So, Iāve given my new (to me) LCD2 PF a good chunk of listening time. Wow, really enjoying them. āEffortlessā would be the word that comes to mind. Very relaxed listening, but still extremely clear and detailed. Very enjoyable to just bob your head and listen, but the detail is there for critical listening if you give it your attention. Iāve been listening on a Drop CTHāprobably a stepping stoneāall signs point to the MLPā¦
7 Likes
As I have stated many times, My favorite combo is LCD2pf and MLP!!
2 Likes
Well, I think you have me convinced. I just have to wait for the proper deal to come along.
I just wanted to let people know that I sent an email to Audeze, and gave them my serial number just to see what info I could get from them. They sent me the manufacture date and the frequency response graph. Pretty cool. Looks like Iāve got the revision 2āAgain, loving them.
3 Likes
LCD 2 Prefazor Review
Now that iāve had quite the amount of time with the LCD 2 i feel pretty confident that i know it inside out. For context i pair it will the Liquid Platinum but iāve also heard it on the Hiby R5 dap. For dac, since i donāt have a stand alone one i use the hiby for dac. Iāll try to organize my thoughts as much as possible, but the things that stand out on the LCD are the mids, tonality/timbre, depth.
They are the most organic sound iāve heard yet, the only things that come close are the Focal Alpha 80 (maybe the Nighthawks for tonality) but the thing that makes the LCD seperate itself is the added sweetness that it brings to every song. No matter how synthetic a recording is and how unorganic a song is the lcd brings at least some sweetness to each one and makes everything pretty spot on sounding IMO. For example, ģ¤ķ ė¼ģ„ (Stella Jang), has two albums with completely opposite recordings, STELLA I has a very organic and sweet sound already built into it while Colors is more focused on the higher frequencies and can even slightly sound a bit metalic. So if you Play Stella I no matter on what headphone it will sound great in terms of tonality, but Colors will usually sound a bit synthetic and metalic. The LCD 2 however fixes the tonality issues of the album Color and makes it sound sweet and organic (even orgasmic) Itās also true that you could say it sacrifices clarity that other headphones have in comparison, but when it adds a more rich tonality with some beautiful sweet mids to every recording i wouldnāt say that itās a true sacrifice. Because i think it makes up for the lack of clarity with itās added āsoulā. Stuff like DJ Okawari tracks for example tend to be very clean sounding, almost to a fault where itās not necessarily very organic, LCD brings some of the organicness back, course it wonāt do miracles but itās pretty surprising what it can do. While stuff like the alphas sound organic in music that is recorded to sound organic like ģ¤ķ ė¼ģ„ (Stella Jang), ė²ģ¤ģ»¤ ė²ģ¤ģ»¤ (Busker Busker) but makes stuff like dj okawari for sure sound as synthetic as it was released.
Also what really stood out to me was the depth, first time i put them on (in combination with LP) i was shocked as i listened to ė ėė²Øė²³ - ė¹Øź°ė§ (Red Velvet -Red Flavor) and i heard the voices in both channels but then also the massive impact of the bass right in front like 4 inches from me (right in the beginning of the song). I was like wuuuut. Itās crazy the type of separation it had and distance from something like that bass and the voices. Also no matter what i hear, itās just the layering and type of detail where i can literally hear strings in between the center and left and then i hear the voice at the same time in the middle. Itās like a weird type of precision that iāve never heard combined with crazy depth, width to the sound stage. Itās a very cozy warm sound sig.
When it comes to the bass and treble, the bass is very nice and impactful but definetly a bit more linear? it just isnāt as round-sounding (if that makes sense) as other stuff like the Hawks, Ilouds, JVC etc. But itās very enjoyable because it dosenāt feel like it imposes itself like the bass on those others might. But man Orishas, ģ¤ķ ė¼ģ„ (Stella jang), Injury Reserve everything has good bass, itās just really impactful and whether itās more organic tracks or less organic ones the bass is just impactful and outstanding. Treble is actually decent too, however definelty not for the treble heads, i listen to kpop where i love treble (and also prefer the focal alphas for kpop because of that) but i didnāt find myself particularly wanting more treble. Specially since it made the headphone 100% fatigue free and zero Ssssss sounds that distract my seesions.
Iāve tried tons of headphone, and in terms of sound signature it reminds me a bit of the nighthawks the most. Not that it has many similiarities lol. But itās just the impact on the lcd is really surprising, since iāve come from cheap planars with no slam. These are very viceral, slam is great to where itās not like a focal where it can be a bit more agressive but itās got it enough to where it is definetly very engaging and focuses on having fun bass, fun slam, and also very organic sound.
In terms of impact, itās hard to give people the idea of what itās like but as i mentioned it is super impactful when it needs to be in stuff like kpop etc, but can be veeeery relaxing when you are listening to your ballads. The first time i heard them (with LP) was the first time i had like zero words lol, i donāt know i guess it was just shocking to hear the LCD because it seemed so amazing. It had impact that i didnāt know was possible from planars, it had the most organic sound that iāve even heard to where Olga taƱon, ė³¼ė¹Øź°ģ¬ģ¶źø° (Bol4), lLa Oreja De Van Gogh sounded just sooooooooo spot on. Just so damn right. The stage and itās depth definetly kept me interested and for the first time i appreciated detail in audio. It was an experience that legit left me Wowed.
Currently as my only headphone of course i use it and enjoy it very much for all genres, but itās definetly all about organicness. Itās meant for stuff like Ballads, indie organic recordings, instrumentals, vocals to shine because itās main appeal is the level of organicness it has which is a mix of itās warm/sweet tonality, timbre for voices in particular,and crazy precision and amount of detail that gives everything a place to live without having to accentuate sharp treble etc.
If i had to pick itās weaknesses i guess it would be that the imaging isnāt amazing, kinda hazy but at the same time has crazy precision in terms of the layering of detail that it has and each instrument has itās own place where i donāt really care about the imaging lol. makes up for it for sure.also might not have the clarity that some people might want but it again makes up for it in terms of tonality, maybe it wonāt give you the clarity of a recording but it will make up for it by adding warmth, proper tonality to the recordings. Thatās really it. Also in terms of build, itās just beautiful. Good looking headphone, and iām a sucker for headphones that have wood. Looks classy (except the helios, zeus). Itās comfortable buuut i will say that the clamping force does bother me sometimes, like a fair amount of times lol for what itās worth. Weight is not an issue for me but i know that it is for many people. Zero hotspots for sure but i guess itās due to the clamp being so strong. Iād say itās fairly comfy but probaby not for everyone with the weight, and clamp and whatknot. The pads are puffy and thick which is nice, also really wide and fairly deep so i donāt feel like my ears touch the driver, itās just really well built. Iāll include some pics
Considering how much this headphone costs, i think it definetly meets itās asking point in terms of itās technical abilities, particularly outstanding organic timbre/tonality and beautiful sound signature along with itās build and looks. Everyone i have shown the headphone too says it looks beautiful, sounds beautiful. Also i have seen alot of people buy the lcd 3 and maybe even 4 but end up with the 2 because of itās sound sig, which seems to say alot. the lcd 24 tho looks like a logical step up in the diiiiiistant future lol. once this one dies on me i guess. This is it for my review.
Also WOW did not realize i wrote this much lol, hopefully someone at least enjoys it or finds it useful.
8 Likes
Nice grain with those, nics reds in the coloring too.
1 Like
Thnx. Yeah I dug it too, mixes with the furniture well lol
1 Like
Iāve really been enjoying these as well. You highlight a lot of strengths that I agree with. They are very organic sounding, and super smooth / not fatiguing. The other highest end headphones Iāve had / heard would be the Elegia / Elear, but I no longer own them for comparison. I definitely felt those were great detail headphones, and the Elear was a great headphone for just kicking back and enjoying the music, but I always felt the timbre was just slightly off and the mid-bass slightly bloated. The LCD2 PF does not share those issues, to me, they nail tonality and timbre, and their detail is still excellent.
What impresses me most with them is they seem to, as you point out, have a unique quality of being wide and intimate at the same time. The effect is it feels like the LCD2 PF is pulling the music apart and putting you inside itāthatās always the image that comes to my mindājust an incredible amount of depth between the notes, if that makes sense. In this regard, I feel it is unique when compared with any other headphones Iāve tried.
The drawback from that, which you also mention, is the imaging doesnāt come out quite right. For me, this doesnāt really impact my enjoyment of music, but it is terribly apparent if you try to game in them.
All things considered, this is my headphone to beat. I am currently using with a CTH, which I A/Bed with the Liquid Platinum, but I ended up liking the CTH better (it doesnāt hurt that you can buy one for $100). They also sound great on the Magniusācleaner, but not quite as fun / engaging in my opinion.
So, yeah, great headphone. Anyone know how the LCD2C stacks up agains the PF?
Iāve got a 660s here right now, and it doesnāt even come close to being as enjoyable / special as the LCD2 PF.
So, I think Iām probably good until used GL2000s start hitting the marketā¦
1 Like
Thatās quite interesting. If you had to compare the elegia and elear what would be their major differences?
Agreed their ability to have perfect tonality/timbre while having excellent detail really amazes me!
I can definitely get that. I wonder if itās just because of how forward the mids are. Because I remember the elex having something similiar
So the cth is a amp thatās 100 bucks retail? And you prefer it over the LP? whyās that? Like what in particular do u prefer about the pairing?
Since alot of people think itās just hype and other people are super hyped about it I canāt tell if you are being sarcastic or legit interested in it lol
Well, itās been a little while, but Iāll do my best. Like I said, both had great detail. The Elegia was a very mellow headphone, at first when I would put it on, I would think it was boring, but after I got adjusted to it, I always really enjoyed it. There was an incredible amount of detail in that headphone, but it wasnāt something I could pick up and immediately be in to. Ultimately, I didnāt feel I was enjoying it / using it enough to justify the cost.
The Elears were pretty much the opposite of that, very energetic and instantly engaging, but as stated the mid bass was just a little bit off for me, a little too bloaty. I did really like that headphone (however, I traded it for the LCD2 PF and am happy with that trade).
I donāt believe the CTH is available to purchase new anymore, but they are easily found on the used market at great prices. I found the CTH to have more energy than the MLP. The tonality of the MLP is more accurate, no question, itās got a bit more warmth, and it probably is more detailed (but Iām not 100% sure about that). The CTH isnāt super exaggerated, but I felt with stock tubes, it was wider and had more energy in the vocal range. I mostly listen to folk music, so that was a big plus for me. I did a bunch of back and forth between the two, I enjoyed them both, but ultimately there were more songs that I enjoyed the CTH over the MLP.
Then of course, there is the cost. Much easier for me to justify the cost of the CTH, and tube rolling will be significantly cheaperāwhich I want to play around with.
Also, I have a Magniusāwhich is super linear for when I want that experience.
I am actually interested. Essentially, the two headphones that are still on my bucket list are the Clears and the Aryas. I was seriously considering the Aryas when all the hype started around the GL2000. With so many people comparing it the Arya (at half or even a third of the price) I figure it will be worth giving a shot once the hype dies down and people are selling them for good prices.
As you can tell, I am very value oriented. Iām a teacher, so I donāt have loads of money to dump into headphones. I try to find the best bang for the buck type of situations, and try to pick up good deals on used gear.
Thatās interesting! I would be curious to try an elear one day, and I guess I could see how an elegia would be boring at first listen lol.
Gotcha gotcha fair enough, tats pretty dope and an interesting take!
Thatās funny that you mention that since @Veritas is also a teacher and Iāve noticed him trying his best to get deals and talks about how cheap he got some of his stuff for lol. Guess itās a teacher thing to be like that to the extent that both of you are! Altho of course everyone tries to get good deals in general.
Also for everyone sake I hope itās as good as it is said to be the gold planar, but I wouldnāt get my hopes up even chifi that ended up being great and lived up to hype like the tin t2 does its job at its price range but no further. Iām done with chifi to be honest, it seems to just keep getting cheaper for less, I think mon mentioned before about stuff like sendy clones, that they were almost as good, but then there were clones if the clones and kept on until its like each one is less and less for less money. So might as well buy the real thing
After replacing the headband to the new style, I am just totally digging these headphones. Man, I love the way they sound. They are just so easy to listen to. Iām running a CTH with a NOS Matsushita tube, and man, I just canāt find fault with them.
3 Likes
Yesā¦ Mine will stay in my collection
You know, I purchased these because of you. Thank you so much for the recommendation.
2 Likes
I am really glad you like themā¦ Great can for sure !
Remind me what your source gear is. Iāve currently got an SU-8 going into a CTH and a Magnius, but I have a RNHP on the way to try.
Bifrost 2 with MLP out of the balanced and RCA goes to a switcher that allows me to run my Asgard 3 and Feliks audio echoā¦
1 Like
Ahh the Bifrost 2. It seems inevitable that I will have to get one eventually.
I have the SU8 and the BF2 to me is a fricking huge step in sound
Bah, you have to quit telling me stuff like this.