[Pirakaphile]

Not my list, the article is another writer but I'll pass on your kind words.

Still, google's been failing me in the search for affordable cable companies. 

 

[warrenpchi]

In the final and simplest analysis, I go by what my friend @obobskivich once told me:  "if it sounds good, it is good."

 

[Pirakaphile]

  In the final and simplest analysis, I go by what my friend @obobskivich once told me:  "if it sounds good, it is good."

But what if it doesn't sound good? THEN WHAT? ... Oh yeah.

 

[warrenpchi]

 

  In the final and simplest analysis, I go by what my friend @obobskivich once told me:  "if it sounds good, it is good."

 
But what if it doesn't sound good? THEN WHAT? ... Oh yeah.

 
I have an O2, so I've since come up with a consolation saying as a corollary to obobs's rule:  "well, at least it measures well."

 

[MattTCG]

  In the final and simplest analysis, I go by what my friend @obobskivich once told me:  "if it sounds good, it is good."

THIS!! It doesn't how many headphones I've heard and compared or how many reviews I've written or how many measurements that I've taken. My perfect is likely different from your perfect. My ears, age, hearing abilities are likely different than the next guys. If an o2 sounds are good as a Liquid Fire...you're a lucky guy, enjoy. 

 

[hemtmaker]

Does anyone know whether balanced out can be used with a single-ended input, you know like the SR71B?
 
Cheers

 

[runeight]

SE input to the RCA jacks gives balanced output.

 

[DigitalFreak]

You should be in for a treat then. For me the LCD-3F is the perfect Audeze (falls somewhere between the more "neutral" LCD-X and the more colored LCD-3C IMO) , but it sounds like you need some rest first before breaking out the big guns!

Well darko, when you're right you're right, the LCD-3F is sonically a nice update from the LCD-3C. Very nice bass and the mids are nicely open and detailed. Right now I'm ranking the headphones on the Ether as follows
Ether/LCD-3F (in a dog fight)
LCD-X
Paradox
Hifiman HE-400i
AKG K712
 
Should be interesting once I get my balanced cable for the HE-400i in from ALO. Then I can do some real A/Bing ont he differences

 

[lukeap69]

It's a shame HD800 is not included in your review materials.

 

[Stillhart]

It's a shame HD800 is not included in your review materials.

 
It's a common enough headphone, I'm sure we'll be reading feedback on it before too long.

 

[DigitalFreak]

It's a shame HD800 is not included in your review materials.

I'm sorry bud, I had a friend message me and offer his HD800 for comparison but I had to decline. I'm already swamped with all these headphones and I only have so much time with everything

 

[goldendarko]

Well darko, when you're right you're right, the LCD-3F is sonically a nice update from the LCD-3C. Very nice bass and the mids are nicely open and detailed. Right now I'm ranking the headphones on the Ether as follows
Ether/LCD-3F (in a dog fight)
LCD-X
Paradox
Hifiman HE-400i
AKG K712
 
Should be interesting once I get my balanced cable for the HE-400i in from ALO. Then I can do some real A/Bing ont he differences

 


Were your LCD-3F's already broken in or are they brand new? I noticed improvements after a few hours of use, they seem much more euphonic to me now compared to when I first got them.

 

[AlanU]

  THIS!! It doesn't how many headphones I've heard and compared or how many reviews I've written or how many measurements that I've taken. My perfect is likely different from your perfect. My ears, age, hearing abilities are likely different than the next guys. If an o2 sounds are good as a Liquid Fire...you're a lucky guy, enjoy. 

 
There's many ways to skin a  cat. Some prefer to add pleasant distortion/overtones to the source (tube dac or tube preamp)  and have solid state amplification. Amplifiers can be cool/neutral/warm depending on design.
 
Having a 9018 sabre dac will very likely be highly detailed and far from being laid back. However running that through a tube system you may have a great musical machine or if your solid state amp is on the warm side.
 
Running my burson da160 dac and tube buffer with black treasure tubes manipulates the source to a very organic analog sound that is extremely natural. Using my 02 amp and swapping to my Burson Virtuoso I'll have to say the manipulated source provides excellent enjoyable music. i was quite shocked how both were extremely enjoyable with similar sound.
 
Running my spacetech labs tube dac I can roll a huge amount of different buffer tubes and whatever amp I use with my hd800's the sound is extremely analog.
 
If we were discussing tube amplifiers this is where the difference in power tubes can be a drastic SQ change. This is where "house sound" is not really something recongnizable if your talking tube amps.  Solid state amps theres definitely a difference but no where near as drastic imo.

 

[joeexp]

Very dangerous game you are playing!

Covering the sound of the hyper sabre dac with warm tube influence!

 

[DigitalFreak]

Actually tube rolling is quite fun.