[xRaptorxPunisher]

The Aeon open has some upper mid presence but the bass isn't as clean or fast as the 2C. You could try grabbing some Vegan pads they lift the upper mids and bring it close to say a HD650 and it improves the timbre quite a bit.

 

[Vitaly2017]

Our purposes might be different. I personally want the best out of DAP only. I don't want to carry lots of things on the go. Before I bought lcd2c, I did try them with my Sony wm1a and I was happy with them. I know I might not get the best out of lcd2c with DAP but I am quite satisfied with this set up.

Hi i am thinking to buy an lcd2c closed and whant to paire it with 1z do you think it will be a good matche?

What volume do you set them at? Is 4.4mm provides enough so you can stay around 100?

 

[znev777]

Why does it matter if the amp is push pull or single ended if its using output transformers? The modwright 300b tube amp put out 8 watts and is a single end amp. Do you really need 15 watts (push pull 2a3/300b) to drive a headphone?

Is there a headphone with 2c bass but less recessed upper mids? Probably going to look into picking up zmf oris

I like my oris, but I can't say if the bass is on the same par technically. And from the sparse measurements I've found it's somewhat boosted compared to the flatline 2c bass. I do enjoy it a lot though, and it extends well. The low mids and mid mids are a bit sucked out too, but the upper mids through the treble are certainly there. Just make sure you got a juicy amp if you do go that route

 

[PopZeus]

So I'm a relatively new LCD2c owner, and has everyone already figured out if you EQ down that 1k peak (by 6 dB) as well as smooth out the mid-to-treble transition (I boosted 4k by a few dB), this headphone sounds flippin' perfect?

 

[Lohb]

So I'm a relatively new LCD2c owner, and has everyone already figured out if you EQ down that 1k peak (by 6 dB) as well as smooth out the mid-to-treble transition (I boosted 4k by a few dB), this headphone sounds flippin' perfect?

Nice, see your gear in your signature and wonder...have you tried running 2C directly off the Shanling M5S (balanced)?
Far better LO with an amp with good synergy no doubt, but I wonder if you can get a decent baseline sound out of M5S directly re....imaging/speed/texture/micro-detail ?
I think the M5S uses dual OPA1612 + AD8397 amp chips.

 

[PopZeus]

Nice, see your gear in your signature and wonder...have you tried running 2C directly off the Shanling M5S (balanced)?
Far better LO with an amp with good synergy no doubt, but I wonder if you can get a decent baseline sound out of M5S directly re....imaging/speed/texture/micro-detail ?
I think the M5S uses dual OPA1612 + AD8397 amp chips.

Unfortunately I don’t have a balanced cable for the LCD2c yet, or an XLR to 2.5mm adapter for that matter. If I want to listen to them with the Shanling M5s, I know I can’t use the single-ended outs as the M5s won’t put out nearly enough juice at that ohm rating to do the planar drivers justice. I’m not even sure the balanced out is strong enough, but it’s pretty close to Audeze’s preferred power recommendation. Probably a better portable device to use with the LCD2c might be the Hiby R6 or the FiiO Q5 with a matched amp module, since either of those devices would offer more headroom than the Shanling.

Tbh I never considered the LCD2c for portable use. It’s strictly for my desktop setup, which I’m slowly rebuilding after selling off some gear earlier this year. These days, I have the Meze 99 Noir mostly plugged into the Shanling, and it’s a fantastic pairing.

I’m planning on eventually powering the LCD2c with a THX AAA 789. But I’m also looking into some form of tone controls (software or hardware) since EQing out that 1k peak fixes the only flaw in an otherwise phenomenal headphone.

 

[Dobrescu George]

I posted a video about Audeze LCD-2C

 

[marcan]

Sure, the post ringing... I'd forgotten about that. You say your brain can't adjust to it and I surely believe you.

It would be extremely interesting to hear a scientific explanation for the claim I quoted above though, especially in light of the fact that I know brains can adjust to errors and nuisances from all senses that are way more evident and annoying than slew rate after a bit of EQ...

While I'll keep reflecting on this hoping to be able to understand why brains would adjust to FR only, I can only say that maybe I'm a lucky guy, or so it seems. I use a tone control to throw a couple of dBs here and there when the record I'm listening to requires so. And I do it purely for enhancing my listening experience, for enjoying music more. It goes without saying that by finely tuning my headphones I don't hear any pre or post ringing or any detrimental impact on the stuff you mention, as this evidently would not constitute enhancement, so my brain has nothing really to adjust to. Lucky I know...

But I would like to ask you a couple of questions to better understand your intransigence on the matter, if I may: Among all the people you know in this hobby, how many in percentage experience the same problems with distortion, transient, precision, speed, slew rate and pre/post ringing that you do? And if, for hypothesis, the 99.9% of people in this hobby did not hear any detrimental impact from using a little bit of EQ, would you still consider it wrong?
Thanks!

Sorry for the delay. Was on vacation.
For me the more audible problem of the eq is mainly the pre/post ringing. Those kill the transients and it's perfectly audible for me. Pre ringing sounds particularly unnatural and add a nasty digital edge. As for my friends, they mainly work in the music. So they use eq everyday but they know the pitfalls. But strippe an eq for pure music enjoyment is not something they do.
Anyway I'm probably more sensitive to ringing and phase issues than the average person. So sure what's float your boat.I was just expressing an opinion from an oppressed minority
Now few times on very badly mastered tracks, I loaded the track in the DAW, remastered it using eq and save the result once for all. But if I have to always put an eq on my main listening system it means I have a problem somewhere.

 

[Hazi59]

I am shocked to admit this, bit I actually prefer the LCD-2C over my LCD-2F (most like 2F better from what I've read).

I have both of them on my desk with the JDS Labs El Stack and OL Switcher, A/B-ing them The only thing the 2F do better is treble and imaging. It seems to me there is more air in the 2F above 10khz. The 2F images extremely well. BUT...this is at the expense of soundstage, where the LCD-2C totally trumps the 2F.

I tested with 11 songs, but I will mention the 3 I found most interesting:

Opeth, Blackwater Park - This was the track that made it very apparent that the 2F had better treble. The imaging was superb. The 2C on the other hand had better soundstage and the bass and mids seemed to have a thicker layering in the strings and percussion. I believe this is not due to extended bass and mids, but due to the smoother upper mids and treble roll off being quieter. This is a very heavy but harmonic progressive metal song and the acoustic guitar interlude provided a chance to notice that the 2F sounded way more compressed, whereas the 2C sounded very natural.

Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five, The Message - Very hard to pick apart the differences testing with this track. The 2F provided another dose of air above 10 Khz that wasn't audible or perceived with the 2C. Again, the soundstage is better on the 2C. The 2C with Hip-Hop sounds excellent and I was able to hear some things in the synth loop that I was never able to pick-up on except with my Grado SR80E. I find this fascinating considering the Grado and Audeze's are polar opposites.

Thin Lizzy, The Sun Goes Down - If you have never listened to this song on a pair of Audeze's, you are missing out. The separation in all of the stringed instruments stands out in a stellar way...like this song was meant to be heard with the LCD-2C. The way Phil Lynott's vocals bridge the bass guitar to the upper mids and treble of Scott Gorham and John Dykes' dual guitars is warm gooey goodness. This song sounded great with the 2F as well, but the upper bass and low mids sound less separated, which I cant really explain. The soundstage of the 2C is what made this song magical, imo.

Just a personal preference, but I prefer the 2C. The 2F sound amazing, but if I had to pick one, it would be the 2C.

BTW, tomorrow I am going to put the 2C pads on the 2F and vice versa. Should be interesting to see how/what changes.

 

[betula]

I am shocked to admit this, bit I actually prefer the LCD-2C over my LCD-2F (most like 2F better from what I've read).

I have both of them on my desk with the JDS Labs El Stack and OL Switcher, A/B-ing them The only thing the 2F do better is treble and imaging. It seems to me there is more air in the 2F above 10khz. The 2F images extremely well. BUT...this is at the expense of soundstage, where the LCD-2C totally trumps the 2F.

I tested with 11 songs, but I will mention the 3 I found most interesting:

Opeth, Blackwater Park - This was the track that made it very apparent that the 2F had better treble. The imaging was superb. The 2C on the other hand had better soundstage and the bass and mids seemed to have a thicker layering in the strings and percussion. I believe this is not due to extended bass and mids, but due to the smoother upper mids and treble roll off being quieter. This is a very heavy but harmonic progressive metal song and the acoustic guitar interlude provided a chance to notice that the 2F sounded way more compressed, whereas the 2C sounded very natural.

Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five, The Message - Very hard to pick apart the differences testing with this track. The 2F provided another dose of air above 10 Khz that wasn't audible or perceived with the 2C. Again, the soundstage is better on the 2C. The 2C with Hip-Hop sounds excellent and I was able to hear some things in the synth loop that I was never able to pick-up on except with my Grado SR80E. I find this fascinating considering the Grado and Audeze's are polar opposites.

Thin Lizzy, The Sun Goes Down - If you have never listened to this song on a pair of Audeze's, you are missing out. The separation in all of the stringed instruments stands out in a stellar way...like this song was meant to be heard with the LCD-2C. The way Phil Lynott's vocals bridge the bass guitar to the upper mids and treble of Scott Gorham and John Dykes' dual guitars is warm gooey goodness. This song sounded great with the 2F as well, but the upper bass and low mids sound less separated, which I cant really explain. The soundstage of the 2C is what made this song magical, imo.

Just a personal preference, but I prefer the 2C. The 2F sound amazing, but if I had to pick one, it would be the 2C.

BTW, tomorrow I am going to put the 2C pads on the 2F and vice versa. Should be interesting to see how/what changes.

I too prefer the 2C to the 2F. They are more similar than different but not identical. I found the 2F a bit more balanced. The 2F has somewhat more even upper mids and better treble but this comes at an expense of slightly less powerful bass (still great though). I also agree that the 2F does imaging a bit better/sharper in a smaller soundstage.

Even though the 2F sounds more balanced I love the addictive bass magic the 2C puts on the table. With modern music 2C is the obvious choice, with acoustic perhaps the 2F. Both are great headphones but the better value goes for the 2C.

On another note, I hope you don't mind me asking, why would you not sell some of your headphones to get something true TOTL like the LCD-4Z or Empyrean if you like this kind of sound?

 

[Hazi59]

I too prefer the 2C to the 2F. They are more similar than different but not identical. I found the 2F a bit more balanced. The 2F has somewhat more even upper mids and better treble but this comes at an expense of slightly less powerful bass (still great though). I also agree that the 2F does imaging a bit better/sharper in a smaller soundstage.

Even though the 2F sounds more balanced I love the addictive bass magic the 2C puts on the table. With modern music 2C is the obvious choice, with acoustic perhaps the 2F. Both are great headphones but the better value goes for the 2C.

On another note, I hope you don't mind me asking, why would you not sell some of your headphones to get something true TOTL like the LCD-4Z or Empyrean if you like this kind of sound?

I eventually am going to do just that. Im posting the audeze comparison because I just sold the 2F's actually! My Audio Gd NFB-11.28 is on eBay at the moment as well, and soon the EL Stack will join them since I made the THX AAA 789 drop.

I used to have over 25 different pairs of cans, so I'm a bit of a collector. But I am streamlining and eventually want to buy Abyss Diana Phi and Campfire Audio Andromedas.

 

[xRaptorxPunisher]

I am shocked to admit this, bit I actually prefer the LCD-2C over my LCD-2F (most like 2F better from what I've read).

I have both of them on my desk with the JDS Labs El Stack and OL Switcher, A/B-ing them The only thing the 2F do better is treble and imaging. It seems to me there is more air in the 2F above 10khz. The 2F images extremely well. BUT...this is at the expense of soundstage, where the LCD-2C totally trumps the 2F.

I tested with 11 songs, but I will mention the 3 I found most interesting:

Opeth, Blackwater Park - This was the track that made it very apparent that the 2F had better treble. The imaging was superb. The 2C on the other hand had better soundstage and the bass and mids seemed to have a thicker layering in the strings and percussion. I believe this is not due to extended bass and mids, but due to the smoother upper mids and treble roll off being quieter. This is a very heavy but harmonic progressive metal song and the acoustic guitar interlude provided a chance to notice that the 2F sounded way more compressed, whereas the 2C sounded very natural.

Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five, The Message - Very hard to pick apart the differences testing with this track. The 2F provided another dose of air above 10 Khz that wasn't audible or perceived with the 2C. Again, the soundstage is better on the 2C. The 2C with Hip-Hop sounds excellent and I was able to hear some things in the synth loop that I was never able to pick-up on except with my Grado SR80E. I find this fascinating considering the Grado and Audeze's are polar opposites.

Thin Lizzy, The Sun Goes Down - If you have never listened to this song on a pair of Audeze's, you are missing out. The separation in all of the stringed instruments stands out in a stellar way...like this song was meant to be heard with the LCD-2C. The way Phil Lynott's vocals bridge the bass guitar to the upper mids and treble of Scott Gorham and John Dykes' dual guitars is warm gooey goodness. This song sounded great with the 2F as well, but the upper bass and low mids sound less separated, which I cant really explain. The soundstage of the 2C is what made this song magical, imo.

Just a personal preference, but I prefer the 2C. The 2F sound amazing, but if I had to pick one, it would be the 2C.

BTW, tomorrow I am going to put the 2C pads on the 2F and vice versa. Should be interesting to see how/what changes.

I think the 2F is awful. I had a Shedua, and the Alus and the vocals sound like they're under water. The micro detail on Audeze headphones is poor in general but the 2F was none existent. The tone was plasticky and rough. The 2C has a little compared to my older HD650 I recently bought but for an Audeze the 2C does quite well in resolution, just needs less 1K and some smoother transitions but overall the 2C is a better headphone than the 2F and arguably the 3F which also wasn't great.

Anyone thinking about buying a 2F I would just say sack it off and grab a HE-500, or HD650 and a good amp or if they want deep subbass grab a 2C.

 

[angelus55]

Can anyone let me know the difference between the lcd2 classic and the latest lcd2 fazor?


Is the bass, mids, and highs any different bewtween the two?

I cant find any frequency graph of the latest lcd2 with fazor to compare to the classics

Please and thanks

 

[xRaptorxPunisher]

Can anyone let me know the difference between the lcd2 classic and the latest lcd2 fazor?


Is the bass, mids, and highs any different bewtween the two?

I cant find any frequency graph of the latest lcd2 with fazor to compare to the classics

Please and thanks

The most recent change to the Fazor was done in late 2016.


Classic is more dynamic, more of a guilty pleasure type sound with a thicker body, less lean and grainy. The 2F has more perceived air, treble is cleaner and overall sound is cleaner. 2F isn’t lush at all so those looking for old Audeze sound which was lush and romantic will be best going for the 2C which carries that sound to a degree more so than current models.

I find the 2F to really struggle with dynamics and the way they present the human voice is odd, sounds strained, like it can’t present them in a natural manner so the timbre is way off, very odd timbre. Classics timbre is nice, not quite Old Audeze but much better than current Fazors. The Classic has a rich full bodied vocal presentation but there’s a few peaks that can make them a bit unrefined , slightly grainy but this is minor.

Classic resolves better too. 2F poor bass pitch differentiation while the Classic has a clean, full bodied bass response with great impact for a Planar magnetic.

 

[Davesrose]

I think the 2F is awful. I had a Shedua, and the Alus and the vocals sound like they're under water. The micro detail on Audeze headphones is poor in general but the 2F was none existent. The tone was plasticky and rough. The 2C has a little compared to my older HD650 I recently bought but for an Audeze the 2C does quite well in resolution, just needs less 1K and some smoother transitions but overall the 2C is a better headphone than the 2F and arguably the 3F which also wasn't great.

Anyone thinking about buying a 2F I would just say sack it off and grab a HE-500, or HD650 and a good amp or if they want deep subbass grab a 2C.

I don't know if it's differences in setup, but I can't see how anyone would compare any LCD Audeze to the HD650. They're completely different presentations: the HD650 being more intimate and mids centric. The LCD series not having as pronounced mids, but more extension in lows and highs. I think the "house" Audeze sound shines with instruments such as drums: which can go down to low frequencies with kick drums and with the planar transients, you get a nice metallic sound with cymbals. When it comes to value, you could find the sale price for the 2c cheaper. But you can regularly find B-stock 2fs (complete with hard shell case), for $800.

I find the fazors to add some nice refinement and prominence in the upper mids: so I agree with the consensus reviews that says the 2fs have more clarity and separation in the mids (and might be more appropriate with acoustic music). I'm settling on it as my all rounder (I also have tube mode, balanced, and a bass setting if I wanted to add warmth...though I find even SE without any added warmth, it still has impressive bass extension). When it comes to the 2c, its considered well balanced but slightly warmer with less detail (but more exciting and well controlled for pop and rock).