Audeze LCD-2

[dBel84]

https://audeze.com/audez%E2%80%99e-debuts-%E2%80%9Creality-1%E2%80%9D-planar-magnetic-professional-reference-monitor-and-audeze-lcd-3

the monitors look very interesting ..dB

[ujamerstand]

LCD-3? Purrin and Tyll if you guys are reading this, please measure them if you have the chance!

[RudeWolf]

Yay, for cheaper rev. 2!

[monsieurguzel]

that was fast. I was expecting LCD-3s in the near future but didn't know they'd come out a month after the last revision! If history serves me right, it's best to wait at least 5-6 months for all the kinks to be worked out.

[K3cT]

I snatched a rev2 since it came first at a good price but I'm finding the vocals to distant for my taste. The rest I found out it was a improvement,the soundstage, treble etc.. This from memory and I recall the Lcd2 being much more upfront with the vocals but I could be wrong.. Is this just my imagination or the difference is really that much?

Midrange is definitely different but I'd say overall the differences between the two versions are subtle (though discernible on certain aspects) once you make sure that both of them share the same pads and cables which I did when I A/B-ed them.

Overall I'd agree that the R2's midrange is not as engaging as the older version ergo my decision to stick with what I have. I listen to a lot of vocals so a good midrange is an important criterion.

Edited October 14, 2011 by K3cT

[kevin gilmore]

So i have birgir's pair of LCD2's here for extended listening while the transistors are on their way back from england.

They sound so dramatically different on all the amps i have tried, And measurements show that these things generate

signifant amounts of back EMF, and therefore require an amplifier with a very low output impedance to sound right.

OTL tube amps, even the SP extreme perform very poorly on these headphones. The only single ended transformer

based amp i have, also sounds pretty grim. Only push pull high bias amps seem to work right. And push pull tube

amps also sound really good. Good enough that i will be buying my own pair on monday, and i'll skip the lcd3's

for now and get lcd4's later. half an amp at reasonably loud listening levels has been measured with my hall probe.

I think that tyll needs a high current buffer amp for his measuring system, because the built in amplifier really cannot

drive these kind of headphones correctly. The waterfall and decay plots will change a bunch when done this way.

Edited December 4, 2011 by kevin gilmore

[The Monkey]

How do you guys think a B22 would work with these things?

[grawk]

great til it blew up

[Torpedo]

It drives them great, Dinny. Of all the amps I've got here, it is the one that gives best performance. On the P1... not of my liking.

[Pars]

When I had jvlgato's pair, both my SE Dynalo and Dynahi drove these quite well. They did not sound good on my brother's torpedo amp however.

[blubliss]

Have not listened too much but the new Dynahi is not great with them, but with the HD800, oh my!

[wink]

Johnwmclean's B22 sounds great with both his LCD-2 r2 and my LCD2 r1. I still like my HD800 on it better.... YMMV probably more than possibly.

Edited December 4, 2011 by wink

[blessingx]

On my three board B22 I overall thought the opposite on the LCD2 v. HD800.

[Spychedelic Whale]

I believe some one from here reported good results with the peak, don't remember who.

[luvdunhill]

Kevin, perhaps adding a compensation circuit would help? Perhaps there is an impedance peak that a Zobel network could flatten?

[recstar24]

I thought back emf was a non-issue with ortho's?

[wink]

I overall thought the opposite on the LCD2 v. HD800.

So did John. After hearing my LCD-2 r1, he sold his HD800 and got his LCD-2.

[Torpedo]

Beta22 + LCD-2 = Good

Beta22 + HD800 = meh

Luxman P1 + LCD2 = meh-bah-not good

Luxman P1 + HD800 = Gooood

[K3cT]

How do you guys think a B22 would work with these things?

It's the best among the high-end amps that I've heard it with. The Zana Deux fared the poorest with the LCD2 doing a good imitation of a closed headphone in that combination, the WooAudio WA5 fared a little bit better but nowhere near what an $3k amp should sound like, the Apex Peak/Volcano probably came the closest with the Beta22 but I was a bit uncomfortable with its tendency to sound a bit shrilly (w/ Shuguang Treasure Tube).

The quest for a tube amp that sound good with the LCD series continues. For now, I'm convinced that solid state seems to be the way to go with this particular headphone.

Edited December 4, 2011 by K3cT

[kevin gilmore]

Kevin, perhaps adding a compensation circuit would help? Perhaps there is an impedance peak that a Zobel network could flatten?

that would have to be on an amplifer to amplifier basis. Way too much trouble.

I thought back emf was a non-issue with ortho's?

you would have though that. But with a low impedance coil and a large

magnet structure, the thing has quite a kick.

blubliss wants me to find a push pull tube amp.

I thought this would be easy, someone had to have a low power

push pull tube amp for headphones. Evidently not so easy.

The smallest of the atmaspheres might work, There is a cary that

would probably work, and a vtl. All 3 of which have stupid pricing

for what they are.

i'm betting that classic old marantz and mcintosh tube amps are

going to sound very nice, especially the mcintosh.

[deepak]

Leben CS300 is a push pull EL84 amp with headphone output, I hear skylab likes it

I thought they sounded really good with the Dynamite balanced (with balanced source). A bit better than the G Lite.

[dsavitsk]

blubliss wants me to find a push pull tube amp.

I thought this would be easy, someone had to have a low power

push pull tube amp for headphones. Evidently not so easy.

I've got a tube push pull Gm amp for headphones. Maybe not quite what you are looking for, but might be OK. Also, digger945 has one, I think.

[johnwmclean]

Beta22 + LCD-2 = Good

Beta22 + HD800 = meh

Agreed. Haven’t heard a Luxman.

Just to add...

EHHA + LCD = Good

Beta22 + LCD = Good

Edited December 5, 2011 by johnwmclean

[swt61]

I guess that's why I was underwhelmed when pabbi1 lent me his HD800.

[FrankCooter]

blubliss wants me to find a push pull tube amp.

I thought this would be easy, someone had to have a low power

push pull tube amp for headphones. Evidently not so easy.

I've been running my LCD-2's with a couple of tube amps. The first is a single ended, direct coupled 56/46 with Electra-Print 5k:32 output transformers. Power supply is solid state rectification with tube regulation. Output power is about 1.5w.

The second, which might be more interesting to you, is a small push-pull amp based on the Russian 4P1L directly heated pentode (triode connected). Output transformers are recycled from an old Fisher 500C. Input stage is simply a W.E. 418A driving an Electra-Print autoformer. Power supply is same as the first amp. Output power is about 3w.. Small push-pull amps are underexplored in the headphone world, and at least in my experiance, can work quite well.