Sennheiser HD 550

The background vocals on my favorite albums are suddenly right there — little breaths and room noise I never knew were in the mix. The open-back design leaks sound like crazy, so these are strictly for my desk, never the train.

I've had these for about two weeks and I keep catching little things I never noticed before, like the faint breath a singer takes right before a line. The earcups stay comfortable through a whole album, which honestly surprised me for open-back headphones.

The soundstage is wide enough that I noticed background chatter in a live recording I've heard dozens of times. Only minor nitpick is the cable feels a bit stiff out of the box.