[Lunatique]

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So are you keeping the LCD2. I like them and will be keeping mine. I also look forward to your comparison with the Stax. I heard the 02 and for me this LCD2 is much better IMO. I liked the Orpheus better than the 02 but not better than this planar. The bass is really special in these cans and tone is exceptional. Really enjoyed the last two weeks of listening.

 
You know, I actually agonized over this for a while. On one hand, it's a fine pair of cans, but on the other hand, that recess in the 2KHz~3KHz range is kind of a deal breaker since I'm very picky about frequency response neutrality. I mean, if I could breed the LCD-2 with the HD650 and get a hybrid, I'd be very happy, and I really thought that's what I'd get with the LCD-2 before I actually heard it.
 
The truth is, none of the headphones I own are ideal--they all have at least one major issue. I couldn't trust any of them to make critical audio production decision with, as they all need some EQ to sound more neutral. The HD650's sub-bass is not authoritative enough. The M50 has this metallic emphasis in the treble and its bass could be tighter, and the D7000 has more than one major issue so I'm selling it for sure. Out of all of them, I'd say the LCD-2 requires the least amount of EQ'ing--it s really just a simple 3dB boost with a wide bandwidth between 2KHz and 3KHz, and that's it. With the HD650, I'd have to do a pretty dramatic boost in the sub-bass region to give it the authoritative bass it needs. I don't even bother EQ'ing the M50 since it's issues are not so simple and would require too much tweaking to address. The D7000 is kind of like that too but less complicated since it's easier to pinpoint the exact problems it has (which require 3 EQ bands to address).
 
I'm holding on to all the others for now (including the LCD-2), until I find that magical pair of cans that does everything right to my ears. I know that even the Stax flagship rig has its own issues, but because it sounds so damn compelling that I don't even really mind them. I certainly don't think it's perfectly neutral or the most accurate, but it's the most musical and immersive headphones I've ever heard. Maybe one day I'll find that ideal pair, but for now, I'm still searching, and even after I add the Stax rig to my studio I'll still go on searching because I know the Stax isn't perfectly neutral.
 

 

 

[Frank I]

One thing I have learned is that there is no perfect in high end. What I like about the LCD2 is the natural and very organic and transparent sound it presents. They are very easy to listen too. I enjoy the musicality and vocals are truly the best I have ever heard in a headphone. The bass also is quite special, I stopped analyzing and now enjoy each of my headphones for what they do well and just listen to the music but then again I am not producing recordings just enjoying them. Best Wishes Lunatique in your continued quest and it will fun in the journey for sure.

 

[oqvist]

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I'm thinking of ordering a cable from Drew that would end in a single XLR but with a pigtail for dual-XLR for balanced use when I get balanced amps in here for review AND a pigtail for use with speaker amps.

Isn´t your ALO cable satisfactory?
I am a bit tempted as well. btw do Audeze sell their cable separately?

 

[Skylab]

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Isn´t your ALO cable satisfactory?
I am a bit tempted as well. btw do Audeze sell their cable separately?

The ALO cable is terrific.  But it's terminated in 1/4.  I am thinking of a different, cheaper, and LIGHTER cable to have as well, for using the LCD-2 in other configurations.

 

[Equus]

LOL...ya know, having met someone who forged chain mail as a side business and having briefly experienced the ALO v2 cable, the "chain mail" moniker is appropriate.  I'm still considering a set myself, since I actually listen to the LCD-2 on my bedside rig most of the time, and am also lying down most of the time I listen to them.  I should be able to get an extensive audition of the cables this weekend.  Happy days!

 

[Solude]

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Wouldn't pink noise be a better choice, and minimum 80dB?

73dB was chosen because its a notch on the KGSS.  I find 73dB loud, no way I would run a review at 80dB+ using white noise, music tends to be louder.  For what its worth, the LCD-2 and O2 lined up dB for dB on white/pink/brown noise just at different levels.  White was 73dB, pink 67dB, brown I forget ~ 63dB maybe.  My normal listening level is likely in the 60dB range.
 
Now I need to go on the hunt for a replacement cable and maybe another amp.  Tubes likely just to play around.

 

[SillyHoney]

Have anyone tried DacMagic with LCD-2?
 
I'm listening to DacMagic (USB port) - Schiit Asgard - LCD-2 for about 20 mins so far. It seems not to have good synergy. The music sounds... dull

Both lower end and higher end are rolled off

 
I think I prefer my uDac-2 as a source. Don't know if my brain will adapt to DacMagic sounding.

 

[SP Wild]

I own the Dacmagic and have been whining about how poor they were the day I tried them with the LCD2.  Funny that, it took the LCD2 to show me the true difference between a hi-end dac and an entry level one.  I'd never recommend the Dacmagic to anyone that owns a top level can - T1/LCD2/D7000/HD800 etc.

 

[SillyHoney]

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I own the Dacmagic and have been whining about how poor they were the day I tried them with the LCD2.  Funny that, it took the LCD2 to show me the true difference between a hi-end dac and an entry level one.  I'd never recommend the Dacmagic to anyone that owns a top level can - T1/LCD2/D7000/HD800 etc.

Problem is I find my uDac-2, which has built-in amp and cost 1/3 price of DacMagic, sound better than DacMagic

 
However both the Schiit and the DacMagic are new to me (less than 10 hours for both) so I think I will give 'em a few days.

 

[K_19]

Perhaps try the coax or optical inputs instead of the USB and see if it is any different?  I know for a lot of DACs in that price range the USB implementation is said to be less than stellar. 
 
Maybe try computer -> uDAC-2 as SPDIF converter -> Dacmagic coax -> Asgard -> LCD-2 first and see how it is.

 

[grokit]

 
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I'm thinking of ordering a cable from Drew that would end in a single XLR but with a pigtail for dual-XLR for balanced use when I get balanced amps in here for review AND a pigtail for use with speaker amps.

Its challenging to match this stuff up sometimes. I am getting a 4-pin to speaker terminal adapter made, to add to a couple of 4-pin to TRS adapters, a 4 foot 4-pin to dual 3-pin adapter, a 4-pin to mini adapter, and I still don't have a dual 3-pin to mini, 1/4", or 4-pin... 

 
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Problem is I find my uDac-2, which has built-in amp and cost 1/3 price of DacMagic, sound better than DacMagic

 
However both the Schiit and the DacMagic are new to me (less than 10 hours for both) so I think I will give 'em a few days.

 
Quote:

Perhaps try the coax or optical inputs instead of the USB and see if it is any different?  I know for a lot of DACs in that price range the USB implementation is said to be less than stellar. 
 
Maybe try computer -> uDAC-2 as SPDIF converter -> Dacmagic coax -> Asgard -> LCD-2 first and see how it is.

I did some comparing with similar setups. I compared the uDac2 coaxial output to the toslink output direct from my Mac Pro into a Bel Canto DAC2, and surprisingly preferred the toslink. Then I compared the toslink to the coaxial output of a Firestone Bravo converter, and I couldn't hear any difference between the two. I do like my uDac, but prefer using it as a portable laptop headphone amp/dac to a s/pdif converter or even as a line out. So I am just suggesting that if you have a decent optical signal available, get a glass cable and compare it with the uDac's coaxial output. IMO you would need to step up from the uDac quite a bit to get a better signal into your DAC than toslink. And yes, both forms of s/pdif may be better than the USB implementation in your DacMagic.

 

[YoungAudiophile]

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I own the Dacmagic and have been whining about how poor they were the day I tried them with the LCD2.  Funny that, it took the LCD2 to show me the true difference between a hi-end dac and an entry level one.  I'd never recommend the Dacmagic to anyone that owns a top level can - T1/LCD2/D7000/HD800 etc.

Ever tried the Benchmark DAC1?
You can't get a much better DAC for it's price if any better at all.
It's the only audio equipment that I bought without first listening to it, but I'm glad I did.
Everything that's been said about it has been nothing but praise.
It's probably not a DAC that's going to be enjoyed by everyone, but it can't be denied the fact that it is neutral and also incredibly revealing.

 

[FauDrei]

Ever tried the Benchmark DAC1?
You can't get a much better DAC for it's price if any better at all.

 
Oh, please enbrighten us and enharshen us about your Benchmark. 

 

[Currawong]

Lunatique: you should talk to the ortho guys about adjusting the internal damping to change the FR.

Skylab: I have the same pigtail. It's very handy. Definitely a good plan.

As for the Benchmark DAC1, it sounds good until you compare it to a good vintage DAC after which it sounds thin and harsh. There are also quite a number of DACs available new now that sound far better for less money.

 

[YoungAudiophile]

 
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Oh, please enbrighten us and enharshen us about your Benchmark. 

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As for the Benchmark DAC1, it sounds good until you compare it to a good vintage DAC after which it sounds thin and harsh. There are also quite a number of DACs available new now that sound far better for less money.

The Dac1 is never harsh in my opinion, if anything, it's because the headphones/speakers you're using it together with has a hump in its frequency response within the treble range.
If you mean harsh in the fatiguing sense, it's because it's revealing to you the dynamics that you're not used to listening to, which alot of people consider to be a 'digital sound'.
Tell me what headphones you're using it with or was and I'll see if I can prove you wrong lol
 
- Currowong
You described it as thin, you're hearing a DAC with a quick decay/transcient with less ambience therefore giving you better seperation between instruments when playing a song which people perceive to be 'less musical' - a coloured sound which you obviously prefer but not neccessarily better technically speaking. In music production, it's called reverb.
Also, give me a few DAC's that you know of that that is more accurate in sound without it costing x3 more.