Audeze LCD-2

[AmanGeorge]

I'm interested as well. Haven't read the H-F thread; is there anything in there - or can someone here chime in - about required power to drive these, assuming theya re similar to LCD-1? I have a Millett Max Hybrid....wondering if that is enough (Ian's Millett at the Boston meet drove the HE-5's well enough for my taste, so I'm hopeful).

At RMAF they were noticeably easier to drive than the HE-5, so I think you'll be good to go

[boomana]

I like the way those look. Will hopefully hear them at CanJam.

Wow, just realized that it's been about a year without buying new headphones. Okay, The Shure 840s, but those don't count since I sold them within a couple days. Hmmmmm.

[Kabeer]

I'm interested as well. Haven't read the H-F thread; is there anything in there - or can someone here chime in - about required power to drive these, assuming theya re similar to LCD-1? I have a Millett Max Hybrid....wondering if that is enough (Ian's Millett at the Boston meet drove the HE-5's well enough for my taste, so I'm hopeful).

Kwarth claim's he can drive them to volume out of an iPod on the HF thread.

Ofc orthos love beefy amps. But at least for sensitivity it can work with a lot it seems.

[mypasswordis]

I definitely want to hear these at CanJam.

They really have a nice feel and for me, the grills are a really good solution to form and function. There are no audible reflections that are obvious to me. As for the screws - I am just glad that they are there but I also have a feeling that they are going to end up being superfluous as very few will find the need to retune these - MPI , you are excluded from this as the razor edge you crave will only come with damping.

..dB

I will post details of impressions but suffice to say , I am impressed

Good to know there are no obvious reflections. Though if it really is a dark HD650/O2 type sound, first thing I'll want to do is to throw in some felt.

[swt61]

Don's impressions from over there...

I think I am prepared to give an early impression of these headphones - will update as time passes and I get to spend more time appreciating them.

Build quaility:

Overall my initial impressions still stand - rock solid engineering. Steel sprung headband with metal ratchet type arm adjustments allow for a very sturdy feel. No slipping and no movement once they are positioned where you want them.

Foam band for comfort - not sure about this, it serves a purpose but I am thinking a leather quilted pad would be more durable. The foam is undoubtedly comfortable though.

The cups themselves are solid, lovely wood with a simple finish. The addition of the mini xlr is very convenient and will allow people to choose whatever ilk they desire, be it SE or balanced.

The steel grill trills when you drag a nail over the surface but I have not heard any resonance concerns with them. The fact that they screw off and look as sleek as they do is all good with me.

Pads: I was a little concerned about how hard the leather was with the pads initially, but they are more comfy than I had anticipated them to be. You are most definitely aware that you have a serious pair of headphones on your head and are nowhere near as comfy as Smeggy's TP with O2 pads but then little else is.

Sound:

This is interesting as they have made me really question some aspects of my other headphones which I have always held to be pretty linear. I have tried to listen to most genres and there is not one where I feel that they are lacking in any way.

My preference is vocal/acoustic/jazz/rock/blues/classical , I generally don't listen to much electronica, metal, hip-hop,rap etc.

I don't go in much for the audiophile speak but could regurgitate the chesky / hd tracks objectives as these headphones present audiophile recordings exactly as described , Rebecca Pidgeon's voice on Spanish Harlem for example is ethereal with a wonderful sense of depth and rich tonality which leaves the hair tingling on tha back of your neck.

The best way I could describe them is by describing some of the thoughts process I went through while trying to figure them out.

Initially I just sat back and listened to them, I can normally pick up on idiosyncrasies pretty quickly with casual listening. Nothing jumped out at me so I enjoyed listening to them for 3 hours.

The next round comprised listening to some white noise, pink noise and frequency sweeps ( stereophile editors choice test CD ) - subjectively there are no peaks, no inconsistencies, white noise is homogenous , it extends high and low.

My first "wtf" moment was with some electronica/pop when I heard what I interpreted as bass "break-up" / congestion , I was seriously disappointed because everything was going so well until that point. I switched to all types of music - deep bass drum solos, classical music with large swings, deep organ / choral music - no congestion, not even a hint of anything wrong in the bass. I went back to the same track and could hear the same variance from what I was used to hearing with my other headphones. Really focusing on this I began to think that it might not be congestion at all and this is the e-mail that I sent to Alex ( I hadn't seen the FR curves yet !! )

Well after I did see the FR curves - I believe this is exactly it. I am hearing bass or at least modulation down below what I am normally hearing and this is throwing off my expectations.

Having spent only a few days with this headphone now, it is hard to espouse on all the subtleties etc but I can already tell you that the tonal presence of the LCD2 is second to non. You hear the tone of the notes and the overtone of the decay, it is not an illusion or false , just incredibly real. The mids are just what all orthoheads / and others desire.

The do not have a lot of high frequency energy but do not sound subdued or rolled off in any way. I could see bumping the top end a little but that would be because I like my headphones tipped a little on the top ( I know it is not linear or flat but it is a personal preference)

Well, that's all for now.

..dB

[Torpedo]

The FR chart seems promising, I wonder how accurate are those measurements:

I'll be thankful if you could try them at CJ with a B22 or GS-1/GS-X and post impressions.

[n_maher]

That FR is uncannily flat for a headphone.

[Spiug31]

when possible, some impressions of it balanced from a beta22 / GS-X please

that low volume, low frequency linearity looks to be something I`d like to hear.

[morphsci]

when possible, some impressions of it balanced from a beta22 / GS-X please

....

As soon as someone sends me one to listen to I will be glad to oblige.

[mypasswordis]

That FR is uncannily flat for a headphone.

Except for the 10dB difference between bass/mids and treble.

[swt61]

I imagine there'll be some at CJ to listen to. I won't be carting my amp there, but I'm sure there'll be a β22 there to listen from. I'll make it a point to audition such a setup if available.

[n_maher]

Except for the 10dB difference between bass/mids and treble.

I partially misinterpreted the graph so it's probably best to ignore my previous comment.

[Torpedo]

Except for the 10dB difference between bass/mids and treble.

It reminds me a bit of the DX-1000 curve. That's a sound signature which I can enjoy.

[Beefy]

I partially misinterpreted the graph so it's probably best to ignore my previous comment.

But I think you were absolutely right. I've never seen a FR graph so dead flat across such wide margins. Almost a complete absence of sudden peaks and dips.

[mypasswordis]

Agreed, it does look quite flat minus the disparity, which is why I made that comment.

Given what people say about the DX-1000, I'd probably hate it. But the LCD-2 holds promise, especially since it seems easily moddable and the build quality seems good. Still not quite sure about comfort, though, specifically the headpad and the hard/stiffness of the earpads.

[dBel84]

look at the fine print - there is some smoothing.

They sure sound exceptionally flat , the amp I use is a hybrid but sims faster than the B22 and has oodles of power to drive these HPs. I will be building a balanced amp ( will need an office rig again soon ) and will hopefully own my own pair by then too ..dB

[Torpedo]

Agreed, it does look quite flat minus the disparity, which is why I made that comment.

Given what people say about the DX-1000, I'd probably hate it. But the LCD-2 holds promise, especially since it seems easily moddable and the build quality seems good. Still not quite sure about comfort, though, specifically the headpad and the hard/stiffness of the earpads.

No worries, the curves only have certain resemblance for having an increase of the frequencies below 1KHz compared to the treble, but the DX have a bass boost which the LCD-2 don't seem to have. Also the treble extension seems much better on these.

[Beefy]

look at the fine print - there is some smoothing.

Ah, that is fine print......

[Spiug31]

So I don`t have to squint so much again,

at the top of the graph is:

Sinusoidal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-24-2010 11:45:46 AM

and the top line of print below the graph:

CHA dBSPL . . .Resolution 1/48 Octave . . .Smooth 1/3 Octave . . .Sampling 96kHz . . .Dist Rise [dB] 30.00

I can`t focus beyond that.

for those that didn`t know (like me)

In music, an octave is the interval between one musical pitch and another with half or double its frequency.

[dBel84]

Released ..dB

[Dusty Chalk]

Huzz-fucking-ah.

A bit too rich for my blood at this point (need to catch up on a couple other things -- and yes, stopping buying watches will help), but I'll probably still get it eventually.

[Hens]

yes, does seem a bit rich, but they added a nice wooden box to make up for the increase in price

[swt61]

More than I had hoped. I now will need to compare my dBel84 tuned, N_Maher cabled, smeggy created, Macassar Ebonied Thunderpants, before making my final decision. I imagine it's safe to assume there will be at least one pair at CJ?

[luvdunhill]

Trade-in is less than I hoped. Also, doesn't seem like they are offering the discount anymore either?

[cetoole]

Glad it is out, but definitely more than I had hoped. At the initial mentioned price, I would have almost certainly given it a shot, but at nearly 50% more, I will need to wait until I hear it, and probably look for a used pair. Steve, any idea what they mean by wood care kit? Gotta keep the headphones oiled maybe?