[TMRaven]

Quote:

It depends on what kind of time-frame you're referring to. Personally, I haven't found any compression with the LCD-2's. The LCD-3's are still fairly new.
Comparatively my MD ear pads have already started to show signs of wear. So the quality of the LCD pads is quite good.

 
That's good to know about the LCD-2.  The LCD-3 has me really worrying since its pads are so soft, but thankfully I'll never be getting one.

 

[MattTCG]

Quote:

 
That's good to know about the LCD-2.  The LCD-3 has me really worrying since its pads are so soft, but thankfully I'll never be getting one.

 
I have an idea. JOINT OWNERSHIP!! We can split the cost and do a time share. Three or four of us could kick in $500 and get an equal share. 

 

[Shubar]

I will be getting the vegan pads soon so I'll report back. While I do like the LCD2s very much, sometimes I do feel like the soundstage to be a bit too congested.

 

[MattTCG]

I don't hear congested sound stage at all. It's quite good to me. Although admittedly I might not be the best judge as sound stage has never really mattered to me greatly. 

 

[paradoxper]

There's always a tradeoff, considering there's no perfect headphone.

 

[satanigatan]

Quote:

I will be getting the vegan pads soon so I'll report back. While I do like the LCD2s very much, sometimes I do feel like the soundstage to be a bit too congested.

 
Please do, would really appreciate it.  
 
Quote:

There's always a tradeoff, considering there's no perfect headphone.

 
Well said. Really what I was trying to get at. And for me, the LCD'2s pros outweigh the cons. 

 

[satanigatan]

I would also like to say, the clamping of the LCD-2's really start to loosen up the more you wear them. Or maybe my head is just getting used to them. But I feel like the headband/pads really feel more comfy with weeks into them (vs when I first used them).

 

[MattTCG]

It's strange. Going into the audition of the lcd2, my chief concern was the weight and clamp seems to be more of any issue. And they don't require it. This is an open hp and I can push up slightly and pull out slightly and the sound doesn't change, but the hp gets much more comfy. I plan to hook up three cables to it. Two for east and west and one on the ceiling that will completely alleviate all the pressure points. Then I'll have the perfect hp.

 

[LugBug1]

Quote:

I would also like to say, the clamping of the LCD-2's really start to loosen up the more you wear them. Or maybe my head is just getting used to them. But I feel like the headband/pads really feel more comfy with weeks into them (vs when I first used them).

Yeah for me the clamping has eased quite a bit from new (mine are about 5 months old now I think). Also the pads give a little over time and they start to take the shape of your face/head which adds to the comfort level. This process is so slow I don't think you would be able to detect any sound difference with the more compressed pads, but If anything I would imagine it will help with the treble because the narrower part of the pads gets squashed the most and should mean (I think) that that part of the driver will be closer to your ear more than the bottom giving slightly more prominence to the treble... Possibly. 
 
I think you have described the LCD2 sound perfectly in your previous posts, It is one whole rather than a dissected sound. It sounds so right with most music but It's nice to have another hp for when you want to do a bit more analytical listening of... I dunno, SACD orchestral music for example.  

 

[MattTCG]

Okay, I have a brief update that may help some folks out there. I have finally reacquired my he400 ownership. I sold them off but found that I couldn't live without them. I have been listening to the lcd2r2 for a week. So with that sound signature etched securely, I'll make a brief comparison of the lcd to the HFM. Again, no graphs here...just what I hear.
 
Treble: very similar with the he400 being ever so slightly brighter. There is some technical advantage for the lcd that I can just barely pick up on, but very closely comparable. 
 
Mids: The lcd has a beautiful tone to the mids. It's darker than the HFM, yet wonderfully detailed. The mids are certainly in the same ballpark as they are both planars, but the lcd presentation of the mids is better. At 3x the price it should be better right? I love the mids on the lcd..it's maybe the most addictive quality of listening to them. 
 
Bass: This one gets interesting. The bass of the lcd gets bested by the HFM is terms of quantity, but wins out on quality. The lcd has technically better bass. The impact and texture is phenomenal. It's the best I've ever heard when using that criteria. But the quantity is a notch better on the HFM. Please don't let this give you the impression that the HFM bass is boomy and loose. It's certainly not. The he400 just can't quite pull off the texture of the Audeze. It's just so incredibly well rendered...it sounds "expensive" and is. 
 
Other: The first thing that I noticed when I put the he400 back on my head was the weight. The weight difference between the two is significant. I can wear the lcd comfortably for about an hour tops. The he400 I can wear for a good 3 hours. For some this will be a significant difference. Also, I'm feeling no clamp on my jaw as I did with the lcd. Put together this makes the he400 a much more comfortable hp. 
 
Lastly, the he400 sounds noticeably better on the lyr than I imagined it would. Big improvement to my ears over the e09 and odac that I paired it with last time. Wow!!

 

[jerg]

Quote:

Okay, I have a brief update that may help some folks out there. I have finally reacquired my he400 ownership. I sold them off but found that I couldn't live without them. I have been listening to the lcd2r2 for a week. So with that sound signature etched securely, I'll make a brief comparison of the lcd to the HFM. Again, no graphs here...just what I hear.
 
Treble: very similar with the he400 being ever so slightly brighter. There is some technical advantage for the lcd that I can just barely pick up on, but very closely comparable. 
 
Mids: The lcd has a beautiful tone to the mids. It's darker than the HFM, yet wonderfully detailed. The mids are certainly in the same ballpark as they are both planars, but the lcd presentation of the mids is better. At 3x the price it should be better right? I love the mids on the lcd..it's maybe the most addictive quality of listening to them. 
 
Bass: This one gets interesting. The bass of the lcd gets bested by the HFM is terms of quantity, but wins out on quality. The lcd has technically better bass. The impact and texture is phenomenal. It's the best I've ever heard when using that criteria. But the quantity is a notch better on the HFM. Please don't let this give you the impression that the HFM bass is boomy and loose. It's certainly not. The he400 just can't quite pull off the texture of the Audeze. It's just so incredibly well rendered...it sounds "expensive" and is. 
 
Other: The first thing that I noticed when I put the he400 back on my head was the weight. The weight difference between the two is significant. I can wear the lcd comfortably for about an hour tops. The he400 I can wear for a good 3 hours. For some this will be a significant difference. Also, I'm feeling no clamp on my jaw as I did with the lcd. Put together this makes the he400 a much more comfortable hp. 
 
Lastly, the he400 sounds noticeably better on the lyr than I imagined it would. Big improvement to my ears over the e09 and odac that I paired it with last time. Wow!!

IMO the "technical advantage in treble barely picked up on" with LCD2 is probably its smoothness compared to HE400 treble.
 
Interesting how LCD2s are pretty much a crown of thorns to you. My brief auditions of them (as well as LCD2r1s) a few months ago were similar in the context of comfort, which is a shame.

 

[oyster]

Hi MattTCG,
In comparison did you feel if the HE400 had more mid bass than the LCD2 or in general had a mid bass hump?
 
For treble i think the HE400 has some occasional treble sharpness(these are on pleather pads) & becomes too much airy that it starts to sound hollow while the LCD2 has a linear sweeter treble that does not give up on details despite being lower amplitude

 

[MattTCG]

If you're asking me if the he400 has more mid bass than the lcd, I would say no. They are both nicely balanced overall. The lcd seems to blend a little more smoothly between treble, mids and bass. But just a little. They both do bass very well. 

 

[MattTCG]

Also, on the lyr the he400 required about a good click and a half less to reach the same volume pot. I guess that would be expected. 

 

[oyster]

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I am using an O2 with my HE400, while the sound is very clean i think the sub bass impact is a little soft though quantity is never shy. But due to this soft impact the mid bass appears to be more prominent. 
Do you think going the tubes way would help?