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LCD-X Measurements, Review, Stream of Consciousness Post
Marvey:
LCD-X Measurements, Review, Stream of Consciousness Post
FR MEASUREMENTS (see below)
CSD MEASUREMENTS
MUPPETFACE FIRST IMPRESSIONS
EARLY SUBJECTIVE IMPRESSIONS
CLOSING THOUGHTS
I've already taken some good listens with the LCD-X on the Vali and jot down some notes. I will try on the Mjolnir next - so no subjective comments until I am done on the Mjolnir. In the meantime, I've taken some measurements. Here they are (see below).
* The pads look like they are the super comfy LCD-3 type pads. As far as operation, adjustability, weight, comfort, etc. I'm not going to bother because the mechanisms are the same as the LCD2.2/LCD3.
* The LCD-X is very efficient. I'm at 8:30 on the volume knob on the Vali. HE-500 and Abyss require 9:30 / 10:30.
* Even the LCD-X is efficient, it will require serious amping (good current / power output at 22 ohms - that's getting very close to speaker current demands) to sound their best. The Vali was not up to the task. The Mojo was.
* Muppetface has these too. She's much a better writer than me in terms of writing proper reviews. I expect her to let us know of her thoughts.
* Thanks to Questhate for buying them and sending them over to me for quick measurements. This is what makes CS what it is.
MuppetFace:
I have the LCD-X on hand as well.
Here are my impressions so far, delivered in HF threadcrap format:
:-S
Marvey:
CSDs. Clean as expected.
Note ringing at 4.5k is an "ortho wall" for lack of a better term.
(see this: http://www.changstar.com/index.php/topic,1193.msg31986.html#msg31986)
MuppetFace:
Okay, a few more [very brief] thoughts after some sporadic listening throughout the day. These are bassier than I expected given some of the early impressions I saw. The bass is certainly well controlled, but the emphasis is there to my ears. I like the highs. The balance there is nice to me, a bit more prevalent than the other models in the Audez'e lineup. People who don't care for the overall Audez'e sound are probably not going to find these to be a revelation, but personally I dig the balance of the highs relative to the rest of the FR.
The mids are where I'm having a bit of a hang up: I'm hearing them as slightly sucked out. I'm finding I have to turn up the volume more than I'm used to to hit that satisfying spot. The last headphone like this for me was the TH900, which I also perceived as having a wee bit of a mid range suck out. It's not a glaring issue, but I did notice it after a while. It was exacerbated when using DAPs or portable amps despite the inclusion of a 1/8" adapter. These kinda need a beefy amp.
Soundstage seems less intimate and more open compared to its brethren. I like that. Resolution doesn't seem quite up to par w/ the LCD-3 to my ears thus far, but I can see some finding details to be more apparent with these due to the relatively more emphasized top end. There's something slightly unnatural about their timbre as Purrin said. Maybe it's the new driver material I'm hearing? The other Audez'e models sound more natural to me, more organic. I'd say I still prefer the way the highs on these sound to the other Audez'e models however.
I have to agree with Purrin: there's something enigmatic about them to me thus far, and I keep going back and forth on how big a deal I think the issues I'm hearing are to me personally.
Thus far, I'm liking these best with synth pop and electronica. Probably the best Audez'e for these genres. I think the slightly synthetic timbre + snappy bass + more open sound makes for a perfect match. The LCD-3 is a better choice for folk, orchestral, vocals. IMHO, YMMV, WTFBBQ.
Marvey:
INITIAL IMPRESSIONS
I'm having a hard time putting together my thoughts of this headphone together. Sometimes I think it's good/pretty good. Other times I'm like "I dunno". The LCD-X does seem more recording dependent than most other headphones I've used.
The LCD-X has a presentation very similar to the other Audeze headphones, but with some minor twists and I'm not sure if these twists make quite make the LCD-X "neutral" or not.
* Less lush - less "organic" sounding. Lacking body.
* More treble presence, but the elevated treble doesn't quite seem unified with the rest of the spectrum. (The HE-500, Paradox, and Abyss also have this issue, but to a much lesser extent.) The elevated treble region (it's not too loud really - just about right) makes a small section of the mids seem slightly sucked out.The timbre / congruency of tone is just off. It's like the LCD-X is pretending to be neutral, but it's not. As if the Audeze driver was not meant to sound this way (it being most comfortable sounding be lush and laid-back) - as if a gay person were being forced to be straight. Something is just not natural about it.
I dunno. This is a hard one to figure out. I'll leave it at that for now. Still sorting out my thoughts with other people who have the headphone in their possession.
P.S. Agree with MF on the resolution not being quite up to par with the LCD-3. The new driver does not seem able to reproduce low level information as well. The fine details sort of get lost. Although I don't have an LCD-3 on hand to compare the LCD-X to.
P.S.S. I think what's troubling is that the tuning is unlikely to please fans of the Audeze house sound (LCD2/3), nor please people who prefer something more neutral, e.g. Paradox, HD600, HE-500, etc.
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