To be honest with you, I think these are a bit overrated at least in the price class, although the only pair that really beats them in both price and performance isn't really sold stateside (but you can import them).
I *highly* recommend the Sharp HP-MD33S phones...I looked round the net and most people who own both the e2c's and the Sharps prefer the Sharps.
What I *don't* like about the sharps is that you need to use the converter cable which is somewhat cumbersome--unless you're willing to do the soldering job needed to get rid of the cable. My friend tested my sharps and FINALLY converted to canalphones =p
I used to own the Sony EX71's and the Sharps are noticably higher quality, but if you already own the Sony's and they break (like they did with me) keep the little sleeves since they fit on the Sharps too, I chucked mine before I read that they fit, doh.
Not that it really matters, but if you keep them you'll end up having like, 6 different sizes to tweak to your comfort =p
see post one...then see post two to see his only audio based con disappear lol
My friend Joe tested them one day without actually putting them in his ear and was like, where's the bass?
The sharps actually have surprisingly rich bass, not just the "let's try to simulate a subwoofer in your ear" kind of thing, but actually rather full bass from the low end to the midend. Great headphones, and some people even say they're better than the e3c's, although a lot of people say the e3c's are better too. One thing everybody *does* agree on though, is that these are COMFY while the e3c's are less comfy.
Anyways, that's my 2 cents =p