Traders spend a lot of time in front of a computer. Skimping on the chair is like skimping on the PSU.... not a good idea.
This is a great chair and I bought the leather version with headrest about 5 years ago. This puts it at around the same price as the Herman Miller Aeron. Prior to this chair I bought an Aeron with lumbar support. It's not a bad chair but the hard plastic front is definitely uncomfortable after just a few hours of sitting and the lumbar support is marginal at best. It also gets pretty dusty and is a pain to clean. The chair now sits in the corner of my office collecting dust ... but it looks nice. The wheels on the chair above also roll a lot nicer on my hardwood floor i.e. they are a little bit flexible so the chair rolls with a small amount of resistance. The Aeron wheels are rigid and if you're not careful the chair can go zooming out from underneath you.
I spent the last 3 weeks researching chairs. Here's a good link. Topic is programmers and chairs but same idea. Investing in a quality chair Some of the top choices, Herman Miller Aeron Herman Miller Mirra HumanScale Freedom Knoll Chadwick Raynor ErgoHuman Steelcase Leap V2 I ruled out Aerons since I've used them in the past at work. Just wanted something different. But there are a ton of them available used on Craigslist. Make sure you get the correct size (A - smallest, B - most people, C - largest) I checked out a Mirra from someone on CL. Thought it was ok but this was the basic version without the adjustable arms or lumbar. Could have bought it for $250. Decided to pass. Guy had Knoll Chadwick for $250 on CL. I bought it because he lowered price to $175 but regretted the decision. Arms were not adjustable and not much back support. I realized I need a high-back chair. I'm 6'2". But I was able to sell it for $250 on CL. +1 for buying brand name. Another guy had the HumanScale Freedom on CL. I was able to buy it for $360. New, they go for close to $1k. Very nice chair, headrest is a plus. Principle of chair is simplicity, very few knobs. Negative for me, the headrest doesn't cradle your head when sitting upright, only when you lean back. Arms are ok but not very big. I like to slump back and have good arm support. I've seen a lot of (Youtube) reviews on the ErgoHuman. It's available online at Office Depot. I don't see it being sold used so there doesn't seem to be a big aftermarket. From what I read it's made for taller people. Videos seems to suggest the headrest will cradle the head better. Armrest can be set pretty high. It's available in some places for $607 new. There is a newer version that goes for $745. Model number is V200HRBLK. They may have improved durability since it's one of the complaints for the first one. I'm gonna see if I can sit in one, if really feels that good, may sell the Freedom and go with the ErgoHuman. Heard lots of good things about Steelcase Leap V2 but haven't sat in one yet. No headrest. Probably not gonna go this route. Either keep the Freedom or get the ErgoHuman. 2 places where you can try out some of the chairs, Design Within Reach and Room and Board. Hope my experience helps.
I bought the Herman Miller aeron about 6-7 years ago. Back then I got the large chair, and various options like special rollers for hardwood floor and a back support. I think I paid about $900. Very good chair, no problems with it at all. Best chair I've ever owned, still looks like new. Prior to this chair I used to buy a new chair every year or two because they wore out or fell apart. I bought it through a place called the Ultimate Back Store. OldTrader
I've heard lumbar support is actually counter productive. http://www.smilingbackmethod.com/articles/bad-back-chairs.htm?b=1&font=serif That site talks about a lot of bad things found in chairs. Here is what it says about lumbar support:
In his chair screed Philip Pawley says "No chair can give you good posture. The best any chair can ever do is be less bad for your posture than another chair." Fair enough I suppose. I wonder which saddle is recommended for trading from horseback; Western or English?