[GigArt]

Has anyone tried both HiFiMAN HE400i and AKG K712 (or K7XX) with different metal subgenres (black\death preferably)? I do have the K712 so I'd like to know if I should swap them for HE400i. Is it worth trading K712's sounstage for solid planar bass with faster detail reproduction? Yes, I'm aware that 400i are considered poor soundstage-wise. The question is - does it really bother in case of listening to metal? I'm concerned mostly about soundstage depth, width is not so important for me. Think LCD-2 - they sound deep but not that wide. I feel that upfront vocals of HE400i result in significantly decreased soundstage depth. What do you think guys? Any advice and suggestions will be greatly appreciated.

 

[s4tch]

  By the way, I took a look at Nad Viso. They look good to me! Unfortunately, they sell at 300€ here and the best price I can find is 260€, which is above my possibilities. Unless there's a really considerable step up in sound quality from, say, SRH 840, 110€ more are too much for me I guess.

ouch, 300€ is a bit too much. i'm also from europe (hungary) and i got my pair well below 200.
 
in that case just get the srh840.

 

[Justin K Day]

So I read this over and I found it very helpful. Thanks to all involved.
 
Still I have one question: If you mostly listen to high quality recordings of doom metal and you could buy 1 pair of headphones, what would they be? I'm not worried about the cost, just the quality.
 
Thanks.

 

[RedDawn]

I listen to a lot of stoner, doom, sludge, etc and have a pair of Grado RS-1s and love them. I would love to get a pair of foster th900's tho

 

[NZtechfreak]

  So I read this over and I found it very helpful. Thanks to all involved.
 
Still I have one question: If you mostly listen to high quality recordings of doom metal and you could buy 1 pair of headphones, what would they be? I'm not worried about the cost, just the quality.
 
Thanks.

 
Cost no object? LCD-4.
 
Short of that, HE6 and an amp capable of driving them. 

 

[Justin K Day]

I listen to a lot of stoner, doom, sludge, etc and have a pair of Grado RS-1s and love them. I would love to get a pair of foster th900's tho

Foster th900s are definitely on my radar. Right now it's between those and Audeze LCD 3 I think.

 

[Justin K Day]

   
Cost no object? LCD-4.
 
Short of that, HE6 and an amp capable of driving them. 

What about LCD-3?

 

[Hansotek]

 
So I read this over and I found it very helpful. Thanks to all involved.

Still I have one question: If you mostly listen to high quality recordings of doom metal and you could buy 1 pair of headphones, what would they be? I'm not worried about the cost, just the quality.

Thanks.

Cost no object? LCD-4.

Short of that, HE6 and an amp capable of driving them. 

+1. LCD-4 is the "cost no object" king of the hill, IMO, for pretty much anything. A well-driven HE-6 is right behind it.

 

[Justin K Day]

+1. LCD-4 is the "cost no object" king of the hill, IMO, for pretty much anything. A well-driven HE-6 is right behind it.

Has there been any reliable reviews of the LCD-4 yet?

 

[Hansotek]

+1. LCD-4 is the "cost no object" king of the hill, IMO, for pretty much anything. A well-driven HE-6 is right behind it.

Has there been any reliable reviews of the LCD-4 yet?

NZtechfreak and I have both heard it. He actually has it in house now. What do you want to know?

 

[Justin K Day]

@NZtechfreak and I have both heard it. He actually has it in house now. What do you want to know?

For someone who listens to doom metal, would the LCD-4 be better than the LCD-3? I mean I listen to all kinds of metal (and other stuff) but I'm fixated on DOOM at the moment. Anyway, I'm just curious if it's worth it. I'm looking at getting the BMC PureDAC MK2 DAC & Headphone Amplifier. Would that pair well with the LCD-4? Hmmm.... I have a million questions. But those are the main 2. I'm very new to the idea of great audio and I'm looking to buy something that will last.

 

[Hansotek]

Justin K Day Here's a brief excerpt of me losing my Schiit about the LCD-4 after hearing it at RMAF:

Audeze LCD-4 + Audeze King amp
Game. Over.
- This might be the best headphone I’ve ever heard.
- Preferred it over SR-009 and Abyss by a pretty wide margin.
- Not your typical Audeze. Not super dark and rolled off like most of the others.
- Wonderful sense of air and gorgeous treble.
- The mids! The bass! Perfection across every frequency spectrum!
- An absolute detail monster, yet a supremely musical headphone. Unicorn!
- Pulls out all the acoustic and ambient detail you get with an HD800.
- Monster dynamics and impact. Explosive sound!
- Sounds nearly as impressive with mp3s as it does with FLAC.
- Really more comparable to a high-end two channel system than a headphone.
- Tremendous soundstage and imaging.
- Organic realism to the music and rich timbre.

It probably sounds like a lot of hyperbole, but I still stand by those comments. I mean, it's $4K, so it shouldn't be a huge surprise that it beats the snot out of just about anything. I, naturally, look at any uber-priced headphone with an extra dose of skepticism, but I would say this one actually lives up to the hype. Whether spending $4K to get the ultimate sound is worth it... well, that's up to you.

 

[Hansotek]

In my humble opinion, for anybody who listens to any form of music LCD-4 >>>>>>> LCD-3. The higher magnetic flux density and nano-thickness diaphragm allow it to marry the best parts of the LCD-3 with the best parts of electrostatic headphones. The marriage of those lovely, romantic Audeze lows and mids with the airy, transparent highs of a STAX.... That's what makes it so special.

 

[Hansotek]

I can't tell you anything about the PureDAC. I haven't heard it.

 

[Justin K Day]

Justin K Day Here's a brief excerpt of me losing my Schiit about the LCD-4 after hearing it at RMAF:

Audeze LCD-4 + Audeze King amp
Game. Over.
- This might be the best headphone I’ve ever heard.
- Preferred it over SR-009 and Abyss by a pretty wide margin.
- Not your typical Audeze. Not super dark and rolled off like most of the others.
- Wonderful sense of air and gorgeous treble.
- The mids! The bass! Perfection across every frequency spectrum!
- An absolute detail monster, yet a supremely musical headphone. Unicorn!
- Pulls out all the acoustic and ambient detail you get with an HD800.
- Monster dynamics and impact. Explosive sound!
- Sounds nearly as impressive with mp3s as it does with FLAC.
- Really more comparable to a high-end two channel system than a headphone.
- Tremendous soundstage and imaging.
- Organic realism to the music and rich timbre.

It probably sounds like a lot of hyperbole, but I still stand by those comments. I mean, it's $4K, so it shouldn't be a huge surprise that it beats the snot out of just about anything. I, naturally, look at any uber-priced headphone with an extra dose of skepticism, but I would say this one actually lives up to the hype. Whether spending $4K to get the ultimate sound is worth it... well, that's up to you.

I don't mind spending the money on the lcd-4 if it's worth it. I honestly didn't know there were any reviews of it up yet. I work in photography so I'm used to dealing with expensive gear. I suppose it has more to do with how much it improves over the lcd-3. I know cameras, so I know when I spend 6 grand on a Nikon D-4, I can understand where that money is going. But with headphones I'm lost! For instance the 2 grand difference between the lcd-3 and lcd-4, I don't know where that is going. I wish I could understand headphones like I do cameras. I suppose research and time will change that but at the same time I am eager to jump in. At the present the most I've ever spent on headphones is $100. But I spend a lot of time at home with my music going and I want this wonderful experience people describe.