Ah, I get you Ksham, I apologize if I cam out as aggressive. I also wasn't trying to come off as uneducated, I have a pair of Phillips M1's that are the cheapest headphones I have (Other than in-ear models I rarely use) and they present a grander sound stage than even my Grado's. So I know price to quality is not necessarily a universal truth. Also, sound is one of those subjective topics. What sounds superb to me may very well sound like shit to you. I am still young in the audiophile world but coming from SOL's to the Harman's the difference is night and day.
Now, the headphones I am currently saving for are the Mad Dogs by Mr. Speaker. You should check them out since you seem to be an audiophile at some level. These were some little boutique in the corner of a trade show a couple months back. The dude was kindly showing his multi-thousand dollar set up. He put them up against $2,00 Audeze LCD-3 and then asked me which I preferred. The Mad Dogs were less sharp, the highs on the Audeze were just TOO powerful. Anyway, he explained he paid something like $345 for them, they were VERY comparable.
Anyway, a heads up. I found the HK seem to like classic rock and indie punk the most. If I can make a recommendation, try listening to Lynyrd Skynyrd's Tuesdays Gone and Black Rebel Motorcycle Club's Ain't No Easy Way. I found the presentation was very good on the Harman's. You just might find a new love for them.
So I just went for it, bought a Creative Sounds Sound Blaster ZX and dropped some money on a FiiO E17 DAC amp, I hope to pair the E17 up to an FiiO E09K high output desk top amp in the coming weeks. This should be more than efficient for the time being.
Nu Folk- Alexi Murdoch, Josh Ritter, Ray LaMontagne, Jay Bennet, Matt Costa and Amos Lee. It's softer to what most listen to but it's a predominant genre I really love. My Grado's do justice to most these artist while I keep the Senny's for Electronica like Crystal Castles, Klaxons, Ratatat, Free Blood and The Naked and Famous. The HK's stick mainly to instrumentals, classic rock, and indie rock/punk such as Nazareth, Lynyrd Skynrd, Godspeed You! Black Emperor, Explosion in the Sky, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, and IAmDynamite.