Went on a compact headphone hunt several months ago ended up getting a JBL 410. The higher model had a separate AA-powered device for active noise cancelling and I found it bulky and quite impractical. I only use headphones when I'm alone anyway. If I wanted to, only passive would do it for me and the Bose Quiet Comfort was the only pair that delivered.
Compared to Bose on-ear and over-ear, the bass response was more apparent with the JBL. It's also a bit clearer and had more definition but another deciding factor was the leather used on the pads. Every Bose test unit I've seen was worn out and peeling off, same with Sennheisers. The JBL's have a less comfortable but thicker and more durable leather padding. For longer use, JBL loses a few points for comfort - or maybe I just have a wide head.
Others I tried were Audio-Technica, Shure, Sennheiser, Philips, and Denon. Most were really mediocre, and only the much more expensive models had the sound I was looking for. Aesthetics were also too over-the-top for most.