Bought these bad boys on sale from Harman Audio. Very clear and balanced sound for the price range, I have also had some good Grado SR80i headphones that I gave to my brother but the AKG K550 has very good sound with little leakage compared to open backs (good for office use). I love how Beethoven and Bonobo sound, these headphones have a very 'true to life' reproduction. So far I have found that I notice many details in tracks that I have not heard before!    Perhaps not the absolute best audio in the world, but definitely one of the best values...