That's what I feared. The LCD-X does seem like it has a sound signature closer to what I'm looking for. I can do with a bit less bass on plenty of tracks and could just use my my 400s for doom where I just want very saturated. I just imagine the HE-560s would sound incredible with surf rock like Wavves and Surfer Blood and especially with shoegaze and black metal. Or would the LCD-X just do everything like that better? I know we all hear a bit differently and have different preferences but your impressions would be appreciated.
I just had a listen to a few tracks by Wavves and Surfer Blood. Although a preamble is required for perspective.
My 560's are currently Jerg 1.0 Modded without the earpad sealing at the moment. A quick description of the sound signature I hear compared to stock.
Basically the bass seems to be more consistent, both the quality and quantity seem to be slightly increased. The biggest difference to my ears is in the upper treble which seems to increase in quantity a fair bit when you remove the outer grills and cloth. Then again even more when you remove the dust-filter cloth from the ear-pads. Both of these mods improve the soundstage, imaging, air and clarity significantly. However it also tilts them to a brighter tonal balance. I actually thought it was just too bright when I originally removed the dust-filter from the earpads. I originally felt a bit of ear fatigue and actually ordered another pair of stock focuspads. However my ears and/or brain adjusted and the fatigue subsided. When the stock pads arrived I found they veiled the sound far too much and also made the 4khz peak stick out far too much.
Which brings me to the one perceived short coming with the 560's for me, the 4k peak and dip that precedes it. I find the extra upper treble provided by the mods makes the peak much less of a problem because the frequencies above the peak are increased in quantity and not fighting with the peak to be heard. For example when I installed the stock focuspads again, I found the tonality to be warmer(and veiled) but I had to turn up the volume on the amp to acheive the same perceived volume to my ears. When I increased the volume the 4k peak stuck out like a sore thumb and seemed much more aggresive (and grating in general but still track dependent).
Anyway that preamble is obviously more useful to people who have already heard the 560's, but it is relevant to my impressions of the following tracks.
The short version: My modded 560's are more revealing and brighter than a stock pair. The tracks below did not benefit from the revealing nature of my setup. The 400i* and or maybe a stock 560 would probably be better suited to these tracks. *(I have never actually heard the 400i)
Anyway...the original reason for this post. Unfortunately these tracks were all mp3's ranging from 172kb VBR to 256kb CBR. It's possible a bad rip could be to blame but I'm quite sure it's the original recording quality that is to blame.
Wavves: Post Acid
I'm immediately reminded of why some people had initial impressions of the 560's being bass light. There's not a lot of bass in this track and the 560's are not going to artificially boost it for you. There is however already a ton of energy in the 4 khz region of the guitars. The 560 elevates this region further and causes it to be a bit overwhelming. I don't listen to a lot of Wavves but I believe they have Lo-fi reputation, and the 560's confirm this by revealing some uglier guitar reverb and disortion artifacts.
Surfer Blood: Swim
I love this track. However I prefer listening to it on something less revealing my 560's. They use a ton of reverb on the vocals in this track and on my 560's it's a bit much. Through my 560's I think an experienced recording engineer would actually be able to tell you the make and model of the reverb device they used here. I think the 4k peak exascerbates my problem with the vocals a bit as well. The good news is the 4k peak doesn't effect the guitars like the previous track, but the guitars are by no means suberbly recorded (Lo-fi). So the 560's don't reveal anything special here.
Surfer Blood: Floating Vibes
This has a lot less reverb used all around here and is generally the best of the bunch. Nothing is overdone however it's still not a superb recording that the 560's would reward with extra subtle details.
I think all these tracks would sound significantly better through the 560's and a warmer setup. They may very well be gorgeous through a tube amp. You could also use EQ to help them out.
These tracks all sound a touch bass light. Which is just the 560's being neutral in the bass and a bit hot at 4khz where these tracks have more energy than most. Lossless versions may help as well. They're not un-listenable by any means but they're probably in the 10% of my music collection that 560 can't help.
That's not to say that all Lo-fi artist recordings don't benefit from the 560's revealing nature. Many of The Black Lips tracks are more enjoyable through the 560's. They reveal exactly the sound envisioned and recorded and you can appreaciate exactly the "Lo-fi" aesthetic they provide in a way that's impossible with less revealing HP's and speakers. There can be some fantastic instrument separation and imaging in Black Lips tracks.
Real Estate is a band I lumped into the Lo-fi category when they debuted. This was due to their retro sound that relies heavily on reverb. However they sound better than ever through the 560's. All their albums sound great but they're actually getting better with each successive album. My FLAC rip of their lastest album Atlas is impossible to get away from. You won't find a better window into their carefully crafted reverb guitar sound than the 560's.
50's-60's surf rock is also a treat on the 560's in most cases if you're into that. Shoegaze I can see being a hit or miss genre. MBV's first album may fair worse than their latest, I don't know.
The fact is that the 560's are revealing and transparent. Some of your favorite recordings may not make the grade. However the ones that do will make the payoff more than worth it.
Since performing the mods I have started becoming a bit of a classical fan, mostly because the genre lays all the 560's magic out for you to hear.
So that was a pretty long-winded. I better stop here. If anyone feels compelled to quote this, please use the spoiler option.
). Sounds quite exceptional, with very good resolution, good separation, awesome depth, and very fast bass speed 
