When done right, headphone listening can be very very good. And what I like about headphones is that it's a lot easier and cheaper to get it right than the power amp/loudspeaker combo. I'm a firm believer of the 1/10th rule in that you can get the same quality of sound from a set of headphone for 1/10th the cost of comparable speakers. Same for the cost of headphone amps vs power amps.

I know that you're looking into headphones as a means for personal listening, but there's no reason why it can't be "high end" too, like your other gear. Like speakers, there needs to be a good match between the amp and headphones. I'm using a set of Grado 225 with a Mapletree Ear+ amp and the combo is fabulous. Another popular combo is Sennheiser with the Antique Sound Lab.

Keep us up to date on your journey into the world of cans. I'm very interested in seeing it from the perspective of a speaker guy.

gar.