I spent a lot of time listening to LCD XC at various NAMM booths Saturday and it got me thinking about selling everything except Ananda, ESP 95X, and Mobius to work my way up to it. I’m likely going to be waiting until CanJam SoCal (June) to buy anything, but what else should I be looking at in the $1000-$1500 range for closed back mastering? Elegia? Anything from ZMF I should look into?
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Closed back mastering? Hmmmm. The XC is a good choice if you have to have a closed back. You could also most likely get the job done on some DCA Aeon 2 closed, but that might not be ideal for mastering. The elegia preforms admirably but that may have a learning curve for mastering imo. The K872 is actually pretty good (not a fan of the 812) but it can be very amp picky at times. I use all open backs in my normal mastering rotation tbh. Have you also considered a CIEM or iem for mastering? That make take some getting used to but they can be pretty sweet
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I know @Onaha absolutely loves his ZMF Eikon and thinks it’s the best headphone he’s ever heard, but for mastering? Have no idea.
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I don’t know if I would say that’s ideal for mastering, but it is apparently pretty good
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TBH I wouldn’t recommend going closed back for mastering unless you have to, as I think speakers or open backs will yield better results for sure, but sometimes that isn’t an option. I just don’t know if I would trust myself mastering on a closed as much as an open or speakers
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On ZMF’s website I see this for the Eikon: “Universe: Dry, fast, neutral. The flattest pad you can use on the Eikon, reduces treble and bass peaks, making for a brighter more flat response.” Is that the sort of sound you’d want for mastering?
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I can’t really comment, I would have to hear them. From what I see on them fr wise they don’t really look that ideal, but for this use case anyway I would def suggest eqing headphones anyway
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I remember josh valour talking about the ether cx as a good pair for mastering, but I’ve never had the chance to try them out.
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Those are more monitoring cans, you want something more natural for mastering imo. The aeon 2 is an improvement over the ether also imo
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Oh that’s right. He mentioned them as good for monitoring. It was a while ago I watched that. My bad 
. Ignore me!
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Yeah, my work environment is fairly noisy. CIEMs would do the job, but they’re not something I could see myself spending that kind of money on. Can you elaborate on the Elegia learning curve? Are they revealing but have an odd frequency response?
I’ve never done any mastering, so I can’t speak as to the practicality, but I’m still really enjoying the Eikons. I wouldn’t say they are neutral but I always use them off a tube amp, so that could be adding some of the warmth I like. They have a surprisingly wide soundstage, if that has any effect on them being viable for mastering
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You have to work around some strange treble dips and timbre issues that occur. These can easily be eqed though and I have used them for mastering before and they do work well. Like any headphone, you have to learn where it is accurate and where it sounds off from where you want it. Otherwise the presentation and technicalities are quite good for a closed back so no issues there 
Word of warning on the elegia is that they are somewhat sensitive to seal and I have seen many have issues with glasses if you wear them often, it can cause issues with the low end
For me, I tend to mix bass heavy. So a slight warm tilt would suit me. I’m mixing vocals way too hot on 177x
Hmm, the elegia is a bit more cold in comparison to the 177x
From what you say the LCD xc may suit you more as it’s got a bit more recession in the vocals and a bit warmer tone, may align with what you are looking for
I’m assuming you are mastering, metal? If not, what are you working with lol
I just read back to the original post, and as the owner of both I really think the Eikon blows away the XC. I need to use EQ on the XC, and I rarely do. On the XC I have to. I also think the headband design on the Eikons distributes the weight better for long sessions. Both look really nice, but the XCs may be a little prettier
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Elegia is probably not a good choice then. And seal was a huge issue with NDH 20. But I did get some new glasses that hug my face better since then.
Most of what I do is live recordings of church services. So some spoken word with ambient mics mixed in, and some music that typically has acoustic guitars, electric guitars, keys, bass, and drums.
I’d love to do more studio recordings, but that’ll probably be further down the road
If I get a chance to listen to Eikon, I will for sure. probably at CanJam
I’m also curious, how does the verite compare? I don’t think I would recommend mastering on a verite
I think the Verites are a more capable headphone, but the Eikons really took me by surprise. They sound open, wide, and the sound signature really matches my ideal for listening enjoyment. I have other headphones that may perform better in certain aspects, but the Eikons may be the best all-rounder I own.
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