[Hifi Man]

Quote:

 
Doubt is normal. I felt like a goober pretty regularly after pretty much all my headphone purchases... until I got to hear them . (At which point I realized that I actually had been a complete goober only once.) Of the criteria you mentioned (best sounding while unamped, great w/ metal music, and comfortable), I feel pretty confident in the first two at least-- the HD25 sounds fantastic even when unamped, and it just pairs particularly well with metal music IMO. As far as comfort, I'm sure there are more comfortable headphones out there-- but I'm not sure there are ones that will isolate as well and stay on your head while moving around. The crappy thing about doubt is that it always finds a way to slither in-- if you cancel the order for the Amperiors, you will inevitably doubt yourself and wonder if they weren't really the ones you wanted. 
 
Try the Amperiors. If you don't like them, return or sell them and try something else. If absolutely nothing else, listening to them will give you another baseline on which to judge other potential headphone candidates, even if you utterly despise them for some reason. . 
 
Also, I just got my Momentums in about an hour ago, and my initial impressions are good in terms of the build and looks, and actually much better than I anticipated in terms of sound quality-- much clearer, and while the bass is most certainly heavily emphasized, it's not obnoxious a-la Beats & Co. My only concern is that (against all reason and logic) they seem to bother my left ear a good bit more than any of my other cans, HD25 included. (I had surgery on my left ear several years ago to repair damage from wrestling and submission grappling, and it's still a bit misshapen). Of course, the most important and relevant thing I've said about the Momentums thus far is that I've only had them for an hour-- so any impressions here are vastly too premature to mean anything, really. But hey, you asked, and I love talking about new toys
 
Post your thoughts on the Amperiors when you get 'em!! What color didja get? 

I pretty much agree that I should try them out instead of just going completely mental and worrying they won't be good. Only the color blue was available, but whatever. Blue is an alright color, I guess. I may not be that articulate about describing the sound of headphones as some other people around here. I'd need to figure out what midrange, soundstage, treble, etc. actually sound like. 
 
I ended up getting that 20 dollar iphone amp/charger just for kicks btw. Maybe it will work for my other iPods.
 
I'm curious to know where to get the cord that doesn't have the buttons on it for the emperior in case I end up keeping it btw.

 

[Theogenes]

Good deal man. As far as the cable goes, the HD25 cable will apparently fit it, so you can either buy a standard HD25 cable to use or there are a number of options for having a custom cable made: 
 
HD25 Standard Cable
HD25 Custom Cable
 
There are other places to get such cables, naturally, but these should get you started. I have a set of the custom HD25 cables from BTG Audio, and they're well-made and look quite nice. (I did not notice a difference in the audio performance from the standard cable, but others might). 

 

[Hifi Man]

I just got my Amperiors about an hour ago. They DID come with a cable without the remote, which is good and fine. My first impression on how they fit, they're not as comfortable as my bose headphones. I kind of found myself constantly adjusting them around in order to find that sweet spot on my ears. However once I get settled in, I kind of forget they're on my ears (as it should be).
 
My first impression of the sound- they do sound a bit livelier than the bose headphones. I lack the headphone vocabulary for explaining how it sounds. I can say the guitars are emphasized a bit more. I think it's a little difficult to tell a difference, but I do think my bose headphones have a noticeably more spacious sound, although they sound a little bit boring with metal. Where as the sennheiser sounds a little congested, as if it was coming from a small area. I can't necessarily say anything really bad about the sennheiser though. 
 
Over all, I think I would prefer something that has a bit more spacious, immersive. My favorite music of all time, the album By Inheritance by Artillery didn't sound as dynamic. The rhythmic bass kind of got lost in the undertoe of the rest of the music, which kind of makes me sad. I actually liked my favorite music a little more on the bose. 
 
I actually like these headphones, and I wish I could keep them because they're really neat. However, I think they're kind of a double edge sword. they're not absolutely improvement over my old headphones, but they're not bad at all either. I kind of want to keep them just for a week to see if I develop and attachment to them or something
 
Edit: High pitch frequencies seem noticeably sharper.

 

[Hifi Man]

Well, I'm returning these. They hurt my ears and feel hot after only a few hours of listening. I sent a return request to amazon. It's a shame, because I was hoping these would be the solution to my desire for more enjoyable headphones.

 

[tsandrew]

Ditto on the ears. I think it's especially important that the headphone firstly doesn't squeeze the head - so, if you listen for awhile, it starts hurting - and that it fits snugly over the ears. Some folks like a tighter fit. I personally like a more loose touch where the headrest is the thing keeping the phones from falling off.
 

 

[Hifi Man]

Yeah. I was thinking maybe the momentums might be my next bet. They look very comfortable. They seem to be the most popular option in non-amp driven headphones next to those headphones by audiotechnica.

 

[Lorspeaker]

ue6000 give it a listen. v comfy on the ears, dynamic sounding n not weak in the bass, the highs are non piercing.

 

[Hifi Man]

Wow, the seller is only giving me a 75% refund or full store credit. I officially feel empty inside. I am done buying headphones. My AE2 headphones are godly. Never again. 

 

[Lorspeaker]

i do like the AE2, its quite balance, isolate well, v comfy..great portable for city runs. 
y dun u just change it for a QC15 ?  

 

[Hifi Man]

Quote:

i do like the AE2, its quite balance, isolate well, v comfy..great portable for city runs. 
y dun u just change it for a QC15 ?  

Because I have no reason to? I'm feeling seriously low about losing over 50 dollars on this headphone deal. It's not something I want to experience again. Seriously, the one time I want to try it turns into a complete bust. 

 

[Lorspeaker]

i think u better stay away from the momentum, the earpads are kinda smallish...
and if u dun like the amperior fit, i rather u go for over the ears kind of headfones.

 

[tseliottt]

Quote:

Well, I'm returning these. They hurt my ears and feel hot after only a few hours of listening. I sent a return request to amazon. It's a shame, because I was hoping these would be the solution to my desire for more enjoyable headphones.

Try the Yamaha pro 500. They are circumaural. I can't speak on durability, but they fold for portable use, don't need an amp, and have both a long and short cable. From what I remember, they sound more spacious than the HD25s. The sound is very fast and aggressive, so they should be good for metal. I don't really listen to the genre. Bass is fast but impactful, and the treble sparkles, but isn't sibilant.

 

[Theogenes]

Wow, that sucks about the return, where did you buy them? 

 

[Hifi Man]

Quote:

Wow, that sucks about the return, where did you buy them? 

I bought them off amazon. Fortunately the seller was kind, and when I explained to them that I had kept the box and packing material in perfect condition they offered a 15% restocking fee instead of 25%. So it turns out I made decent recovery on it after all. 

 

[mc21]

Quote:

I bought them off amazon. Fortunately the seller was kind, and when I explained to them that I had kept the box and packing material in perfect condition they offered a 15% restocking fee instead of 25%. So it turns out I made decent recovery on it after all. 

If you buy used at a good price you can usually recover all the cost if you dont like the sound. Try the B/S forum but make sure you don't send payment as gift and the seller has feedback on here.