HD600 or HD580.You'll love them.Or AKG K601      P.S:I didn't think about your budget!

    For about 70 or 80 bucks you can get the ER6i.Soundstage is not exceptional but the clarity is phenomenal.Almost everything sounds muddy after having listened to some Etymotics.

Same here.^^

If you want portability,IEMs.

Quote: Originally Posted by Gamerphile Valid point Not so valid,in my humble opinion,because you cannot choose what amp to use with the Stax earspeakers,and you can buy a Presonus HP4 for an HD600 and have a more than satisfactory sound,believe me or not.The two of them together...

Here in Finland the price of the cheapest STAX system is 890€,about 1273 $.

Quote: Originally Posted by krmathis Sorry, but I do not get this... * Stax SR-007MK2 = ~$1800 <-> Sennheiser HD800 = $1400. * Stax SR-404 = $450 (Price Japan) <-> Sennheiser HD650 = $380 (Amazon). A price difference, but nothing I would call ridiculous... Are you...

I've listened to a couple of Stax headphones in a shop,and they didn't impress me at all.I don't know about the top of the line Stax,to be fair,but the difference in price is just ridiculous,so here you are: Sennheiser 13 Heal STAX 7 Hurt

Indeed...

Quote: I've always found the 555/595 to be way underappreciated in this forum, and always assumed it was because it does better with classical/orchestral music, which few here listen to. But in this thread we had a classical enthusiast--a violinist no less--condemning the 595 to...

....and just to guide some lost souls here,both phones sound miles better than lower impedance(and price) Sennheisers,whether amped or not.

Quote: Originally Posted by Ham Sandwich Are the pads on your 580 and 600 the same? One having ear pads that are more worn than the other could affect the sound in such a comparison. If there is a sonic difference between the 580 and 600 it is beyond my ability to hear or care about...

Everybody keeps saying that the HD600 and the HD580 are the same phone,but I own both and they sound definitely different,but not very different.There's a gradation in brightness between the three Sennheiser brothers,and the HD580 are the brightest and leanest.

HD600,HD580,or AKG K601.

I have to add that I happen to like classical music above all other genres,so my choice of headphones goes in that direction.

I don't know,they were at the shop for demos,and I was comparing them to my ER6 with their super high end amp,and there was not even a hint of competition between them.

Quote: Originally Posted by Redcarmoose Do not worry, you will find something. I could not believe how much I disliked the Grado 60s. Lucky the store gave me credit when they came back for a return. The same thing happened to me!

Thanks,but I'm not any kind of expert...I know only what I like.Well,my ears are not exactly bad,they're my tools for work

I recommend you to try them first at the shop,it's impossible to know if you like the tonal balance unless you listen to them! And try as many as you can.

HD580,HD600,AKG K601.I think we share tastes and among all the cans I've tried those are my favorites.

Ah,I forgot the Beyerdynamic DT860,low impedance and very crisp sound.I tried them in a shop and I liked them a lot.

I used to have the AKG K501,and I liked it very much,but it was sometimes too thin sounding and the bass was too polite.The AKG K601 are more fleshy in the sound,and warmer but not muddy.They have the reputation of being hard to drive,though,but sometimes those warnings are a bit of a formula...

If you like airy sound,AKG is the way to go.

If you don't mind IEMs,I recommend the ER6 or the ER6i.They sound very good(specially with the black foam tips) and you can get them for much less than 160$.Truly neutral.The AKG K601 are a very good option too,but quite a bit more expensive.If you can find some used HD580 consider yourself...

Speakers hands down.Headphones are very convenient and good for detail,but you lose a lot of dynamic range for some reason.