Some basic gear recommendations, please (need a boom pole, headphones)

[Karlw]

I would personally recommend the Sony MD-7506 headphones over the Sennheiser HD280s. I've used/listened to both quite a bit. The Sonys pack up smaller, have held up amazingly well for me, and are more comfortable over a longer period of time. I also find them to sound a little less bright so they are not as fatiguing to the ears.

Some of these things, like fit/comfort and sound are subjective, so others may feel the opposite way between these 'phones. I just wanted to point out that the Sonys are every bit as good as the Sennys and are also an industry standard item.

[Nickpickles]

How are the Sonys vs the Sennheisers in terms of isolation? The HD280's I used really blocked out external noises well.

Also: thank you everyone. I ended up getting a used AKG blue line with CK 91 and 93 capsules and a Lux 9ft carbon pole. Excited to put them to use!

[Bluebird]

I use the Sony cans. They block out noise about as well as these kinds of headphones can. They are $99 most places right now. It's the industry standard so I would go with the Sony set. Every place on the web you ask about a headset for monitoring your audio recording the Sony set wins out.