Audeze lcd-1 hype train getting ready to leave the station?

Discussion in 'Headphones' started by Ice-man, Oct 22, 2019.

  1. monacelli

    monacelli Friend

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    I am getting a spooky vibe from all of these early impressions and reviews that the LCD-1 is basically an Audeze HD660S. I would be happy to be wrong, but my first instinct is that I already don't give a shit about these.
     
  2. Ice-man

    Ice-man Friend

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    The hd650 and 660s sound WAYYYY more alike than the 660s and lcd-1 sound alike. The lcd-1 has an emphasis on clarity and the leading edge of the entire FR sounds somewhat sharp. This is very different than the Senn approach.
     
  3. Vtory

    Vtory Audiophile™

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    Except describing mid and high tonal balance, I'm thinking that HD6X0 is a TERRIBLE reference to compare, as its technical experience varies too much (modding, amp, source, synergy, etc etc). 58X (or 660 by extension) could be a better comparison for its invariant performance (in both good and bad aspects).

    I'm more interested with how LCD1 stacks against Verum 1 and/or HFM Sundara. Those two are 'real' competitors: (1) budget planar category and (2) less upstream dependent (which actual target consumers may favor).
     
  4. Ice-man

    Ice-man Friend

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    I've tried changing amp (mcth) for a tube flavor for the lcd-1. I've tried my best EQ efforts to get this headphone to sound enjoyable. I can't do it. Sent an email for RMA and boxing this one up to go back to whence it came.
     
  5. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    7-8kHz peak possibly. Putting two and two together along with @metal571's nub observations of "moar detailed than HD650". We will know for sure in time, but I have (and we all have) been around the block enough to know that the SBAF magic eight-ball is usually right.
     
  6. Outerspace Wasabi

    Outerspace Wasabi Friend

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    No, not HD660s. You know what they remind me of? The Sony MDR V6, I think.
     
  7. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    Slightly off topic, but a few people asked me via PM regarding specifics of HD650 in relation to other headphones.

    From mids to highs, in terms of low-level information, the HD650 > the vast majority of planars less than $2k. Most planars will have better transient response, cleaner edges, and clearer more extended lows, but they just don't reproduce those small details. Anyone who has heard HD650 from a ECP 3F or EC Studio knows this. They get blown away at what this modest headphone can actually do. The only dynamics that are better or equivalent to the HD650 in terms of plankton reproduction are the HD800, various ZMF cans, 600-ohm Beyers, etc. Dynamics and planars (orthos) have different strengths.

    Coming back on topic, comparing the LCD-1 to HD650 sounds silly already. From reading into what people are saying, the frequency response seems to be different, as well as the timbre. From the sounds of it, I wouldn't be surprised if the LCD-1 sounds more like the HiFiMan HE400S. The timbre of most planars sounds a bit off to me, with the LCD-4, HE-5/6 being good, and only the throwback vintage Japanese planars of the 70s sounding great (add Verum to this vintage Japanese planar sound).

    I don't give a crap with people stereotype me as a hater, but the fact is, I'm not holding my breath with LCD-1, especially after EL-8 (what a POS), and Sine (needed the DSP dongle). I don't know if it's bassy or not, but if it is, I think a comparison to V-Moda M100 dynamic might be more in order. Ultimately, if the LCD-1 is awesome, then we won't hesitate to say so.

    As far as other impressions, I don't watch YouTube videos of headphones by randos with crappy gear, crappy ears, and only wade in the waters of low-fi or mid-fi. Why would I? Call me elitist or a snob, but anyone who has followed SBAF or CS before it already knows this. Heck, I don't even watch Jude videos or read Jude reviews (not trustworthy source). Friends already know that I will pass on mediocre gear unless it's dirt cheap and offers life enhancements. My time is way to limited these days, hence why I am having many of you guys, ears that I trust, screen stuff for me. Note that I even did this for the SR1a, of which I was initially not a believer.

    I frankly do not care what others do or say, other than if what they do is harmful (Sean Olive and his V-shaped Harmon Target for consumers).
     
    Last edited: Nov 6, 2019
  8. Jerry

    Jerry Friend

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    @purr1n Would you say the HD600 is also able to produce this small details?

    I have been comparing 650 vs 600 for quite a while. And decided that HD600 has the better frequency response for my taste.
     
  9. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    HD600 = HD650. Slightly brighter, slightly faster, slightly clearer in lows. Everything else is the same, just as good.
     
  10. Psalmanazar

    Psalmanazar Most improved member; A+

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    All the good Sennheisers have the same super rounded, silly putty bass distortion worse than modern woofers but they are more detailed in the bass within how their own nasty distorted sound than planers. Even the HD800 SDR bass sucks compared to a speaker. I’d rather listen to a car speaker. I was never able to make the Senns, or any other headphone, beat my car.

    HE-6 is the only clear planar I’ve heard (the he5 was warm butt lofi suckage) but it is still a planar that can’t play back bass harmonics and plays back the low end too cleanly. String bends are lol on it. Bass guitar and powerchords are all wrong. Saturated kicks are wrong. It’s lofi. Give me a porta pro. All the memes are true in that Dynamic drivers from Scandinavia and the UK just tend to be the best even if some of the other current stuff (typically Kevlar or carbon fiber) sounds quite good despite lacking that ultra fine detail to play back analog distortions perfectly. The British ATC and Volt woofers are the cleanest
     
  11. elmoe

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    Change that man's custom title to "My $10 car woofer beats your $5k lofi headphones"
     
  12. M3NTAL

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    I'll have to agree with Psalm on this one. Headphones fail to reproduce the bass of a proper subwoofer. It's just physics.
     
  13. Mithrandir41

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    you definitely don't get the room effect, since low bass is mainly felt more than heard, but it's definitely all there in my LCD-2 closed backs, which I balance out with a pair of HD650s. The 2s get more play time as the top and bottom are more extended and the mids still lush. The 2-closed backs are the only Audezes I've heard without complete upper mid-suckout.
     
  14. chakku

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    It doesn't take a genius to come to that conclusion, but the comparison wasn't warranted anyway. The discussion is about headphones and the comparison between headphones. Screaming 'muh speakers are better' in a thread about new headphones for the sake of establishing yourself as that hip contrarian pushing the same agenda in every post is a pointless endeavor for attention.
     
  15. RobS

    RobS RobS? More like RobDiarrhea.

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    Sorry to keep this off-topic, but did ohhgourami's expensive HE-6 rig reproduce those small details? What did you think of the midrange from his setup, does it lag behind an HD650 on a modest setup (like Valhalla 2)?

    Sidenote: I did find it interesting in your Convert-2 review that you didn't talk about plankton. Is that low-level information not there or does say the Yggdrasil soundly beat it in retrieval? I know the HE-6 ain't the detail king, but I am still not sure how to evaluate Convert-2's ability to draw out details. It seems non-existent. Unfortunately I don't have a way to hook up the HD650 to the Convert at the moment.

    Apologies for the derail, but seemed like a good oppurtunity to ask what you think.
     
  16. Cellist88

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    If you read my impressions, the convert 2 sounds raw and energetic, but not much micro detail retrieval in between the notes. If you listen to a piano album, you will hear clear, crystal attacks but not the bloom of the sound, the fingers rolling off the keys, or the reverb of the room. It makes it hard to hear if the piano being played is a giant Steinway d. Macro dynamics are strong, but microdynamics are lacking in comparison. It's a in your face, loud, slamming sound that sounds more one note than nuanced like the Yggdrasil.
     
  17. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    Ohg's HE-6 rig with exclusive ?-screw model, mods, and component chain is in its own class.

    The Convert-2 lacked plankton relative to other modern DACs I had around that time: X-Sabre Pro, Gungnir, Solaris. It's ability to draw out low-level information was about on par with SD DACs of a prior generation ago. Not really surprising because of the chip used and lack of stacking of the parts.
     
  18. RobS

    RobS RobS? More like RobDiarrhea.

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    These impressions match up with my own, thanks.

    And thanks purr1n for replying.
     
  19. Armaegis

    Armaegis Friend

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    Ohg's 4-screw HE-6 rig also costs several mortgage payments, enough silver to kill a half dozen vampires, and may or may not require structural reinforcement and/or pallet jack to move it around.

    Some of you might think I'm exaggerating, but I'm really not.
     
  20. Outerspace Wasabi

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    Yep, I did the same. Not enjoyable at all. A cold and sterile sound.

    Which begs the question, why was the LCD-1 even compared to the 650? Aside from being headphones, they're nothing alike.
     

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