Physically Comfortable Headphones

Thank you to others who have added since I last checked in. When you mention a headphone, I look it up, and read about them. From the humble Pioneer (found on ebay for $100) to the Hifiman, Meze, Dan Clark, etc etc, which are, well, more than that. 

Two of you mentioned IEM's and I sort of realized that amongst my favorite head-fi experiences are my Audeze iSine 10's. My ears don't get hot, my temples do not get pressed, they are not heavy. The iSine 10's are no longer made - in fact, I think that Audeze stopped making that line of in-ear earpphones. I think I would like a more refined version of the iSine 10's as a daily headphone, and will certainly pursue the in-ear solutions. I very much like that the iSine's do not require a seal in the ear canal - the business end simply delivers the music to your canal - it doesn't need to seal it to make deep bass. I like not needing to be closed off from the world quite so much. 

Again, I appreciate the suggestions...

David

I am surprised to not have seen STAX "ear speakers" mentioned.  They are light, open back and sonically speaking are extremely accurate.  I worked as an audio engineer and used Sennheiser 600 earphones for convenience during the recording sessions but used my STAX "Lambda Pro's" for editing purposes.  Their light weight often fooled me into thinking that I wasn't wearing earphones at all !

Focal Clear, very nice and Sound awesome 👍

Audeze MM-500
Got them two weeks back...amazing...worth every penny
Put them up against Focal Stellia....MM blew them away.

I generally listen from 1-6 hours....never know you have them on.
 

So I spend two days at Axpona this spring pretty much confined to the headphone room.  Having not owned headphones for several decades, the wearability without physical fatigue was my concern, along with sound quality of course.  I ended up purchasing the sennheiser HD800s. Having owned them for six months now, I am happy with my decision.  Very comfortable and I can wear them for a couple hours.

As for the sound- I have done two things to tweak the sound. First, try different ear pads. I purchased a couple of the Dekoni models, each less than $100.  Each has an effect on the sound (albeit not dramatic and mostly on the bass).   And each fits/feels a bit different. I settled in on the fenestrated sheepskin.  So for a couple hundred bucks, a great way to tune in your comfort and sound.   I suspect replacing to OEM pads on other brands might also affect the comfort level.

but even more importantly, upgrade your cable.  I purchased some from  Lavricables (based on recommendations from others on a’gon), balanced, uses silver wire, and they made a dramatic difference in detail, soundstage and sweetness of the mid to treble without making them bright. If you thought the HD800s had too much treble, my experience says these cables smoothed it out.  I spent about $800, including a break in service. Highly recommended.