[JKDJedi]

I'll be comparing both Monday, I have extensive ear time on the 560.

Read a great review on headfonia on the two compared.
https://www.headfonia.com/hifiman-he-560-xl-ortho/2/

 

[Voxata]

I wouldn't be so quick on this. The 560 is one hell of a headphone out of Bimby/Jot. The 2C has very stiff competition ahead especially considering the 560 is currently $350 at adorama.

LCD-2C over the 560 any day.

 

[lugnut]

I wouldn't be so quick on this. The 560 is one hell of a headphone out of Bimby/Jot. The 2C has very stiff competition ahead especially considering the 560 is currently $350 at adorama

I agree $350 was a great price ! However it seems that they are now sold out at Adorama.

 

[MusicalParadise]

I wouldn't be so quick on this. The 560 is one hell of a headphone out of Bimby/Jot. The 2C has very stiff competition ahead especially considering the 560 is currently $350 at adorama.

While it’s an okay headphone it doesnt match up to the LCD-2C. It’s also a lot more peaky, has treble ringing issues so it’s not for everyone where as the 2C is a lot more friendly to many. Depends on your taste. I think HE560 is more in line with AKGs, Oppo PM-1 and similar performing Headphones although I’d say in areas it best those phones and but I wouldn’t put it in the same level as the 2C, ZMF line, HD600 series etc.

 

[Taowolf51]

As far as which drivers it has and what are crystal infused nylon rings? O. o

It's marketing wank for glass infused nylon plastic. Think of it like fiberglass, but instead of resin, they use nylon (which is a higher quality plastic). It sounds a lot like Leona plastic, which the HD800 uses. If it is, it was a smart material choice.

Speaking of the 560, the reason I personally wouldn't buy one even for $350 (or recommend it to friends) is because of all of the bad customer experiences and build quality issues I've heard over the years. Don't get me wrong, Audeze has had plenty of QC and customer service issues over the years, but it doesn't hold a candle to the torrent of truly awful stories I've heard about Hifiman. On some audio forums it's just expected that a Hifiman headphone won't last a year without some part of it falling apart (which Hifiman will then make it as difficult as possible for you to get a warranty claim). Those stories have convinced me to never buy from Hifiman. And I'm sure some people here have owned their Hifimans for years, but the bad experiences I've seen from Hifiman make it a major outlier as far as headphone companies go, and it's a gamble I'm not willing to make.

 

[MusicalParadise]

It's marketing wank for glass infused nylon plastic. Think of it like fiberglass, but instead of resin, they use nylon (which is a higher quality plastic). It sounds a lot like Leona plastic, which the HD800 uses. If it is, it was a smart material choice.

Speaking of the 560, the reason I personally wouldn't buy one even for $350 (or recommend it to friends) is because of all of the bad customer experiences and build quality issues I've heard over the years. Don't get me wrong, Audeze has had plenty of QC and customer service issues over the years, but it doesn't hold a candle to the torrent of truly awful stories I've heard about Hifiman. On some audio forums it's just expected that a Hifiman headphone won't last a year without some part of it falling apart (which Hifiman will then make it as difficult as possible for you to get a warranty claim). Those stories have convinced me to never buy from Hifiman. And I'm sure some people here have owned their Hifimans for years, but the bad experiences I've seen from Hifiman make it a major outlier as far as headphone companies go, and it's a gamble I'm not willing to make.

To be fair Audeze is even worse it took them 8 years to stop their drivers failing and ever Headphone phone they’ve made has had a failure issue....their customer service is good sometimes sure.

 

[givemetacos]

That’s why they’re great compliments. The LCD-2C improves upon the HD600 series weakness which is clean bass, present sub bass, smoother overall timbre and the HD600 series picks up on the LCD-2Cs weakness which is vocal presence, treble smoothness and impact. I like to use the 2Cs mostly when I want everything to be away from me, they’re quite muted sounding so I find when you’re stressed they do a good job of not forcing the music on you of that makes sense. A great thing about the 2C is they’re more new listener friendly in that you can get most of their performance on a more budget friendly amp where as the HD800 and HD600 series need a much more expensive amp with good resolution and tonal qualities to perform good. I would argue if you like the 600 series type of sound and want to keep the great kids it would be better to put LCD-2C money into a better amp and it will perform better than the 2C overall minus the inherent weakness of bass but then again the LCD-2C is a different sounding headphone and not everyone feels comfortable spending lots on an amp.Vocals aren’t terrible on the 2C but they’re not great and I feel a lot of emotion is stripped away. Male voices sound okay but the highlight is the bass and mostly smooth timbre.

Seems from all the chatter so far that the LCD-2C is quite different to the 2016 2F. My aluminum 2F is neither muted nor restrained, and have ample treble energy, even on the warmer amps I like to use. Which is quite strange since I believe the 2C and latest 2F share the same drivers. Interesting.

In my experience with the 2016 LCD-2s I’ve had I found them the worst in terms of how they handle the human voice the timbre was way off. That said like all impressions YMMV and it’s possible the latest 2F made recently perform similar to the 2C.

I think @MusicalParadise is spot on. I've owned 2016 LCD-2F, HD600, and HD650 all at the same time and felt the same about vocal timbre on LCD-2F. But here's the thing, I could only notice it when switching back and forth with the Senns. If I only had LCD-2F and for the times I was listening to it exclusively, I never felt the voicals sounded off or recessed in any manner. In fact, vocals sounded quite nice and forward, and even more forward than all my other headphones at the time. In fact, I probably would have claimed that vocals were a strength of LCD-2F. But then ever time I went back and threw on the Senns it immediately came back to me and every time comparing the two, the Senns always felt more accurate and "right" in vocal presentation. It is one of those things that I wouldn't care if I never owned the Senns and I would have been perfectly content with LCD-2F, but after hearing that difference in vocals it could never escape the back of my mind and always psychologically kept messing with me to the point that I had to get rid of the LCD-2F. It is kind of stupid really, just a bit of nervosa, but that combined with my comfort complaints I had to do it.

@gLer - I ended up ordering the LCD2C so I will have those soon and I'll give you better comparisons to 2016 LCD-2F as well as how they all relate to Atticus. I'll also let you know how LCD2C does with R2R 11. The more I keep trying to listen to Atticus on R2R 11 the more I don't like the pairing. I do think it has to do with some warmth and congestion in the bass/low mids. It isn't terrible, but I notice it when switching back and forth between R2R 11 and Valhalla 2.

 

[franz12]

I think @MusicalParadise is spot on. I've owned 2016 LCD-2F, HD600, and HD650 all at the same time and felt the same about vocal timbre on LCD-2F. But here's the thing, I could only notice it when switching back and forth with the Senns. If I only had LCD-2F and for the times I was listening to it exclusively, I never felt the voicals sounded off or recessed in any manner. In fact, vocals sounded quite nice and forward, and even more forward than all my other headphones at the time. In fact, I probably would have claimed that vocals were a strength of LCD-2F. But then ever time I went back and threw on the Senns it immediately came back to me and every time comparing the two, the Senns always felt more accurate and "right" in vocal presentation. It is one of those things that I wouldn't care if I never owned the Senns and I would have been perfectly content with LCD-2F, but after hearing that difference in vocals it could never escape the back of my mind and always psychologically kept messing with me to the point that I had to get rid of the LCD-2F. It is kind of stupid really, just a bit of nervosa, but that combined with my comfort complaints I had to do it.

@gLer - I ended up ordering the LCD2C so I will have those soon and I'll give you better comparisons to 2016 LCD-2F as well as how they all relate to Atticus. I'll also let you know how LCD2C does with R2R 11. The more I keep trying to listen to Atticus on R2R 11 the more I don't like the pairing. I do think it has to do with some warmth and congestion in the bass/low mids. It isn't terrible, but I notice it when switching back and forth between R2R 11 and Valhalla 2.

Well said. Once you experience something better, it is hard to go back. It is sort of human nature, not a silly thing.

 

[gLer]

I think @MusicalParadise is spot on. I've owned 2016 LCD-2F, HD600, and HD650 all at the same time and felt the same about vocal timbre on LCD-2F. But here's the thing, I could only notice it when switching back and forth with the Senns. If I only had LCD-2F and for the times I was listening to it exclusively, I never felt the voicals sounded off or recessed in any manner. In fact, vocals sounded quite nice and forward, and even more forward than all my other headphones at the time. In fact, I probably would have claimed that vocals were a strength of LCD-2F. But then ever time I went back and threw on the Senns it immediately came back to me and every time comparing the two, the Senns always felt more accurate and "right" in vocal presentation. It is one of those things that I wouldn't care if I never owned the Senns and I would have been perfectly content with LCD-2F, but after hearing that difference in vocals it could never escape the back of my mind and always psychologically kept messing with me to the point that I had to get rid of the LCD-2F. It is kind of stupid really, just a bit of nervosa, but that combined with my comfort complaints I had to do it.

@gLer - I ended up ordering the LCD2C so I will have those soon and I'll give you better comparisons to 2016 LCD-2F as well as how they all relate to Atticus. I'll also let you know how LCD2C does with R2R 11. The more I keep trying to listen to Atticus on R2R 11 the more I don't like the pairing. I do think it has to do with some warmth and congestion in the bass/low mids. It isn't terrible, but I notice it when switching back and forth between R2R 11 and Valhalla 2.

Timely comments, as I've just taken delivery of my own R2R-11. I have a few issues with it (which I'll PM you about to stay on topic - even though this isn't exactly on topic either) but one of the things that have impressed me most so far is the synergy with my Atticus! I don't find it overly warm, in fact it's added more bass slam than I get from any of my other amps - OTL and balanced Matrix included. I posted elsewhere that I feel I'm lacking some of that visceral slam the Fostex TH-X00 spoiled me with. Well guess what, the R2R-11 just gave me a whole lot of that back. And it's done the same with the LCD-2F bass - extended it even further, with more texture and slam. I'm not sure if it's the DAC or the amp, but whichever it is, I'm loving it.

I'm also finding the R2R is incredibly powerful. It seems to be driving my LCD-2 easier - as in more effortlessly - than my fully balanced Matrix amp, which on paper has more power. Could be the impedance of the R2R-11 is a bit higher, or that it gives more current. I don't know. But whatever it is, this little guy is a powerhouse, and a clean powerhouse at that. Look forward to your impressions of the LCD-2C and comparisons with the Atticus.

 

[MusicalParadise]

Atticus has a localised mid bass hump and a dip in the low mids so it's not technically warm IMO but the wooden cups have a lot of reverb so it can sound that way a lot of parings could sound claustrophobic. I tend to find Atticus sounding that way sometimes after long binges with an open phone. Atticus is fantastic though and also a great compliment to the Classics.

 

[Voxata]

I've never had an issue with HFM. I've owned a good few from them too, perhaps I got lucky. $350 for a 560 is a total steal it scales well too. The 2C will have to impress once it arrives.

 

[wazzupi]

I've never had an issue with HFM. I've owned a good few from them too, perhaps I got lucky. $350 for a 560 is a total steal it scales well too. The 2C will have to impress once it arrives.

I got my order in for 350 but it's backordered im not sure if it will come back ?

 

[Voxata]

Mm, maybe.

 

[Jack-A]

 

[Mkoll]

Just got the LCD2C today. Very positive initial impressions, even with no burn in.

Good comfort and feel. Not too heavy, nice soft earpads that feel sweat resistant. Great headband design, no hotspot. Feels and looks premium: substantial, weighty, classic black theme.

Non fatiguing presentation overall. Just really engaging whilst remaining unoffensive---reminds me of HD600/650 in this regard. Few headphones have this quality, so this sets it apart.

Great bass and I mean great as in approaching TH-900 levels, which is amazing for an open can. It doesn't have the TH-900 rumble (nothing does, all things being equal) but it comes surprisingly close. Good accuracy and impact. Will have to burn in and listen more to get a better idea.

These feel like a keeper, even for $600 + shipping. But I have an HE-560 from Adorama deal on the way soon. I will compare, likely keeping one. The 2C are definitely worth a tryout, regardless.