[Gilly87]

So I'm looking for my first nice over-ears headphone; I have Senn CX 400-iis and I love the sound, but I'm ready to step up to over-ear quality. I listen to a few different styles of music, but mostly ambient, trip-hop, classical, dubstep, reggae, and some rap. I would prefer something portable, but honestly my priority is sound.
 
I stumbled on the HD 555s at local FYE, and have found a much better price from someone here who has done the 595 mod. However I've seen in a lot of reviews that they lack bass; I like to have bass with an impact, not overpowering but resonating, but that bass that you can feel, and I'm worried that these won't deliver.
 
I'm looking at the Sennheiser website and the description of the HD 428s stands out to me. I've also looked at the HD 202s, but see that some say they lack bass as well. I'm also slightly worried by the price that they won't deliver the overall quality and clarity I am looking for.
 
Other sets I've considered are the Bose around ears (but I'd rather not cop out and overpay just for the brand), Grado SR80, and the Phiaton MS 400s.
 
My preferred sound style is somewhat aggressive but with a bit of warmth, bright, definitely nothing tinny at all; I'd like to have recognizable soundstage but nothing too epic.
 
What are people's experiences with these sets? Feel free to recommend others.

 

[Gilly87]

Also I would prefer something stylish/unique looking. But again sound is priority.

 

[Inquartata]

The HD428 will not deliver the bass you want. Phiaton MS400s will, though.

 

[Gilly87]

Well I have to say I'm not exactly an experienced hi-fier; the cx 400-iis have better quality than anything I've owned so far (Sony, Skullcandy, V-moda, Beats), but after using them for a while I feel like the bass is a little distended for me when using the SRS sound enhancement on my HTC Inspire, and having tried a pair of my friend's AKGs I know that I want something with real soundstage. Are the Sennheisers really just slack in bass, or are you assuming that because I'm considering Bose and Phiatons that I probably just want something with tons of bass? I've done a bit of research, but I don't really have the headphones sitting around to compare them myself, so I'm wondering what the real differences are.

 

[Inquartata]

You said this:
 

 
Quote:

I like to have bass with an impact, not overpowering but resonating, but that bass that you can feel, and I'm worried that these won't deliver.
 

 
 
The HD428 doesn't have that, that's all I was saying. It had nothing to do with anything else. 

 

[Gilly87]

Fair enough Forgive my paranoia.

 

[Peruvian96]

I am wearing the hd428 right now. It has a very good soundstage and nice warm sound signature. You might hear new things you've never heard before in music, but this is all going to be in the mids and highs (the mids are more pronounced). The bass is tight and nice, but not anywhere near something like the ms400. It has good quality, but little quantity. Its the bass you hear, not feel. I would recommend them to someone who likes more mids and highs than bass. For bass, look at the XB500 for around 55 bucks.

 

[Kippersauce]

As a 555 owner, I can say that you really won't get a lot of bass out of them normally. Even with the mod, the bass is quite underwhelming without an amplifier. I'm quite partial to this since my amp actually broke a few days ago. With a portable amp you can get the bass to the level you probably want. It will be relatively tight and precise, but it certainly won't be booming. Without the amp though, I find it pretty bloated and not very sharp at all. It might just be because I got so used to listening to them amped, but I'm not particularly into music with lots of bass so I don't think my opinion would be too biased. 
 
If you were willing to throw down some money at a cheap amp like a FiiO E7 or something, I think 555's would fit your needs pretty damn well. Without an amp though, the bass thing you mentioned could be a problem.