Besides budget, I tend to prefer something slightly warm and enveloping over supremely analytical... more interested in getting lost in the music and enjoying the sense of being there than finding that last shred of detail. Comfort is important to me, but only comfortable enough to not be distracted by the fit for an hour or two on a Sunday morning or after the kids are in bed as I realistically won’t have all-day listening sessions. Great soundstage and imaging in a friend’s 2-channel setup were what first drew me to hifi, so I consider those a must. Definitely not a bass head so superb bass response is much lower on the list than great midrange for vocals. I have a young one in the house so durability wouldn’t be a bad thing.
All that said, more than anything else I want something that will be interesting yet different than the 99 Classics rather than just a better version of the same sound. I don’t want to go down the rabbit hole of upgraded cables anytime soon and won’t have any options with balanced outputs until I get a dedicated amp. Currently have a dragonfly red (3.5mm) and the headphone output (1/4in) from my integrated amp to drive them.
All that said, more than anything else I want something that will be interesting yet different than the 99 Classics rather than just a better version of the same sound. I don’t want to go down the rabbit hole of upgraded cables anytime soon and won’t have any options with balanced outputs until I get a dedicated amp. Currently have a dragonfly red (3.5mm) and the headphone output (1/4in) from my integrated amp to drive them.