[greenkiwi]

I'm looking to get some closed back headphones for my work, where I sit next to someone in a small office and the HD650s I have are no longer appropriate.  I have come to love the HD650s (when amped) and have tried IEMs (tried UEs, Shures and W4s), but just can't listen for hours to them because I hate sticking things in my ears.  At any rate, the things I've discovered about what I like about the 650s are:

1. Sonically easy to listen to.  The best I can describe it, is that my ears feel like they are "relaxing" when I listen to them.  All kinds of details, but no harshness.
2. Firm, but not "boomy" bass
3. Cloth pads - I find that the leather pads just make my ears sweat and get hot

 
I'm going to be listening to these for many hours each day, so I'm more than happy to get headphones in the $3-600 range (above that and it will eat into my savings for HD7/800s or equiv).  I grabbed a pair of AKG K550s and don't really enjoy them, I find that their bass seems .  I also have a pair of the PXC 450s, which are great noise canceling headphones, but aren't quite up to snuff for plain audio and have the "hot ears" problem.
 
Tried and didn't like:

1. AKG K550 - boomy bass
2. ATH-W1000x - Ear cups were too small for my ears.
3. PXC 450s - audio quality not as good & non-cloth pads.

 
Some that I've seen that look interesting are:

1. Beyerdynamic T70/T90, DT250
2. Wait for the Denon D600, though I have no idea what it's sonic characteristics will be yet.
3. HD439/HD449 - I'm thinking that they won't be in the same league
4. HD380
5. Senn Amperior - I'm guessing that since they are "on ear" they won't be as comfortable for extended periods of listening.
6. SRH940
7. Focal Spirit Ones
8. fischer audio fa-003
9. Kenwood KH K1000

 
Below the line (probably not a good fit)

1. Ultrascone Pro 900
2. Beyerdynamic T70/T90 & DT770
3. Denon d5000

 
I'd love to have any feedback/suggestions.
 
Thanks,
GK

 

[Dubstep Girl]

the closest match to the HD 650s are the LCD-2, but they are open and beyond your price range.
 
i know theres those fischer audio fa-003 or whatever theyre called that some people have compared to hd-650s, thats about the best i can think of. the hd 650s are pretty unique in their sound signature.

 

[SONIC BOOM]

I would wait for the new denons 

 

[alv4426]

I would eliminate the PRO900 and the amperiors(if they are like hd25s) from your list they dont match your needs very well. 
Sorry for the slight off topic but how would you rate the sound of the W1000x?

 

[Soundmanstevenz]

I to own the 650s and wanted some smooth over ears, try the Focal Spirit Ones?
We're are you based...NZ?
I also have some SRH940 but am selling as like the Focal to much!

 

[Aaron1006]

Lots of people claim that the Fa-003's, HM5, Jaycar clones, etc sound similar to the HD600, I've never heard them personally but there are lots of impressions in their threads.

 

[JayB18]

Beyerdynamic DT250 might be one to look for.
 

 

[Kees]

Kenwood KH K1000.

 

[TMRaven]

If you thought the AKG 550 had boomy bass, you will not like the DT770, Pro 900 or D5000.

 

[greenkiwi]

First, thanks for all the fast responses, particularly the ones that help separate out ones that aren't appropriate.
 
Some specific responses.
 
@DubstepGirl - Re: LCD-2s - These are definitely on my radar, but they are in my nice high end cans list, along with the HD-700/800.  Thanks for the fischer audio fa-003 rec, I'm adding that to the list.
 
@alv4426 Re: W1000x, unfortunately I wasn't able to give them a real long listen at the store.  My initial impression was that they were much more controlled and accurate than the K550s, but they weren't comfortable and some guy was blasting music from their Martin Logan setup.  When I return the K550s, I'll try to give them another listen.  I'll also bring along an adapter so that I can actually listen to them on the same output as the K550s.
 
@Soundmanstevenz - I was born and then lived in NZ for a few year after college, but live in the states now.  Going to look to find some  Focal Spirit Ones to listen to too.
 
@TMRaven - Re Bass - I though that the K550's bass was not well controlled and sounded unbalanced with the rest of the system.  I couldn't help but think about my listening experience with the lower end Martin Logans, where they sounded list two separate speakers.
 
My new  list:
 Focal Spirit Ones
 fischer audio fa-003
 Kenwood KH K1000
 Bey DT250
 
Moved to the bottom:
 DT770
 Pro 900
 D5000

 

[CFabian]

The Kenwood KH-K1000 is a good candidate. The mids on the HD650 sound more natural, but the Kenwoods retain the smooth and slightly dark sound signature the Senns are known for. A (unmodded) Sony CD1700 will get you even closer to the sound of the HD650, but unfortunately it is rare for them to turn up these days and usually when they do they've had the foam filter over the driver removed which results in a brighter sounding headphone.

 

[Neighbour]

Shure SRH840. The closed HD650.

 

[K_19]

ESW9. sorta. Well, not really. But its about the only similarly smooth sounding closed headphone I can think of.

 

[juantendo8]

The MrSpeakers Mad Dog T50rp mod seems to be based off of the sound of the HD650 while being closed. Most have said that it is easily better than the HD650 and even competes with the venerable LCD-2 (it is a magnetic planar after all). It seems like a no-brainer at his bargain price of $300.
 

 

[obobskivich]

Another vote for Kenwood KH-K1000. Very comfy too. ESW9 is a curious suggestion - I can see both how it applies (they're smooth, dark, etc) but where it may fall short (they're boomy). Would be worth trying out, to be honest, as they're decently isolating and quite portable compared to the K1000 (oh and cheaper!). Personally I think the ESW9 are not super comfortable, but they're not dreadful either - and with on-ears ymwv. I'd dump anything Beyer made - I've never seen measurements of or personally heard one that doesn't have a huge spike right around 10k. Definitely *not* similar.

From Ultrasone, the HFI-2400 is probably the only model I would suggest; and they're open-backed (but might leak less). Haven't tried the PRO900, but if they're anything like the 2900, they're going to be quite different from the Sennheiser (I remember reading something that they shared the same Ti coated drivers). Another somewhat screw-ball suggestion would be the Bose QC15 - they're easy on the ears, the ANC works, and I've not had any issues with long-term wear in an airconditioned environment. Lighter than anything else I've mentioned too (you should keep in mind with the KH-K1000 that they weigh a smidge under 400g; your Sennheisers are about 250g - that's a BIG difference). I'd probably regard their overall SQ as fairly close to the K1000 in terms of detail/accuracy/etc, they have more bass (but it isn't out of control). As a light-weight closed can, they pull it all together.

Getting entirely off the reservation, I would finally suggest you look at some much less expensive alternatives, like the HD 280 Pro and Q40. They might not be perfect, but they might be the ticket.