[rangerid]

Wow! Interesting take on the TC. Kinda knocked these out of contention to hear someone oppose these cans so vociferously. Or maybe violently is a better word... I thought these were supposed to be all that and a bag of chips.

Aargh, please don't take it that way as it definitely was not my intention.

TCs are a fantastic pair of headphones and make an excellent complement to the Susvara. However, the tuning is esoteric and after listening to something with a reference tuning like the Susvaras it takes some time for my brain to reacclimate to its sound signature after which it easily becomes one of the best headphone experiences in the world. I do have a slight preference for Susvaras but the TC are definitely in the same league and brings its own set of unique strengths.

 

[sp33ls]

Aargh, please don't take it that way as it definitely was not my intention.

TCs are a fantastic pair of headphones and make an excellent complement to the Susvara. However, the tuning is esoteric and after listening to something with a reference tuning like the Susvaras it takes some time for my brain to reacclimate to its sound signature after which it easily becomes one of the best headphone experiences in the world. I do have a slight preference for Susvaras but the TC are definitely in the same league and brings its own set of unique strengths.

Interesting... I wonder if you'll enjoy the LCD-5 more then (given that it's Audeze's take on the reference tuning)..?

HP.com is still awaiting shipments so they can process orders. Hoping some reviews come in the interim to help satiate my curiosity.

 

[Terco]

It took me the entire day to read all this thread , all that I want to say is that I hope my Topping stack A90/D90 would drive these good enough, I'm not planning to order a new Amp soon. I sold my Hifiman HE6SE and the Focal Clear that I probably will miss but I have hope in the LCD 5, the only headphones that I'm keeping is the LCD 2 in Rosewood that I love till death!
I ordered mine from Bloom Audio in the East coast since I want to support them and they sent me chocolate with my orders .

 

[dfiled]

… and to enable us to talk about the LCD-5 rather than everything but the LCD-5.

 

[Tanalasta]

My local dealership has an audition pair. Whilst I haven't had a chance to listen to it yet, the manager rates it highly. They stock (and sell) Focal, Audeze, Hifiman TOTL cans so that's high praise. Initial thoughts I teased out of them are that the signature Audeze sound is there. But there is improved spatial resolution and detail over the LCD-4. And that they sound more 'reference' - interpret that as you will.

I trust the guy and his ear. Enough that I'm contemplating to trade my Empyreans or HD800S.

 

[Oscar-HiFi]

My local dealership has an audition pair. Whilst I haven't had a chance to listen to it yet, the manager rates it highly. They stock (and sell) Focal, Audeze, Hifiman TOTL cans so that's high praise. Initial thoughts I teased out of them are that the signature Audeze sound is there. But there is improved spatial resolution and detail over the LCD-4. And that they sound more 'reference' - interpret that as you will.

I trust the guy and his ear. Enough that I'm contemplating to trade my Empyreans or HD800S.

Pretty much how I hear them to be fair - our demo pair have just arrived. They make the LCD-4's midrange sound comparatively muffled which is quite a feat - I think the biggest bonus is going to be the weight and comfort though.

 

[dcguy73]

I ordered a pair of LCD-5 from Audeze sight unseen. I'm hoping they'll be a good complement to my HE-1000SE. I contemplated going down the logical Susvara upgrade route, but I decided to zig zag and try the 5s instead. If I had unlimited capital for a TOTL headphone setup, I would have tried the CRBN and gone all in on an electrostatic headphone amp, but that's much more of an investment than I'm willing to make. I want something different from the Hifiman sound that works with my existing setup, and I figure Audeze is it.

 

[arrakian]

Pretty much how I hear them to be fair - our demo pair have just arrived. They make the LCD-4's midrange sound comparatively muffled which is quite a feat - I think the biggest bonus is going to be the weight and comfort though.

THAT would have been enough of an update for me

 

[Oscar-HiFi]

I ordered a pair of LCD-5 from Audeze sight unseen. I'm hoping they'll be a good complement to my HE-1000SE. I contemplated going down the Susvara route, but I decided to make a zig zag and try the 5s instead. If I had unlimited capital for a TOTL headphone setup, I would have tried the CRBN, but that would have required me to go all in on an electrostatic amp, and that's much more of an investment than I'm willing to make. I want something different from the Hifiman sound that works with my existing setup, and I figure Audeze is it.

I personally think that unless you really want an electrostat system and sound, most people are going to be better off with the LCD-5.

Both are superb headphones in their own right though.

 

[sahmen]

You gotta love the commentary of this CNN commentator, especially where she claims that Audeze headphones are "luxury items" that could cost as much as $2000.00

 

[PeteSTRADAMUS]

You gotta love the commentary of this CNN commentator, especially where she claims that Audeze headphones are "luxury items" that could cost as much as $2000.00

She was about 5 years late with that comment. Haha

 

[EMINENT]

She was about 5 years late with that comment. Haha

Seriously. Leave it to the media to never get it right.

 

[adrianm]

You gotta love the commentary of this CNN commentator, especially where she claims that Audeze headphones are "luxury items" that could cost as much as $2000.00

Is she wrong? the headphone market is going the way of luxury watches. At this point prices are mostly speculative. We're heading for a worldwide recession and manufacturers seem to forget the rest of the world didn't get stimulus checks like the US. That market might be enough for them though. I find Audeze is one of the smallest offenders in this regard though, at least they're innovating and their build quality is up to snuff.
I distinctly remember this time last year a lot of people selling their gear due to having lost their jobs because of covid. This year 4k is the new 2k and Stax bumped it up to 7.2k euros for their "latest " (20 year old tech that they finally automated production on) flagship.. I am curious where this bubble will be in a year or 2.

 

[Chill iLL]

Is she wrong? the headphone market is going the way of luxury watches. At this point prices are mostly speculative. We're heading for a worldwide recession and manufacturers seem to forget the rest of the world didn't get stimulus checks like the US. That market might be enough for them though. I find Audeze is one of the smallest offenders in this regard though, at least they're innovating and their build quality is up to snuff.
I distinctly remember this time last year a lot of people selling their gear due to having lost their jobs because of covid. This year 4k is the new 2k and Stax bumped it up to 7.2k euros for their "latest " (20 year old tech that they finally automated production on) flagship.. I am curious where this bubble will be in a year or 2.

Exactly. The video is from 2015, and most of the headphones all of us own are absolutely luxury items.

 

[adrianm]

most of the headphones all of us own are absolutely luxury items.

Yet only the Meze Elite and , more recently, the Carbon/Lcd-5 look/feel like it