It looks like that $100 off sale price is to move through inventory:
I would have recommended the Ebony if they were still available in the USA because I own and enjoy them quite a bit. At one time I was also considering the Mahogany as well, but I was able to pick up E-Mu Teaks. It’s a shame they won’t be selling these any longer as I think they are really good headphones for the price.
Yeah, and the purplehearts are a bassheads dream lol, just really nice fostex biodynas. I wonder if they will keep dropping the e-mu’s on massdrop
I don’t remember what they called the model, but they also had a T50 variant with multiple pads that was canceled due to lack of pre-purchases. I had considered it, but I already had Argons on order at that point. I’ve only seen the e-mu’s listed twice in the past 2-3 years. I easily may have missed them for one or more listings, but I was waiting for them for quite some time. I had to settle for their version with attached cables, which I wasn’t crazy about, but they sound really great so I can live with it
Ah, the T-X0 because apparently they were fairly mediocre, but I thought they were making a new one?
I am personally pretty mad about missing this one, because it looked great, but instead I went with the NAD D3045
The purplehearts are better for bass imo, but I agree that the ebonys are the overall more refined headphone
I don’t think I knew what a Sprout was at the time of that drop, but I have since bought a Sprout 100 and absolutely love it. The headphone amp is surprisingly good, and it does everything I need to power my near field LS50s and turntable. Really great little device
I really like to rec the sprout since it’s a super solid package all around. It’s only weak point is with very high end speakers or a large room with inefficient speakers
I’ve read that it’s not powerful enough to get the most out of the LS50s, and that may be true in a large room, but it’s more than enough for near field to my ears
Yeah for nearfield there should be no issues
Well, M0N, I had just settled on picking up the TR-X00 Mahogany as my next set of cans, only to find out they’re sold out and discontinued. Based on all your positive comments on the Purplehearts, I have ordered a pair of those instead. This has blown my headphone budget for the next few months because I just ordered a Jotenheim with the Multibit DAC, too. Ah, well, hopefully this combo will keep me satisfied for a while. I’m hoping they’ll be like a more refined version of the Dekoni Blue but still lots of fun. If I don’t like them, I’m gonna blame you. 
(j/k - I really appreciate your contributions here and overall, your opinions seem to align with my impressions)
Well they are very fun I have to say, and I hope they align with your preferences. If the bass is too much, you can get different pads that better control the subbass
On the topic of pads for the purple hearts, I would recommend ZNF Ori pads in lambskin. They reduce the midbass just enough, don’t affect the subbass in any way I can tell, and are super comfortable.
is there anything else that’s a real bass monster in this price range? open and closed.
You could get the em-u teak or other woods, or the Denon d7200 or d5200 or others. The fostex th610 also still exists
DT770 250’s driven properly kick well on a budget level
yes…I’d love the D5200 I think…but it’s almost a grand here in Canuckistan, so no go. 
and reading on the EM-U, it’s not well reviewed.
The em-u teak is mainly what I am talking about. A fair amount of people prefer it to the th-x00 line
Also the creative aurvana live is a great way to experience a biodynamic at a good price
That’s true, but I think the fostex or biodynas are a step above in that regard imo
Agreed …