[starence]

Just ordered a pair from audeze. I don't have a good amp or dac yet though. Do you think a magni3/modi2 combo would be enough for lcd-2c?

Yes, I think that would be sufficient.

 

[Àedhàn Cassiel]

Yes, I think that would be sufficient.

My only, and I mean only reference for how much an amp can change a HP's sound is from going Magni 2 to Valhala 2 on HD800s ("Really really cool, I've never heard a soundstage this wide but some stuff is unlistenable" to "HOLY F@$#!").

*How much* improvement do you think someone would see going from a Magni 2 to an HPA-3b for the LCD2s? If it's the last audio purchase I'll make for quite some time, is that the best place to put $380 with a Valhalla 2, Modi 2, LCD2C setup?

 

[waveSounds]

@Zoom25 How you liking the 2C pairing with your SOURCE?

 

[Merkurio]

My only, and I mean only reference for how much an amp can change a HP's sound is from going Magni 2 to Valhala 2 on HD800s ("Really really cool, I've never heard a soundstage this wide but some stuff is unlistenable" to "HOLY F@$#!").

*How much* improvement do you think someone would see going from a Magni 2 to an HPA-3b for the LCD2s? If it's the last audio purchase I'll make for quite some time, is that the best place to put $380 with a Valhalla 2, Modi 2, LCD2C setup?

I don't have a Magni 2 but a Magni 3 and this little thing is a beast, a completely overkill for all cans I've been tested so far.

The LCD-2C doesn't seems to be a very hard to drive headphone (70 ohms and 101 dB of sensivity). Plus I don't believe in sonical differences between solid state amps after doing a lot of A/B tests at the same voltage/SPL, but each head is a world.

As for OTL amps goes, I can't judge as I don't like paying that much for a device with worse measurements and less overall power than I already have, but it's a matter of taste too.

 

[nugget2013]

How do these compare to the open back el8?

 

[LaCuffia]

The EL8 seems to have a bit more punch in the bass and sparkle up top but the LCD2-C is more comfortable and better built. Overall the LCD2-C is a tad smoother. I like them both very much though.

 

[Zoom25]

@Zoom25 How you liking the 2C pairing with your SOURCE?

It actually performed better than I thought. I thought there would be problem with either lack of bass or fatiguing sound due to insufficient power during peaks or just mismatch character like back in the day on stuff like O2 and Fiio E10. Nope, nothing wrong here.

I'm typically around 9-10 on the headphone pot. This is one area where it's a benefit to have an overbuilt power supply. The Teradak 12V13A handles it all with plenty of spare. You don't hear any strain during transients.

I'll be revisiting BHA-1 on the Bryston stack or another top headphone amplifier to see if anything changes. Might bring along the Source as well for direct A/B. With speaker amps, the sound would open up and sound very relaxed at all volumes.

I was worried that I'd have to rush to get a dedicated amp for this, but the Source pulled through. If I were to get something dedicated, it'd need to be a lot better than the Source AND maintain that fatigue free sound that I am used to.

It's only Day 2, so I don't want to rush to any conclusion.

 

[gearofwar]

Does anyone here have Focal Clear? Would like to hear your comparison

 

[Zoom25]

For a change from Roon, EQ, and lossless music, I went to Spotify (320) and just started listening stock (without any EQ) through my playlists which consist of recording quality that can vary quite a bit. Everything sounds so great.

The stock sound is creamy magic. After awhile, you'll forget of any shortcomings. Accuracy be damned! The bass is thicker and fuller with creamy vocals. You can really groove and relax with these at the pace they set with the stock sound. It's a bit slower sounding than Audeze's EQ, but allows you to enjoy it more by letting things flow at a pace which gets me more involved without rushing.

 

[Merkurio]

For a change from Roon, EQ, and lossless music, I went to Spotify (320) and just started listening stock (without any EQ) through my playlists which consist of recording quality that can vary quite a bit. Everything sounds so great.

The stock sound is creamy magic. After awhile, you'll forget of any shortcomings. Accuracy be damned! The bass is thicker and fuller with creamy vocals. You can really groove and relax with these at the pace they set with the stock sound. It's a bit slower sounding than Audeze's EQ, but allows you to enjoy it more by letting things flow at a pace which gets me more involved without rushing.

Hey, I also have a KNS-8400 (is the only headphone that I've for now until the LCD-2C arrives, in fact), and I'm listening to it right now.

I know it's a stupid question, but how does the sound compare against the KRK? It's just for liven up the waiting.

 

[Zoom25]

Hey, I also have a KNS-8400 (is the only headphone that I've for now until the LCD-2C arrives, in fact), and I'm listening to it right now.

I know it's a stupid question, but how does the sound compare against the KRK? It's just for liven up the waiting.

I took the Audeze off and put the KRK on. Immediately noticeable is the difference in weight. Sounded similar in the mids but leaner. The bass is also nowhere near Audeze by all objective and subjective standards. The upper mids and treble had more presence. The soundstage shrunk and everything became a bit more forward sounding. Then a minute later, I was like "no...not the treble, anything but that" and then took them off. LOL Audeze, and the LCD-2 in particular, will illicit that response from a lot of headphones in comparison.

The Audezes are next level in keeping you engaged to the music content. I didn't break out the Sonarworks for the KNS 8400, which does help for the better. Still, LCD-2 wins no matter what except for the comfort and a more even response.

I still keep my KRKs around and use them frequently for non-music stuff and when I'm away from my desktop rig.

 

[Merkurio]

I took the Audeze off and put the KRK on. Immediately noticeable is the difference in weight. Sounded similar in the mids but leaner. The bass is also nowhere near Audeze by all objective and subjective standards. The upper mids and treble had more presence. The soundstage shrunk and everything became a bit more forward sounding. Then a minute later, I was like "no...not the treble, anything but that" and then took them off. LOL Audeze, and the LCD-2 in particular, will illicit that response from a lot of headphones in comparison.

The Audezes are next level in keeping you engaged to the music content. I didn't break out the Sonarworks for the KNS 8400, which does help for the better. Still, LCD-2 wins no matter what except for the comfort and a more even response.

I still keep my KRKs around and use them frequently for non-music stuff and when I'm away from my desktop rig.

That's exactly what I expected to read.

Hype level rises...

 

[gLer]

I took the Audeze off and put the KRK on. Immediately noticeable is the difference in weight. Sounded similar in the mids but leaner. The bass is also nowhere near Audeze by all objective and subjective standards. The upper mids and treble had more presence. The soundstage shrunk and everything became a bit more forward sounding. Then a minute later, I was like "no...not the treble, anything but that" and then took them off. LOL Audeze, and the LCD-2 in particular, will illicit that response from a lot of headphones in comparison.

The Audezes are next level in keeping you engaged to the music content. I didn't break out the Sonarworks for the KNS 8400, which does help for the better. Still, LCD-2 wins no matter what except for the comfort and a more even response.

I still keep my KRKs around and use them frequently for non-music stuff and when I'm away from my desktop rig.

Glad these impressions are overwhelmingly positive. I’m still not hearing anything that says to me: these are very different to the current fazor models. Oddly I’m reading about more “air” and “treble energy”, which is what you’d expect from the fazor version (at least if you assume the pre-fazor was darker). So I’m suspecting the fazor in the latest fazor model has much less impact on the sound than the actual new drivers, which are shared by the 2C. Maybe the sound changes were primarily from the drivers and not the fazor all along...

 

[Merkurio]

Glad these impressions are overwhelmingly positive. I’m still not hearing anything that says to me: these are very different to the current fazor models. Oddly I’m reading about more “air” and “treble energy”, which is what you’d expect from the fazor version (at least if you assume the pre-fazor was darker). So I’m suspecting the fazor in the latest fazor model has much less impact on the sound than the actual new drivers, which are shared by the 2C. Maybe the sound changes were primarily from the drivers and not the fazor all along...

I think Zoom25 was talking about the KRK when he'd written about the upper mids and treble presence...

 

[anoxy]

Glad these impressions are overwhelmingly positive. I’m still not hearing anything that says to me: these are very different to the current fazor models. Oddly I’m reading about more “air” and “treble energy”, which is what you’d expect from the fazor version (at least if you assume the pre-fazor was darker). So I’m suspecting the fazor in the latest fazor model has much less impact on the sound than the actual new drivers, which are shared by the 2C. Maybe the sound changes were primarily from the drivers and not the fazor all along...

How about you just send me your Fazors and I'll A/B them?