Originally posted by twist
I have these headphones as well and the ones I have now are my third or fourth pair. The only reason I've had so many is because the headphone jack connection isn't very strong but if you're careful you should be alright.
Honestly though they knock the shit out of most other headphones. The sound quality is simply ill, the bass is excellent, they are light and are really comfortable to wear I'm totally in love with these headphones although I wish they were a bit sturdier.
That(above) is is the reason why. The sound is unparalleled. I was thinking about getting the Sony's but after comparing them for about half an hour in a store, I was absolutely convinced that the Sennheiser's quality is superlative, on all types of recordings. They are incredibly loud but even at ridiculous volume levels, the sound is not distorted in the slightest. Very impressive.
A good warrantee is available for them, they have a rotating can, perfect for monitoring, they are very comfortable (especially with the velvet earpieces), and are incredibly light.
They are also deconstructible; they're built so that they can all the wires and housing can be easily dissassembled. This means that even if one wire breaks (i've never heard of this happening, but...), it can be replaced rather than replacing the whole headphone set.
I don't know about the jack problems but then I usually use mine in conjunction with an extendable cord attachment so that I can walk about 30m or so and not pull them out of the jack (don't ask why I need this sort of room...).
The comment about the Sonys deteriorating after a while is something I've heard of as well, and its worth bearing in mind that the Sennheisers were built for the purpose of recording monitoring (despite the swiveling can), so their attention to sound quality is first rate.
You should try a couple pairs tho for yourself in a store that will let you check them out for a while on different types of recordings.
good luck.