Lolz..i respect ur opinion ofcourse..and ur right.. most mid end phones (dt880, hd650, he400, and so on) are probably enough for most of the headfi'ers. and i am also not the youngest..i am 46 years young..so my ears are probably a bit different also then the new dogs here..to explain my long post a bit..it all came to this: no matter what ur budget is, what ur preference is, what ur physical state is and even how u stand in life emotionally..the phone u owe or wanna buy must give u that little special world in which u can loose urself in..make u close ur eyes and just forget all whats around u..thats what matters..no matter being a 250 usd beyer a 699 hifiman or a +1000 audeze...but as u also state..spending sensible could give u that extra.
and my apologies if i am a bit to talkative..am just a bit passionate when i believe in something..but i always respect other opinions..all the best! And happy new year.