I haven't tried much yet. every AKG has its taste. for q701 i,love oyaide occ.(thicker puchier clear and less brightness in vocal which somehow improve the instrument ). my akg 702 65th anv are good with vandamme prograde cable. just don't tried diy that is made by someone with no expertise. You...

Maybe you just need a new cable for q701 (I used Oyaide). Original are too bright on vocal and blur in instrument.  I haven't used O2 b4, Just heard it is good for a start (fits the budget). 

Objective Amp is also a good choice, you can buy the amp plus dac combo at 275 USD. It's very small and powerful. Low output impedance and high current is good for AKG, philips and other headphones that are less than 100 Om.

i would choose senheisier 600,because its easier to drive.

shp are better in terms of HiFi

How did you get it for 150 USD? I got my HD 10k like 232 USD. They are friendly to iPad, but but terrible on cell phone, I used it on amp most of the time. With amp I feel like it is better than all mine under 300 USD headphones (hd 600 K 701 shure 1440).

I think these 9500 are better than Audio-Technica . 9500 is as good as akg k q701 or hd600 (I own various headphones).

I believed that shp9500 should be treated with better amp or all in one. Musicland wasn't bad, just don't think it's that good. make sure the amp output power are 200mw or more at 32om for shp9500, that will guarantee its basic performance.

I just place the vandamme a minute ago(same seller as yours), because my oyaide occ  doesn't serve my k7xx (massdrop special edition akg) well, but so good with q701 for pop.  I will see what difference can it make.

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I would said Fidelio x2 (I have experienced x1, but not x2), had HE500 once and  hd600 currently. Sennheiser is not a brand designed for vocal from my understanding. HE500 was too warm  on vocal and lack of details (detail level are same as hd650 or slightly better). HD 600 had a beautiful...

Maybe my new shp9500 will be use in PC games, also got akg 7xx coming in next month. I will post my impression after 200h burn in.

I had a AKG 240m studio 600om (maybe a decade old), they are very comfortable, at least better than my q701 ,k701, Shure 1440 or the HD600.

SHP9500 are offered at Newegg flash FOR 64.99$ with free shipping.