[k4rstar]

 
This is a compelling suggestion, tho it makes me question the 2-3x price of the momentums. Playing the devils advocate, since the 280's are at the bottom of my price range what about the HD380 Pro's?

I cannot speak to the HD Pro series as I've never tried the pair but being in the possession of a pair of Momentum 2s I can tell you that while I like them very much you are certainly paying a premium for the design and style. They could easily be $100 cheaper for the sound quality itself.

 

[crazychile]

  The KTXpro1 has good sound consideing its low price, however many find it uncomfortable since it is so small. The Koss KSC75 probably has the same drivers as the KTXpro1. The KSC75 has ear hooks though instead of a headband. Both of these are open though, and provide no isolation.

 
I bought a pair of the KTXpro1s about a year ago because someone from Koss said they used the same drivers as the KSC-75 or Porta-pro, I can't remember which one any more...
 
I found them to be cheaply made, uncomfortable, and the volume control an unnecessary addition. I learned that the reason I loved my KSC-75s so much was because they were a clip on, and didn't press against my ears so much and muffle the high end, which I find that the KTX model does. So my vote for greatest sounding ultra-cheap headphone goes to the KSC-75, which can be bought from Amazon for usually $15 or less.
 
Side note...I have an original pair of ATH-M50s that some people claim are better than the current model. I find that even though they don't require an amp, when connected to a decent amp the mid-bass bloat goes away.

 

[JK1]

   
I bought a pair of the KTXpro1s about a year ago because someone from Koss said they used the same drivers as the KSC-75 or Porta-pro, I can't remember which one any more...
 
I found them to be cheaply made, uncomfortable, and the volume control an unnecessary addition. I learned that the reason I loved my KSC-75s so much was because they were a clip on, and didn't press against my ears so much and muffle the high end, which I find that the KTX model does. So my vote for greatest sounding ultra-cheap headphone goes to the KSC-75, which can be bought from Amazon for usually $15 or less.
 
Side note...I have an original pair of ATH-M50s that some people claim are better than the current model. I find that even though they don't require an amp, when connected to a decent amp the mid-bass bloat goes away.

When comparing the KTX pro1 to the KSC75, what seems to be happening is even though they probably have the same(or very similar) drivers, due to the headband force of the KTXpro1 and therefore better ear coupling, the KTXpro1 has much stronger bass. This stronger bass can obscure the highs.

 

[k4rstar]

  When comparing the KTX pro1 to the KSC75, what seems to be happening is even though they probably have the same(or very similar) drivers, due to the headband force of the KTXpro1 and therefore better ear coupling, the KTXpro1 has much stronger bass. This stronger bass can obscure the highs.

I find this to be true, the person who recommended me the KTXPRO1 also recommended EQing the bass down to prevent this but that isn't always an option on portable sources.

 

[garboui]

After mulling over reviews and impressions threads I am leaning towards the HD 380 Pro's. As a contender though I am having a hard time finding good info on the AKG K240's wrt/smoothness in the top and and balance of sound. I can probably tolerate small leakage from a semi-open design.

 

[Music Alchemist]

  This is a compelling suggestion, tho it makes me question the 2-3x price of the momentums. Playing the devils advocate, since the 280's are at the bottom of my price range what about the HD380 Pro's?

 
I've never heard the 380, but I owned a modified HD 280 PRO and did not like it. It was also quite uncomfortable.
 

  I bought a pair of the KTXpro1s about a year ago because someone from Koss said they used the same drivers as the KSC-75 or Porta-pro, I can't remember which one any more...
 
I found them to be cheaply made, uncomfortable, and the volume control an unnecessary addition. I learned that the reason I loved my KSC-75s so much was because they were a clip on, and didn't press against my ears so much and muffle the high end, which I find that the KTX model does. So my vote for greatest sounding ultra-cheap headphone goes to the KSC-75, which can be bought from Amazon for usually $15 or less.
 
Side note...I have an original pair of ATH-M50s that some people claim are better than the current model. I find that even though they don't require an amp, when connected to a decent amp the mid-bass bloat goes away.

 
I'm gonna buy the KSC75 too soon enough!
 
However, I have found that the upper frequencies aren't the ones being muffled; it's more like the lower mids. If you reduce those and the bass with EQ, it's not muffled anymore.
 

  When comparing the KTX pro1 to the KSC75, what seems to be happening is even though they probably have the same(or very similar) drivers, due to the headband force of the KTXpro1 and therefore better ear coupling, the KTXpro1 has much stronger bass. This stronger bass can obscure the highs.

 
Yes, I would describe the bass as superpowered. I sometimes reduce all the frequencies below 600 Hz, which makes the sound more linear, but not necessarily more enjoyable. Depends on the song. Haven't yet bothered doing "proper" EQ to get it as neutral as possible.
 

  I find this to be true, the person who recommended me the KTXPRO1 also recommended EQing the bass down to prevent this but that isn't always an option on portable sources.

 
That's me!

 
I'd be surprised if any portable source didn't have some sort of EQ available from somewhere.

 

[norepeat]

IMO, buying momentum 2.0 is paying for the style, design, comfort, lightness and portability.  Momentum 2.0's vocal is more accurate than HD280.  Due to cutting off some upper frequencies, Momentum 2.0 is much more enjoyable to poor recording than HD280.  HD280 shows more higher frequency details and I suppose it is what monitor supposed to do... whether it is bad or good.  I think Momentum is designed for on the go head phone to be played in relatively noisy background so high frequency detail is normally drawn out by environment noise anyway. 
 
I am also looking for a headphone to upgrade from HD280 in another post here (you are all feel free to contribute your comments there).  Some suggests HD380.  Since I haven't tried it yet, it will be inconsiderate for me to recommend it to anyone.  Some post I read says HD380 is a great upgrade, some says the sound is very different and enjoy 280 more....
 
Either way, I like HD280 sound quality's trade-offs.  It's not perfect and I like its sound more than M50x and 5 other closed headphone that I tried.  I don't like HD280's cold vocal.  It's not comfortable to wear for me and I hate the earpad and cord (both make noise when I move).  That's why I am looking for another headphone to potentially beat out HD280 (for my use and preference).  Let me know what you end up with and if you tried HD280, please let me know your opinion of it comparing it to other closed head phone that you liked better.

 

[garboui]

Im on the verge of ordering the HD380's and then taking advantage of a 30 day return policy if i have to.

 

[PinkyPowers]

I have both the Sennheiser HD600 and Momentum 2. I agree, with the M2.0 you are paying for mobility, quality of materials, and aesthetics as much as for sound. The HD600 sounds much better, but you need a nice powerful desktop amp to drive it to its full potential. And again, it's open-back, so not suited for on-the-go.

The M2.0 is less amazing, but you get its awesomeness right out of your DAP or smartphone.

 

[garboui]

An Update:
 
So i picked up a pair of HD380's last night from my local Long and McQuade (web pricematched and 30 day return policy). Out of the box i have about 30 mins of listening (mostly jazz) and I can say that they are much much more mellow than the m50's while still having good detail, dynamics and range. They will be getting most use at the office so for the weekend they will be on break in duty. I am feeling hopeful about these if they are this much better before break in!
 
Regarding comfort they are, cushions and lightweight, but... the clamping force on them is significant (i bent out the M50's a lot to be comfortable) i cant imagine how tight the 280's must be if people say that the 380's are much better (fixed) for this. Unfortunately the headband midpiece is plastic so I am hoping keeping them stretched will condition them. It seems to have given me 30% reduction just from an overnight stretch around the box they came in so I'm hopeful for this approach. If this fails I may just kink the ends of the headband extensions slightly as they are steel and sit about 1" extended when on my head.

 

[norepeat]

What's your impression after a few days of break in HD380? 

 

[garboui]

Still only about 20 hours on them but i have had them on my head for up to 3 hours before i took them off to leave work, not because they were fatiguing!
 
They are not sparkly or bass pumping phones, but all the detail is still well represented across the spectrum.  Most audio has been 320kbps mp3 straight from a PCM2704 dac ic, hoping to have an amp built when i get some time which i am positive that more detail and dynamics will be brought