Hey there. I was postponing my registration a bit since I've only purchased my first head-fi gear two days ago, but stumbled upon this thread. Somehow. So early registration it is.
I think I can contribute my two cents right here.
I had an opportunity to trial few models when choosing headphones. Did three 3-4 hour dedicated listening sessions in the shop before making the choice. God it was exhausting. My impressions for the models I've tried, concerning your choice of music and your questions:
Grado SR125 (dont remember if it was the "i" version) - sounded good for their price, nothing too special for my ears. Cant point out anything in particular since they're damn uncomfortable. For my ears, at least.
Sennheisser HD595 - only had a chance to listen to them without DAC and AMP - straight from the computer and if you're not planning on purchasing a DAC and an AMP, these are not for you, imho. Bass was lacking, the highs were quite accented. But I am SURE that they would have sounded a lot better when fed from a better source - I did not have a chance to try them with proper equipment. Not sure if this was really helpful..
Denon ah-d1100 - very bass-heavy, the punchiest thing I've ever experienced. I DID enjoy them a lot for the hard-punching bass they were punching into my ears. Would probably get tiring after a while. I am actually considering to get a pair of those as a FUN headphone. Some distant time in the future, when I address some more important things, though. ALSO - sounded fairly well without going through DAC and AMP too - the punchy bass was there, highs were O.K. too.
Denon ah-d2000 - very nice piece of cans, but if you're picky about the bass, I found them to deliver the bass a bit slow - for some songs that I know pretty well, I was even getting a feeling that the bass got separated and late by a tiny fraction of a second. Dont know how to explain it in other words right now. You must hear to really understand.
Sennheisser HD600 and HD650 - quite similar in their signature, although the HD650 was noticeably better. Will not expand on what "better" means exactly right here but the difference was definitely there. As about the sound signature itself - I think you might actually like it. The bass was NOT heavy and not really exceptional but bright highs are definitely not the strongest side of those cans, which results in a sound which is kind of a "shielded" from the highs a bit. I am in no way saying that they have completely messed up that part though - both of those cans sound great. If you're on a budget, I'd suggest opting for the 600's and invest more in DAC -> cables -> AMP. Or maybe starve for a couple of days and get the 650.. that's what I'd do, at least.
I also had the
HD598 on for a while but only for a very short period of time, during my first session. Other two sessions were done in other location where this model was not available. Funny enough, the 600 and 650 was not available during the first session too
All I will say is that I do remember that highs didn't felt so much left out as on 600 and 650, but cant really be sure on this. I liked the way they sounded, but the Denon ah-d2000 provided a little bit more detail, if I remember right.
Denon ah-d5000 - not a huuu-u-uuuge difference in sound signature from the d2000, but the slow bass problem was gone. Or at least it's fixed to the extent where it doesn't bother me, compared to the d2000's. Other than that, it does have a bit brighter highs - not to the extent where it's annoying, but it's certainly a bit against-my-preference. But again, putting d2000's back on after d5000's.. The result is that I actually paid double and bought the d5000 (not without casualties.. more about hat later). They surpass all my previously mentioned models in the details they offer, and sound genuinely really nice. The little brother
did have the problem with bass, after all.
IMPORTANT - please understand that all this was my impressions, while I was actually trying out the hi-end audio equipment for the first time in my life and I quite doubt that I have perfect ability to recognize all the subtle differences in the sound of different headphones. I also can not guarantee you that my "experience" was not biased - maybe some of the things were just "in my head". What do I know. I can only tell you how I felt about the sound while listening to all those different models. All I hope for is that it will help you to understand which direction to look to, if you include some of those models in your wish-list.
Other equipment used for listening - primarily Pro-Ject USB Box DAC + Pro-Ject Head-Box II AMP, was also switching the AMP with Grado RA-1 + some other one, but can not remember the brand.. well it costed three times the Grado and was not for sale anyways.
Won't expand on my choice of AMP since you havent asked. For everyone else reading - yea I know that the Pro-ject USB-BOx is not really the best option out in the market but the shop was quite sold-out at the moment. It was the only thing they could offer.
Slaxl - do not underestimate the importance of a good DAC + AMP if you dont want your details to go missing. The difference between integrated sound-card -> Laptop headphone jack -> cans v.s. DAC -> cables -> AMP -> cans is huuu-uu-uuuge, and I can only assume that a good DAC v.s. cheap one would make quite a difference too.
That's all. My 1 HOUR 20 minutes worth of 2 cents.
