Audeze LCD-4

[ThanatosVI]

with a low-shelf of 3 @ 32hz and 8.5 @ 105hz.

That's some juicy Basshead EQ, not bad!

 

[jlbrach]

They don't. Nothing does. It's not real. Or, whatever you think will happen will happen. It's all in your mind.

Unless pads flatten.

since many HP makers actually do burn in their products before shipping them out I assume there Is some validity to it...I would assume no burn in is relevant on digital products like DAC's but I do think it does make sense that a driver might need some use before it reaches its full potential..

 

[TheAbyss2022]

That's some juicy Basshead EQ, not bad!

I have the exact EQ settings for bass lol, you get a nice mid bass punch and the LCD 4 responds very well to a bass bump.

 

[jh88]

I have the exact EQ settings for bass lol, you get a nice mid bass punch and the LCD 4 responds very well to a bass bump.

I think you recommended those bass adjustments when I first got it. Really nailed it, man!

 

[Dixter]

on digital products like DAC's during the manufacturing process of the chips they gather sample chips and burn them in on burn in jigs.... then they look at the drift and determine if they stay withing certain parameters that are within the supplier specs... if they fail then they will figure out what is needed to perform to the specs... they don't burn in all of the chips... they let that happen after you buy the product...

 

[Dixter]

I have the exact EQ settings for bass lol, you get a nice mid bass punch and the LCD 4 responds very well to a bass bump.

just loaded into Peace... that is a nice bass bump... thanks

 

[Fibre101]

I have the exact EQ settings for bass lol, you get a nice mid bass punch and the LCD 4 responds very well to a bass bump.

I assume you had the abyss judging from your name. If so, how do they compare to the lcd 4 in your opinion. I always see others saying that the LCD 4 lacks speed compare to other flagships, and I cant imagine the difference being night and day since the 4 seem fast to my ears.

 

[TheAbyss2022]

I assume you had the abyss judging from your name. If so, how do they compare to the lcd 4 in your opinion. I always see others saying that the LCD 4 lacks speed compare to other flagships, and I cant imagine the difference being night and day since the 4 seem fast to my ears.

It's just a name with no affiliation to the Abyss headphones lol.

I have never owned an abyss headphone but I've heard the AB1266 multiple times and i came away unimpressed as the instrumental timbre was not right especially in acoustical guitars which is something the LCD 4 does incredibly.

Interestingly I did compare the LCD 4 and the LCD 4z and I found that the 4z had more speed and faster, more precise imaging. The bass and treble seemed very similar but the midrange just fell apart on the 4z. You lost the midrange detail, instrumental timbre was not as natural and vocals were not as full and sweet which is what is made the LCD 4 so special to me including that bass.

 

[phthora]

since many HP makers actually do burn in their products before shipping them out I assume there Is some validity to it...I would assume no burn in is relevant on digital products like DAC's but I do think it does make sense that a driver might need some use before it reaches its full potential..

There certainly is. If the drivers are going to fail due to manufacturing defects, it is most likely to happen within the first hours of use. Running them for a while in-house saves them from shipping out some faulty units to customers. It's quality control, that's all. Although, there are many companies that also pay lip-service to their audiophile customers' preference for lengthy "burn-in" times, both to appease them and to encourage people to keep them past the return window.

 

[Tchoupitoulas]

I assume you had the abyss judging from your name. If so, how do they compare to the lcd 4 in your opinion

I'm not the person you asked, obviously, but I have a 1266 Phi with the latest pads and an LCD-4. I agree with @TheAbyss2022 about the LCD-4z vs the 4. It sounded faster to me, too; the LCD-4 isn't as fast as the 1266 but it's not a huge difference, and part of it is that the 1266 has snappier, faster transient attacks, whereas the LCD-4 is a bit more rounded in its presentation. The LCD-4 also has better decay, for my tastes. Beyond transients...

The LCD-4...

• is darker in its tuning, more euphonic
• has a richer, thicker, weightier and wetter, more liquid tonality
• has more mid-bass punch and better bass texture
• has good sub-bass depth and rumble, and decent slam
• has a richer, more forward midrange
• is a bit wonky in the upper-mids through treble, and with that slight treble rebound
• has an intimate soundstage, with lots of depth, decent height but not much width
• has good but not great imaging and separation
• has excellent layering
• could do with a bit more space and air

The Abyss 1266 Phi with the latest pads...

• is u-shaped in its tuning and is much more exciting
• has a lighter, drier, leaner sound
  • although the right kind of tube amps can warm up the presentation by lifting the mids, adding some euphony, and adding a bit of wetness to the sound
• has a tighter/faster, more precise bass presentation, with more sub-bass depth and less mid-bass richness than the LCD-4
• slams harder than the LCD-4
• has more sub-bass rumble
• has a slightly recessed mid-range (again tubes can lift them)
• can be a bit tizzy in the treble
• has a much more open and spacious soundstage, good depth but excellent width (bested only by the HD 800 and Raal SR1a)
• has excellent imaging and separation
• has similar layering (the LCD-4 might be touch better here)
• has plenty of air and space

 

[LowBeat91]

I use Oratory's EQ profile with a low-shelf of 3 @ 32hz and 8.5 @ 105hz. I tried 0 @ 12,000hz and found at -10 the sound is much tighter. My favorite aspects of this headphone are the bass texture, precise imaging, natural layering, timbre and warmness. Electronic music really shines on the LCD-4 for me. My other headphone, the Susavara, has a grand soundstage, micro-details, airiness and fluidity. Really, a great combination I hope to have for a long time!!

Do you use the 2021 Pads with it?

 

[TheAbyss2022]

I'm not the person you asked, obviously, but I have a 1266 Phi with the latest pads and an LCD-4. I agree with @TheAbyss2022 about the LCD-4z vs the 4. It sounded faster to me, too; the LCD-4 isn't as fast as the 1266 but it's not a huge difference, and part of it is that the 1266 has snappier, faster transient attacks, whereas the LCD-4 is a bit more rounded in its presentation. The LCD-4 also has better decay, for my tastes. Beyond transients...

The LCD-4...

• is darker in its tuning, more euphonic
• has a richer, thicker, weightier and wetter, more liquid tonality
• has more mid-bass punch and better bass texture
• has good sub-bass depth and rumble, and decent slam
• has a richer, more forward midrange
• is a bit wonky in the upper-mids through treble, and with that slight treble rebound
• has an intimate soundstage, with lots of depth, decent height but not much width
• has good but not great imaging and separation
• has excellent layering
• could do with a bit more space and air

The Abyss 1266 Phi with the latest pads...

• is u-shaped in its tuning and is much more exciting
• has a lighter, drier, leaner sound
  • although the right kind of tube amps can warm up the presentation by lifting the mids, adding some euphony, and adding a bit of wetness to the sound
• has a tighter/faster, more precise bass presentation, with more sub-bass depth and less mid-bass richness than the LCD-4
• slams harder than the LCD-4
• has more sub-bass rumble
• has a slightly recessed mid-range (again tubes can lift them)
• can be a bit tizzy in the treble
• has a much more open and spacious soundstage, good depth but excellent width (bested only by the HD 800 and Raal SR1a)
• has excellent imaging and separation
• has similar layering (the LCD-4 might be touch better here)
• has plenty of air and space

Sorry dude I'm always high off my mind when doing listening sessions and checking the forum lol. But I agree with yours views regarding the LCD 4.

Do you reckon the realness/timbre of instruments is good on the Abyss?

 

[Tchoupitoulas]

Do you reckon the realness/timbre of instruments is good on the Abyss?

Not especially. It's not bad, to me. But for the price, there are better - again for my preferences, or to my ears. (Among them the LCD-4, Susvara, Caldera, Final Audio D8000, among planars, and various dynamic driver headphones from the Utopia to the Atrium and others).

I find the lean, cool, and dry tonality throws off the timbre, much as it does on the HD 800. But like the HD 800, the right kind of tube amp goes a long way to improving the Abyss's tonality.

I heard a friend's 300b amp recently and it transformed the Abyss into something quite different from the one I've heard with my amps - warmer, more rounded, wetter, with a more liquid and lifted midrange. At first it threw me off, turning the Abyss into something I'm not used to - being less fast, aggressive, and exhilarating. But in retrospect I liked it as a different experience, a warmer, sweeter, softer, mellower one. And I've had a similar experience with my Stratus, which wouldn't be an amp I'd recommend for the Abyss but that does improve its timbre somewhat.

 

[jh88]

Do you use the 2021 Pads with it?

I'm not sure. They're thicker and may have been the originals from the 200ohm version.

 

[LowBeat91]

I'm not sure. They're thicker and may have been the originals from the 200ohm version.

After reciving my LCD 4, i can tell you my thoughts about the newer Driver / Sound, the EQ Settings and the Audeze RMA process