[Arghavan]

In terms of comfort I subjectively prefer the feel of the LCD-X over the Aeolus. They are just bigger and softer and grab your ears like no other headphone. I do feel the fazor touching my left ear on the LCD-X due to the new pads being squishier but it's not really bothering me. As for the Aeolus, with the leather headband they feel superlight, still a big headphone size wise with big pads. I recently changed the leather band with a padded Suede from ZMF and the first few days it hurt like hell. An annoying hot spot exactly on top of my head but now as it loosened up it feels better than the thin leather strap. Both headphones, in my books, are 10/10 comfort. It comes does to what feels better on your head.

As far as sound goes, have you tried forest fruit ? You can probably find this flavor in just about anything food or drink related but have you actually tried forest fruit ? Like from the forest ? not grown artificially. That would describe the sound of the LCD-X as per my taste. Sweet, slamming taste. Energizing really. It just has that WOW effect immediately after you put them on. Like you've heard music before, right ? But have you heard it on these ? Bass is awesome and not overdone stock. It can take up a LOT of EQ, A LOT. Want mini subwoofers on your head ? Get LCD-Xs. Vocals come clear and forward. Also great detail retrieval. Imaging is 3D, not very wide sounding though but it's a trade off for all the other things that does it well.
The Aeolus on the other hand is a completely different headphone, apart from the obvious, being a dynamic and all. Wider soundstage, imaging as good as the LCD-X. I usually asses a headphone like 10 to 20 mins for these types of technicalities and then I just listen to music. Bass and subbass is good but less than the LCD-X, hits differently. Mids are the star of the show here. As far as tonality goes it resembles the sound of the HD600 series but better and more natural in every way. This has been my do all daily headphone for the last 3 weeks since I got them. It just plays everything so good. In short it's like a Pineapple, sweet, juicy and a tingle on the tongue after

This is as short as I could keep it lol

That was a great comparison and analogy! thanks.
I'm now even more tempted to get the LCD-X. I really hate my ears touching the drivers though. Since each pair of ears are different maybe mine won't touch, they do not stick too far from my head, If they do I might get some third-party pads.

 

[Deceneu808]

That was a great comparison and analogy! thanks.
I'm now even more tempted to get the LCD-X. I really hate my ears touching the drivers though. Since each pair of ears are different maybe mine won't touch, they do not stick too far from my head, If they do I might get some third-party pads.

It barely touches the ear. Only left one because of some pad inconsistency. I already bought a set of new ones but don't feel like changing them just yet. It's like 5% of my ear that touches the driver but you may but luckier. If not there are always Dekoni pads but they do change the sound a bit so there's that. Good luck on your decision

 

[Deceneu808]

Any recommendations for amps for the LCD-X ? Up to 700$ budget

 

[FYFL]

Any recommendations for amps for the LCD-X ? Up to 700$ budget

Rebel.

 

[The Hawk]

Any recommendations for amps for the LCD-X ? Up to 700$ budget

The Rebelamp FYFL mentioned should be nice (and it’s finally available in black) but I haven’t heard it.

I’ve been using a Flux FA-12S that I got a few weeks ago and it’s a nice pairing.

 

[FYFL]

I haven

The Rebelamp FYFL mentioned should be nice (and it’s finally available in black) but I haven’t heard it.

I’ve been using a Flux FA-12S that I got a few weeks ago and it’s a nice pairing.

I haven’t tried it neither but ppl I trust swear by it. And it’s a “true” class A. Not just aggressively high biased class A/B.

 

[The Hawk]

I haven

I haven’t tied it neither but ppl I trust swear by it. And it’s a “true” class A. Not just aggressively high biased class A/B.

Same here.....I’ve heard nothing but great feedback on the Rebelamp and the Flux products as well. Both have excellent build quality and use high quality parts. I was intrigued to try a Class A amp up to a $700 price point and the Rebelamp was one of the amps I looked at long and hard. At the end of the day the green was a dealbreaker for me as my headphone amp sits on the same rack as my audio system so I went with the FA-12S. I also liked the option of a remote volume control Flux offers which has been a nice luxury to have. Should also mention you can customize your amp too. When I ordered my Flux I requested to have a black volume knob installed as opposed to the standard silver to blend with my other audio gear better and they were happy to oblige that request.

From all my research I don’t think there’s a wrong choice if those two $500 Class A amps are on your list. I‘d bet they sound more alike then different (and feedback I’ve heard from those that have heard both basically confirm that) so buy what suits your tastes IMO.

I‘ve really enjoyed the experience so far with my FA-12S powering my LCD-X. Coming from a THX 789, the FA-12S has all the detail the 789 had but it sounds more spacious, the highs are smoother and sweeter without that “etch” the 789 is known for and the bass has more weight. The mids sound warmer and a bit fuller as well. In short it just sounds more organic and natural.

 

[Lohb]

Yes, THX789/887 go really well with Pre-Fazor LCD-2s.
For X, I'd say no.

 

[FYFL]

@The Hawk if they do sound similar, I would go with feature loaded amp. Obviously.

 

[Alex May]

I'd like to share my experience of improving the sound of the old LCD-X without EQ for those who don't have an opportunity to upgrade to the latest revision or even try the new version of the pads. I tried several Dekoni pads which all failed miserably with my pair. Even the acclaimed choice suede because all it did was over smoothing the sound too much. Some might actually like the choice suede. For me it was definitely an improvement for the tonality but detrimental for the detail retrieval. Hybrids were thrown down the trash almost immediately. Since my purpose of using the LCD-X was sound engineering, I continued looking for the cure to the phase problems of the LCD-X and its tonality so that they don't exclude each other.

I realised that I had to search for more shallow pads akin to the newer revision which is said to have some improvement over the phase flaws of the old revision. And the Dekoni pads were immediately out of the equation because they are even thicker than the stock earpads of the old LCD-X.

In despair, I ordered a Chinese pair of earpads for $20 from AliExpress: https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005002322979719.html
They seemed a little shallower at least in the photo. To my huge surprise, they improved the sound dramatically! These earpads, although not hugely shallower in real life, appeared much more squishy and soft. They conform to my head so comfortably compared to the stiff and thick stock pads. And due to being squishy and with much less density they kinda compress and break that infamous phase cancellation around 3.3-4K and overall improve the frequency response albeit at the cost of some bass quantity. But the bass problem with shallower pads was inevitable as we've already discussed. However, the bass now is more consistent and doesn't exhibit that weird compression effect like it used to with the old pads. Previously the bass amplified when I was breaking the seal by raising the headphones a couple mm away from my ears. Now when I break the seal with the new pads, the bass decreases as it normally should. So, the phase artifacts became less apparent.

Some shrillness still remained though. Probably added some peaks at 6-8K with these Chinese pads. I needed some cure to it, otherwise it was too fatiguing for long listening sessions. I got too much ringing in my ears even after one song. Putting filters inside the pads was a no go for me because it normally kills the dynamics and detail. What I did is I put the thinnest 1mm foam sponge disks underneath the metal grills, at the opposite side of the drivers that is. These disks can also be easily found on eBay and AliExpress (either for Audeze LCD or Monolith M1060 disks will do). That effectively tamed the shrillness without any detrimental effect on the detail and dynamics. However, some additional warmth appeared at 300-400 Hz and I've notice a very slight decrease in sound stage.

So, by doing all these mods I managed to improve the sound of the old LCD-X to the point where I don't have to EQ. The use of EQ is impossible in my system for several reasons. First is that I often switch between the hardware with no equaliser available. Secondly, I have a collection of headphones and I often A/B between them, so it becomes really annoying to switch the EQ presets all the time when switching between all the headphones and the speakers. Let alone the need to launch an additional EQ application which is another bothersome thing I'd like to avoid.

 

[mitchb]

The LCDX headphones much improve with 200 or so hours play on them.

 

[Lohb]

Might just pick up 2021 X and see how it fares compared to 2016 XC with cups off...but I guess no grill and different pads on XC further muddies the water to A|B them...

 

[mitchb]

The drivers on the 2016XC’s are different than the drivers on the 2021X.

 

[Lohb]

The drivers on the 2016XC’s are different than the drivers on the 2021X.

I know, that is the reason to A|B them.

 

[Arghavan]

It seems like Audeze has updated the reveal+ plugin. Anybody can check that it's updated for LCD-X 2021 and can share them?