[gLer]

Oh man... i think i want to cry right now. My classic, beautiful LCD-2's are dead.... at least the left driver is. I checked my source, swapped cables, but for whatever reason, my left driver just stopped working.Even worse, i dont even transport these around; they sit on my work desk on a stand.

So, since i know this is common, what is the current situation for repairing (now that they released the "classic" model). I really love the current sound.. sigh. Not to mention, i don't really have the money to afford servicing..
Damn this blows...

That really sucks! So sorry to hear it. May I ask which version were yours, and how long you’ve had them? Were you the first owner? Any warning signs - crinkle noises and such?

I wonder if it’s a single driver failure how much Audeze would charge to repair it, especially since it’s a known risk with these drivers. One would hope if it’s a frequent repair occurrence, they’d have a special policy (and price) for driver failure repairs/replacements.

 

[Madcat207]

That really sucks! So sorry to hear it. May I ask which version were yours, and how long you’ve had them? Were you the first owner? Any warning signs - crinkle noises and such?

I wonder if it’s a single driver failure how much Audeze would charge to repair it, especially since it’s a known risk with these drivers. One would hope if it’s a frequent repair occurrence, they’d have a special policy (and price) for driver failure repairs/replacements.

I am a second owner, had them more than a year; i am horrible with revisions, but i can describe em - downward connectors, metal headband with exposed foam. They look like 2.1 when googled, just with the original band.
And no, no warning at all. In fact, they worked fine for the first part of the day, and after coming back from lunch.. just no audio from the left cup. I swapped cables, and made sure it wasn't my computer.

As much as i love them, i will have to see what an estimate will come to. I have a set of i10s as well, and HD650s, so i am in no rush. I just wish they had lasted longer....

 

[PinkyPowers]

That's a real bummer. Sorry to hear. I dread the day mine stop working.

 

[Kad]

I was a pretty early adopter of the monolithic LCD-2s and crowed their praises.
I adored their sound signature. I still do. Their impact and decay are just gorgeous and they are a brilliant all-rounder.
But six years ago they broke for the first time.
And nine months ago they broke for the seventh time.
Each breakage has been a single ear failure for some reason or another.
Because I live in Australia each RMA has meant at least month in repair. These RMAs culminated in their complete replacement as I had convinced myself that it was wood-warp breaking them and to go with an offered bamboo option instead. This replacement pair has now broken multiple times to crush all but the last vestiges of hope.
Their customer service has been exceptional and in most of these cases Audeze paid the shipping, not this seventh though.
For nine months I have wrestled with whether to send them away for repair again.
It seems inevitable that whatever they do I'd be sending them off again within a year. To me they have been Persephone and it's been winter far too often. I cannot logically justify supporting their jet-setting lifestyle any longer when I could be putting the ever rising shipping cost towards something that will continue to work. I'd love any suggestions on what to audition. I listen to pretty much everything but modern pop and all the cans I've tried have felt lacking somewhere. Honestly, I feel miserable about the whole thing.

 

[DavidA]

@Kad , were the drivers replaced with the most current version every time they were sent in for repair? So if you had them repaired 9 months ago they would have the 2016 Fazor drivers in them versus the older 2.1 or 2.2 drivers, is this correct or do they replace a 2.2 driver with a like version 2.2 driver?

I'm curious since I really like the sound of my original 2014 Fazor and was wondering if the drivers would be replaced with the latest version if I ever had a driver fail on me.

 

[Kad]

Well, because they've been sent away so frequently I'm not sure I ever got a complete grasp of their initial characteristic. It seemed to me they sounded a little worse each time, but it could easily have been a developing negative association or adaptation to their sound signature as normal, rather than exceptional as it is. Other open headphones I audition now tend to leave me unimpressed and I'm only running IEMs for the moment which I think of as good for IEMs with a touch of 'what can you do' apathy.

 

[DavidA]

Well, because they've been sent away so frequently I'm not sure I ever got a complete grasp of their initial characteristic. It seemed to me they sounded a little worse each time, but it could easily have been a developing negative association or adaptation to their sound signature as normal, rather than exceptional as it is. Other open headphones I audition now tend to leave me unimpressed and I'm only running IEMs for the moment which I think of as good for IEMs with a touch of 'what can you do' apathy.

Thanks for the reply and i guess like an old sports car you get to know your mechanic very well.

My suggestions for a LCD-2 replacement:
M1060, while I've heard them they didn't impress me and sounded dull and lifeless but there are some who love them and say its a poor mans LCD-2 (so many different impressions give the appearance of QC issues)

DIY Ypsilon G1 driver build (around $350 to $450 for parts), great bass that to most of my friends is better than my LCD-2f but can be slightly bright for some:

While they may look like a Grado they sound nothing like them.

Some have mentioned the new AR-H1 but I've never heard it yet ($600).

MassDrop HE4XX ($170) but haven't heard it either.

Hope these suggestions help and other also provide alternatives

 

[GarageBoy]

Picked up an lcd2f aluminum... Hoping to get a deckard soon to see what the fuss is about. Box was resealed with packaging tape, but the plastic was still on the headband. Hopefully, it's the only time it'll be in it's travel case!

 

[tglove]

hey guys, im tempted to jump in on the LCD2.1 bandwagon here despite the obvious driver failure issue...i must be a born gambler!

anyway if someone has a 2.1 to sell pm me.....

 

[Mr H]

is there anything to do to prevent the eventual death of the drivers?

 

[paradoxper]

Audez'e getting their schiit together and if not, extreme luck.

 

[maheeinfy]

Just bought a new pair of LCD-2s and an Audeze Deckard. My regular desk-top amp is an M9xx which I believe has plenty of power for the LCDs, so I'll see whether I prefer the sound of the Deckard.
The LCDs came with the new braided cable.

Audeze changed the stock cable on lcd2?

 

[SRKRAM]

My aluminum LCD-2F 2016's arrived a few days ago, and they were packed in with what seems to be the new cable. At least, it is no longer the ribbon cable, but a braided one that I've seen in an unboxing of the 2017 LCD-2's. I have never had a chance to use or manipulate the flat cable, so I cannot compare the two. However, here are my thoughts on this one, along with some pictures. Hopefully, this isn't all old news.

The cable is very supple and flexible for a braided cable this thick. It will easily make a turn tight enough to wrap a finger and, as the pictures show, piles up nice and neat. There does seem to be direction the cable, meaning that it curls one way more easily than the other, but otherwise it has no memory effect. The plugs are very sturdy and metal on the 6.3mm end and for the splitter. Lots of strain relief on that end as well. Overall, I'm very pleased with its quality, though I really would have preferred it in matte black to match the headphones themselves better. The glossy black makes the cable look a little cheap.

Audeze changed the stock cable on lcd2?

Seems so. I quoted a post from just before mine where somebody else also received a braided cable. There's also an unboxing on youtube where you can see the braided cable:

These are all from November, and I bought mine in November. Audeze told me that mine were manufactured in October 2017, so they probably switched over to the braided cable in production at around that time.

-Mark.

 

[Lohb]

Anyone with a new carbon headband that has the original old leather headband for sale PM me please.

 

[SRKRAM]

I just weighed my LCD-2s which I bought in November, and were manufactured in October 2017. Without cable they weigh 618g. In Aornic's review the weight of the Bamboo (which is what I have) is given as 490g.
http://aornic.com/reviews/2017/4/12/audeze-lcd-2

Anybody else weighed their LCDs?