Great review and different from other reviews I've read. I have the 2018 LCD-X, which sound great out the box, but they sound spectacular when used in conjunction with the program Soundworks True-Fi, which has LCD-X-specific preset EQ that achieves linearity. The midrange dip improves and the treble sounds magical. You could do the same by EQing it yourself.

LCD X is a masterpiece.

They are truly underapreciated. I tought about selling them... but each time I compared them to the Elex and TH610, the superiority of LCD-X was more than obvious especially in terms of their technical capabilities.

You definitely have to buy the new headband. I used to have the Audeze LCD-2v2 pre-fazor for about 5 years and for about 4 years I listened with the old headband. Like you, I felt this big discomfort on the top of my head after an hour or so.

Then I saw an ad on a canadian audio classified site for an used Audeze carbon fiber headband (same as the LCD-4) and I jumped on it.

WOW! What a difference! That headband completely changed the way and duration of time I listened to music. A much more pleasant experience. All Audeze headphones should comme with it.

But the best upgrade for my LCD-2 was changing the stock cable for OCC silver. That really opened up the stage and gave air and space between instruments. But the 2 were known as being darker and warmer than the X.

@Lappy27 thanks for the tips! I was looking at headbands this morning, nothing used out there right now, but the spring steel is almost half the price of the carbon fiber in the US. I'm thinking about going with that as it's the same design with the support outside of the leather, and that's what the newer LCD-X come with standard. If I'm going to upgrade anything else, next thing would be a balanced amp for me as I'm driving this off a Schiit Fulla 2 right now.

@qboogie also a good tip. I've seen some mention of a slight midrange dip, but I feel like they're detailed enough that I can work with that. I'd be afraid of boosting anything on this headphone because I sometimes work with them for 4-5 hours a day, and if any boost makes them more fatiguing to listen to then I can't work that long. I think most studio guys complain about having bad midrange in their systems, and that being fatiguing for them (on the speaker side because of crossovers and distortion). I don't want to end up there.

@Vaiet I could see how this headphone isn't as loved as other LCDs. It's a very flat, uncolored presentation. That's what I wanted, and I still didn't like it for the first few days. It's ruthlessly honest and may not make the best first impression, compared to warmer, more fun headphones. I think most headphones would struggle to compete with the X on their terms (the broad flatness and detail). I went straight to these because I like planars and I wanted a studio-class headphone, but I suspect well-driven HD800-S could give them a run for their money, especially with that soundstage and the dynamics everyone talks about. And then when you want to have fun... I mean I CAN enjoy these, and I do in a fun listening capacity, but I wouldn't recommend them first. Audeze has other headphones for that (which circles back to why I think these aren't as popular as the other LCDs).