[MacedonianHero]

no but i spoke with one of their technical experts and they said that the headphones do not need an amp to perform well, although an amp does provide some improvement. they said these were designed to be driven by mp3 players. but since I'm comparing them to the Sennheisers which are reportedly very finicky about their amps, it doesn't seem like getting an amp is going to cause these to be better than the Sennheisers.

I'm also turned off to the company due to their 15 percent restocking fee policy. To me that shows that they don't have confidence in their product and they know that once you buy their headphones there's a good chance that you won't like them and will want to return them. if you're going to play in the $2000 headphone space, you should have confidence in your product's desirability, as senn does. and the restocking fee was an audeze company policy not the policy of the store where I purchase them.

Just my opinion no offense and these are clearly better than $500 headphones I've tried.

Well, then I think you missed out. The LCD-XCs sound great out of my iDevices or portable amp alone, but I would hardly say that I get anywhere close to what I'm hearing with my GS-X Mk2 / BDA-2 combo.
 
FWIW, the 15% restocking fee is totally understandable IMO. Keeps the "I just wanna try it crowd and then return it" crowd.

 

[ag8908]

  Well, then I think you missed out. The LCD-XCs sound great out of my iDevices or portable amp alone, but I would hardly say that I get anywhere close to what I'm hearing with my GS-X Mk2 / BDA-2 combo.
 
FWIW, the 15% restocking fee is totally understandable IMO. Keeps the "I just wanna try it crowd and then return it" crowd.

I don't think the restocking fee is unreasonable either, but it puts Audeze at a lower tier than companies like Sennheiser. By the way, I can pretty much guaranty you that they will take that headphone and sell it as new despite charging me 15%.

 

[MacedonianHero]

 

I don't think the restocking fee is unreasonable either, but it puts Audeze at a lower tier than companies like Sennheiser. By the way, I can pretty much guaranty you that they will take that headphone and sell it as new despite charging me 15%.

Not sure if the HD800s are included in the 30 day return? FWIW, companies like Headroom offer this with pretty much all of their gear.

 

[ag8908]

  Not sure if the HD800s are included in the 30 day return? FWIW, companies like Headroom offer this with pretty much all of their gear.

At checkout, Sennheiser's website says "Do I get a 30 day money back guarantee? If you are not entirely satisfied with your purchase, you may return it to us within 30 days from the date of receipt for a full refund."
 
I noticed that headroom reserves the right to charge a 15% fee although they claim they rarely charge it. The other company posted earlier guaranteed no restocking fee. I don't meant to make a big deal out of this as I would have had to pay much more than 15% if I sold it on Ebay so I'm glad Audeze agreed to take it back.
 
However, I think it's fair to say that a company that is waiting for you to click the "checkout" button before count their money is not on the same level as a company waiting for you say, "thank you I'm satisfied" before counting their money.

 

[MacedonianHero]

 
At checkout, Sennheiser's website says "Do I get a 30 day money back guarantee? If you are not entirely satisfied with your purchase, you may return it to us within 30 days from the date of receipt for a full refund."
 
I noticed that headroom reserves the right to charge a 15% fee although they claim they rarely charge it. The other company posted earlier guaranteed no restocking fee. I don't meant to make a big deal out of this as I would have had to pay much more than 15% if I sold it on Ebay so I'm glad Audeze agreed to take it back.
 
However, I think it's fair to say that a company that is waiting for you to click the "checkout" button before count their money is not on the same level as a company waiting for you say, "thank you I'm satisfied" before counting their money.

I think Sennheiser (a much bigger company by the way) is wrong to offer this. I feel that this offer would most definitely be taken advantage of. That's what meets are for after all. 

 
On the HD800s, I would not even begin to try an listen to them out of your MP3 player directly. You would most certainly be underwhelmed in that configuration. Too bad you don't have a quality amp/dac by to hear them (either the LCD-XC or HD800).

 

[ag8908]

  I think Sennheiser (a much bigger company by the way) is wrong to offer this. I feel that this offer would most definitely be taken advantage of. That's what meets are for after all. 

 
On the HD800s, I would not even begin to try an listen to them out of your MP3 player directly. You would most certainly be underwhelmed in that configuration. Too bad you don't have a quality amp/dac by to hear them (either the LCD-XC or HD800).

 
That's a business judgment and it depends on how the company views its customers. If it views them as opportunist users or people with whom it is in a zero sum game battle, then Sennheiser's policy is not good. But if it views them as people who just want to be happy with what they have then it's a good policy. I would not have taken the risk of trying the HD800 if they didn't have that policy but now I will probably buy a second HD800 for my office and buy them as Christmas gifts for friends as well.

By the way, I see hifiman's website also states "30 days refund: shipping cost is not refundable." suggesting that they only charge you the shipping fee if you return.
 
I don't know grado's and stax's policies.

 

[MacedonianHero]

   
That's a business judgment and it depends on how the company views its customers. If it views them as opportunist users or people with whom it is in a zero sum game battle, then Sennheiser's policy is not good. But if it views them as people who just want to be happy with what they have then it's a good policy. I would not have taken the risk of trying the HD800 if they didn't have that policy but now I will probably buy a second HD800 for my office and buy them as Christmas gifts for friends as well.

By the way, I see hifiman's website also states "30 days refund: shipping cost is not refundable." suggesting that they only charge you the shipping fee if you return.
 
I don't know grado's and stax's policies.

I'm pretty sure that neither Grado nor Stax offer returns (regardless of restocking). 

 

[dguitarnut]

Bass is about the same.  The sound signature became darker.  Has really tamed the lower treble/upper mids "spikiness" I was perceiving.  Now these are my favorite closed headphones.  Highly recommended.

Thanks for your answer. I guess I will have to breakdown and try them. What's another couple hundred more bucks at this stage of the game!
At least this hobby is cheaper than gambling,drinking and running around with wild women. Anyway when I got married that came to an abrupt end. Lol.

 

[MetalElvis]

  Totally agree with you.

 
Thank you!

 

[figaro69]

Thanks for your answer. I guess I will have to breakdown and try them. What's another couple hundred more bucks at this stage of the game!
At least this hobby is cheaper than gambling,drinking and running around with wild women. Anyway when I got married that came to an abrupt end. Lol.

Just remember that I am getting great results, but I am also using an expensive, darker-sounding amplifier (fully balanced), namely the Ray Samuels Darkstar.  As a source I am using the BDP-95 Oppo universal player.  So, depending on the rest of your gear, YMMV.

 

[Focker]

I think Audeze's return policy is more than fair. When I ordered the LCD-2s last Fall and then decided to upgrade to the Xs, they wrote me back and told me that they were going to credit the 15% restocking fee toward my purchase of the Xs. I thought that was very cool of them to do. 
 
I also think it's pretty obvious why a small, relatively new company like Audeze would not have the same policies as giant like Sennheiser that has over 2000 employees and been around for decades. 
 
Lastly, suggesting that Audeze sells returned headphones as new is out of line. 

 

[Tony1110]

Well, then I think you missed out. The LCD-XCs sound great out of my iDevices or portable amp alone, but I would hardly say that I get anywhere close to what I'm hearing with my GS-X Mk2 / BDA-2 combo.

FWIW, the 15% restocking fee is totally understandable IMO. Keeps the "I just wanna try it crowd and then return it" crowd.

I agree with that. When I read the comments about them working well out of an MP3 player or laptop I tried it myself and was underwhelmed. The gulf in performance between an iPhone and a good amp like the RWA Cassabria is astronomical. I think Audeze should take that blurb off their website because people are clearly going to end up disappointed if they buy headphones like these and run them off sub-par equipment. It's going to lead to a lot of headphones being returned to the manufacturer.

 

[ag8908]

  I think Audeze's return policy is more than fair. When I ordered the LCD-2s last Fall and then decided to upgrade to the Xs, they wrote me back and told me that they were going to credit the 15% restocking fee toward my purchase of the Xs. I thought that was very cool of them to do. 
 
I also think it's pretty obvious why a small, relatively new company like Audeze would not have the same policies as giant like Sennheiser that has over 2000 employees and been around for decades. 
 
Lastly, suggesting that Audeze sells returned headphones as new is out of line. 

 
I'm sorry I did not mean to be out of line. It's simply that unlike Sennheiser, I don't see Audeze selling refurbished models (see e.g. the refurbished HD800s sold by Crutchfield) on their website or through their authorized retailers, and since you are absolutely certain that they don't take all those returned Audeze's and resell them as new -- perhaps they throw them into a fire pit or shred them? (sarcasm)
 
Again I didn't say their policy is unreasonable. I only said that companies like senn and hifiman that say, "take these, play with them for a month and if they are as good as we say buy them, otherwise send them back" should be praised for that policy relative to a company like Audeze that needs to use monetary penalties, rather that your satisfaction, to get you to keep one of their headphones. You just admitted that they only agreed to waive the 15% penalty if you bought another Audeze. They offered the same thing to me, but I don't like those sort of tactics, which remind me of used car salesmen.

 

[Canadian411]

   
I'm sorry I did not mean to be out of line. It's simply that unlike Sennheiser, I don't see Audeze selling refurbished models (see e.g. the refurbished HD800s sold by Crutchfield) on their website or through their authorized retailers, and since you are absolutely certain that they don't take all those returned Audeze's and resell them as new -- perhaps they throw them into a fire pit or shred them? (sarcasm)
 
Again I didn't say their policy is unreasonable. I only said that companies like senn and hifiman that say, "take these, play with them for a month and if they are as good as we say buy them, otherwise send them back" should be praised for that policy relative to a company like Audeze that needs to use monetary penalties, rather that your satisfaction, to get you to keep one of their headphones. You just admitted that they only agreed to waive the 15% penalty if you bought another Audeze. They offered the same thing to me, but I don't like those sort of tactics, which remind me of used car salesmen.

I am curious what Audeze will do with all the returned headphones ? I don't see open-box item sale, maybe they burn ?

 

[Focker]

   
I'm sorry I did not mean to be out of line. It's simply that unlike Sennheiser, I don't see Audeze selling refurbished models (see e.g. the refurbished HD800s sold by Crutchfield) on their website or through their authorized retailers, and since you are absolutely certain that they don't take all those returned Audeze's and resell them as new -- perhaps they throw them into a fire pit or shred them? (sarcasm)
 
Again I didn't say their policy is unreasonable. I only said that companies like senn and hifiman that say, "take these, play with them for a month and if they are as good as we say buy them, otherwise send them back" should be praised for that policy relative to a company like Audeze that needs to use monetary penalties, rather that your satisfaction, to get you to keep one of their headphones. You just admitted that they only agreed to waive the 15% penalty if you bought another Audeze. They offered the same thing to me, but I don't like those sort of tactics, which remind me of used car salesmen.

 
Well, all I can tell you is that if you're making $1699 purchases without understanding the terms of sale, then that's on you. Taking issue with it after the fact is sour grapes. Would it be nice if every single company on earth had a return policy as liberal as Amazon? Sure it would. But younger companies often can't afford to have such practices, especially when it's in a product category where so many people would be looking to take advantage of such a policy for the purposes of auditioning the product. Audeze has a dealer network, and if that wasn't a convenient way for you to audition the product, then you should have contacted Audeze directly and asked if they could assist you in arranging a demo. 
 
You'll find post after post after post of people who have found their customer service to be excellent, and an even higher number of people who have found their products excellent. I'm sorry you feel otherwise, but in my opinion the way you're handling this is unfair and immature.