Audeze LCD2C Measurements and Impressions

Discussion in 'Headphone Measurements' started by purr1n, Dec 18, 2017.

  1. Monstieur

    Monstieur New

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    I just got the LCD2C and am using them with a FiiO Q1. At 70 omhs and 101 dB / mW it should sustain 115 dB with 25.17 mw (1.33 V x 19 mA).

    The Q1 can supply over 75 mW at 150 ohms so it should be have plenty of headroom. Has anyone tried it with a much more powerful amp (say 500 mW at 70 ohms)? I can't imagine it will make a difference since I only listen at 63 dB SPL (calibrated to 75 dB SPL pink noise at -30 dbFS).

    I'm using them with the Audeze Reveal plugin and Loudness correction in Equalizer APO. The Reveal plugin makes them sound like my Shure SE846 and MultEQ XT32 calibrated speakers. I don't like the stock frequency response.

    [​IMG]
     
    Last edited: May 21, 2018
  2. HAL9000

    HAL9000 Almost "Made"

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  3. HAL9000

    HAL9000 Almost "Made"

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    Just got the Dekoni velour (=Audeze vegan) pads in the mail (that was fast!). Very nicely made. And, as @Hands discovered, they make the 2Cs sound much, much better.
     
    Last edited: Jun 11, 2018
  4. M3NTAL

    M3NTAL Friend

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    I might need to get a set for @cskippy to measure. Velour is not the same as alcantara / ultra suede / micro fiber though. It is kind of a shame that they look more like the legacy pads than the new thinner pads. I actually prefer the new shape.
     
  5. HAL9000

    HAL9000 Almost "Made"

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    Even though Dekoni calls them velour, they are most definitely micro fiber...
     
  6. westermac

    westermac Friend

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    I recently scored a well-behaved pair of LCD-2 rev2 and finally understand why fazors were not loved by all... After having owned a number of fazor'd cans (LCD-2F, LCD-X, LCD-XC) this is the first Audeze I've owned with imaging and soundstage on par with the HD6X0 series, and the first Audeze I've ever heard with "air" and treble extension. It does still have the signature 3.5kHz dip, but the FR swing is at least 5db less than any of my previous LCD cans. I've EQ'd the 800Hz drop into a more gradual slope, and they sound pretty fantastic. It's great to hear an Audeze with some technical chops (bass aside) and no cavernous holes in FR. Glad they're coming back to their senses with the LCD2C.

    Also, the Magni 3 does really well with these. Certainly better than I expected.

    [​IMG]
     
  7. Kattefjaes

    Kattefjaes Mostly Harmless

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    Apart from that abyss at around 8KHz that fucks strings without buying them dinner, of course.
     
  8. westermac

    westermac Friend

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    Yeah, anyone who buys an LCD-2 for classical music is probably in for a bad time.

     
  9. M3NTAL

    M3NTAL Friend

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    @cskippy - can you update with the Elite Velour measurements when you have some time away from BF4 and 3D Printing headphone mods?
     
  10. cskippy

    cskippy Creamy warmpoo

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    Right, forgot about those. I'll update this post once I get home.
     
  11. cskippy

    cskippy Creamy warmpoo

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    Okay, here are the Dekoni Elite Velour pads vs stock Audeze pads on LCD2C:
    [​IMG]
    I really liked the sound of these pads on the LCD2C. It fixed most of my frequency response gripes and also doesn't seal quite as well, as you can see by some (minor) sub bass rolloff, but I appreciate the fact that they no longer create a vacuum seal on my ears. Tonally they are much improved, less shout with the 1.5kHz region knocked down a bit, and some nicely added midbass and smoothed out treble. These are good.

    Here is a link to my LCD2C stock pad measurements for comparison:
    https://www.superbestaudiofriends.o...ents-and-impressions.5556/page-11#post-187927

    Driver matching:
    [​IMG]
    Right Impulse Response:
    [​IMG]
    Right CSD:
    [​IMG]
    Left Impulse Response:
    [​IMG]
    Left CSD:
    [​IMG]
     
  12. Jerry

    Jerry Friend

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    @cskippy,

    Can we re-attach the stock pads after we take them off for months? Or do we need to buy another double-sided ring tape?
     
  13. cskippy

    cskippy Creamy warmpoo

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    @Jerry I had no problems using Vegan pads on my HE-6 and removing them without issue but make sure you press the adhesive against a cotton shirt about 5 times to take some of the stickiness away or you risk tearing the leather when removing the pads. There will still be enough adhesive residue to keep the pads on.

    The LCD2C that I measured was @M3NTAL 's pair and he didn't want to remove the pads as the adhesive rings provided by Dekoni were too strong and seemed like they would rip the pads.
     
  14. westermac

    westermac Friend

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    After seeing @cskippy's measurements I dug out a grungy pair of vegan pads that came as a bonus with my LCD-2 rev2 that I hadn't gotten around to trying yet. Oh hello, upper mids! Why the hell would Audeze discontinue these? They're more comfortable and they sound better.

    Never thought I'd see the day, but I guess I'm an animal rights activist now. When I get home I'm going to fire up the grill, sear a nice steak and write Audeze an angry email about the inhumanities of lambskin pads.
     
    Last edited: Jul 10, 2018
  15. westermac

    westermac Friend

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    Bought a pair of the Dekoni Elite Velour pads to compare with the Audeze vegan pads.

    Build quality is good as usual for Dekoni, not quite as impeccably sewn as the Audeze pads (but Audeze pretty much has big pads down to a science at this point). The upper memory foam layer of the Dekoni pads is definitely higher density than that Audeze pads, and has a bit less of that la-z-boy cushiness that's so nice about the vegans. Comfort is still good, and they still have enough give to accommodate the bespectacled, but it's a different feeling.

    It's worth noting that my Audeze pads are quite broken in, and were probably firmer when new, but in my experience memory foam doesn't break in over time as much as its more forgetful relatives.

    Sound-wise, the Dekoni pads strike me as being a bit brighter than the vegans (perhaps due to the higher density foam being less absorptive) particularly in the upper mids. Think Audeze vegan = HD650 and Dekoni Velour = HD600. Now, this isn't to say that the Dekoni pads turn the LCD-2 into a shouty, mid-centric headphone; far from it. The vegans just fill in the mids a bit more gently, whereas the Dekonis bring them out even further (and perhaps more closely to neutral).

    For my preferences the Dekoni pads are a better match, and bring in a good bit of the energy and engagement that is typically missing in the LCD-2.

    So now that I have a pair of worse for the wear vegan pads sitting around (many applications and removals over the years have not been kind to them), if @cskippy or anyone with measurement gear would like to see how well the Dekonis measure up (and fill in the vegan-sized hole Audeze left in the hearts of so many), just let me know and I'll mail them over.
     
  16. MF_Kitten

    MF_Kitten Banned per own request

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    I'd love to see these with Cascadia Impact pads. They are like Focus A pads, but much fatter. Like focus A Alpha pads. So well behaved non-peaky treble and mids, but qith lambskin around the outside that retains the air pressure a little better for sub lows.
     
  17. MF_Kitten

    MF_Kitten Banned per own request

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  18. Huhnkopf

    Huhnkopf Friend

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    Goodbye Audeze Reveal.

    I used to listen to the LCD-2C with reveal only as it evened out the gripes I have with these headphones, especially the various pits throughout the spectrum, be it in the very uneven treble course or the mids. This however glued the listening sessions to the PC. No reveal via the Allo DigiOne and Volumio. Thus I simply let them in their box as I couldn't be bothered to switch and click (Equalizer APO) between headphones and went off to new purgatory adventures, like bringing my old love back: the HE-500 (thanks cskippy).

    After installing the Dekoni Elite Velours I got the sound out of the LCD-2C the way I wanted. The treble course/curve has less deep canyons and pitfalls that simply suck out information and thus has a more "even" darkish slope.

    No more subdued upper mids, overall more clarity and openness. Now the bass is naturally (very) slightly lesser, might roll off earlier but it's a nothing imo. On the contrary, now it has more breathing room and feels less cramped/boxed in. The club moved from a small cellar to a more elegant loft.

    Imo Audeze should have released this headphone with the Vegans as default. Would get an easy Golden Schlong 2018 vote from me.

    Edit: fixed the text color
     
    Last edited: Nov 3, 2018
  19. Zed Bopp

    Zed Bopp Friend

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    Damn, that Dekoni Elite Velour might've been a cool one to try.... I just cannot with the tapes and all. My LCD-2.1 sound nice as is with updated fat Audeze leather pads. The originals had a huge leak and affected the bass lots. I think the fatter pads came stock on LCD-2.2.
     
  20. Negura

    Negura Friend

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    I had my LCD2C for a few days now.

    What I like:
    - these are much less dark than how I remember my old LCD2R2. It's been a while since I've been paying close attention to Audeze, but if their entire line-up sounds like this now, I don't think we can anymore talk about Audeze having a dark sound. It's just slightly dark due to some treble scooping, but high treble is actually present. The upside of the scooping they have is they're never sibilant and quite forgiving. And added bonus even Manowar or Led Zeppelin are listenable.
    - pretty fast and agile sounding. I suspect lighter driver.
    - stage sounds more open than old Audeze
    - that bass with great extension down to very low FR. Short of HE-6 and Abyss not many HPs can match this.
    - more resolving than old LCD2
    - very clean sounding
    - lots of sound quality for the UK current price of £599. Golden schlong contender imo. Normal people who just got into this hobby can get this headphone, delete/lose SBAF/HF account, be happy and spend their cash on other stuff.

    What I don't like:
    - The transient attack/impact is imo significantly lighter, a bit softer and less precise than how I remember the original pre-fazor Audeze. Definitely soft/light vs HE6 (not very surprising, most headphones are). These are yet another example of planars seemingly trying to emulate that Stax transient impact. Not quite as my OG HEK limp/soft, thankfully, and the LCD actually have better control.
    - Imaging/layering is not great. Somewhat diffuse.
    - treble scooping actually does not sound as bad in reality as FR would make it seem. I guess this is because the biggest scoop is quite localized, then the treble recovers. But yeah it is there.

    Boulder of salt warning on some of the comparisons to old Audeze. This is how I remember them from a couple of years ago, when I last owned LCD-3s, and even longer ago LCD-2.

    Audeze vegans:
    Since I had a pair of vegans on my HE-6, I applied these to the LCD2C. Findings:
    - some treble order is restored. No longer as scooped. This is more how it should be.
    - less seal and sub-bass starts cutting off within audible range. This makes them no longer as speciul sauce in the sub-bass and unfortunately robs them of the only area they excel at compared to almost any other headphones.
    - hit impact is reduced a bit. This is OK with HE-6s, because they are so exceptional on this point, and the HE-6 trebly nature resonates on almost any trace of leather/pleather, but I would not trade this further with LCD2C.

    Since I have my HE-6 as my main headphones, I prefer the LCD2C with the stock pads and would rather accept them as they are with both their strengths and weaknesses. After all they are sold at a certain price range. If they were my main or only pair of headphones I suppose I'd be more inclined to use vegan pads.

    I almost forgot. Did anyone try/measure them with the outer grills and foam removed? I quite like this. Seems to restore some precision on attack hits and treble sounds more open. Another thing to try is to cut-off the clothing inside the pads. That will likely have an impact on treble.

    More extreme modding ideas: What's with this silver grey metal mesh to the front and back of drivers. How difficult is it to remove it? My gut feel based on other experiments says this can affect imaging and focus.
     
    Last edited: Nov 4, 2018

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