[whitemouse]

but dynamically I wanted more transients and treble. That cable is a little too smooth sounding to me on the lcdi3.
I’ve been using an 8 wire braid that’s 4 wire copper, and 4 wire silver from triton audio. It’s better with treble and mids but I’ve lost some of the low end thump I really got from the silver dragon cable.

I’ve been eyeing the lcdi4 cable, and also possibly some similarly priced options

Please, please don't through money away on cables. Cable does not have sound, cable conducts electricity, that's all it does.

We should not attach magical properties to cables. Science behind audio is not religion, audio and Hi End audio is based on science. Science says cable have no sound.

People here have said they that take out payment plans, in order to afford this hobby. Please don't waste money on cables. Do not spend more than $10 on a cable, $10 is what a well built cable can possibly cost.

Audeze resisted the cable game for long time. It was a sad day when they came up with a $400 cable for LCD i4.

I think LCD i3 is good value, Audeze planars blow away pretty much everything, Audeze IEM planars are incredible value. Please don't waste money on cables.

 

[kukkurovaca]

OT, but, has there been any whisper of Audeze trying to make a closed iSine?

 

[whitemouse]

Having to EQ a $2500 IEM so they sound how they should is a big LOL. Just can't support that.

It's the extremely low distortion that you are paying for, there is nothing else out there. In order to get comparable sound quality, you have to spend $. There are only 2 competing headphone designs at this level, one planar design, and one electrostatic, but as far as IEM, only Shure Electrostatics are in a game, nothing else comes close to Audeze IEM distortion figures. Full size, yes, there is competition, tiny competition, Stax, mainly.

Audeze planar distortion figures are several times lower than nearest IEM. Distortion is what people mean by 'clarity', 'veils removed'. Planars can be driven very loud, before catastrophic distortion comes in, much louder than Armatures and Dynamic drivers, especially. Armatures have very low distortion figures compared to Dynamics, but Planars blow them away. Other than Shure Electrostatics, there is nowhere else to go.

 

[Chikolad]

Very low traffic on this thread...

I wonder why there isn't a way to get the Audeze DSP out of a mobile app (without a CIPHER cable).
Theoretically it's possible since it's implemented in software for Roon / Reveal plugin in Windows/macOS.

It would be a good solution if you want to use an external DAC but still want the DSP out of your phone.

 

[snellemin]

Please, please don't through money away on cables. Cable does not have sound, cable conducts electricity, that's all it does.

We should not attach magical properties to cables. Science behind audio is not religion, audio and Hi End audio is based on science. Science says cable have no sound.

People here have said they that take out payment plans, in order to afford this hobby. Please don't waste money on cables. Do not spend more than $10 on a cable, $10 is what a well built cable can possibly cost.

Audeze resisted the cable game for long time. It was a sad day when they came up with a $400 cable for LCD i4.

I think LCD i3 is good value, Audeze planars blow away pretty much everything, Audeze IEM planars are incredible value. Please don't waste money on cables.

A single conductor has resistance and capacitance. And then there is the fact of the actual conductor material. Slap a bunch conductors together randomly and you'll hear a sound difference. Do it properly and you won't hear a difference. Add shielding and you mess up the lower frequencies. etc etc

Building cables is a science.

 

[stacey]

It was a sad day when they came up with a $400 cable for LCD i4.

What, you expect a company to say no to easy money?
Compared to iRiver that’s pretty generous.

 

[xuhanyu23]

Introducing the LCD-i3



Audeze announces the new LCD-i3, successor to the extremely popular iSINE 20 and “little brother” to the LCD-i4. The LCD-i3 features sonic improvements over the iSINE 20, with Bluetooth, Lightning, and standard 3.5mm connectivity included. By using the Magnesium housing and grill design of the LCD-i4, the LCD-i3 reduces unwanted resonance and offers improved resolution over the iSINE 20.

The LCD-i3 will be priced at only $899 USD retail and will begin shipping on August 23rd.

ORDER NOW


​

AUDIOPHILE SOUND FROM ANY DEVICE

Included with each LCD-i3 are the Audeze CIPHER Lightning Cable, Bluetooth Module, and standard 3.5mm cable, providing incredible connection versatility that delivers audiophile sound quality through any device.

Featuring a Bluetooth 5.0 chipset with integrated support for AptX and AptX HD, our CIPHER Bluetooth Module delivers low latency 24 bit wireless audio that has been optimized for even the most discerning ear.



IMPROVED COMFORT


Our brand new Ear Fins are ergonomically designed to provide a comfortable and secure fit within the concha bowl of the ear. For those that prefer the traditional iSINE fit, our redesigned Ear Hooks now curve inward along the back of the ear to ensure superior fit for ears of all shapes and sizes.

These new accessories come included with every LCD-i3 and are fully compatible with all existing Audeze in-ear headphones! Current iSINE or LCD-i4 owners interested in purchasing the accessories separately can do so through the iSINE accessory kit.

ORDER NOW​

Wow!

 

[whitemouse]

What, you expect a company to say no to easy money?
Compared to iRiver that’s pretty generous.

That's the thing, I doubt that Audeze is hurting for money, they could have easily stayed straight. Instead, they dicided to get their cut of cable game.

It's one thing for snake oil cable companies to do this, their sole purpose is to sell snake oil, ordering standard, common cables from Chinese manufacturer, slapping their name on it, marking up 2000 percent. It is disappointing to see a company that came up with extraordinary Planar Magnetics, designs based on science, based on laws of physics, doing this.

Year ago I asked them, would they sell me the i4, minus the $400 cable. They wouldn't. Week later they sold i4 for $900

Company on a cutting edge of headphone design should just say NO to magic. But like you said, they couldn't resist. I hope it was one off, and they will not come up with something like this again.

I'm guessing, the arrival of i3 is due to very low sales of i4, and i3 is basically i4 minus the magic cable.

 

[Chikolad]

i3 is basically i4 minus the magic cable.

Have you tried both for a reasonable period of time? (edit: I see you own the 4)

 

[whitemouse]

Have you tried both for a reasonable period of time?

Yes, have i4 with their $400 cable. And a $12 cable from Penon Audio, that I bought earlier for isine20, to replace the disastrous spaghetti cable they came with, nothing wrong with their 'sound', they are justy, sticky cables. Obviously, they 'sound' same. Unless not properly grounded, cables do not have sound.

$10 cable, properly grounded, of course with metal plugs, does the same job as $400 cable, or a $4000 cable, for that matter, it conducts electricity. Electrons do not have sound.


Going down this rabbit hole, one can claim that $500 power cable will make colours of your tv more vivid, the cable is more expensive, and it has purchased rave 'reviewes' from publications, so it must be true, right? No one is silly enough to believe this, but in audio industry, people have bought this idea.

 

[Chikolad]

@whitemouse I meant have you had time with the i3 and came to the conclusion that they're the same as the i4?

 

[whitemouse]

@whitemouse I meant have you had time with the i3 and came to the conclusion that they're the same as the i4?

No. I have not listened to i3. I have isine20 and i4, I'm not intended target.

From manufacturing perspective, it doesn't make sense to design and build a whole new driver just for i3. It would make more sense to stick existing driver into same Magnesium body, but use different paint, in order to differentiate 2 models. Why go through the expense of designing something completely new, if you already have all the parts on the shelf. Just drop the $400 cable, and the leather pouch, and off you go, you now have $900 earphones. Perhaps less stringent driver matching.

 

[Chikolad]

@whitemouse so, all just wild speculation

 

[whitemouse]

@whitemouse so, all just wild speculation

I wouldn't say wild. I gave you reasons why it makes financial sense for a company to use off the shelf existing hardware, instead of a whole new design from scratch.

 

[Audeze]

I'm guessing, the arrival of i3 is due to very low sales of i4, and i3 is basically i4 minus the magic cable.

This is not correct. The i4 has a very different driver compared to the i3. The i3 driver is a lot easier to make than i4. We are the manufacturer and during assembly we have items that have scratches or other cosmetic issues. We sell these as B-Stock, like any other manufacturer with full warranty. The i4s sold last year were mainly Bstock.