in like new condition (only the box was opened) on Amazon for 59 and Prime shipping too.  What a steal.  Can't wait to...

Listening to my newly arrived Amperex Ecc88 Bugle Boy logo right now.    WOW.

EDIT:  Did not read first post carefully.  I was going to recommend a tube DAC/amp but now see you said solid state

I own the RE-400s.  Arguably the best bargain in the IEM world at $99.  You get incredibly good sound quality for what you pay, but then again this is true of many of Hifiman's headphones.   You get a lot of different tips with it, and they have a nice small profile that makes them fit quite...

I will second the Hifiman RE-400 rec, which I currently own.  Absolutely superb for $99, and the pairs being sold on Amazon now come with a ton of extra tips of all sizes and shapes, including some foam Comply tips.     If you want something a little more fun and V-shaped for rock, look at the...

I've never heard the M50s but faced the same dilemma three years ago when I chose my 840s over them.     Your musical tastes seem pretty broad.  I will say that if you are a person who appreciates good vocals, then the Shures would suit you well as they have a sweet midrange/vocal region...

My tube binge continues. Found a reputable seller on the bay who had a surplus of Amperex bugle boy logo tubes from the early 60s. Wanted 24 bucks a piece. The logos weren't mint so they were going for a discount. Was also bidding on a siemens e88cc but that got a bit too expensive. Man this...

Looks to be the Halo getter.

Ended up finding a seller on Ebay who had a bunch of leftover Amperex Orange Globe 6dj8s, tested at 1300 mhos.  He was selling them in pairs.  They were partially rubbed so he was selling them for cheap  ($17 bucks for a pair).  You could still read the date code of delta 7k1, which if I read...

Well, I didn't look closely enough.  Apparently the description on Ebay was "Phillips like" PCC88.  It was still made in the former Phillips Ei factory in Yugoslavia, just much later (1980s).  Oh well, it was cheap at 24 bucks for two.  I'll experiment and see how it goes.  I can always sell the...

  Yeah, he was touting a Phillips PCC88 tube as a great deal, and a reviewer on there said it was a good match with the T1.  I was going to pull the trigger, but took a look on Ebay and found a very reputable and highly rated seller selling a pair of the same tube for 24.99 opening bid with...

  Wow, is that what he charges?  I didn't notice the shipping costs.  Yikes.  

I was thinking of getting a tube or two from Upscale Audio.  Just wanted to double check:  we can use 'driver grade' tubes in the T1 since it uses tube as a buffer, correct?  They have some nice Amperex 7308s, and driver grade seem like a good deal at $50.