[alishafai]

i sold it long time ago. that being Said Hugo TT2 is a huge improvement over TT1 regardless.

I have TT1 right now, and would love to get TT2/M-Scaler combo.

 

[KMann]

Also music does not have an infinite amount of ''detail'' and ''microdetail''. In my experience even an HD650 from a $200 amp gives you 95% of the detail in a recording.

Flagship planars from Audeze and Hifiman, the Focal Utopia and TOTL Electrostatics are able to extract all the detail there is to be had. The big differences in what I hear at this level are simply the difference in tonal balance and maybe bass quality based on the pad design, perfect/imperfect seal etc

The headphone or the DAC better not add 'detail' that is not already in the music Detail can only be extracted but not created (though you could totally destroy it!). We prefer a presentation where the detail is presented as is, not exaggerated.

With detail some of it tonal, some of it related to clarity (reduced diffraction and reflection) and some of it is due to timing (increased time resolution due to low mass drivers). It is easy to 'fake' detail by reducing the mids especially near 1-3khz region) and then boosting the region between 5-10kHz. This has the effect of putting ones ears next to the instrument, not very natural, yes one can hear more of the treble (AKA detail) , but gets fatiguing.

When reflections and diffractions are reduced, you just hear the music more clearly and detail stands out naturally.

When the driver has low mass and can accelerate and decelerate quickly, you get a good treble extension but this alone does not guarantee transparency. The driver needs to be damped and controlled well to a point where the impulse response approaches the ideal, then it improves not just frequency extension but also time resolution. When you have two notes very close in time, time resolution helps to hear this more accurately, leading edges are well defined and you hear the faintest of picks and more texture comes through.

I can guarantee you that not a single engineer at Audeze would ever say that a $4000 cable will make their headphone perform better than the cable they themselves designed for their flagship.

Cables are just a transmission lines for the music signal that leaves your amp and reaches your headphone. The best cable is no cable, but of course that is not possible, so the next best thing a cable can do is nothing at all and get out of the way. Cables do impart their signature but an order or orders of magnitude less than the headphone, amp or DAC. Though I believe cables make a difference, the quality I look for in a cable is not to impart any signature and remain transparent but I won't spend insane amount of money to get there, I just settle for a cable with good ergonomics.

 

[FullBright1]

I wonder why Audeze did not first manufacture a few thousand LCD-5's and then announce their sale- so they could ship right away. What value is there in keeping us all waiting 6-8 weeks?

That's what i like about Hifiman.
They announce the HE Edition XS, and you can buy it.
They dont try to explain why its not ready, while taking money.

Perhaps its a good idea to have the product ready to ship before you start taking orders..
But, on the other hand, if you did that, you would not be receiving all those preorders.

 

[Audeze]

I wonder why Audeze did not first manufacture a few thousand LCD-5's and then announce their sale- so they could ship right away. What value is there in keeping us all waiting 6-8 weeks?

edit: I find it aggravating to wait. I would rather not know about them- even if it took another month or two to announce them but then when I placed my order have them shipped right away.

This was answered here.

https://www.head-fi.org/threads/aud...ments-interview.959808/page-109#post-16614019

 

[rsbrsvp]

I ordered my LCD-5 three weeks ago. My dealer checked before ordering and was told 3-4 weeks to delivery;- which means worst case- I would get them in a week from now. Now he is being told it will be many more weeks... I guess there was a major miscalculation...

 

[bfreedma]

I wonder why Audeze did not first manufacture a few thousand LCD-5's and then announce their sale- so they could ship right away. What value is there in keeping us all waiting 6-8 weeks?

edit: I find it aggravating to wait. I would rather not know about them- even if it took another month or two to announce them but then when I placed my order have them shipped right away.

That simply isn't a financial reality for most small/med sized companies.

People who don't want to wait are better off not being early adopters - delays are almost inevitable. Frankly, the level of entitlement on display by the posters who constantly complain about waiting a few weeks for a new $4,500 headphone is off-putting.

 

[boxster233]

The research has been done (several times at least). The conclusions drawn from the research aren't very popular with headphone enthusiasts who like to purchase expensive cables.

Any links or references to them? I've only been in headphones for 4 years and I haven't studied up on cables. Feel free to DM to me.

 

[rsbrsvp]

That simply isn't a financial reality for most small/med sized companies.

People who don't want to wait are better off not being early adopters - delays are almost inevitable. Frankly, the level of entitlement on display by the posters who constantly complain about waiting a few weeks for a new $4,500 headphone is off-putting.

I understand the logic- but 8 weeks is not a few weeks. Also, Dan Clark- a much smaller company had at least some Stealths ready to ship on day of announcement, and when sold out restocked in two weeks.- So it is possible to do a balance between manufacturing some units in advance, and being ready to make more

 

[bfreedma]

Any links or references to them? I've only been in headphones for 4 years and I haven't studied up on cables. Feel free to DM to me.

Let me see what I can find. A number of them are on AES behind a paywall and I no longer have access.

Cables perform a very basic function - simple physics will demonstrate that things like conductivity differences between materials are insignificant at the lengths used in the hobby. And no matter what they claim, the boutique cable builders still have to operate within the bounds of physics...

 

[bfreedma]

I understand the logic- but 8 weeks is not a few weeks. Also, Dan Clark- a much smaller company had at least some Stealths ready to ship on day of announcement, and when sold out restocked in two weeks.- So it is possible to do a balance between manufacturing some units in advance, and being ready to make more

Cool - go buy a Stealth.

The reality is, none of us know how many LCD-5s Audeze can build over a given period of time and if actual demand exceeded expected. deliveries will be delayed.

To avoid this, when I want to buy a product on release, I purchase direct from the manufacturer as they will almost always take priority over the dealership chain.

 

[rsbrsvp]

I dont want a stealth. That was not the point. The point was that a small company can be partially ready on day one...

 

[rthomas]

The headphone or the DAC better not add 'detail' that is not already in the music Detail can only be extracted but not created (though you could totally destroy it!). We prefer a presentation where the detail is presented as is, not exaggerated.

With detail some of it tonal, some of it related to clarity (reduced diffraction and reflection) and some of it is due to timing (increased time resolution due to low mass drivers). It is easy to 'fake' detail by reducing the mids especially near 1-3khz region) and then boosting the region between 5-10kHz. This has the effect of putting ones ears next to the instrument, not very natural, yes one can hear more of the treble (AKA detail) , but gets fatiguing.

When reflections and diffractions are reduced, you just hear the music more clearly and detail stands out naturally.

When the driver has low mass and can accelerate and decelerate quickly, you get a good treble extension but this alone does not guarantee transparency. The driver needs to be damped and controlled well to a point where the impulse response approaches the ideal, then it improves not just frequency extension but also time resolution. When you have two notes very close in time, time resolution helps to hear this more accurately, leading edges are well defined and you hear the faintest of picks and more texture comes through.


Cables are just a transmission lines for the music signal that leaves your amp and reaches your headphone. The best cable is no cable, but of curse that is not possible, so the next best thing a cable can do is nothing at all and get out of the way. Cables do impart their signature but an order or orders of magnitude less than the headphone, amp or DAC. Though I believe cables make a difference, the quality I look for in a cable is not to impart any signature and remain transparent but I won't spend insane amount of money to get there, I just settle for a cable with good ergonomics.

Thanks again for your insight

There you have it guys. I don't know this man's name but I'm guessing he has engineering degrees in Acoustics/Audio engineering. He chooses a cable for ergonomics and not to magically fix or improve a headphone.

My humble request to headfiers considering $4000 cables for their LCD5. Spend the money on the Audeze CRBN as well instead and support a wonderful headphone manufacturer instead of the magic cable supplier who claims improvements based on no evidence of any kind whatsoever other than the marketing poetry on their website.

However if you have money to burn and don't care please go to Double Helix cables with your money at the ready.

Excerpt from their website:

Closing gaps. With two flagship headphones, where one is preferred to another, Prion4 will push the under-performing headphone ahead of the higher-performing headphone (assuming both headphones were using the same cable before Prion4 was added).

This is a fascinating claim. So all I need to do is add a Prion 4 to a ZMF Verite and it should outperform the LCD5 or Susvara with their lowly stock cables.

 

[rthomas]

I dont want a stealth. That was not the point. The point was that a small company can be partially ready on day one...

Please don't take this too seriously:

You have to wait 8 weeks for your $4500 headphone? Somebody call the wambulance

Audeze is a tiny company in the grand scheme of things. They wouldn't even exist without nutty audiophiles like us willing to put a 700 gram audio helmet on our heads.

They seem to have knocked it out of the park with not one but two flagships with different driver technologies. Cut them some slack.

 

[ThanatosVI]

I understand the logic- but 8 weeks is not a few weeks. Also, Dan Clark- a much smaller company had at least some Stealths ready to ship on day of announcement, and when sold out restocked in two weeks.- So it is possible to do a balance between manufacturing some units in advance, and being ready to make more

Well Audeze admitted to have announced the LCD-5 a little early due to canjam.
On top I would expect that the Demand for the LCD-5 is significantly higher than for the stealth.

There are also supply issues all over the industry, making all of that exceptionally hard.

 

[rsbrsvp]

Honestly, I can wait. I'm just making conversation until my headphones arrive in 8 weeks to keep busy..