Precise laser locked imaging. Tons of (full-range) resolution and inner harmonics and micro detail. Excellent sense of space and air between performers. Big slamming macro dynamics. Articulate and nuanced micro dynamics. Wide gamut tonal color. Solid bass punch and impact all the way to sweet but splashy and jarring treble crash (not over smoothed plastic treble). The ability to render an almost vivid 3D sonic picture that can see all the way through wet and smoky vocals on a good master. In other words modded HD800.
Modded HD800 doesn't have lasers!
Because you stole them and left them at the last stripper joint! GG.
...and the HD800 mods remove all the detail!
This, as with most things in this hobby, will really come down to personal preference. My measure of "sonic goodness" is real life. I enjoy going to local jazz clubs and listening to music LIVE. When I listen on my playback systems, I want my music to sound as lifelike as possible. In order to get that experience, the real measure of sonic replication then comes down to source material. If the source material is great, then any neutral sounding headphone will give you the presentation you want. Some people want bass extension falsely believing they are missing the low bass when, in reality, there is NO low bass. I also see a lot of noobs recommending bright headphones because they are "highly resolving". This is bullshit. They aren't highly resolving - they are just giving you MORE treble. Resolution spans the entire frequency range - not just the high end. The real magic in music is in the mid-range. If you can find a headphone that accurately reproduces mid-range, then you should be fine. Tailor to your preferences after that.My personal preference is to have a neutral headphone. I want to hear what's on those grooves, what's encoded on that tape, what those bits are doing, etc. There is no system out there that will fix a crap sounding source.
