Audez'e LCD-4 -- again -- anyone...?

Discussion in 'Headphones' started by MuppetFace, Nov 5, 2015.

  1. Rthomas

    Rthomas Friend

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    Hi Guys,

    In the interest of headphone science I sent my LCD4 (2019 Version) to Oratory1990 in Vienna to be measured.

    Here are the results:


    https://www.dropbox.com/s/nm18lctf4xwh7cg/Audeze LCD-4.pdf?dl=0



    Here are some of his thoughts:

    I have to say, in their stock form I am not a big fan of them. They are very smooth in the treble - too smooth for me, I am definitely missing energy mostly in the 4 kHz range. And the ever-present problem of Audeze headphones: too much energy in the 10 kHz+ range.

    I played around with EQ a lot and ended up with this setting:
    https://www.dropbox.com/s/nm18lctf4xwh7cg/Audeze LCD-4.pdf?dl=0
    This turns them on their head however - marvellous experience.



    I do like them a lot with the EQ - they have virtually no distortion so you can do almost anything with the EQ without having to fear an increase of THD. The HD800 is a bit limited in that regard, although the settings that I personally use (1 dB less bass boost than the Harman Target prescribes) make no trouble as the THD is still below the audibility threshold.

    If I had to decide between the 800S and the -4 (both being EQd) I'd go for the 800S for the following reasons:
    - less than half the price
    - lighter weight
    - more space for my ears (the audeze earpads just ever so slightly touch my pinna)
    - little difference in sound quality. Both have outstanding balance, immersion and "soundstage". The -4 is maybe slightly less harsh in the upper treble/air band - with EQ. Without EQ I find it to be severely unbalanced in that regard, way too much energy in the 10+ kHz band.
     
  2. Ishara

    Ishara New

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    Everyone saying the 4 is beaten by the Utopia in technicalities... does this hold true for the Stellia as well? Or is the slight gap between it and Utopia enough to put it behind?
     
  3. leftside

    leftside New

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    I have the LCD-4 and the Stellia - both purchased from the same dealer I know - and both listened to extensively before purchase.

    I prefer the LCD-4, as it has more depth and better bass and simply puts a smile on my face more often. No denying the Stellia is much more comfortable though, and my wife much prefers the Stellia. So why did I purchase the Stellia? It sounds great with all devices including my DAP that I use outside in the Spring and Summer. The clarity is outstanding. Others might prefer the Stellia depending upon their tastes. Sometimes I reach for the Stellia on my main rig after a hard day at work, and simply want a lighter sound compared to the LCD-4.

    Both are TOTL headphones. I also listened extensively to the Utopia from the same dealer. He was shocked when I said I preferred the Stellia to the Utopia - so perhaps it's just me :)
     
  4. spartacus

    spartacus New

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    the LCD-4 is highly underrated among the TOTL big boys....the abyss TC and Susvara are better but not by all that much and the LCD-4 does things the others dont and has a house sound that stands out and is an easy listen for many......
     
  5. Rthomas

    Rthomas Friend

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    Hi Guys,

    I've been listening to my LCD4 with the Harman EQ for the last 2 months and I have to say that it has won me over.

    All notes that follow refer to the headphone with EQ. I just think it sounds wrong without EQ :D

    Bass: Bass goes super deep and is well defined. Better than HD800S with EQ. I think the difference is due to the much thicker pads with sealed front volume.

    Treble and mids: Sounds about right with EQ.

    Detail: Detail on par with my HD800S. From what I can remember I think detail retrieval is as good as the Utopia and SR007 that I used to own. The blackground is very black (sorry can't think of a better way to describe it). Sounds like zero distortion with great clarity.

    Dynamics: Pretty damn good, not as good as I remember from the HD650 but close enough to the HD800S. For reference the most dead sounding headphone I have ever heard is the Aeon Closed (V1). This planar is nothing like that, thank God!

    Weight: The new suspension headband makes the weight bearable. I never forget that I have a sonic helmet on (Tyll's words) but when it sounds this good I'll put up with it. More comfortable than the Utopia for me. I much prefer suspension headbands to big thick padded ones for large heavy cans. Good enough for my usual length of listening sessions which never exceed 2 hours.

    Compared to HD800S with EQ: I want to keep only one and at the moment I'm leaning towards the Audeze due to the superior bass and slightly less bright and more weighty sound. There is a difference even though both are EQed to the Harman target. The HD800S probably has slightly more detailed treble and a more 3D soundstage which is why I can't bring myself to put it up for sale.

    The Audeze is a much better allrounder for less audiophiley music. HD800S does not sound as good for pop, rock and EDM.

    Conclusion:

    I've always dismissed Audeze due to their slightly DIY aesthetics and ergonomics not to mention their pricing but they've gained my respect with this headphone. Worth the $2250 I paid for them.
     
  6. MetalStef84

    MetalStef84 New

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    Since I had the chance to buy a used LCD4 (2019) with the chance to give it back at no cost, I had a jump on this and I am now listing to it from a couple of week. I had also the chance to meet a friend and compare to lcd2 and auteur.
    Preamble: not and audeze fanboy, had the lcd2c and sold for their too deaf sound. Focals are generally too hard on my ears (clear, stellia), I may have a super pinna, I dunno, but they kick too hard on the 1-3khz (especially with metal). Had a quite extensive session with the LCD4 at London canjam 2019, main takeaways was a detailed but dark HP, darker than LCD2C.
    (H)=Home setup: PC --> gungnir MB --> bryston bha-1; (F)=Friend setup: auralic aries --> gustard dac --> vio 281.
    Listen habits: mainly zmf aeolus through home chain.

    What struck me when I put the LCD4 on and turn on music, was the neutrality. Where's the dark tilt? For me, this is my subjective perfect take on neutrality. A bit too much high energy maybe, but narrow and track depending. This impression on the highs also faded during the days, maybe just got acquainted (even if I keep using the Aeolus).
    Also, they give me the impression of physical layers of music, like instruments are placed in space with a clear spot for each one. Clarity benefits of this too. Probably I'm repeating others here, so I'll better go off with some main differences between others headphones.

    (H) LCD4 VS Aeolus: restores the missing bite at 3-4kHz. Flatter, more details, better stage... less natural, differently engaging. Actually a good complement... Should I keep only one, it would be the Aeolus anyway.
    (F) LCD4 VS Auteur: Similar FR, a lot. Especially in those "highlighted highs". Just Auteur is overall softer, mellower. LCD4 wins for stage size a lot.
    (F) LCD4 VS LCD2 fazor: LCD4 is just "more of everything" of the positive things of LCD2.
    (H) LCD4 vs Clear (by memory): Clear could hit harder, but was too much. With LCD4 I can have a neutral sound with slam bite infinite bass etc without the hardness of Clear high mids and metallic timbre.

    Fun issue: the metallic grid reflect lights and having a windows on my left, I keep looking at what's moving on the wall... and it's the aforementioned reflection :/
    My appreciation to the LCD4 is for the balance at the end: neutral but still fun, detailed but not fatiguing, very technical yet musical.

    Personally: I don't know. At the end, I enjoy the Aeolus so much that it looks silly to buy a 3000€ range HP "as a complement to it". It's an exceptionally good HP for my ears, and yes I liked it more than utopia (from memory again, utopia was even more detailed but too bright/lean), but I keep putting the Aeolus on. However, LCD4 gave me few moments of audio bliss, especially caused by catching some guitar vibratos, or where tracks were recorded in a very saturated way (e.g. Fracture from Bleed from Within).
    Since Audeze stuff looks to be somehow randomly performing, I hope I contributed to the statistic :p
     
  7. mokobigbro

    mokobigbro Acquaintance

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    TOTL timeline:

    HD800S with HDVD800 - sold for LCD4 because I found a perfect synergy with goly.dk prototype headphone amp. It sounded like ATC scm110asl for me.

    Then I was tempted with the HD820 because I heard it at a trade show with the HDVD820 and it sounded so good. (This was the first mistake, not testing it at my home setup).

    I traded my LCD4 with the HD820. I quickly miss the LCD4 sound, even after a few days. So I told the dealer that if he ever find an LCD4, ring me up, and I'll trade it back again.
    After 3 months he found a good one, but with a dekoni lamb leather perforated pad. Close enough, but I'm missing the linear low end from the stock pad.

    Now I'm back with the LCD4 and I don't think I'll trade it anytime soon.

    PS: In the quest for the alternative, I've tried the lcd4 variations but I still find that the LCD4 sounded best.
    i am curious on the Raal and Hedd. I've tried Stellia and Diana as well.
     
  8. dubharmonic

    dubharmonic Friend

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    [​IMG]

    Out of the box, they seemed a bit muffled and dull. I agree with others that EQ is needed, and the drivers give no evidence of being stressed by it. I started with the Reveal plugin to help handle peaks and dips in the frequency response and then used a parametric EQ to bump up the upper mids and treble.

    [​IMG]

    Three things jumped out at me when comparing to other planars. They sound huge, need less of the volume knob, and they have what I can only describe as a black background. I've only heard others use his term with electronics. Sounds pop out to present themselves and then vanish into an inky void. Am I using this term correctly?

    The LCD-4 is so fun and non-fatiguing with house and drum n bass that I pushed the volume too far for too long, and need to fall back to the HD650 for a few days. I wasn't expecting to enjoy these quite so much!

    Also, thanks to @Bloom for great service!
     
    Last edited: Aug 13, 2020
  9. Rthomas

    Rthomas Friend

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    I think these were kind of dismissed at launch due to price, weight, stock tuning and Audeze's reliability issues. Totally understandable.

    I would be very interested in a Susvara Vs LCD4 shootout with EQ allowed.
     
  10. dubharmonic

    dubharmonic Friend

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    You're right @Rthomas , there are plenty of valid reasons to dismiss the LCD-4. There's no way they could ever be my only headphones.

    While I don't have a Susvara here, I have heard one, and I have an HE1000se, and an HE6se to compare to. All 3 are highly detailed and fast. The Audeze is heavy (both physically and sounding) and dark, the Hifimans are spry with sparkle. I haven't been able to EQ them to sound much like each other yet.
     
  11. Rthomas

    Rthomas Friend

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    https://www.dropbox.com/s/nm18lctf4xwh7cg/Audeze LCD-4.pdf?dl=0
     
  12. Rthomas

    Rthomas Friend

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    Can you try the EQ I just posted? Oratory measured my LCd4 to produce that.
     
  13. snatex

    snatex Facebook Friend

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    I was about to sell my LCD4 and then I tried the EQ posted above and now I am considering keeping them. I recently picked up a Hifiman Ananda and to be honest preferred the Amanda with no EQ. With EQ, so far I probably would give the edge to the LCD4 but there is not a huge gap. At a fraction of the price, the Ananda is definitely an incredible value. I’ve also been testing these with Qutest v Codex DAC and the Codex DAC/amp combo v Codex/V280 combo.
     
  14. snatex

    snatex Facebook Friend

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    Are the LCD4 still the king for you after EQ?
     
  15. dubharmonic

    dubharmonic Friend

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    It's a very different result, it looks like Oratory1990 EQ is shooting for the Harman curve. The Reveal plugin doesn't deviate nearly as much from the original tuning.
     
  16. Rthomas

    Rthomas Friend

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    Anybody have any news about an impending update to the LCD4?
     
  17. Mithrandir41

    Mithrandir41 Friend

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    An lcd-4 with actual upper mid-range would be amazing
     
  18. elwappo99

    elwappo99 Friend

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    I haven't seen anything posted yet, but I did notice an odd uptick in LCD-4 listed used in the last ~ 2 weeks :confused:
     
  19. penguins

    penguins Friend, formerly known as fp627

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    I've been curious about revisiting the LCD 2, 3, and 2 classic sometime this year as they're kind of silly in a very fun way with the Cavalli LC. Wouldn't mind putting it off until the updated 4 comes out and trying it while I'm trying the others. Will be done at Audeze HQ if possible / allowed so I know I'm getting the updated LCD4.

    Will share my thoughts if anyone is interested. I should note that I am not very familiar with the 4 - I've only heard it briefly 2x in the past and it wasn't quite for me either time.
     
  20. wbass

    wbass Friend

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    A question about LCD-4 variants: I've read through a big chunk of the thread, but didn't quite find what I'm looking for. Long shot, maybe, as I don't think the 4's are much repped on here.

    Most LCD-4s out in the wild now seem to have the felt or rubber (?) spacers. Is there any appreciable difference in SQ or frequency profile between these two? Or between these and OG model without spacers (but semi-common driver ruptures)?

    And are there any major (or minor) SQ difference between units that shipped with the blue-cable vs those with black-and-white braided cables?

    I ask, b/c I've heard two different LCD-4s--one with b&w braided cable, one with blue--and the first was a bass monster, the second fairly balanced in profile. I found the first pretty magical as basshead cans. The second maybe clearer but not quite so wonderfully thumping and textured down low.

    I believe both units had the felt spacers. I don't know if there was any difference in pads otherwise. The chains were different--McIntosh MHA150 for the b&w cable model, Ferrum Orr/Hypsos for the blue--but I can't imagine it would change the bass response so radically?

    Thanks!
     

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