[betula]

Its not about price. Its implementation. At the end of the day, even a 10,000 pound, euro, or dollar whatever delta sigma dac is still a delta sigma dac. The platform just cannot compete with proper r2r for organic natural sound, and that’s especially true when price matching. Spend the same money on a good r2r as you did on the qutest and enter a whole new world.

I have only tried entry level r2r DACs so I can't really comment on this from personal experience, but I remembered Rob Watt's comment in another thread that might be relevant. (I preferred Mojo as a DAC vs. Modi multibit.)

"Having emphasised the problems with delta-sigma or noise shaping you may think its better to use R2R DAC's instead. But they too have considerable timing errors too; making the timing of signals code independent is impossible. Also they have considerable low level non linearity problems too as its impossible to match the resistor values - much worse than DSD even - so again we are stuck with poor depth, perception of timing and timbre. Not only that they suffer from substantial noise floor modulation, giving a forced hard aggressive edge to them. Some listeners prefer that, and I won't argue with somebody else's taste - whatever works for you. But its not real and it not the sound I hear with live un-amplified instruments."

I am not a Chord advocate, so I stop here, especially for this is going very off topic. I am just impressed by Chord sound and wanted to spread some joy.
Rob might be right and it comes down to a preferred type of sound with the r2r DACs. I am curious though to try some higher-end r2r DAC now.

I disagree completely, Betula. But i'm used to hearing things like this from Chord fans. I also fell into the hype.

The nature of hype is that it subsides after a while. Chord is on an incredible rise for quite a good number of years now and there don't seem to be an end of it.

Sorry, back to the LCD2C.

 

[xRaptorxPunisher]

Sure I'm with you about the old LCD2, never found the new LCD2 or LCD3 (except the first non fazor version) being better.. There is really something unique about the old LCD2. The only benefits of the 2C is the speed which is a bit better on the C and the weight (but it doesn't boter me on the rev2).
However after comparing with new LCD2, LCDX and LCD3 I had the impressionthat I would have the same conclusion with the LCD4, or maybe a bit better. But for me the LCD4 was two times better than my LCD2rev2. which is not completely irrational. At that level paying several times the price is often bringing a marginal gain, it wasn't the case here.

Yeah I do find the classic a bit snappier, faster. I find though that it makes them leaner, less lush. I don’t find the classic warm at all, it’s a more responsive HE-500 without the large peaks and lush tone to me. I wish Audeze could find a way to smooth the treble out though it’s prickily, has so many dips it sounds rough despite being dark.

 

[nicholars]

Yeah I do find the classic a bit snappier, faster. I find though that it makes them leaner, less lush. I don’t find the classic warm at all, it’s a more responsive HE-500 without the large peaks and lush tone to me. I wish Audeze could find a way to smooth the treble out though it’s prickily, has so many dips it sounds rough despite being dark.

How come you still use the 2C, when you have the other HP's in your sig?

 

[xRaptorxPunisher]

How come you still use the 2C, when you have the other HP's in your sig?

The 2C I use mainly at my other place I live and I spent more time there lately so it gets quite a lot of use, it lives with my HD650.

LCD-2C for bass, some snappy listen and HD650 for everything else so they both have their uses.

 

[chimney189]

I ended up selling the LCD-2C because of weird spikes in the treble .. which really confuses me.

 

[WildStyle-R11]

Yeah I do find the classic a bit snappier, faster. I find though that it makes them leaner, less lush. I don’t find the classic warm at all, it’s a more responsive HE-500 without the large peaks and lush tone to me. I wish Audeze could find a way to smooth the treble out though it’s prickily, has so many dips it sounds rough despite being dark.

I was afraid of the 2C being too dark and too lush, before I bought it. I am fatigued by treble, but at the same time I like to have that sparkle up top. And the 2C strikes an odd balance there.

I ended up selling the LCD-2C because of weird spikes in the treble .. which really confuses me.

I was confused by it at first, but got quite comfortable with it, since I could listen to, not bright, but sparkly treble without being fatigued by it. But I can understand why someone would sell it for that same reason.

 

[blackdragon87]

I was afraid of the 2C being too dark and too lush, before I bought it. I am fatigued by treble, but at the same time I like to have that sparkle up top. And the 2C strikes an odd balance there.



I was confused by it at first, but got quite comfortable with it, since I could listen to, not bright, but sparkly treble without being fatigued by it. But I can understand why someone would sell it for that same reason.

i would tend to agree, that is why i really like this headphone

 

[TheStalker79]

My 2Cs turned up today. Now I wouldn't class myself as a true audiophile. I just know if I like how something sounds. Couldn't tell you much about roll-off or kHz etc. So my opinion is based purely on what my ears hear.

Compared to my HD660s, the bass from the 2Cs is much improved. I listen mostly to EDM, particularly the darker stuff like Dubstep and techno and all the other sub-genres which I can't name. Basically, if it has decent sub bass, that's my preferred music. The 2Cs blow the 660s away in this regard. Nothing you haven't all heard before in this thread.

I can't really detect the reported treble roll off. Maybe my ears or music choice don't pick that out. The treble seems fine to me. Nicely detailed to these 40 year old ears. Mids are also good. What has surprised me is how good the sound stage is. The 660s have a great sound stage. It's kind of their signature. The 2Cs sound just as good to me. Nice and wide.

I'm terms of comfort, I've only really had a couple of hours with them so maybe too early to comment fully, but so far so good.

Now I'm running the 2Cs and the 660s off a Fiio M9 DAP so not the best running gear, but for a portable set up it works well for me. Maybe with better kit, I'd tell more of a difference, highlighting weaknesses and strengths between the two cans. But my set up needs to be portable as that's how I consume music. So take these impressions with that in mind.

 

[Kukuk]

I can't really detect the reported treble roll off. Maybe my ears or music choice don't pick that out. The treble seems fine to me. Nicely detailed to these 40 year old ears. Mids are also good. What has surprised me is how good the sound stage is. The 660s have a great sound stage. It's kind of their signature. The 2Cs sound just as good to me. Nice and wide.

The treble is sort of an odd thing. Not in a bad way, mind you. I think what makes it weird is that in the tuning process, Audeze figured out the exact frequencies to drop down to make it sound lower in level... But still sounds right. They're perfectly coherent, with very good high frequency extension, making for a very detailed sound.

I suspect the only reason you don't hear that it's down in level is because your 660s have a similar character to the treble.

 

[blackdragon87]

i also really like the earpads they use on these. much more comfortable compared to the ones on my 2014 fazor lcd 2

 

[nicholars]

Did anyone find any way to reduce the clamping? What about those pilot pads? Or the Dekoni nuggets? Because you could use a larger size on the selector bits which would reduce the clamp? Any other methods to reduce that "cheek clamp"?

 

[nicholars]

Also anyone compared the 2C with the Alara?

 

[BrotherKathos]

I ended up selling the LCD-2C because of weird spikes in the treble .. which really confuses me.

I also notice the spikes in the treble with the 2c, but it happens less on different amps. If you can give up a small bit of bass response in the ultra low frequencies, then the Audioquest nighthawk carbon is a great option. Not only is it less than half the price of the 2C, but its just as good or better than the 2C as and all around headphone imo. For me its closer to my preference than the 2C is and is the only headphone I own that I actually have no desire to eq. I was very surprised when I got it bc, people were saying how dark it is or has too much mid bass etc. Nope, Wrong, its just great. My new favorite headphone, and absolutely blows the 2C out of the water in comfort. Most comfy headphone ever.

 

[lowrider007]

Look, I own a Burson CV2+ and I love it for planars. Basically I am a Burson fan.

But have you tried the Lyr 3? Although I tried it in an audio meet, I thought it sounded pretty darn good, especially for the price. Much better than Lyr 2.


Buddy....why do you choose these sub-tier products? Tell me...why the Deckard, out of all the available amps in the market?

The market is flowing with good inexpensive products: Lyr 3, Gillmore Lite, Massdrop LCD-X, Massdrop Eddie Current ZDT Jr, etc. Pick your poison. Even that $100 Magni would be a better choice than Deckard.

I'm just trying to give an advice. But it is your wallet. Avoid Audeze amps at all costs.

I realise this is an old post I'm quoting but your comment regarding the Deckard has me a little concerned, I own a Deckard and was thinking of grabbing the LCD-2C thinking it would be a good match, is the Deckard really that poor? I read a lot of good reviews about it online before purchasing it, is the $100 Mangi really a better amp?

 

[clerkpalmer]

I also notice the spikes in the treble with the 2c, but it happens less on different amps. If you can give up a small bit of bass response in the ultra low frequencies, then the Audioquest nighthawk carbon is a great option. Not only is it less than half the price of the 2C, but its just as good or better than the 2C as and all around headphone imo. For me its closer to my preference than the 2C is and is the only headphone I own that I actually have no desire to eq. I was very surprised when I got it bc, people were saying how dark it is or has too much mid bass etc. Nope, Wrong, its just great. My new favorite headphone, and absolutely blows the 2C out of the water in comfort. Most comfy headphone ever.

I agree on comfort. After that, I’m not sure the NH and the LCD2C are something many people would cross shop. Very different cans. The NH is super laid back. The LCD2c is far more energetic and to your point offers much better treble. I couldn’t get over the veiled nature of the NH. They seemed dull to me. The nightowl carbon, while closed, greatly improves On the NH. Again, sound is subjective and I can absolutely see why someone would love the laid back warm sound of the NH.