If low-volume listening is what you'll be doing most of, skip the headphones and set up a near-field system. Get some good, small speakers and sit close to them--a couple of feet away. You can keep the volume low, without having the weird sound (and lack of comfort) of headphones.
Of course, you'd be talking more money this way, especially if you can't (or are not comforatable) running your power amp in an A-B speaker setup. But even if you need a second amp, you can get away with something smallish. Add a Creek passive preamp and an inexpensive CD player, and you shouldn't be out a whole lot more than a set of higher-end 'phones and a headphone amp. And you will get much more natural sound. . . .
Of course, it might depend on just how much (or how little!) volume the wife can sleep through. The wife-rating of any system can trump all other factors. :-)
Of course, you'd be talking more money this way, especially if you can't (or are not comforatable) running your power amp in an A-B speaker setup. But even if you need a second amp, you can get away with something smallish. Add a Creek passive preamp and an inexpensive CD player, and you shouldn't be out a whole lot more than a set of higher-end 'phones and a headphone amp. And you will get much more natural sound. . . .
Of course, it might depend on just how much (or how little!) volume the wife can sleep through. The wife-rating of any system can trump all other factors. :-)