[mitchb]

My LCD4 phones sound good with my Moon 430 HA headphone amp.

 

[RickInHouston]

My LCD4 phones sound good with my Moon 430 HA headphone amp.

The Moon, the Bryston and the Benchmark were my final three.

 

[Solan]

LCD-4 has good warranty support. Both lcd and focal have had failure issues. I own Stellia and LCD-4, if you can’t afford driver replacement out of warranty, then you might want to pass on both. Utopia and Lcd-4 are very different headphones.

Affording is one issue, and I probably can, but there is the annoyance factor and the "what if they go out of business" factor as well. But how much IS it for driver replacement for an LCD4?

 

[sennfan83261]

Affording is one issue, and I probably can, but there is the annoyance factor and the "what if they go out of business" factor as well. But how much IS it for driver replacement for an LCD4?

$1,200 for matched drivers.

 

[thecrow]

Affording is one issue, and I probably can, but there is the annoyance factor and the "what if they go out of business" factor as well. But how much IS it for driver replacement for an LCD4?

Wow.
I did not see that comment coming.

 

[JLoud]

By all accounts Audeze is doing well. Many headphone manufacturers have seen an increase in sales.

 

[kid vic]

Affording is one issue, and I probably can, but there is the annoyance factor and the "what if they go out of business" factor as well. But how much IS it for driver replacement for an LCD4?

If your afraid they might go out of business, dont buy anything. Ever.

 

[VandyMan]

If Audeze went out of business tomorrow, I think the value of our LCD-4 headphones on the used market would go way up.

 

[RickInHouston]

If your afraid they might go out of business, dont buy anything. Ever.

Don't buy anything if you think they are going to break or not out last their usefulness that you can't afford to replace.

 

[malocadi]

Could someone honestly tell me whether I might not be getting the most out of my LCD-4 by running it out of a subpar amp? I'm currently driving it with a Monolith Liquid Platinum. Has anyone seen a noticeable difference with these cans after upgrading their amp?

 

[JLoud]

I went from a Schiit Jotenheim to a Woo WA5le to a WA33. I could tell the difference every step of the way. The available current really seems to make a difference in the control of the drivers. The WA33 is fantastic. I was debating on selling my LCD4 but after hearing what they are capable of, they are one of my favorite. So, yes, the amp makes a difference. I would think you have more to get out of your LCD4's.

 

[RickInHouston]

Could someone honestly tell me whether I might not be getting the most out of my LCD-4 by running it out of a subpar amp? I'm currently driving it with a Monolith Liquid Platinum. Has anyone seen a noticeable difference with these cans after upgrading their amp?

Do you have to turn the amp up extremely high to get a 'comfortable' level of sound? That would be my first thought. I'll hook my Audezes to my laptop and see what downgrades I find, later today, and come back to post. I changed amp, DAC cables, ... all at the same time, so it's quite mudddy what made the biggest impact.

Your question will be good for all of us! I'll be honest and say I can't tell BIG differences in things like others can. THEY can, but my ears are older.

 

[sahmen]

Could someone honestly tell me whether I might not be getting the most out of my LCD-4 by running it out of a subpar amp? I'm currently driving it with a Monolith Liquid Platinum. Has anyone seen a noticeable difference with these cans after upgrading their amp?

Short answer : You can get more performance out of your LCD-4, as the LCD-4 has a lot of scaling potential. Besides, that is almost always "the" rule in audio. You can almost always get better performance as you find better synergies between each component inside your chain--,and your ears and preferences. However, that does not make the Liquid Platinum, by itself, a "sub-par" amp by any stretch of the imagination.

I understand that you're suspecting there might be some weak link in your chain, but why are you singling out your amp (the LP) for blame as the culprit? There are some who believe, and with good reason, that the DAC might be even more essential in shaping the end result than the amp. But to me every single element of your chain matters, including the cables.

Here's a small demo :

Sonnet Digital Morpheus ==>> Liquid Platinum (LCD-4/Susvara)
/
Sonore Optical module ==>>Etherregen==>>Metrum Ambre
\
Schiit Yggrasil A2 ===>> Violectric V281 (LCD-4/Susvara)


The above diagram shows how a couple of rigs I am currently using are set up. I can drive the LCD-4 (or the Susvara) in either one of the above two chains, and, pound for pound, the Liquid Platinum chain competes very favorabiy with the V281 chain. One has to make some allowance for some variable results, which would depend on the tubes one is rolling on the LP at any given moment, but for me, even those variable values attest to the LPs relative versatility and should not be counted against it. The important thing is that the LCD-4 sounds smooth and effortless in each of those chains, and shows no strain or downsides in either one of them. Bottomline? The LCD-4 never sounds "sub-par" to my ears in either case.

Can it sound better in a different chain? Absolutely, but i bet I can arrive at that same conclusion regarding practically any chain under the sun. There are several elements about the chain above ( I have not even mentioned cables, connectors, interconnects, and power supply units that are deployed at strategic points in the chains) that could be replaced in order to give the overall chains an arguably improved end result, but I wouldn't call any of existing individual parts "sub-par," as both chains already sound excellent to "fantastic" with the LCD-4 to my ears as they stand now, depending on the mastering or mixing of the audio recording at the source one is listening to (for me, that is Roon/Tidal/Qobuz).

I hope I do not sound as if I am going "overboard" with the above demonstration. To think I set out to deliver a "short answer"!

 

[RickInHouston]

Could someone honestly tell me whether I might not be getting the most out of my LCD-4 by running it out of a subpar amp? I'm currently driving it with a Monolith Liquid Platinum. Has anyone seen a noticeable difference with these cans after upgrading their amp?

Just to see on my own, I connected my LCD-4s to my laptop. I had to turn the volume to 100 and still didn't get it at a listen level I could sit back and enjoy. Not wanting really loud, just not sufficiently loud. Sometimes, though, I like listening low and having to almost strain to hear. Soundstage did shrink. Notes, voices all sound thin kind of like a clarinet playing a sustained note vs 4 clarinets playing the same sustained note together and each clarinet having a different sound signature. You would think it's the one clarinet you want it to sound like but all four together give you a better sound. Anyway, just me.

 

[malocadi]

Do you have to turn the amp up extremely high to get a 'comfortable' level of sound? That would be my first thought. I'll hook my Audezes to my laptop and see what downgrades I find, later today, and come back to post. I changed amp, DAC cables, ... all at the same time, so it's quite mudddy what made the biggest impact.

Your question will be good for all of us! I'll be honest and say I can't tell BIG differences in things like others can. THEY can, but my ears are older.

Short answer : You can get more performance out of your LCD-4, as the LCD-4 has a lot of scaling potential. Besides, that is almost always "the" rule in audio. You can almost always get better performance as you find better synergies between each component inside your chain--,and your ears and preferences. However, that does not make the Liquid Platinum, by itself, a "sub-par" amp by any stretch of the imagination.

I understand that you're suspecting there might be some weak link in your chain, but why are you singling out your amp (the LP) for blame as the culprit? There are some who believe, and with good reason, that the DAC might be even more essential in shaping the end result than the amp. But to me every single element of your chain matters, including the cables.

Here's a small demo :

Sonnet Digital Morpheus ==>> Liquid Platinum (LCD-4/Susvara)
/
Sonore Optical module ==>>Etherregen==>>Metrum Ambre
\
Schiit Yggrasil A2 ===>> Violectric V281 (LCD-4/Susvara)


The above diagram shows how a couple of rigs I am currently using are set up. I can drive the LCD-4 (or the Susvara) in either one of the above two chains, and, pound for pound, the Liquid Platinum chain competes very favorabiy with the V281 chain. One has to make some allowance for some variable results, which would depend on the tubes one is rolling on the LP at any given moment, but for me, even those variable values attest to the LPs relative versatility and should not be counted against it. The important thing is that the LCD-4 sounds smooth and effortless in each of those chains, and shows no strain or downsides in either one of them. Bottomline? The LCD-4 never sounds "sub-par" to my ears in either case.

Can it sound better in a different chain? Absolutely, but i bet I can arrive at that same conclusion regarding practically any chain under the sun. There are several elements about the chain above ( I have not even mentioned cables, connectors, interconnects, and power supply units that are deployed at strategic points in the chains) that could be replaced in order to give the overall chains an arguably improved end result, but I wouldn't call any of existing individual parts "sub-par," as both chains already sound excellent to "fantastic" with the LCD-4 to my ears as they stand now, depending on the mastering or mixing of the audio recording at the source one is listening to (for me, that is Roon/Tidal/Qobuz).

I hope I do not sound as if I am going "overboard" with the above demonstration. To think I set out to deliver a "short answer"!

Just to see on my own, I connected my LCD-4s to my laptop. I had to turn the volume to 100 and still didn't get it at a listen level I could sit back and enjoy. Not loud, just not now correct. Soundstage did shrink. Notes, voices all sound thin kind of like a clarinet playing a sustained note vs 4 clarinets playing the same sustained note together and each clarinet having a different sound signature. You would think it's the one clarinet you want it to sound like but all four together give you a better sound. Anyway, just me.

Thanks for the assurance guys. I'm singling out my amp in particular because the LCD is such a beast to power that I started to wonder if given an amp with more power, can I get more detail out of it? On the LP, I listen comfortably with it on the second gain, so I assume that it has sufficient power.