[mikecheck95]

Has anyone else here contacted Audeze to get the frequency graph for their specific LCD-X ? There is definitely still some driver variance on this new 2021 version. A friend of mine owns a 2021 as well, and there is an audible difference. His starts to roll off in the bass at about 40Hz. Mine starts rolling off at about 30Hz. Bass on my headphone is certainly deeper and more present. At 2kHz, my headphone is a bit more dipped than his. In the upper treble, there is quite a difference present. His is spiked from 11-12.5kHz. My headphone has a much wider peak, which is happening at 10-13kHz.

Ya, on the LCD-X thread myself and others shared their FR graphs from Audeze.

*from this point on post contains speculation that has not been confirmed by Audeze*

There IS unit variance and there is also a trend from looking at those graphs. It is my guess that in order to get linear bass response there must be a “give” in the upper-mids around 4kHz. Units made earlier seem to have more present treble/mids with a dip in the sub-bass and more recent units have more sub-bass with less treble presence and air. Newer units also appear to be even more linear than the earlier units. ALL are a massive improvement over the pre-revision LCD-X though.

Again, just a guess but it seems Audeze may have initially decided to go all for measurements and tried to get the upper-mids to look like Harman (or their house curve) but, they saw the customer feedback about the lack of sub-bass presence (that many people buy Audezes for) and decided they would maybe dial it back a few notches.

My take: all LCD-Xs could use some EQ. Just look at some EQ profiles, discover what you like and tweak it to your preference. I find I sometimes will go for “un-EQed” as well if I’m looking for a more relaxed listening session.

 

[393699]

I created an EQ yesterday. I am still making a few adjustments to it. Once I am satisfied with it, I will post it here. Here is the frequency response graph for my LCD-X 2021 unit as well.

 

[393699]

This is such an awesome headphone. With EQ on it, my DT 1990 just can't compete. The LCD-X is just so much more resolving, dynamic, and detailed.

 

[393699]

More people should post their EQ for their headphone.

 

[mikecheck95]

More people should post their EQ for their headphone.

I've posted mine on the LCD-X thread. I agree it'd be fun to have more to try. Although I will say mine has changed a few times since I initially posted it and will likely change again in the future. Again it's about knowing what you want. Some days I'm just CRAVING bass and just want big enveloping gorgeous sound... others I want details and I wish the bass would get out of the way. The good thing about the Audeze cans is that they really can take a lot of EQ (because of their low distortion). They can give you a big bass shelf or you can boost the ear gain and you don't have to worry about introducing audible distortion.

 

[393699]

I left the headphone running with music playing last night and today. It probably has 20 hours use on it now. Indeed, the sound is further improving. Even more detail is being revealed than out of the box, and the upper treble spike is starting to calm down just a tad. I find it interesting though that my headphone seems to have a wider peak than other 2021 ones out there do. Mine is spiked from 10-13kHz. My friend's 2021 LCD-X is only spiked from 11-12.5kHZ. When I heard his headphone, it is obvious mine is brighter in the upper treble. Here is the frequency response graph below for my unit.

 

[393699]

This headphone certainly likes to screw with the listener. I listened to it for several hours yesterday. I then let it run all night long and all day with music playing through it on its own, letting it burn in more. I have now been listening to it tonight again for probably another 5 hours or so. I keep having to change the EQ, because the sound of the headphone keeps changing after every few additional hours of usage. It probably has about 25 hours of play time on it now. I will say too that reviews are wrong when they say that this headphone can be easily powered off of any device, and will offer the same experience regardless of what it is paired with. This is just not accurate at all. Sure, you can get a listenable volume out of a phone, mediocre sound card, or low end dac/amp combo unit. The reality though is that this headphone literally does scale tremendously when it is paired with better equipment. I tested it with a Marantz CD player headphone output, a high end receiver headphone output, and 3 different sound cards tonight with headphone amps. When this headphone is presented with better gear, the sound quality, detail retrieval, dynamics, imaging, and bass response just all improve further. Once it is given a high quality DAC and amp to play with, you unveil what this headphone is truly capable of offering the listener.

 

[393699]

Alright, here is the EQ that I have created for my headphone. Just note, due to driver variance that this may not be completely correct for using on your unit. The sound quality is just ridiculous on mine with this set. I am extremely impressed.

Pre-Amp = -6

20Hz = +2 Q 1.41
30Hz = +1 Q 1.41
60Hz = +1 Q 1.41
400Hz = +1 Q 1.41
500Hz = +1 Q 1.41
800Hz = -0.5 Q 1.8
1kHz = +1 Q 4
1.2kHz = +0.5 Q 4
2kHz = +0.5 Q 3
3.6kHz = +3.5 Q 4
4.1kHz = +3 Q 2
4.8kHz = +1 Q 2
6.7kHz = +0.5 Q 3
8.5kHz = +1 Q 3
11.85kHz = -2.5 Q 4

With further burn in, the EQ may get changed slightly, but as of this moment, it is excellent sounding.

 

[tommykrebs]

I'm tempted to order a (new) LCD-X or a used LCD-4z and a Hugo2. Never heard both headphones. I know nobody compares Headphones with IEM's. But I ask anyway. Can somebody try to compare bass, highs, imaging, details and sound stage between an LCD-X and an UM Mest? Many thanks!

I don't want to spend a lot of money and be totally disappointed.

 

[bust3r]

I'm really tempted to try these (LCD-X) as I'm looking to get bassier headphones, and as a former bass player, from the reviews these seem like they would fill the bass void in headphones that my HD650's just cant reproduce. But can they reproduce those buttery mids and highs of the HD650's?

BUT, and this is a big but, I'm also hearing that you need to purchase the EQ from Audeze for another $200US for the matching EQ, and that an added cost i'm not crazy in adding onto a 1200$ headphone.

Question is, do you NEED to purchase the EQ or can any EQ work?

Secondly, i'm not eve sure if what I have is sufficient, and that added EQ cost can go to a better headphone amp. Presently i'm using an EVGA Nu Audio sound card (with Burson V5i OPAMP) with an atom amp.

 

[metal571]

I'm also hearing that you need to purchase the EQ from Audeze for another $200US for the matching EQ, and that an added cost i'm not crazy in adding onto a 1200$ headphone.

Question is, do you NEED to purchase the EQ or can any EQ work?

EqualizerAPO and the optional Peace GUI for it are free for Windows.

Last I checked Audeze Reveal is also free. It's the addon package that does room and HRTF simulation that costs you.

 

[Golyatx]

I'm really tempted to try these (LCD-X) as I'm looking to get bassier headphones, and as a former bass player, from the reviews these seem like they would fill the bass void in headphones that my HD650's just cant reproduce. But can they reproduce those buttery mids and highs of the HD650's?

BUT, and this is a big but, I'm also hearing that you need to purchase the EQ from Audeze for another $200US for the matching EQ, and that an added cost i'm not crazy in adding onto a 1200$ headphone.

Question is, do you NEED to purchase the EQ or can any EQ work?

Secondly, i'm not eve sure if what I have is sufficient, and that added EQ cost can go to a better headphone amp. Presently i'm using an EVGA Nu Audio sound card (with Burson V5i OPAMP) with an atom amp.

yes it takes the sound of senn to next level.
non eq the X are good, but EQed they are worth every penny, dont need to buy eq, we will post you ours EQ when you get X and you choose from those which one suits you

 

[adeadcrab]

I'm really tempted to try these (LCD-X) as I'm looking to get bassier headphones, and as a former bass player, from the reviews these seem like they would fill the bass void in headphones that my HD650's just cant reproduce. But can they reproduce those buttery mids and highs of the HD650's?

I don't EQ the LCD-X, I have the 2021 version - I would pull the trigger on those or the Focal Clear OG which on sale around me. I picked up the Clear Pro brand new for cheap - both headphones hit hard in the low end.

 

[bust3r]

yes it takes the sound of senn to next level.
non eq the X are good, but EQed they are worth every penny, dont need to buy eq, we will post you ours EQ when you get X and you choose from those which one suits you

EqualizerAPO and the optional Peace GUI for it are free for Windows.

Last I checked Audeze Reveal is also free. It's the addon package that does room and HRTF simulation that costs you.

Thanks, this is very helpful. I did find the EQ APO and Peace GUI as well.

 

[bust3r]

I don't EQ the LCD-X, I have the 2021 version - I would pull the trigger on those or the Focal Clear OG which on sale around me. I picked up the Clear Pro brand new for cheap - both headphones hit hard in the low end.

That's the one I'm looking at (2021 creator package). I have read the focals dont hit the deep end as well as the audeze, but their bass punch is better. You guys are probably familiar with Joshua Valor on youtube, he reviewed these saying the bass gets louder as it gets lower, and that caught my attention, are the focals the same way? I believe the focals are more expensive, though.