[hawkwindx]

Povell42, I have what I think is the latest version of the LCD-3. Here’s a picture of it. Is this what the 1/4 in “newer” cable looks like that Audeze sent to you?

 

[astrostar59]

I would strongly recommend Norne Audio. Trevor has a big client following, and makes excellent cables at real world prices, no shop markup. Check out the Norne Audio thread on HF.

I have in on my LCD2-C right now, which came with the same black thin 6.3mm plug cable in that photo. The Norne cable is amazing the difference. I got it primarily for my LCD4, but it wakes up the LCD2 really nicely.

 

[Povell42]

Povell42, I have what I think is the latest version of the LCD-3. Here’s a picture of it. Is this what the 1/4 in “newer” cable looks like that Audeze sent to you?

Yes that is the cable i just got from them. I also really want try the new headband too.

 

[Audiofiend1]

Nice. Did you pay almost $400 for that cable! Yikes! I really would need to hear one before buying one at that price.

Anyone know a good source to buy raw cable so i could build/solder my own LCD3 cables?

It is quite expensive, yet there are even more expensive ones. It's hard to know when you are getting quality versus just getting duped. If you are gonna take care of it and plan to keep the headphones for years to come i recommend looking into cables.

 

[muscleking]

just bought a 2015 july made LCD3, serial start with 271, coming in a week. i am thinking this is my end game headphone. i sold my beyer T1.2. only audeze i have is the sine lightning and EL-8. so will this LCD 3 be much better than those 2? i know i will find out in a week but can't wait lol. i really like audeze sound. both the sine lightning and el8 are good. EL8 is quite good but i think it lack a little bit bass. the sine lightning is my daily driver in office. significant upgrade from dt1350 which i sold as well and don't miss it. does cost a bit more. upgrade from 200 bucks to 300 bucks is quite significant. i have a little dot mk iii. i think should be powerful enough to drive the lcd3. i have several tubes from the 1962 ones which makes it very very warm sounding and those russian and yugo ones which actually sound like solid state. i was telling people if i don't hear improvement from EL8 then my ear is not good enough.

 

[gLer]

My advice, keep looking.

My advice, if you’ve found an ideal combination of headphone/amp/dac for the music you listen to, forget the gear and dive into the music. Unless you’re in the hobby for the gear and want to try out as many different ‘flavours’ of sound and dig into the deepest, darkest corners of each recording, you’ll drive yourself mad (and your partner/spouse/kids/boss) and empty your wallet long before you exhaust your options.

AMP > DAC in changing sound.

UPDATE: I was just thinking that the LCD-3 may not be the best/transparent headphone to really be testing multiple DACs & AMPs differences. So, that probably plays a big factor too. For this purpose... my conclusion is specific to my LCD3. Maybe if I had an HD660s and did the same tests, I may be able to hear a difference.

For sure. Headphones >>> amp >> dac > cables and accessories. That said, some headphones just don’t gel with some amps. LCD-3s don’t like OTL tubes for example, but love a good solid state. And if the LCD-3 isn’t transparent enough for you, be ready to spend $4k on analytical headphones like the Utopia if you want to unearth muniscua details and don’t really care for musicality. Nothing wrong with either approach - each of us hears differently and wants different things from this journey.

Personally I love the R2R NOS sound - which is different to typical Delta Sigma - and coupled with a transparent and powerful amp, is all I’ll ever need to drive my headphones of choice (LCD-3 and Elear). Your tastes and mileage may differ, so find your ‘sweet spot’, close the wallet and enjoy your music.

 

[gLer]

just bought a 2015 july made LCD3, serial start with 271, coming in a week. i am thinking this is my end game headphone. i sold my beyer T1.2. only audeze i have is the sine lightning and EL-8. so will this LCD 3 be much better than those 2? i know i will find out in a week but can't wait lol. i really like audeze sound. both the sine lightning and el8 are good. EL8 is quite good but i think it lack a little bit bass. the sine lightning is my daily driver in office. significant upgrade from dt1350 which i sold as well and don't miss it. does cost a bit more. upgrade from 200 bucks to 300 bucks is quite significant. i have a little dot mk iii. i think should be powerful enough to drive the lcd3. i have several tubes from the 1962 ones which makes it very very warm sounding and those russian and yugo ones which actually sound like solid state. i was telling people if i don't hear improvement from EL8 then my ear is not good enough.

In my experience the LCD-3 doesn’t like OTL amps like the LD MkIII. If you’re into tubes maybe get a different amp, or better yet a powerful, clean solid state.

 

[muscleking]

In my experience the LCD-3 doesn’t like OTL amps like the LD MkIII. If you’re into tubes maybe get a different amp, or better yet a powerful, clean solid state.

I have the smsl m8+p1+va2. Quite powerful, and have a topping nx4 dsd on the way. I'll try those first. Can you convert the balanced cable these come with to a 2.5mm so I can plug in my fiio see if plays well? Balanced port on these have a little more power seems. Drives the el8 very well

So the mid 2015 lcd3 doesn't have the 3k or 10k spike I saw someone mentioned a long time ago? I guess I'm sensitive to siblance so don't want that so I can listen louder to get more mid and bass sounds.

The audeze sine did not like little dot Mk iii and sounded noticeable better from the va2 amp

 

[gLer]

So the mid 2015 lcd3 doesn't have the 3k or 10k spike I saw someone mentioned a long time ago? I guess I'm sensitive to siblance so don't want that so I can listen louder to get more mid and bass sounds.

Can't say as I've never heard that version (I have the 2016F). I'm also treble sensitive and find the LCD-3 has plenty of air and detailed highs without ever being sibilant or harsh. I can listen to mine too loud for my health, and on the Audio-gd R-28 it takes less than 10% power to drive them to deafness-inducing levels. With the new headband they're also among the most comfortable headphones I've ever worn. LCD-3 pads are pure luxury.

 

[astrostar59]

Top R-2R to consider:

 

[hawkwindx]

I’m very happy with my set up as it is, but that amp looks cool. Nice design. And what does R-2R stand for? Is that an LCD-4?

 

[astrostar59]

I’m very happy with my set up as it is, but that amp looks cool. Nice design. And what does R-2R stand for? Is that an LCD-4?

It is the Aries Cerat Kassandra Ref II DAC. R-2R is the method used to extract the digital data from a chip. I uses no up sampling, no internal logic, no filtering, just straight through data and then I/V conversion by a transformer. The Kassandra uses tube in the gain stage. As you can see it is a bit big, 60 kilos for a DAC. Personally it is the best digital I have heard, it replaced my Audio Note DAC 5 (30K) I had before that.

 

[Zojokkeli]

As you can see it is a bit big, 60 kilos for a DAC.

"A bit big."
It weights more than my girlfriend.

 

[astrostar59]

Indeed, I can lift it but not making a habit of it. I have it sat on my Marble and Stainless steel desk which doubles up as my studio where I do work. My V281 HP amp is left of my iMac also on the desk, and my speaker amp is on the tiled floor.
My speakers are very close, like a near field speaker system, but it works, partly as they are wide dispersion horn speakers, so don't have such a small 'hot' seat.

The DAC is big, my Audio Note DAC 5 was 20 kilos and 1/2 the size. A lot of the bulk in the Kassandra is in the power supply and output transformers. And the digital section is big, it take over 2/3rds of the depth on the top layer of the chassis.

 

[Phronesis]

Haha, this is the truth. This is one of the things I hate about this hobby - one day I'm in love with a component, the next I'm nitpicking it apart thinking it sounded better yesterday, the next day it sounds great again! HAHA.

So, I had an interesting experience with my LCD3 last night. I have only been able to use my XLR cable with them because the 1/4 in plug was cutting out. I reached out to Audeze a couple weeks ago and they sent me a "newer" style 1/4 in cable covered under warranty (*very impressed with Audeze customer support). The cable arrived yesterday, so last night i was able to compare. NOW, I have always thought that cables do not make much difference... BUT... the new cable sounds better to me! It sounds like it is less congested then the xlr. I have always preferred my xlr plug because "the more power, the better" right? This may be a difference between the outputs on my Aune x7s amp... but as of last night, I believe the 1/4in output sounded better. HAHA. Could the cable make that noticeable difference? If so, I really want a new xlr cable from them. And...I better replace all my Amazon Basic cables HAHA.

Also, now having a 1/4 in cable that works, I have been able to listen to the different AMPs with the same DACs i mentioned earlier. I now believe that the AMP makes the difference, because I could hear a difference from the same sources with different amps. Who knows maybe it all in the new cable... haha.

AMP > DAC in changing sound.

UPDATE: I was just thinking that the LCD-3 may not be the best/transparent headphone to really be testing multiple DACs & AMPs differences. So, that probably plays a big factor too. For this purpose... my conclusion is specific to my LCD3. Maybe if I had an HD660s and did the same tests, I may be able to hear a difference.

It's easy to perceive distinct differences between gear if you don't have quick A/B switching and matching of volume and music segments. Even after doing that type of A/B comparison of the Mojo and Hugo 2 (5x price difference) and not being able to hear a difference, I still sometimes think I hear a difference between them in normal casual listening. But if I go back to A/B, the difference goes away again. It's possible that A/B comparison has its own flaws (short music segments, high level of conscious attention interfering with subconscious processes, reliance on memory for comparison, etc.) and that there are really differences we can hear in normal casual listening, but I think it's likely that many of the differences we think we hear between DACs, amps, and cables are "in our heads" rather than in the gear. But no doubt that differences between headphones are substantial, and for me those differences justify spending more on expensive headphones.