Yea I think it should be one of those unspoken rules not to include the "oldies" headphones. The classic trio and it's variants can be had for basically half off msrp, cheaper than whatever massdrop could get, no offense. <br /><br />I have heard the AD900X labeled as a mini HD800, if you're into that, with it'd sound stage, detail retrieval and frequency response. Obviously not in the same level but a good taste. <br /><br />Still banking on the Fidelio X1 but AT has my vote #2
@Braden<br /><br />the ATH-AD900 & ATH-AD900X are both open back.<br /><br />the ATH-A900 & ATH-A900X are both closed back.<br /><br />the X is just the new revision across the entire line.<br /><br />The ATH-AD1000X is considerably better than the AD900X though. The problem being that it's only available in japan and europe right now.<br /><br />Though you can order from japan & have it shipped overseas, you just have to deal with duty & tariffs. In japan they're going for the equiv of $300 USD. A bargain for their sound quality.<br /><br />Check out this comparison review of the 900X & 1000X<br /><br />http://www.head-fi.org/t/654161/review-comparison-ath-ad900x-vs-ath-ad1000x-vs-mdr-ma900-its-still-over-900