[goldendarko]

Yes, I need to save up for them, for the next 8 months.

I was just teasing, it seems like your on every thread i follow though saving your saving up for that piece of gear, lol.

 

[reddog]

I was just teasing, it seems like your on every thread i follow though saving your saving up for that piece of gear, lol.

No problem me friend . I suffer from insomnia and just wonder around the site lol. But I do like your views on audio gear. You state the facts without little to no hype. And there be to much hype on certain headphones and related gear lol. Audiophiles have what they do not need and need what they do not have. And this fact has really defined my buying habits lately. This crazed lemming of a audophile is glad he needs to save up. That way I can truly grok all my great headphone gear.

 

[Devarika Woulf]

$4000 for headphones (and then even more for the new Amp and DAC to run it) negates the original point of buying them for me, which was great bang for the buck. Headphones provide more details than speakers, yeah, but will always be somewhat inferior due to the isolated drivers on each ear; most music was not meant to be listened to in that awkward way, and speakers give more of a "real life sound" because of it. There's always something lost compared to even the crappiest speakers when you isolate each ear. Because of most music being created/mastered for speakers, and me not being rich, I'd rather put all that money on a great speaker system personally. I can see myself moving up to an LCD-X in the future but $2000 is it for me.

 

[pedalhead]

  $4000 for headphones (and then even more for the new Amp and DAC to run it) negates the original point of buying them for me, which was great bang for the buck. Headphones provide more details than speakers, yeah, but will always be somewhat inferior due to the isolated drivers on each ear; most music was not meant to be listened to in that awkward way, and speakers give more of a "real life sound" because of it. There's always something lost compared to even the crappiest speakers when you isolate each ear. Because of most music being created/mastered for speakers, and me not being rich, I'd rather put all that money on a great speaker system personally. I can see myself moving up to an LCD-X in the future but $2000 is it for me.

 
Have you tried using a decent crossfeed implementation?

 

[aive]

   
Have you tried using a decent crossfeed implementation?

Can you recommend any to try out?

 

[Zuvio]

'True' audiophile sound does not require $4000 headphones you'll be pleased to know

The margins of improvement are very small and are only worthwhile if their areas of improvement happen to coincide with your hearing/listening biases/strengths. If they don't, an expensive headphone can be just 'meh'.

I have HD 800 and LCD 3F phones yet still delight in my LCD 2 rev 1! I even enjoy my old Grado SR-60s from time to time

Elsewhere on the 'net I understand HD 600s and HD 650s are still great phones very responsive to gear up front.

I am one of those who was horrified at first by pricing of Audez'e's new flagship. I've had a complete change of heart. They have every right to push the technology as far as they can and to offer it. The price is the price.

Meantime, we of lesser means can take heart that amazing sound from new technology can be had even without winning a lottery.

 
 
Does that mean if i manage to find the money for an HD600 i will be in the ballpark, up over the 90% (audiophile actuality) mark? Or will the HD650 be the goods?

 

[mscott58]

Did anyone else see that Audeze is running an Indiegogo special for the new "THE KING" amplifier they were using at the show with the LCD-4's? The amp seemed great, but I'm a little thrown by a well established company like Audeze using IGG. I know others have done the same, like CEntrance, but just didn't expect to see Audeze taking this route. However, the discount is nice! 
 
Here's the offer - 
 
"Greetings,
For our loyal customers – Here’s your chance to buy THE latest reference headphone amp at an incredible discount!
Don’t even think about missing this great opportunity to buy The King Headphone Amplifier – a huge success at the Rocky Mountain Audio Fest last weekend – for an astonishing introductory price via Indiegogo.
It began when the Audeze team met the legendary electronics designer Bascom King in his design lab. Bascom has designed acclaimed amplifiers for Infinity, Marantz, Constellation Audio, PS Audio and others. He demoed a prototype headphone amplifier for us that incorporated elements of all he’s learned over the years. Even in prototype form it was the best headphone amp we ever heard, and we’ve heard just about everything. We were so excited that we signed Bascom on the spot to continue developing the new headphone amplifier exclusively for Audeze.  
The King produces a beautiful, natural, open, expansive sound with awesome power in the bass. It’s so clean and engaging you’ll find yourself turning the volume up to enjoy the incredible transparency.
The King is a hybrid design featuring a twin triode tube input (E88CCs), a differential P-MOSFET driver and uses NPN MOSFET output devices delivering perfect device matching for faster response times - far better than typical PNP/NPN output designs. The King’s symmetrical circuits make it extremely stable. It’s DC servo-coupled, and will offer years of trouble-free, adjustment-free use. The result is a low impedance, low distortion, wide frequency response amplifier with immense musical transparency. If you have any further technical questions, write to: mcohen@audeze.com
The Indiegogo Deal
The King is such a wonderful headphone amp that Audeze decided to get the word out to as many people as possible, and Indiegogo works well for that. We also wanted to offer a great price to our fans who’ve supported us as a way of saying thanks. It’s not just about money to manufacture the Bascom King amplifier as we’ve already paid for all the development. The big news is we can ship your amplifier in December! And you’re protected - if you decide you don’t want it, you can return it in 30 days for a refund.
The retail price of The King is $3,995 USD. Audeze is offering it through Indiegogo for 30 days only at $2,950. But the first 10 buyers get an even better deal, only $2,750!  
Purchase the Sound of the Century at Indiegogo!
Get in fast for the best price on this groundbreaking headphone amplifier at insider prices.
View The King Video here.
 
Thanks,
The Audeze Team"
 
Cheers - 
 
PS - Posted this here as I didn't yet see a thread for this amp on HF. 

 

[velvetx]

No offense intended, but isn't that technically bad advice? How would the vast majority of people on this site hear a headphone before they buy it? The number of Head-Fiers who attend meets or have local opportunities otherwise are vastly outnumbered by those who don't, and the "guests" that read Head-Fi but don't have accounts. And I bet that the majority of people with the cash to spend $4K on a headphone would likely just throw the cash around first and ask questions later.

I can understand where you are coming from here but the strange thing to me is how is Audeze claiming that the LCD-4 is made to order and yet have a 30 day audition period (this made to order thing was told to me by the rep at Audeze)? The people that buy then ask questions later to me are not your average joe and are the reason why this headphone is $4k in my opinion.

 

[velvetx]

That is exactly why Velvetx's advise is wrong because with 30 days return policy, you can have a much better audition than a few minutes at any shows or dealerships. So the best advise to those who are really interested in getting the LCD4 should be buy, listen for three weeks, and then decide to keep or not to keep.

Second, I cannot dispute Velvetx's Impression only because I did not listen to his audition. So I really have no ground to agree or disagree his impressions. However, I am shock at his impression that the LCD has no bass or very little bass, and that the sound is too neutral etc. it is almost like saying the 009 doesn't have enough detail or that the HD800 has a restricted sound stage. It just goes against reason to think that any LCD has no bass. I repect his right to share his opinion and I accept that it is his honest opinion, but since it is so different from most people's experience with Audeze' product, I hope people will reserve their judgement and wait for more impressions (as most of us who did not attend the RMAF are not likely to have the chance to hear the LCD 4 any time soon).

I understand my opinion is different and people are going to have differences of opinions and I as well respect that but also don't think you should read every positive review then say I am going to buy this headphone. The Audeze bass slam sound signature was nowhere to be found. I am telling you here coming from owning the LCD-2 and listening very recently in a quiet room to the LCD-X. This is a very different headphone.

Bass slam to me is hearing the pounding drums from Def Leppard on Pour Some Sugar on Me. The tight bass thump you get when you are listening to Hotel California from the Hell Freezes Over CD. It's awesome bass signature you get from the Boy in the Bubble on the Graceland CD.

 

[Rico613]

Very possible. I'd also like opinions from people that got to listen in quiet environments.

The biggest concern so far is the lack of bass people are claiming it has.

I consider the x's and 3's the best hip hop and drum and bass cans in the world. When I heard of the 4's I wanted similar signatures but taken to the highest level.

When I first saw Jude's headfi mini review I was surprised and worried he didn't really mention the bass.

Wouldn't it be weird if LCD4 lacked what LCD3 has in warm lush tones?  Say it aint so !

 

[TMRaven]

velvetx, I can very well believe your remarks about lack of bass slam.  I've had considerable time with the entire Audeze lineup, and only the pre-fazor'd LCD2 had bass that had anywhere close to what one would call very impactful.  It had bass that rival'd my HE-400.  Since the widespread praise of the original rev1 LCD2, which was known for very impactful bass, Audeze has slowly moved away to a more neutral sound, and the bass (although very controlled and extended), was never very impactful to me.  I'm also of the opinion that a lot of Head-Fi merely parrots the impressions of old taken from LCD2 rev1, when it comes to the Audeze house sound being known for large and powerful bass-- even if they've heard many of the recent Audeze phones.  It's a confirmation bias if you will.
 
So in that sense, if the LCD4 had a soft-ish bass, it wouldn't surprise me at all. 

 

[Jalo]

velvetx, I can very well believe your remarks about lack of bass slam.  I've had considerable time with the entire Audeze lineup, and only the pre-fazor'd LCD2 had bass that had anywhere close to what one would call very impactful.  It had bass that rival'd my HE-400.  Since the widespread praise of the original rev1 LCD2, which was known for very impactful bass, Audeze has slowly moved away to a more neutral sound, and the bass (although very controlled and extended), was never very impactful to me.  I'm also of the opinion that a lot of Head-Fi merely parrots the impressions of old taken from LCD2 rev1, when it comes to the Audeze house sound being known for large and powerful bass-- even if they've heard many of the recent Audeze phones.  It's a confirmation bias if you will.

So in that sense, if the LCD4 had a soft-ish bass, it wouldn't surprise me at all. 

Raver, I owned the LCD rev 1 for two years and sold it, so I agree and know exactly what you are saying. You are making me regret of that decision a little bit now.

 

[Jalo]

I understand my opinion is different and people are going to have differences of opinions and I as well respect that but also don't think you should read every positive review then say I am going to buy this headphone. The Audeze bass slam sound signature was nowhere to be found. I am telling you here coming from owning the LCD-2 and listening very recently in a quiet room to the LCD-X. This is a very different headphone.

Bass slam to me is hearing the pounding drums from Def Leppard on Pour Some Sugar on Me. The tight bass thump you get when you are listening to Hotel California from the Hell Freezes Over CD. It's awesome bass signature you get from the Boy in the Bubble on the Graceland CD.

Velvetx, with regard to your statement about reading every positive review and buy a headphone, only a newbi will make that kind of a mistake. For those of us that have been around for awhile, we are either very rich or are broke by now. So we are very experienced and careful with our money. Because there is never enough to buy everything that we want in headfi.

I also owned the LCD rev 1 for couple of years and given Raven's point about bass slam above (he made a very good point about Audeze is loosing that house sound since LCD rev.1), And if you are comparing to that kind of bass slam, I can see how that could be possible. Even though I sold the LCD for wanting a more refine mid and treble, I still missed that bass to this day. I am thinking if the LCD 4 can have that kind of bass and retain the slush and warm but refined sound signature, I may come back to Audeze again. The driver failure rate of the LCD 3 is just too uncomfortable to own. I am also wondering if it is because of the ever pressure of finding thinner nano meters membrane that the bass slam is gone. Seems like these days everyone is taunting about how thin their membrane are. Seems like we are getting closer and close to the electrostatic sound but loosing the bass along the way.

 

[Barra]

My go to bass headphone is my pre-fazor'd LCD2.2 and is my reference point when comparing the lcd4. The 4 definitely beats the pre-fazor'd LCD2 in bass connected to the king. But volume matching was an issue comparing the x to the 4 on the king at RMAF implying the 4 is hard to drive. I didn't get to hear the 4 on my own gear to see if it is harder to drive than the 2. Are those claiming bass light listening to the king or their own gear? Maybe some of the magic is the king? However, the x was hard to listen to on the king after experiencing the 4. The x had been my favorite all around headphone up to this point. However, given the rediculous price point, I would probably get the x before the 4.

 

[ericfarrell85]

I think there's a more important message in the $4,000 price tag, than questions of whether it sounds good and how it compares with previous iterations. To even contemplate the current cost of the SR009 as a "bargain" is insanity. Yet, this is the direction headphones are going in. I would not be surprised in the least if Audeze considered the price point of their LCD-4 in terms of what they can "get away with", rather than the costs of manufacturing. i won't be buying this headphone for the simple reason that I won't let myself be sucked into a marketplace that no longer respect their clientele. Consider for a moment, if Audeze is given free reign to charge outlandish prices for a product that is, in most respects, identical to previous iterations at 1/2 the price, than what is to keep other manufacturers from doing the same? Sure, I could afford it, but the market has already made suckers out of most of us (the HD650 is competitive with recent TOTL headphones at $300!). A line needs to be drawn.