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Today's Bonus:
While the $200 price tag is steep and higher than it was when originally introduced, this headphone probably deserves to be in whatever price bracket the Sennheiser HD25 is in... even if I happen to think both should be $50 cheaper. The O-One has very extended highs and fairly balanced frequency response throughout except for a suck-out in the lower midrange. It can get a teensy bit tinny in the treble, which is probably the result of some small frequency dips throughout the mids and treble combined with the slight upper two octaves' brightness, but it's not bad and some of the initial brightness seems to relax over time with burn-in (I hope that's not just the onset of hearing damage?). Though the bass doesn't go quite as deep as the HD280, it still seems deeper and plays more tunefully down there than the Sony and there's no wooly quality noticeable in the mids, either. The Sony might still have a touch more of upper bass kick compared to the Ortofon's prodigious bass "bloom" (like flower, not bomb).
Compared to the HD280, HD25, and Sony V6/7506, the O-One is the most "open-sounding" of the four. It is the best implementation of the Ultrasone S-Logic baffle I have heard on a closed headphone. For those wondering, this is manufactured by Ultrasone's Asian OEM but was "voiced" by Ortofon and is a unique result from prior Ultrasones. It's probably worth trying the Sony first to make sure it is not objectionable to you. If its rolled-off extreme highs, harder mid-treble, slightly less extended bass than the O-One, and more closed sound isn't an issue for you, then you can save a hundred bucks and go that route. If you're looking for closed earpad headphones or extreme durability under $200, then the HD25 is the automatic choice. I find that one doesn't handle the treble at very loud volumes quite as well as the others, though. They can get kind of splashy. The HD25 is otherwise an inoffensive, mud-free balance in overall smoothness and response, though it lacks the deepest bass, the highest highs, or the immediacy of some of the others.
It doesn't seem you can have everything in this price range. This brings me to the last point: if you're hell-bent on spending $200 on closed-back headphone, you might want to consider another $50-100 to get into the next performance bracket where you will compromise less and start achieving extension on both ends, low distortion, and good balance all in the same model.
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