[jibzilla]

Ha, you might be surprised. And I own every headphone on that list, short one (and one I don't feel is competitive). Give the HD650 a Zana Deux and a nice source that digs deep and you'll find you own a 1st class headphone.

 
Yeah you would be surprised. I tried out a hd650 setup at the stl. meet this year with a complete diy Beta22, buffalo dac, power supply, gigantic triple stack setup and it was jaw dropping at how good it sounded. Just the goldpoint stepped attenuator was something like $300, I imagine the whole stack was around $2-3k and that's building it completely himself. Still didn't sound overboard, maxed out probably but not overboard.

 

[fortitude]

The guy in the labcoat told me they would be offering the carbon headbands as a retrofit to any of the existing LCD series, somewhere in the $150 range in the next month.  

 

[mscott58]

  The guy in the labcoat told me they would be offering the carbon headbands as a retrofit to any of the existing LCD series, somewhere in the $150 range in the next month.  

Yep. And labcoat guy's name is Mark Cohen. Cheers 

 

[Argo Duck]

It's the latter. I appreciate many qualities of my 3F (more extended treble; more detail; layering) but no way I will ever sell the LCD-2.1. That bass impact...

I believe it as well. The original LCD2 had the best bass I've heard, but I recently listened to the LCD-3f and wasn't impressed. The bass didn't have much slam and felt boomy. I couldn't figure out if my tastes had changed or if the sound signature has changed since the original LCD2 but I think it's more of the latter.

 

[mscott58]

It's the latter. I appreciate many qualities of my 3F (more extended treble; more detail; layering) but no way I will ever sell the LCD-2.1. That bass impact...

Have you ever compared the -2.1's to the -X's? 

 

[fortitude]

I'd probably still own a set of audeze's if I had known about this headband retrofit!  I've bought and sold about 3 pairs thinking I could just deal with it.

 

[Matias]

The suspension headband for all LCD line was already reported in this topic that would be sold separately for 200usd. The first post has that information...

 

[Argo Duck]

No I've not had the chance yet. You?

Have you ever compared the -2.1's to the -X's? 

 

[jodgey4]

I would love to have those two cans! The 2.2F is pretty much right in the middle, but misses the magic of either choice.

 

[mscott58]

No I've not had the chance yet. You?

I've heard the -2's, but not sure what version. Probably the -2.2s since it was later.
 
The -X's had the most bass of any of the LCD's I've heard (and I own the -3F's). It's not a huge difference, but noticeable. Not sure if the -4's match the bass of the -X or not, as it was harder to hear them in as much detail as I would have liked in the show environment. 
 
However, the mids of the -3's is the thing that no other LCD has ever matched, until the -4's that is, which during my listening did seem to have the same "magic" as the -3's. Again, I'd love to test them in better conditions. 
 
Cheers

 

[Argo Duck]

^^
@jodgey4 yep, when I bought the 3 after years of delay - or the 3F as it turned out - I had kept the 2.1 for the purpose of comparison before selling them on. But I soon realised each had such distinct strengths - albeit 'Audeze' strengths - selling either was not an option. In truth I've always loved my 2.1s!

@mscott58 - I hope you get that chance to test the 4 in better conditions. Would look forward to your further impressions.

 

[rgs9200m]

Just to add to the confusion, the 3C and 3F sound pretty different to me, with the 3C having a more profound bass foundation and the 3F having a clearer upper midrange/lower treble and more image definition overall. But both versions have their strengths.
I would choose the 3F as superior if I had to choose one, but the 3C sometimes is more friendly and musical. I sold off the LCD2 as not as good in any area or overall to the LCD3. If the 4 is good, selling both 3s and simplifying things would make sense to me...

 

[mwilson]

It's the latter. I appreciate many qualities of my 3F (more extended treble; more detail; layering) but no way I will ever sell the LCD-2.1. That bass impact...

 
I remember the 2.1 to this day. When I first heard them and experienced the bass slam, I was like "wow, didn't know a headphone can do that." It was like a semi had slammed into my eardrums. Once Audeze tightened up the response to be more defined, that impact went from feeling hit by a semi tractor, all pressure but not so much detail, to actually being able to notice the grille and headlights too. I was never too fond of the 2.2 that replaced the initial version, but the 3 classic had a very charming, relaxing presentation that easily allowed me to get lost in the music. Velvety, as many others have said before me. 
 
I am hoping that the 4, with their thinner diaphragm and stronger magnetic field would be able to bring back some of that luscious 2.1 bass presentation while retaining definition, and also expand the soundstage. 

 

[jlbrach]

I own the LCD-3F and love it...the truth is the new innovation that is included in the premium priced products ultimately makes its way down the chain....in this case when i bought the 2K LCD-3F I thought I had lost my mind but i paid it because I really loved the cans but the truth is 4K for the new cans is not gonna happen for me.....that is simply a bridge too far

 

[elwappo99]

 

From the RMAF forum. Sorry if the poster wanted to put it in here, but I consider myself a bit of a Ron Burgundy:

Audeze LCD-4 + Audeze King amp
Game. Over.
- - This might be the best headphone I’ve ever heard.
- - Preferred it over SR-009 and Abyss by a pretty wide margin.
- - Not your typical Audeze. Not super dark and rolled off like most of the others.
- - Wonderful sense of air and gorgeous treble.
- - The mids! The bass! Perfection across every frequency spectrum!
- - An absolute detail monster, yet a supremely musical headphone. Unicorn!
- - Pulls out all the acoustic and ambient detail you get with an HD800.
- - Monster dynamics and impact. Explosive sound!
- - Sounds nearly as impressive with mp3s as it does with FLAC.
- - Really more comparable to a high-end two channel system than a headphone.
- - Tremendous soundstage and imaging.
- - Organic realism to the music and rich timbre.

To put things into perspective, he praised the other things he liked similarly

 
Agreed. I had to track down the comments, but if someone says everything they heard was great, chances are they aren't a very keen listener. Lots of mediocre stuff gets released every year, not all of it is stellar.