I received my LCD-2F after repairs this past Friday, since my right driver keeps cutting out. These are the most neutral version I have heard so far. The bass, although less dominant, goes really really low and is quite amazing on certain tracks when called for. I would not want for more bass here just to be clear, is is tighter sounding and very punchy and far from anemic. The mids are not as smooth any more, and I see why some folks raised concerns about this. It still has the characteristic Planar sound which is still smooth, but just less so. The upper mids and treble are a bit more pronounced, which I think is the reason for the reduced smoothness, but the highs are still far from sibilant. The sound, reading online reviews, is what I would expect from the LCD-X to be honest but I dunno. It sounds HiFi for sure, and noticeably more detailed than before I sent them in. I am hearing things I didnt hear before, but this is probably due to the slightly more pronounced highs and upper mids. Another effect of this is an apparently clearer and open signature, apparently bigger soundstage, with apparently better imaging because the sound is better separeted, complex passages that sounded congested before now sound less so, and it is easier to pin point background cues now. I am a bit of a detail-head so I am pleased with what I am hearing so far with a now a more balanced sounding headphone, but yeah, the sound is certainly far from the buttery smooth headphones people have come to expect from Audeze.
Run with Optical -> Schiit Bimby -> Matrix M-stage HPA 3B w/ 4xLME49710HA opamps