Amp recommendation for AKG K1000's headphones?

I am interested in buying the Cary SEI integrated and AKG K1000 headphones. Does anyone have a good store recomendation and price for the AKG 1000 since they are now being discontinued? Has anyone tried different 300B tubes with this combo - especially the Western Electric and Sophia? I have read that the WE have the best mids but soft bass and rolled highs. The Sophia is just a tad less in the mids but magnificent in the bass and highs for an SEI. Also, has anyone experiemented with any headphone cords like Blue Moon and Cardas? Finally, has anyone compared and listened extensively to the K1000 and K701s? Any comments?

PS
I am trying to find an old SEI with gold face plate - let me know if you have any leads. Thanks

I use an EAR 859 with my AKG K1000s. I don't use them often enough though. While the separation between the binding posts is too wide (requires either jumpers or splitting the cable a bit...), I love the amp dearly. Despite its 13.5 watts, and the "headroom" offered by tube amps, I find the amp a trifle weak for true headbanging music. I can therefore heartily recommend either the 861, which gets an extra 1.5 watts (and the preamp section is by-passable), OR... the EAR 861 which has basically the same Enhanced Triode Mode circuit, with twice the power but without the preamp section.

Another I would love to try is the Pass Aleph Os...

re: "Finally, has anyone compared and listened extensively to the K1000 and K701s? Any comments?"

no comparison. the k1000's are in a league nearly of their own. but it's like apples to oranges in presentation as the k1000's aren't against your ear.

that said, the 701's are great for the money.

THAT said, if $ is not an object, the Grado GS1000 blows away the 701's in every way possible. they ARE in the same league as the k1000's, but again, it's apples and oranges.

I used the cary 300sei WE 300b for a couple of years with my AKG1000'S....great sound it was the best I'd ever heard from a headphone.

Now I'm using the Cary 805c monoblocks. With the akg1000's hooked up to the 4 ohm speaker posts.

The akg 1000's are incredible with the 805's.IMHO in another league vs. 300sei.

The akg1000's are the only headphones out there that allow me to hook directly into the best source equipment.Without degrading the sound by using a headphone amp/preamp....the akg 1000's are truly earspeakers.

Try one of the new Singlepower Audio Extreme amps that have just come out. There are lots of opions of it with the K1000 on www.head-fi.org. I have owned two amps from them (SDS and SDS-XLR) and they were both much better than any of the other high end headphone amps I had auditioned or owned. Try googleing Singlepower Supra or MPX3 or PPX3 and read some of the reviews of his other amps. The website is not very up to date but the owner Mikhal is very easy to work with if you give him a call.
If your looking for something that will also power speakers. I used the Unison for a while with the K1000 with good results. I also hear the First watt amps are very good with the K1000.