[AndrewCanDo]

Finally some new tech in the IEM game. Although the price is pretty ridiculous for the LCD i4, I think its somewhat more value than conventionally designed IEMs that charge a similar amount. The fit of the i4 though, it looks so clunky. Anyone has experience with going to the gym with these? I can imagine it looking kinda ridiculous for outdoor use.

Honestly, these are more miniature headphones than IEMs imo. I'd also be pretty hesitant working out with $2500 earphones. As for the gym, wouldn't advise it as i'm sure these don't play well with any moisture and outside noise (no one wants to hear the grunts of guys and girls lifting weights in the background of their music lol).

 

[jlbrach]

first of all what is ridiculous about the price?...in a world where people pay thousands of dollars for cables etc it seems to me these are arguably a bargain....in terms of using them in the gym,dont waste your time...they arent meant for that and in that case you would actually be wasting your money

 

[edwardsean]

The i4s are more "transportable" than portable. You can pop them in a laptop bag and have great sound when you get to wherever you're going, but they're not really practical for jogging, biking, commuting, flying, on the way there. They don't fit tightly like regular IEMs, and the bigger issue is sound leakage in both directions.

 

[JLoud]

I have used my isine10’s for running. They work just fine. Also allow outside noise in. Which in this case is good. Traffic etc. Wouldn’t use my i4’s for workouts though.

 

[sorrick]

Finally some new tech in the IEM game. Although the price is pretty ridiculous for the LCD i4, I think its somewhat more value than conventionally designed IEMs that charge a similar amount. The fit of the i4 though, it looks so clunky. Anyone has experience with going to the gym with these? I can imagine it looking kinda ridiculous for outdoor use.

They are fine to walk around in but doubt you would want to go to the gym with them because they are open backed and do not isolate, so you will hear whatever music they have playing in the gym. They are also not really designed to be sweat proof and are probably less water resistant than other more traditional closed back iems.

Having said all this, they are spectacular iems that sound give you true end-game TOTL sound...and that’s not just totl for iems. They can go toe to toe sound quality-wise with most totl full size headphones.

 

[commtrd]

Hmmm I dont think that using the i4 at the gym would work so well. Have not tried it though. Since not sound isolating, prolly not a good venue for i4 anyway. On another note, amending the ear hooks to facilitate installing the 6mm rubber tubing changed the aim of the devices into ear canals, which made a dramatic change in SQ. Whether or not that change would also relate to lesser security of the earpiece staying put may be debatable. I only use mine desk side anyway, so not an issue for me.

Must say that between i4 and 4z, definitely the best sound reproduction capability I have ever had the pleasure of using. The definition of TOTL.

 

[Piotr Michalak]

.

 

[KMann]

So many things were said about the cipher cable, also by me. But what does it REALLY change?
Lo and behold, measurements of cipher cable as compared to a normal analogue connection.
Made on miniDSP EARS, so it may not be 100% accurate, but should give us a hint.

Notes:
- Definitely more meaty bass (+7 dB) as compared to the "bass light neutral" version without DSP!
Now we have a proper fun "V sound".
Before we had a portable bright "baby Stax SR-009"! (*)
- Also the "hole" at 3-5 kHz has been "repaired", maybe too much. Now we have a +10 dB spike at 2,5 kHz.
- Both versions give us enough higher highs to attract some bats! Mostly +15 dB at 12+ kHz, so it doesn't hurt very much, rather gives some aetheric air. I dunno if it's healthy for your hearing, though...
- I've also tried this cable with my CIEMs (Lime Ears Aether) and could not stand the bass, as it was too much for them

* Proof of SR009 thesis:

Looking quite similar, don't they?

Let's also see how does the other cipher cable work: the one provided with EL8 titanium!

What the heck? Not much happened here. Maybe 2.5 dB more lower lows, a little less bright mids, especially from 2 to 3 kHz, also -2.5 dB.
This is the cable I would re-use (after changing the connectors) as a neutral connection to my iPhone. May work much better with Lime Ears Aether than the other one

Remember there may be more changes in THD and other things, I'm only measuring the quantity of sound here.
I hope you guys foung that amusing! Cheers

Thanks for the measurements, we have already shared the PEQ equivalent of the Cipher cable for iSine 10/20 and i4, so no secrets there, in fact I have helped many setup the EQ on their Android phone using Neutron player or Tonebooster. The Cipher cable adds the effect of the outer ear that is missing with in ears. The Reveal plugin also uses the same target curve.

Regarding what the Cipher cable does for EL-8 and Sine, no secret there too, we have shared that information and all it does is a simple 3dB bass boost.

 

[sahmen]

What is a cipher cable, and sorry if that sounds ignorant?

 

[popof94]

What is a cipher cable, and sorry if that sounds ignorant?

A lightning cable from Audeze to connect directly their sine or iSine products to all iOS products (iPhone, iPad, iPod). It included a DAC/Amp/eq especially made to obtain the best from sine or iSine with IOS sources. You don’t need any DAP to listen HR files from IOS if you use the Cypher.

https://www.audeze.com/lightning-cable-technology

 

[sahmen]

A lightning cable from Audeze to connect directly their sine or iSine products to all iOS products (iPhone, iPad, iPod). It included a DAC/Amp/eq especially made to obtain the best from sine or iSine with IOS sources. You don’t need any DAP to listen HR files from IOS if you use the Cypher.

https://www.audeze.com/lightning-cable-technology

That was nice and clear. Thanks.

 

[Piotr Michalak]

Thanks for the measurements, we have already shared the PEQ equivalent of the Cipher cable for iSine 10/20 and i4, so no secrets there, in fact I have helped many setup the EQ on their Android phone using Neutron player or Tonebooster. The Cipher cable adds the effect of the outer ear that is missing with in ears. The Reveal plugin also uses the same target curve.
Regarding what the Cipher cable does for EL-8 and Sine, no secret there too, we have shared that information and all it does is a simple 3dB bass boost.

I thought I've shared something of value and didn't knew about this. Thanks for the info. It's hard to find anything on head-fi, so I link here to the aforementioned post for future wanderers:
https://www.head-fi.org/threads/aud...gnetic-earphones.818870/page-84#post-13229906

Still, I believe it's good to know how LCDi4 measures after applying this PEQ.
I'm amazed that such EQ was found to be the best among tested subjects and I feel I'm still learning.

 

[KMann]

I thought I've shared something of value and didn't knew about this. Thanks for the info. It's hard to find anything on head-fi, so I link here to the aforementioned post for future wanderers:
https://www.head-fi.org/threads/aud...gnetic-earphones.818870/page-84#post-13229906

Still, I believe it's good to know how LCDi4 measures after applying this PEQ.
I'm amazed that such EQ was found to be the best among tested subjects and I feel I'm still learning.

I agree it will sometimes be hard to find what you want. The post you quoted is for V1 of Cipher that we supplied for iSine10/20 initially, which was very close to the Harman curve and many found it to be too bright. V2 Cipher changes it and the right post will be post #2500 on that thread.

For LCD-i4 here is the the PEQ equivalent of Cipher. We provide Cipher cable V2 for free with LCD-i4 as a convenience. This is not included in the package but iDevice owners can contact support and get one if they need one.

 

[Piotr Michalak]

I agree it will sometimes be hard to find what you want. The post you quoted is for V1 of Cipher that we supplied for iSine10/20 initially, which was very close to the Harman curve and many found it to be too bright. V2 Cipher changes it and the right post will be post #2500 on that thread.
For LCD-i4 here is the the PEQ equivalent of Cipher. We provide Cipher cable V2 for free with LCD-i4 as a convenience. This is not included in the package but iDevice owners can contact support and get one if they need one.

Wow, good to know... I had received no such information when buying LCD-i4. I only registered my product to receive a discount and then had to pay both for the cable and duties + taxes. I will contact support about possible reimbursement at least for the cable. And I am grateful for all the information!

 

[koven]

Anyone see the b stock deal for $995 from Audeze? Nice price..

https://www.audeze.com/products/lcd-collection/lcdi4-b-stock-sale