The guy selling the one on the FS forums is basically taking offers, and then using those offers to leverage higher offers out of other interested parties. I guess that's a good strategy if you're looking to make the most profit possible, but it seems a gesture devoid of any good intentions for Head-Fi, and the constituents encompassed therein. "Best Offer" is also a convenient loophole by which sellers can circumvent the whole "no sales for profit on the HF FS forums" TOS decree, especially on big-ticket items. I'm sure that guy's going to make a killing.
That said, yes, it was an incredibly fortuitous acquisition! I picked the pair up on A'goN for little over half the asking price on the FS forum pair. The tradeoff is that it came without silk cloth, stand or documentation - in other words, a collector may be a bit ambivalent towards purchasing them with these accessories missing. But I'm no collector. The plus side is that it's the most pristine pair I've seen, and it came with a small headband, meaning I don't need to drop ~$700 for a new one. It's got a few smalls scuffs on the rubber strips protecting the carbon fiber headband, but there is no paint loss on the hinges, such as the pair currently available on the forums appear to display. The seller was local to me, and was the original owner. So I picked them up in person today and paid in cashier's check, obviating the need for shipping and PayPal fees. In short, saying I'm lucky is a huge understatement.
I'm glad to have the opportunity to own these headphones. Sure, they're short a few accessories, but that doesn't make them sound any worse.
