[knubbe]

I don't think any AT phone could be described as "flat" either. That's not to say they sound bad, but they're generally a bit colored. I may be overgeneralizing a bit though, as I've only heard a couple ATHs. I know their high end consumer phones are more euphonic sounding than neutral.

 

[Tangster]

Quote:

It's mentioned that the K550 has a more 3d soundstage, that might give them the edge over the A900X; but, alas, both are so expensive.

The K550 is almost £120 cheaper than the A900X in the UK. Audio Technica lobe their eurotax.

 

[JCRG]

Quote:

The K550 is almost £120 cheaper than the A900X in the UK. Audio Technica lobe their eurotax.

 
I've stated implied earlier that I'm from Mexico.
Besides, they're £185 (the cheapest), and that translates to about 3850 MXN, versus de 300 USD that convert to 3900 MXN.

 

[Tangster]

Quote:

 
I've stated implied earlier that I'm from Mexico.
Besides, they're £185 (the cheapest), and that translates to about 3850 MXN, versus de 300 USD that convert to 3900 MXN.

I expect you guys get hit with not Asia/USA tax as well. I;ve seen the K550 go for as low as £140, and the A900X go for £250 min. Average is usually around £30 more in either case.

 

[JCRG]

Quote:

I expect you guys get hit with not Asia/USA tax as well. I;ve seen the K550 go for as low as £140, and the A900X go for £250 min. Average is usually around £30 more in either case.

Still, amazon does not ship to Mexico, so amazon is useless to me atm.

 

[Tangster]

Quote:

Still, amazon does not ship to Mexico, so amazon is useless to me atm.

Acessoryjack, jaben or audiocubes ship to Mexico?

 

[JCRG]

Quote:

Acessoryjack, jaben or audiocubes ship to Mexico?

Accessoryjack and Audiocubes do so; jaben doesn't has any affordable/great cans at the moment.

 

[obobskivich]

The Koss seal better than the 550 imho, in that they fit easier. But at this point I'd say you should try cans out - you're inferring a lot from reviews and pictures, and I do understand that you're trying to make an informed decision, but I think at this point you've met that burden as well as you can without trying a few of these yourself. The A900X are not a bad choice at all to try based on what you're describing and what you seem to want, but they certainly aren't "flat" - they do have some euphony to them.

 

[JCRG]

Quote:

The Koss seal better than the 550 imho, in that they fit easier. But at this point I'd say you should try cans out - you're inferring a lot from reviews and pictures, and I do understand that you're trying to make an informed decision, but I think at this point you've met that burden as well as you can without trying a few of these yourself. The A900X are not a bad choice at all to try based on what you're describing and what you seem to want, but they certainly aren't "flat" - they do have some euphony to them.

I would love to try them all, but I only have one trip to the US to shop (Tucson, AZ), and I don't think the bestbuy there will have all the models available to try.

 

[redrich2000]

Quote:

Well, as title suggest, I'm looking for the holy (affordable) grail of headphones.
Current cans are HD280 pro, yes, you can laugh at me, these are my first "real" headphones, I've had them over 2 years now.
Now please don't suggest something like the Senns HD800, because I'm still just a student, and I'm not in the position to sell my car for some (almost perfect) cans.
The top I can spend at the moment is around 200 USD, tough if there's a really good candidate, I might try to save money for it (300 USD is still comfy).
Also, it's a HUGE plus if the headphone is available in popular stores in the US (best buy, target, etc.), the reason for this is that I don't actually live in the US, but I sometimes do some shopping there.
I would also really appreciate if you'd provide frequency charts, as I kinda personally prefer something objectively measured (not trying to bash personal opinion though).
 
I've come across some really good candidates, well, at least in the flat response aspect, soundstage still needs review-research:
 
Audio Technica ATH-A900X
Audio Technica ATH-A700X
Audio Technica ATH-A900
Audio Technica ATH-A700
AKG K271 MK II
Shure SRH440
Shure SRH840 (graph from headphone.org shows a crapload of low-bass)
Shure SRH940
Sennheiser HD380 pro
Beyerdynamic DT770 (mids are garbage though)
 
Edit:
KRK systems KNS 8400 ; bad soundstage according to some reviews.
KRK systems KNS 6400 ; same problem as above, sub par soundstage.
Fischer Audio FA-003 ; praised for neutrality and soundstage, however I can't seem to find them at any store.
BRAINWAVZ HM5 ; rebranded FA-003s, praised as well, also SUPER cheap.

You're not going to do much better than the HD280s. Why do you want another closed headphone? If you wanna spend more money get some open headphones for when you don't need isolation.
Here's some DT880s in your price range: http://www.head-fi.org/t/644347/beyerdynamic-dt880-32ohm-blue

 

[JCRG]

Quote:

You're not going to do much better than the HD280s. Why do you want another closed headphone? If you wanna spend more money get some open headphones for when you don't need isolation.

I always need isolation, I just don't like open headphones, period.

 

[eucariote]

Quote:

Still, amazon does not ship to Mexico, so amazon is useless to me atm.

 
Buy used from the fs forum.  Some sellers would be willing to ship to Mexico & you'll get a much better price.

 

[redrich2000]

Quote:

I always need isolation, I just don't like open headphones, period.

Then you don't need another set. Save your money or buy something else. Or use the money to upgrade your source.

 

[obobskivich]

I would love to try them all, but I only have one trip to the US to shop (Tucson, AZ), and I don't think the bestbuy there will have all the models available to try.

If the Best Buy has a Magnolia in it, it should have A900X, DJ 100, ESW9, P5, HD 380, AE2, and maybe more. Be ready to spend an hour or two though.

 

[JCRG]

Quote:

 
Buy used from the fs forum.  Some sellers would be willing to ship to Mexico & you'll get a much better price.

I'm not that comfortable buying used cans, because the warranty is usually less or absent.
 
Quote:

Then you don't need another set. Save your money or buy something else. Or use the money to upgrade your source.

You don't sound like a real audiophile, the world is not that limited.
 
Quote:

If the Best Buy has a Magnolia in it, it should have A900X, DJ 100, ESW9, P5, HD 380, AE2, and maybe more. Be ready to spend an hour or two though.

The sites does report that Tucson's Best Buys have them, but I don't know if I can try them before buying them.