The AE2i very ironically is the first headphone I've purchased in over a year (at least 30 headphones) that had such a good balance that I didn't feel the need to use any EQ. The overall sound quality isn't significantly better than the best $200 USD headphones given any EQ adjustments for the other headphones, but the combination of good balance, excellent soundstage, very good portability and outstanding comfort gets a highly recommended from me. I took points off of portability because the AE2i doesn't fold and doesn't come with a carrycase, and since it doesn't fold, any real carrycase would be very bulky for such a lightweight headphone. But it wears around the neck unobtrusively.