Battle Of The Flagships (58 Headphones Compared)
Nov 23, 2012 at 5:07 PM Post #1,186 of 5,854
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UPDATE:
 
I have begun working on adding two headphones to this review.  Should be up no later than Xmas day:)

 
Which two? 
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Nov 23, 2012 at 5:23 PM Post #1,187 of 5,854
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I do not want to sound like a Audez'e fanboy (but I guess I have become already because the sound is so authentic that I cannot help myself)...
 
But the bass on Rev2 is extremely defined, accurate, TOTALLY NEUTRAL and fluent. The bass guitar you will get with rock and metal is simply stunning, live performances are also so real because of bass frequencies strongly influencing the overall ambience in the natural way.
 
Mids are very very nice, from pop rock to symphonic metal, male vocals sound extremely authentic and female vocals do not have any sense of glare (that's of course influenced by a bit lowered lower highs). They are also ruler-flat but I don't think there is any sort of WOW moment involved - just natural and defined. I can understand that someone could find them too full as they are not overpowered by overtreble as it is usual with the majority of phones.
 
I find the treble extraordinary good... The treble is the main reason why I am not interested in any other brand, Hifiman included. There so much texture involved! Does not matter if you like pop, rock or metal, the texture and balance is just... fenomenal. I personally do not understand how anyone can recommend Grado for metal. I would recommend Audeze for metal over anything I can ever imagine. It's a bit lowered in the region of 3 - 9 khz where it is desired with non-top-recorded music in order to get rid of distraction from audible artifacts in your music, and/or to keep the treble allright/not too forward/in balance with the rest of the frequency spectrum.
 
The phone works pretty well with acoustic-guitar based music as well... But I guess that for purely acoustic music listeners, there are phones that could do the job better (read - in a more exciting way) for them.
 
Transparency is what makes their sound to be very life-like... They do not sound like a pair of headphones to me, they are rather like a window to the room or hall where the music is being performed.
 
As I said before, soundstage seekers are not going to be satisfied... But I use TB Isone in order to get the speaker-like interpretation. For professional purposes, you have perfect bass and mids - you just need to correct the treble a bit according to the graph you receive. I would say a perfect pair of headphones for 1000USD.
 


Hm, maybe I'll need to give the LCD-2's another listen then with my own music CD's. Every time I've tried it, it's been hooked up to someone else's source. I do somewhat recall listening to the LCD-2 with Pink Floyd's "Another Brick in the Wall, Part 2" and wasn't impressed by it.
 
I posted my thoughts about it from a previous Head-Fi meet:
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The LCD-2 has a pretty closed-sounding soundstage for an open-back headphone, much unlike that of the SR-007 or the HD800. Listening to Pink Floyd's "Another Brick in the Wall (Part 2)" the kids' voices seemed very clustered and claustrophobic to my ears. Even with the SRH940, the voices seemed more realistic to my ears, having much more air between the people's voices. I think the oddly closed soundstage making vocals (male and female alike) seem congested is what I don't like about the LCD-2. Other than that, the bass and treble extensions seemed fine to me. That darn soundstage though...I just can't get over it. >.>

Again, I'm in the minority of people who don't like the LCD-2 so much so I'll have to give them another, close listen in a future meet with my own music.
 
Nov 23, 2012 at 6:07 PM Post #1,188 of 5,854
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Hm, maybe I'll need to give the LCD-2's another listen then with my own music CD's. Every time I've tried it, it's been hooked up to someone else's source. I do somewhat recall listening to the LCD-2 with Pink Floyd's "Another Brick in the Wall, Part 2" and wasn't impressed by it.
 
I posted my thoughts about it from a previous Head-Fi meet:
Again, I'm in the minority of people who don't like the LCD-2 so much so I'll have to give them another, close listen in a future meet with my own music.

 
I don't think you should feel like you're wrong or so... Everyone has different tastes, that's normal. Soundstage is not big but as I said before - I use TB Isone in order to let those fantastic phones be transformed into reality!
 
I have visited my 4 very good friends yesterday, and today, during the whole day, I let three of them to listen to my setup separately, without knowing each other's opinion. I was curious about their opinions...
 
All of them told my that my setup (including TB Isone) sounds better than a live concert! They, surprisingly, told me the same thing - that it's like you are there but do not hear any degradation that is natural to experience with live performances... They mentioned that you cannot feel completely the same as you don't see the artists and you are not there actually, but the sound is just so real!
 
I have to say - I agree with them... I feel like I don't need to visit gigs anymore!
 
My setup: JRiver MC18 (with TB Isone) --- O2 w/ ODAC --- LCD-2 rev2 (angled connectors)
 
Nov 23, 2012 at 8:54 PM Post #1,190 of 5,854
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OK,
 
So to me the LCDx brings attention to the bass region.  If neutral = free of coloration, by listening  the LCDx would be colored - no?   How can a headphone be considered not neutral if a bit of emphasis is tilted towards the treble and a different headphone is considered to be neutral with a clear emphasis tilted towards the bass?  Of course this is all by listening.

But when I use them to watch a movie and a real loud action scene kicks in and only the LCD-3s can replicate the bass from the explosions, one must conclude that they are neutral, no? Then there's the fact that the FR response is ruler flat and the 30Hz square wave response is the best square wave response there is....so one (or at least I) must conclude the bass they're hearing is in fact "true to the source" (speaking of the bass only here). 
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Nov 23, 2012 at 10:06 PM Post #1,191 of 5,854
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But when I use them to watch a movie and a real loud action scene kicks in and only the LCD-3s can replicate the bass from the explosions, one must conclude that they are neutral, no? Then there's the fact that the FR response is ruler flat and the 30Hz square wave response is the best square wave response there is....so one (or at least I) must conclude the bass they're hearing is in fact "true to the source" (speaking of the bass only here). 
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Yeah - but bass from movies and bass from music should be different - no?  One is meant to rumble while the other should be tight. If all I get is rumbling bass in music and movies then how is that neutral to music?
 
Did I say that right?
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Nov 23, 2012 at 10:09 PM Post #1,192 of 5,854
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Yeah - but bass from movies and bass from music should be different - no?  One is meant to rumble while the other should be tight. If all I get is rumbling bass in music and movies then how is that neutral to music?
 
Did I say that right?
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But it is different with the LCD-3s. Yes, its more prominent and bassier with the LCD-2s....but the flatness of the FR graph and square wave responses show that the drivers are outputing what they're given. At least that's how I read and hear it. 
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Nov 24, 2012 at 1:10 AM Post #1,195 of 5,854
I'm simply left flabbergasted at the length, thoroughness and thought given to this very comprehensive comparative review. I can't even begin to think about the time and notes you've jotted down to put observations/thoughts/feelings into words and compile them to provide a ranked list. I can't even rank beyond 1-2-3, everything else is very blurry.
 
Kudos to you on this wonderful read. Should be a reference point for many years to come and it will be interesting to see how this list evolves over time, as new products enter the market.
 
Nov 24, 2012 at 1:32 AM Post #1,196 of 5,854
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Heroic review, David.  My god.  I've been taking a break from Head-Fi for the past few months, and this was a treat to return to.  
 
Also funny how things change but remain the same:  Senn 600 with a decent dac/amp = incredible value.  JH13 with a good dac = incredible value.
 
My first thought was, kudos for having the chutzpah to make clear judgments - I'm sure he'll be crucified for this on the forum!  But kudos, none the less.  I think you strike an excellent balance between stating a solid opinion (rather than being pointlessly wishy-washy) and deliberately trying to enflame (without adequate investigation/comparison/sympathy.)
 
So again, congratulations and thanks!

Don't know why I missed this post.  From a fellow NYer nonetheless... who used the word "chutzpah" hahaha.  Thank you very much:)
 
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amazing!can't express my feelings

well, i know you've been a member of head-fi for a bit, but I'm honored for my thread to evoke your first post:)
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I'm simply left flabbergasted at the length, thoroughness and thought given to this very comprehensive comparative review. I can't even begin to think about the time and notes you've jotted down to put observations/thoughts/feelings into words and compile them to provide a ranked list. I can't even rank beyond 1-2-3, everything else is very blurry.
 
Kudos to you on this wonderful read. Should be a reference point for many years to come and it will be interesting to see how this list evolves over time, as new products enter the market.

Thanks!!!! Btw, you really like twizzlers eh? :)
 
Nov 24, 2012 at 6:36 AM Post #1,198 of 5,854
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But it is different with the LCD-3s. Yes, its more prominent and bassier with the LCD-2s....but the flatness of the FR graph and square wave responses show that the drivers are outputing what they're given. At least that's how I read and hear it. 
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I don't see flatness and neutrality in your frequency response graph in the bass and mids region...
 
 

 
 
Also, can you explain your view on "the 30Hz square wave response is the best square wave response there is"?
 
http://www.innerfidelity.com/images/AudezeLCD3Rev2sn2613375circa2012.pdf
 
(I really cannot see anything spectacular about 30 Hz wave of LCD-3... it's good, not the best evah)
 
I would say LCD-2 rev2 is much nearer to neutrality in bass, mids and treble as well... And measurements are the same, if not better with LCD-2 rev2.
 
 
 
 
 

 
 
http://www.innerfidelity.com/images/AudezeLCD2Rev2.pdf
 

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