The concept of something sounding better or worse is an inherently subjective personal preference. I think many headphones which have no real vices and mainstream tuning can be recommended as safe defaults that few will dislike but the sort of headphones that generate a sort of cult following tend to do things a bit differently and may be considered a bit objectionable by many. I love the Nighthawk Carbon but it is very different and I understand why some are just as firm in their dislike of it. I suspect if I was to list my 5 favourite headphones under $500 and five headphones I would feel comfortable recommending to people wanting buying advice I would have two different lists.
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Yeah, the listen are super nice close backs for the priceā¦ and now they come in Bluetooth
The pro comes in bluetooth now?
Anyone know whays the difference between the Focal Listen and Spirit?
Thatās the regular one, the pro is tuned differently
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The spirit is their older model I think
The listen replaced the Spirit , as far as I know this is suppose to same listen just Bluetooth. Similar to the clear and clear Pro
The $50 premium over the non Bluetooth I believe us just the cost is the amp/Bluetooth
Never mind, I see what you meant. Iāve only heard the pro, so you might be right
Iād struggle to not include both DT880 pro and HD6XX in any āBest bang for your buckā headphones listā¦
Like anything in life, they might not be for everyone but I had a great experience with bothā¦ especially the 880 pro. This was my first āover 200 CADā headphone and they served me quite well! To my ears, the HD 6XX was no upgrade over the 880 proā¦
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You also do music production correct? The 880 600 ohm are def my pick in that range for anything studio
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Yes, more as a hobby than professionally thoughā¦
Really loved my 880 Pro 250 ohm, until my puppy decided to take a bit out of the cable and snapped it in two. The joy of not having a removable cable. That always been my biggest issue with these cans.
Anyhow, thatās when I decided to try something different and got the HD6XX ā¦
Iām still planning on repairing the 880 one day, or perhaps buy another pair (this time 600 ohms), if I can land a deal somewhere, used or whatever! No rush though, I have enough cans to explore with the 800s and aeon 2 on the way. 
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Yeah, a girl I know needs kitten-proof headphones/earphones, lolā¦
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After reading through this thread, it is clear a lot of folks do not like/approve of āpersonal recommendation listsāā¦ An easy solution would be not to watch/read those listsā¦ 
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I think you need to try some new and different Gradoās. The SR80ās are a decent cheapie and the PS500eās (I know you specified old ones) are like a neutered Grado.
Try some GH models or the RS2eās. The SR325eās are fun, but bright.
I have tried them and I donāt like ear piercing treble or high midsā¦those arenāt for me.
Woah this threadā¦ haha i missed the action. entertaining read tho
You must have some unique hearing to get āear piercing trebleā out of a middle to high end Grado.
So, what headphones do you think are great?
The ones I own. ZMF Atticus, Beyerdynamic T5P, Sennheiser HD650, Modhouse Audio Argon MK III, Sivga P-II.
My special hearing you are referring to is that of a classically trained musician.
No need to insult, you are allowed to like Grados just as much as I am allowed to want to burn every single pair I see. But if you need the extended highs, you do you.