Introducing the Audeze LCD-R!
Aug 1, 2021 at 3:08 PM Post #541 of 1,636
I think everyone with skin in the stat game is chasing an affordable competitor to the HE-1. Most audio /headphone engineers will agree that the best way to increase headphone fidelity is to remove all structures in front of the diaphram, and push said diaphram with a uniform force. How would you do that? At the moment the main two options appear to be the ribbon driver and the electrostatic driver.
I will vehemently disagree. I owned DIY T2 + 009 and it was refined on a level above HE-1. Orpheus was and remains to be a more colored, full, pleasing electrostatic experience. The HiFiMan stats are now surpassing STAX but the planar babies TC / Susvara are already there.
Plus nothing is touching the SR1a for ultimates in speed, detail, resolve, nothing.

And that's the crux. Cost to entry for specialized systems is going to be a relic of the past. The planar and ribbon technology will own the market once they optimize weight, comfort and some form of efficiency. Yes, IMO.

The day I switch from electrostatic speakers, then I'll be impressed. Ha.
 
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Aug 1, 2021 at 3:41 PM Post #542 of 1,636
A bunch of pages ago I recall someone said they were going to try the LCD-R straight from an ncore amp which is rated down to 2 ohms. Did they ever actually do it?
 
Aug 1, 2021 at 3:46 PM Post #543 of 1,636
A bunch of pages ago I recall someone said they were going to try the LCD-R straight from an ncore amp which is rated down to 2 ohms. Did they ever actually do it?
Yes, I posted my results several pages later.

One thing to note, the LCD-R doesn't need a ton of power. It's not a susvara or HE-6. So I had to attenuate it using resistors, otherwise I got a significant amount of noise. At that point, just about any amp, headphone or not, could be used.
 
Aug 1, 2021 at 4:00 PM Post #544 of 1,636
Yes, I posted my results several pages later.

One thing to note, the LCD-R doesn't need a ton of power. It's not a susvara or HE-6. So I had to attenuate it using resistors, otherwise I got a significant amount of noise. At that point, just about any amp, headphone or not, could be used.

Ah ok, I found it here: https://www.head-fi.org/threads/introducing-the-audeze-lcd-r.958720/page-29#post-16477699
Thanks for that. This thread moves so fast I missed it entirely. What values did you use in your L-pad?

Does anyone here have a Benchmark AHB2? I used to use mine for headphones because it has such a ridiculously low noise floor, but unfortunately I sold it a few months ago due to pandemic unemployment. The specs say it is only technically rated to 3 ohms, but if we're not pushing that much current it will probably be ok at 2ohm.
 
Aug 1, 2021 at 4:04 PM Post #545 of 1,636
Ah ok, I found it here: https://www.head-fi.org/threads/introducing-the-audeze-lcd-r.958720/page-29#post-16477699
Thanks for that. This thread moves so fast I missed it entirely. What values did you use in your L-pad?

Does anyone here have a Benchmark AHB2? I used to use mine for headphones because it has such a ridiculously low noise floor, but unfortunately I sold it a few months ago due to pandemic unemployment. The specs say it is only technically rated to 3 ohms, but if we're not pushing that much current it will probably be ok at 2ohm.
I used 10 ohms for R1 and R2. I only used it superficially for testing, I'm now back to using the Jot until I find a more permanent solution.
 
Aug 1, 2021 at 4:06 PM Post #546 of 1,636
Did anyone tr it on an HSA-1B?
 
Aug 1, 2021 at 5:02 PM Post #547 of 1,636
I used 10 ohms for R1 and R2. I only used it superficially for testing, I'm now back to using the Jot until I find a more permanent solution.

So that basically presents a 5ohm load to the amp, and you're dropping output to 1/6 so roughly -15db. With an L-pad, realistically you can use any power amp so you're not limited to one that can drive low-impedance loads.

Did anyone tr it on an HSA-1B?

That's gonna be a very small overlap on a Venn diagram of people who own both...
 
Aug 1, 2021 at 5:15 PM Post #548 of 1,636
So that basically presents a 5ohm load to the amp, and you're dropping output to 1/6 so roughly -15db. With an L-pad, realistically you can use any power amp so you're not limited to one that can drive low-impedance loads.
6 ohms I think. But yes, exactly. That's why I expressed my confusion as to why Audeze included an amp and not an adapter. Maybe there's something I'm missing.
 
Aug 1, 2021 at 5:51 PM Post #549 of 1,636
With Jot A having so much headroom for the LCD-R, what exactly does using a speaker amp bring to the table? I barely even have a basic understanding of amp design, so any info or resources on this would be useful.

I don't think I'll ever try it but I am curious about the physics behind all of this.
 
Aug 1, 2021 at 5:52 PM Post #550 of 1,636
6 ohms I think. But yes, exactly. That's why I expressed my confusion as to why Audeze included an amp and not an adapter. Maybe there's something I'm missing.

Well, more like 5.45 ohm if we're assuming the LCD-R is exactly 2ohms.

Much like the arguments regarding the HE-6 and Susvara with the hifiman speaker adapter (which is literally just an L-pad), some people felt the L-pad degraded sound vs going directly from the speaker outputs. Can't please everyone. I myself am one of the nutjobs that was running his HE-6 from monoblock AHB2's.

Not everyone has an extra speaker amp lying around, especially when your market base is almost exclusively headphone related. I think packaging the LCD-R with an amp was the right move.
 
Aug 1, 2021 at 6:26 PM Post #552 of 1,636
Not everyone has an extra speaker amp lying around, especially when your market base is almost exclusively headphone related. I think packaging the LCD-R with an amp was the right move.
Because the LCD-R is so efficient, a speaker amp isn't even required. A simple resistor adapter (like, >1 watt resistors so nothing crazy) could be used for any headphone amp.
 
Aug 1, 2021 at 6:31 PM Post #553 of 1,636
Dekoni does have measurements for plenty of Audeze models, some sticking pretty close to stock, though not sure if the same should be expected with the Rs. One a brighter note I may have found a position for the headphones that really helps with the fazors, if I move the headband back to about where half of the strap is on my head I no longer get the “digging to my ear” feeling. They still press on my ear and leave a line from the fazors but it’s more like resting on top than any real pressure.

Update: Sadly still makes my ear look like a BBQ grill 😂
Gives new meaning to the term "ear stabbing".

I said last year, STAX time is coming to an end.
I thought that portable amps would be completely dead by now with the progress of DAPs, but Cayin released the $2k C9. I think there will always be a place for Stax. They have expended, not contracted in recent years.

One thing to note, the LCD-R doesn't need a ton of power. It's not a susvara or HE-6. So I had to attenuate it using resistors, otherwise I got a significant amount of noise. At that point, just about any amp, headphone or not, could be used.
Correction: Voltage. A 2 Ohm headphone requires more current, which is actual power. It's easy to confuse where on the volume dial you set an amp with the power output.

With Jot A having so much headroom for the LCD-R, what exactly does using a speaker amp bring to the table?
Current -- specifically the ability to quickly output a lot of it very fast. Think of impedance (Ohms) as being like how restrictive a pipe is. The smaller the pipe, the more restrictive and the higher the Ohms. So, as the Ohms go lower, the more power is required to fill the pipe, as it is larger. Voltage, on the other hand, would be like how far you could instantaneously push something through the pipe.

Most speakers are 4-8 Ohms, which is pretty low. 2 Ohms isn't far off shorting the outputs and damaging the amp, which is why you have a specialised amp for the LCD-R.
 
Aug 1, 2021 at 6:54 PM Post #554 of 1,636
Schiit could have made the adaptor box!

It makes zero sense for Schiit to make an adapter box, nor does it fit within their philosophy/business model. That would be something Audeze could do.
 

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