[mancpg]

I’m writing this to show some love for the JDS Labs Element III DAC/Amp with the LCD-X 2021. I can comfortably say that it makes one of the finest combinations I’ve ever heard. This coming from having owned the Hugo 2, the RME ADI-2, the iFi Diablo and a Burson amp (can’t remember which). The pairing of the Element III with the LCD-X 2021 reminds me of two of the best speaker systems I’ve heard - the second of which was a ridiculously priced MF valve/SS hybrid with ProAc D2 speakers.

I’ll try to keep this brief (and maybe post a more formal review at some point). The reasons I love the Element III w the X:

1. Makes imaging very precise and increases the soundstage considerably. I’d go so far as to say that it makes the sound holographic.
2. There’s a soulful character to it. Voices and instruments sound real (coming from being an amateur musician) and there’s a propulsion that gets your foot tapping along (try LA Woman by the Doors or Starlight by Muse). There’s a real emotional experience from this pairing for me.
3. Brings out the velvety, impactful bass of the LCD-X. Bass loaded tracks by the Beastie Boys, Propellerheads and Mark Ronson sound huge!
4. Tonality is perfect for me. There were some tracks recorded by The Cure that were almost unlistenable on pairings with the other amps I had, that I enjoy listening to now. Sufjan Steven’s Illinois album - one of my go tos for tonality - sounds gorgeous.

I’ve paired the Element III with a Tascam CD player on toslink and a MBP running Roon on USB. Toslink overall sounds better to me but it’s splitting hairs.

There’s one setting to be aware of that helps the amp sound better (to me) than it does out of the box. Try to get the DPLL Bandwidth as low as you can. It affects jitter rejection. It’s defaulted to 7 out of the box but the manual suggests trying 5. I can get to as low as 1 on USB and 2 on toslink without losing a lock on the signal (ie no drop outs).

Sorry for the long post but I haven’t seen too many reviews of this amp and none (I don’t think) with the LCD-X, which is my favourite headphone.

 

[ABuilder]

I've had my LCD-X for a little over a month now and am super happy with them. For some of the music I like, they are clearly the best headphones. Some of the best praise I can give them is that if I'm listening to new music, I find myself liking more songs. I've gone back over a lot of of the new music I liked with other headphones and find myself wondering why I liked the song. Then I listen to it on the LCD-X again and love it. For example. I came across The Fumes. Love them with the LCD-X, not so much with Atrium's or Elegia's. The distortion and reverberation that comes through the electric guitar with the LCD-X is what makes their music so appealing to me and nothing else I have can touch the Xs in this area that I have listened to. Very happy owner right now.

 

[PixelSquish]

Coming back from HD800S to LCD-X (2021)... damn the LCD-X just has so much kick in the low end. Clean and clear, effortless sound. Driven from Topping A90D, LCD-X may be my favourite all-rounder headphone... at least until I get the HEDDphone (?)

Considering getting a new amp later this year now that I've upgraded to some newer cans. I have the Burson Soloist Mk ii which is supposed to be a slightly warmer SS amp. It has plenty of power but I have been eyeing the Topping A90D as a possible purchase. Would that be a lateral move or an upgrade? I find the LCD-X to be more amazing each day with them but I do have to EQ down some of the higher frequencies for some music with the Burson

 

[PixelSquish]

I'm sorry you're annoyed but sharing updated LCD-X and LCD-XC EQs in the "LCD-X and LCD-XC Update" forum is not spam. If you're so annoyed by me as you seem to always have been just put me on ignore already. Peace.

-J

agreed, please keep posting, I used the 12-20-22 revision when I got my X's this Sunday and it was a great starting point and I made a few tweaks and am really enjoying it.
Now I need to learn about the Q values and different filter values which I had no idea about before as well. So this is neat.

 

[Jonne Haven]

agreed, please keep posting, I used the 12-20-22 revision when I got my X's this Sunday and it was a great starting point and I made a few tweaks and am really enjoying it.
Now I need to learn about the Q values and different filter values which I had no idea about before as well. So this is neat.

Appreciate you saying that, man!

Leaning how to EQ is great deal of fun and I hope you get all the enjoyment out of it that I have been.

I'll be releasing a new revision soon which I think trumps all of the EQs I've ever made (over a year's worth)...so stay tuned.

Blessings,
-J

 

[Dixter]

@Jonne Haven hey Jonne... how you been ?? If you don't mind I am curious about your work flow with the EQ you create.... for example... how do you create the exported file that you post... I do not see an option in the Peace program.... really interested in the complete workflow and what software/equipment you use... thanks again for sharing your EQ and info

 

[PixelSquish]

Appreciate you saying that, man!

Leaning how to EQ is great deal of fun and I hope you get all the enjoyment out of it that I have been.

I'll be releasing a new revision soon which I think trumps all of the EQs I've ever made (over a year's worth)...so stay tuned.

Blessings,
-J

I've been doing mild EQ'ing for a while but these headphones got me to consider a lot more. I will say partly because I've been so used to listening to my Neuman NDH-30's lately and brain burn in, plus the actual differences of the LCD-X to those, the X's sounded a little shouty and harsh to me at first. I can't say how much was my brain burn in and how much was the fundamental differences between the two sound signatures, but I am just jamming with these X's now with a few different EQ's, especially your adjusted 12.20 - and I'm still tweaking it to my liking a bit more each day. I'm trying to make it an amazing all rounder and it's pretty close.

 

[Jonne Haven]

@Jonne Haven hey Jonne... how you been ?? If you don't mind I am curious about your work flow with the EQ you create.... for example... how do you create the exported file that you post... I do not see an option in the Peace program.... really interested in the complete workflow and what software/equipment you use... thanks again for sharing your EQ and info

@Dixter Hey man! I've been good, you know day to day living and time goes by on its own...thanks for asking. How've you been??

I'd be happy to layout my complete workflow in detail for you. Just give me some time to collect my thoughts and procedures and put them down on "paper" which some semblance of organization and brevity, haha! It started out simple but over time got more and more complex with more and more programs, strategies, and learning. So just give me a little time to think it all through.

I'm tickled that you'd ask, though!

Blessings,
-J

 

[Jonne Haven]

I've been doing mild EQ'ing for a while but these headphones got me to consider a lot more. I will say partly because I've been so used to listening to my Neuman NDH-30's lately and brain burn in, plus the actual differences of the LCD-X to those, the X's sounded a little shouty and harsh to me at first. I can't say how much was my brain burn in and how much was the fundamental differences between the two sound signatures, but I am just jamming with these X's now with a few different EQ's, especially your adjusted 12.20 - and I'm still tweaking it to my liking a bit more each day. I'm trying to make it an amazing all rounder and it's pretty close.

@PixelSquish I'm glad you're willing to try EQing at all even if it's "mild"...it'll probably escalate as it did for me, lol. The LCD-X 2021 is the perfect blank slate for EQing, it's so responsive to it! It is my belief that I can make it sound like almost anything if I try long and hard enough.

The 12-20-22 Revision is harsh and I'm disappointed with that whole period of my EQing to be honest. I believe I've now gotten the highs almost perfect for all genres now and am excited to post/show everyone soon what I've done...so again stay tuned.

When I make my EQs I don't tailor them to just one genre. My goal is to make "all rounders"...this is partially because I engineer my own music and I need to have a universal reference EQ to mix/master them to because my music needs to sound good on all systems/headphones no matter what the color of the sound or EQ they might be using.

Keep experimenting and tweaking away and have fun doing it!

Blessings,
-J

 

[PixelSquish]

@PixelSquish I'm glad you're willing to try EQing at all even if it's "mild"...it'll probably escalate as it did for me, lol. The LCD-X 2021 is the perfect blank slate for EQing, it's so responsive to it! It is my belief that I can make it sound like almost anything if I try long and hard enough.

The 12-20-22 Revision is harsh and I'm disappointed with that whole period of my EQing to be honest. I believe I've now gotten the highs almost perfect for all genres now and am excited to post/show everyone soon what I've done...so again stay tuned.

When I make my EQs I don't tailor them to just one genre. My goal is to make "all rounders"...this is partially because I engineer my own music and I need to have a universal reference EQ to mix/master them to because my music needs to sound good on all systems/headphones no matter what the color of the sound or EQ they might be using.

Keep experimenting and tweaking away and have fun doing it!

Blessings,
-J

Most of my tweaks to that eq if yours was lowering some of the higher frequencies.

My only issue with these cans is that on some tracks the mid highs and highs can be a little harsh and shouty. It really depends on the music though and the individual track even.

I don't listen to classical much but I did last night on one of my own minor eqs and it was amazing. Never experienced classical on headphones like that before it was so immersive and Rich and beautiful. Of all my research on these cans I don't remember seeing anybody recommend them for classical, it's always about rock metal and EDM and Wall of sound classic rock stuff.

I couldn't leave my desk for 2 hours listening to classical music with the X's. I kept wanting to get up but I couldn't. I was just enveloped by the sound. I think the large drivers have something to do with that

 

[adeadcrab]

Considering getting a new amp later this year now that I've upgraded to some newer cans. I have the Burson Soloist Mk ii which is supposed to be a slightly warmer SS amp. It has plenty of power but I have been eyeing the Topping A90D as a possible purchase. Would that be a lateral move or an upgrade? I find the LCD-X to be more amazing each day with them but I do have to EQ down some of the higher frequencies for some music with the Burson

If you want the latest from Burson, their 3XP or GT is an option - can then opamp roll to customise the sound. That is where I am headed; Burson GT and the A90D is a stopgap until then when it will be retired for IEM / preamp use only.

That said, I don't feel like I'm missing out on much with the A90D. If you jsut want a better amp in a slightly higher price bracket than what you have, I think the A90D will sound really good. It's really a good amp. The sound is a little close to the ears in terms of staging, so it's not quite end game, but the detail retrieval, imaging, tonality etc is fantastic.

 

[Jonne Haven]

@Jonne Haven hey Jonne... how you been ?? If you don't mind I am curious about your work flow with the EQ you create.... for example... how do you create the exported file that you post... I do not see an option in the Peace program.... really interested in the complete workflow and what software/equipment you use... thanks again for sharing your EQ and info

Hey @Dixter,

I've posted my Complete EQ Process as per your request in the below new thread as it was lengthy and perhaps not appropriate for this thread.

Hopefully you and other EQ-ers will find something useful there.

https://www.head-fi.org/threads/eqing-workflow-programs-equipment-strategies.966858/

Blessings,
-Jonne

 

[Kentajalli]

A few Audeze stuff available for grabs.
https://www.ebay.co.uk/usr/dellboy-trotter

 

[Dixter]

A few Audeze stuff available for grabs.
https://www.ebay.co.uk/usr/dellboy-trotter

clicked on the link... nothing shows up... ???

 

[Dixter]

Hey @Dixter,

I've posted my Complete EQ Process as per your request in the below new thread as it was lengthy and perhaps not appropriate for this thread.

Hopefully you and other EQ-ers will find something useful there.

https://www.head-fi.org/threads/eqing-workflow-programs-equipment-strategies.966858/

Blessings,
-Jonne

@Jonne Haven
thanks... can't wait to check it out....