I don't agree with the idea that the HD-650s are over priced. Although I am a bit biased, I love my 650s and think they're worth every penny I paid for them.

Nice review. Just wait until they burn in, it gets even better.

Define "complex". Just listen to a bunch of different stuff, and it should be pretty easy to determine if it's the cans or the source.

My roommate uses the styrofoam his 12 inch sub came in, just the bottom piece obviously. It's definitely helped, it used to shake the house and now I can feel/hear it a lot less across the house when he's using it.

Definitely whatever you can get the most resale value out of. Sell what you get, and buy real headphones from somewhere else.

Quote: I love my S4s, I don't think they sound muffled at all. Could you maybe have gotten a bad pair? I think they're really balanced headphones.

I my be alone in this, but I really love my Klipsch S4s. They aren't the best overall headphones, but they're good for the price and sturdy too. They even come with a little case to keep them safe.

I've never thought about mood influencing the way my headphones sound. Just curious, have there been any documented studies on this? Or is it all experience based? I totally believe it, I just had never heard or thought of it at all.

Exactly what everyone else has been saying: I used to work at Best Buy (I know, I know) and it frustrated me how much everyone coming in thought that Bose, Beats and skullcandy were the best things ever. Not to say bose and beats are bad, they're just way way way too overpriced. I thought they...

That's interesting, I don't know anyone with balanced equipment, which is probably a big factor because I've never been able to listen. Some day in the future I may decide to upgrade. Right now I'm perfectly happy with my set up, so I don't think it's worth it yet (especially as a poor college...

I've let my friends try my HD-650s, and they've pretty much all loved the sound (most of them are music majors), although they all get a "you're crazy" look when I tell them how much I've spent ha ha.

Really the best way is to find a way to try out all these. I know it's tough but you should try to find people or stores in your area willing to let you test stuff out. That's how I made my decision (HD-650s), but obviously my criteria were different than yours (more orchestral stuff).

I've thought about trying a balanced setup, and I'd love to someday, I just don't know how worth it it will be. Can anyone describe the difference in sound quality? I love the sound I'm getting now with just the stock setup.

I've listened to the AKG 701s, and i definitely agree that they are bass-light. If you're planning on running them with an amp then you can mitigate that somewhat, and they are great headphones. I really like my Sennheiser HD-650's. You can get them for around that price range, and while...

I would say full size. I probably use my IEMs more often, just out of convenience, but when I'm really listening to music I go with my full size Sennheisers. Just can't beat the level of quality and detail they give.