[whirlwind]

I paid $2k for mine over a year ago from a dealer I know. Just been used for demo purposes in Vegas for a week. Well worth it at that price - best headphones I've ever owned. LCD3 are already very, very good, but I consider the LCD4 to be a slightly better LCD3 (about 10% better at everything).

Just beware - these headphones are quite hard to drive. I've listened on a Woo Audio WA22, which is no slouch, but for them to really shine you'll need a better/more powerful amp.

The LCD-3 is wonderful... as it can be had for $850-$1100 on the second hand market

The great thing about these companies racing to put out new stuff is that the older generation stuff can be had for great prices!

There are quite a lot of people on head-fi that sell after a year or two and buy the newer stuff.

 

[pippen99]

Dick, do you know if there has even been any pre-fazors ?[/QUOTE]

The LCD-4 was introduced after the fazor became standard.

 

[whirlwind]

Dick, do you know if there has even been any pre-fazors ?

The LCD-4 was introduced after the fazor became standard.[/QUOTE]

Thanks for the info.

 

[RCBinTN]

Yes, there have been quite a few posted on the B/S/T forums the last couple of months.

Dick, do you know if there has even been any pre-fazors ?

I don't believe so. I think fazors were de rigueur when the LCD-4 launched.
It was somewhat later when Audez'e decided to un-fazor the LCD-2 (and maybe LCD-3).
I'm not sure at all, maybe others can help ... seems like a damn confusing path to product utopia IMO.
So today, do they offer for example LCD-2 with fazors and without?

 

[RCBinTN]

The LCD-4 was introduced after the fazor became standard.

Hey! @pippen99 beat me to it! Well done

 

[johnzz4]

I don't believe so. I think fazors were de rigueur when the LCD-4 launched.
It was somewhat later when Audez'e decided to un-fazor the LCD-2 (and maybe LCD-3).
I'm not sure at all, maybe others can help ... seems like a damn confusing path to product utopia IMO.
So today, do they offer for example LCD-2 with fazors and without?

Yes, LCD2 Classic has no fazors and regular LCD2 does.

 

[astrostar59]

I paid $2k for mine over a year ago from a dealer I know. Just been used for demo purposes in Vegas for a week. Well worth it at that price - best headphones I've ever owned. LCD3 are already very, very good, but I consider the LCD4 to be a slightly better LCD3 (about 10% better at everything).

Just beware - these headphones are quite hard to drive. I've listened on a Woo Audio WA22, which is no slouch, but for them to really shine you'll need a better/more powerful amp.

Pic off the WA22 page on the Woo website.

My Aries Cerat Genus drives the LCD4 like a turbo charged Corvette! Amazing sound and dynamics, in fact beyond anything I have heard so far.

 

[leftside]

Pic off the WA22 page on the Woo website.


My Aries Cerat Genus drives the LCD4 like a turbo charged Corvette! Amazing sound and dynamics, in fact beyond anything I have heard so far.

Nothing wrong with the WA22. In fact I like it a lot, but the LCD4 sound better with a more powerful amp that I have (Glenn 300B). I haven't listened with an Aries Cerat Genus, but it looks great. Very nice tidy design.

 

[astrostar59]

Nothing wrong with the WA22. In fact I like it a lot, but the LCD4 sound better with a more powerful amp that I have (Glenn 300B). I haven't listened with an Aries Cerat Genus, but it looks great. Very nice tidy design.

Thanks. The Genus is a big amplifier, so more practical for the guys who want TOTL speaker output as well as HP output. Having said that, it blows away the Viva Egoista which was the best sour I had heard before the Genus arrived. The Malvalve 22 tube monster amp was also excellent, but a hybrid of electrostatic and planar amp, so way to complex. A true SET amp with purity of circuits and highest quality parts, over specified power supplies, that is the way to go IMO.

 

[kyle1010]

Nothing wrong with the WA22. In fact I like it a lot, but the LCD4 sound better with a more powerful amp that I have (Glenn 300B). I haven't listened with an Aries Cerat Genus, but it looks great. Very nice tidy design.

I second this, owned the WA22/LCD-4 combo for 2yrs and could’ve lived happily ever after with that amp if I had a more musical/forgiving dac than the Hugo 2. WA22 (on all pricey NOS upgraded tubes) had TONS of power to drive the 4s but lacked that last bit of speed to push ultra-incisive detail without smearing it slightly. I finally “fixed” that issue by upgrading to the WA33, but then I heard every minuscule lack of finesse that the Hugo 2 had. “Fixed” that issue by getting a Dave which ended up being too thin and technical sounding for my tastes so I settled on a TT2 and now I’m beyond happy with my setup(until I spring for an Mscaler at some point). Aries Cerat Genus is like $18k right? Whewww that’s like my total system cost lol. But you know what, I bet it’s absolutely jaw dropping. It might not be today and it might not be tomorrow, but if I hear one somewhere and it’s that good I’ll figure out a way to own it. Just like I did when I first heard the WA33 two years ago at CanJam Socal. Thought that price tag was unobtainium at the time..welp..

 

[mixman]

Never thought tubes were a good pairing for any Audeze's let alone LCD4's, guess it does work.......maybe because these are top Tube amps?

 

[kyle1010]

Never thought tubes were a good pairing for any Audeze's let alone LCD4's, guess it does work.......maybe because these are top Tube amps?

Sound logic since Audezes are know to be on the warmer side and adding tubes to that theoretically would over do it, but it doesn’t. Sure you get a far warmer sound than solid state, but it’s the other things tubes do that make them sound outrageously good on valve amps. The added three dimensionality, spaciousness, richer more natural tones, bass weight, and to die for tube midrange are truly special on Audezes especially the 4s which seem to really come alive on powerful tubes. You gotta hear it to believe it.

 

[mixman]

Sound logic since Audezes are know to be on the warmer side and adding tubes to that theoretically would over do it, but it doesn’t. Sure you get a far warmer sound than solid state, but it’s the other things tubes do that make them sound outrageously good on valve amps. The added three dimensionality, spaciousness, richer more natural tones, bass weight, and to die for tube midrange are truly special on Audezes especially the 4s which seem to really come alive on powerful tubes. You gotta hear it to believe it.

The WA22 would be one of my "endgame" tube amps, so hopefully I will get a chance to try some 4z or so our on it. Not sure if i will get to the WA33, especially since I want to get a TOTL SS amp too.

 

[astrostar59]

Yes agree, tubes are not about warm, slow or rounding things off. It is more about NOT having the common issues many SS amps seem to have, as in a synthetic treble, a bit one note bass and generally a 'hifi' kind of presentation. Before I get swamped with posts back, this is totally my own findings and ears. I respect the two topologies. But to me, once you get to a certain level, tubes just 'do it' for me.

The old rap of warm rosy glow of a tube amp, rolled of treble and wholly bass AKA Dad's radiogram is so wrong. If the amp is well designed, high quality parts and crucially great quality transformers and output transformers, then magic awaits. Actually on frequency response, many tube amps have a huge FR range, beyond 40k and up.

Adding to that, a SET (Single Ended Triode) amp has a purity of circuit, it is a really simple design. The way it present micro detail and layering of different elements in the music, it is quite incredible and so realistic. I used to own various SS amps for speaker systems in the past, but I have to say, SET & Horns is my focus now. No going back once I heard what is can do.

So it is a natural fit to me to use a SET to also drive high end headphones. It retains all of the magic of horn speakers. I have the LCD4 and love them on SETs. It is a magical combination. I also have the Abyss Phi TC incoming, see what that can do.

 

[isquirrel]

Yes agree, tubes are not about warm, slow or rounding things off. It is more about NOT having the common issues many SS amps seem to have, as in a synthetic treble, a bit one note bass and generally a 'hifi' kind of presentation. Before I get swamped with posts back, this is totally my own findings and ears. I respect the two topologies. But to me, once you get to a certain level, tubes just 'do it' for me.

The old rap of warm rosy glow of a tube amp, rolled of treble and wholly bass AKA Dad's radiogram is so wrong. If the amp is well designed, high quality parts and crucially great quality transformers and output transformers, then magic awaits. Actually on frequency response, many tube amps have a huge FR range, beyond 40k and up.

Adding to that, a SET (Single Ended Triode) amp has a purity of circuit, it is a really simple design. The way it present micro detail and layering of different elements in the music, it is quite incredible and so realistic. I used to own various SS amps for speaker systems in the past, but I have to say, SET & Horns is my focus now. No going back once I heard what is can do.


So it is a natural fit to me to use a SET to also drive high end headphones. It retains all of the magic of horn speakers. I have the LCD4 and love them on SETs. It is a magical combination. I also have the Abyss Phi TC incoming, see what that can do.

Could not agree more.

My amp will take 300B's, 2A3's and 45's. The 45's are my favourite tubes. I have always loved the Audeze house sound. However the new Abyss TC has become my daily Headphone. I must revisit the 4 (100 ohm) & 4Z again.