Wow, just put back on the M50's to see what they are like after two entire days of HD700 listening. At first when I used the HD700 I had trouble telling the difference. Though I was determined to push through any doubts. It paid off!
With the HD700, I wasn't really picking up the soundstage. This may be because of my average sound card. Though maybe I was thinking of soundstage a bit wrong. I was under the impression that the sound would seem to come from around me. While it doesn't seem like the sound comes from inside my head, it still seems to come from just around my ear, barely. This might be something I have to get used to, or just need a better setup to notice it more.
However (this may be more of what people mean by soundstage?) when I went back to the M50 everything sounded flat. Not like a neutral flat, but completely lacking depth. All the sounds it was capable of producing were all mashed together. Instrument sounds may come from different directions, but none felt like they were further back or forward from each other. The HD700, while the sound still felt like it came from right around my ears, has a sense that everything is masterfully layered in their correct places. Even if those places were much further back. I felt like it was easier to experience the soundstage if I closed my eyes.
Sounds that felt uninteresting and weak on the M50, now seem to have a body to them with the HD700. It's as if these sounds that used to be paper thin, have a more tangible quality to them. I would call it realism in the sound. If I listen to Pink Floyd on my M50 it sounds great, but it sounds like I'm listening to sounds. The HD700 feels like I'm in the recording studio listening to it live as it was recorded. When the guitar starts in the song Wish You Were Here, it seems like it's being performed right in front of my face. Again like I stated before, the soundstage here doesn't seem large, but it feels real, like he's standing right in front of me singing to my face.
The rapid speed/decay (Is this the right term?) of sounds was not something I was familiar with before. Though on the song Clouds Cross Skies (Urbandawn Remix) - Fred V & Grafix when the drums are hit at 23 seconds in, you can understand how fast this hits compared to the M50. On the HD700 it's like you can hear the clear separation between each drum hit. If you haven't checked them out, and you like non-vocal electronic music that has a very "happy" kind of theme to it, I'd highly recommend them. Especially their song Denmark Road. Nothing lightens up my day like that song.
I can see now why people recommend well mastered tracks. Lots of my music can sound incredible if it's made well, while others sound like I'm still using my M50, even with the HD700. Perhaps the quality isn't bad, but it's just how it was recorded. For instance, I find Outro by M83 sounds pretty similar to my M50, and doesn't boast that excellent mastering some music does. I am however still using Google Play Music All Access (320kbps). I'll probably give TIDAL a try eventually.
Here's to hoping the Schiit Fulla will bring out even more of the excellence the HD700 has, and hopefully not make the bright treble worse, not exactly a fan of EQ'ing.
I still feel that I want an HD800 though, and I definitely have the means to get one soon. I'm confident after the next 3-4 months I'll be running with an HD800/Modi 2 Uber/Valhalla 2. Also, once I get home from work I will try out your EQ software. If that definitely fixes the treble spikes, I will have no intention of leaving the HD700 behind.
One more thing I'd like to add. Even with the volume on high, these don't seem to leak a lot of sound. I expected it to be a lot worse. I was worried at night the sound would be loud enough to go through my paper thin doors and bother everyone. This isn't the case.
EDIT: Alright, got home and installed the EQ software. Works perfectly, thank you! Had a bit of an issue with things sounding muffled, but that fixed itself when I re-arranged the sliders to have the 6k near the middle.
