IO-12

Dali io 12. Best in class. B&O is good too but dali better

Second on the Solitaire T. I liked the IO-12 too, but the Solitaire T is a complete package. The passive performance helps justify the cost.

I think so. I recently got them for gaming, but they are incredible for music too. I own Dali io 12, 3 times more expensive dynamic driver flagship bt headset, and the maxwells sound less intimate, more spacious (which some people like some don't), more impactful, with similiar or grrater level of detail. They sound very good. I have owned and tried for a while many "mainstream" dynamic driver headsets that are at similiar price range as maxwells like bose, apple airpods max, sonys xm, bang olufsens, and maxwells 2 althrough heavier are much superior imo than these in audio quality. My experience is limited as I haven't tried Sennheisers dynamic drivers or open back entry hifimans or focals etc. so I don't know if Maxwells 2 are absolute peak audio quality in the "under 500 dollars" category.

I basically use my DALI IO-12s for this use case. I wonder how they compare.

"Are they the best closed ANC over the ears today? Yeah, probably." My Dali IO-12s would like a word.

If comfort and sound quality are the priority, I would add the DALI IO12 to your list. But, ANC is not its strong point and I never tested the mic.

Yes I would say they're at least as comfortable as the Sennheiser. For me, at least.