Thanks a lot for all of the help. (By the way, aren't the Beyerdynamic headphones supposed to be known for their brightness? I actually was considering them but scratched them off the list after reading many people mentioning their fatiguing treble. Aside from those and the three brands mentioned above, I have no clue about any others that might be worth considering and know absolutely nothing about amps and dacs. haha)
I actually received my HE-400s + Schiit Magni and Modi combo a few days ago. I have been testing them out with movies, games, and every type of music I can think of. I'm extremely new to all of this so I'll try to explain it as best I can.
I'm not that crazy about these headphones so far. I have listened to them for probably 10-12 hours already. My impression is that they lack a lot in the mids making vocal reproduction quite lackluster which is probably the first thing I noticed. The separation of instruments is admirable but I feel like the overall sound is cluttered. Bass is present when it's supposed to be but I feel it lacks impact and control. As for the treble, as I feared it is too bright for my taste. It isn't always fatiguing but quite a few songs made it apparent then after several hours, I had a pretty gnarly headache and badly needed a break. My neck isn't weak but I can definitely feel the weight of the headphones after an hour or so and the difference between them and my Sennheiser Ones grows as time goes on. The comfort, with both the pleather and velour earpads, doesn't really do it for me. It's probably the weight making the most of the difference but my ears touch the sides of the cups, which is annoying, and the cans just feel huge and awkward on the side of my face. Does this sound like a decent description of them overall? lol I'm trying my best but I'm not sure how else to describe them.
With all that in mind, I would prefer to have a pair of headphones with better vocals, cleaner sound with more detail, better bass response, and that are less bright & fatiguing. (In terms of bass, I'm not searching for basshead cans, just simply more impact & control that keep up with faster paced music. In rock or metal genre songs, it just always seemed to be a bit wrong for the job.) Would you guys still recommend the Sennheiser HD600s or are there other options that you would recommend for this? I wouldn't mind spending a bit more if it's going to make a worthwhile difference.
Will the HD600s be treated well by the Magni + Modi Combo or would a different Amp & Dac / different headphones with the Magni + Modi be a better choice? Aside from the stuff I have already mentioned, the only headphones I know above this price range that people generally love are the LCD-2s and HD800s, which both come in around $800-$1,000 it seems. Are these really worth the price difference? As for the Amp & Dac, aside from these Schiit models, the only others I know of are the higher tier Schiits such as the Asgard, Lyr, Bifrost, etc. and then the O2 and ODAC. Would investing more here make a huge difference or is it a situation where you only get marginal increases for a lot more money? I'm not looking for the 1% better option from my collection of a dozen headphones & amps, just simply a solid investment that provides excellent bang for the buck which keeps up with those more expensive options.
Thanks!