{"id":540,"date":"2016-09-12T20:58:31","date_gmt":"2016-09-12T20:58:31","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/mclements.net\/blogWP\/?p=540"},"modified":"2022-03-26T01:47:07","modified_gmt":"2022-03-26T01:47:07","slug":"the-fantastic-audeze-lcd-x","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/mclements.net\/blogWP\/index.php\/2016\/09\/12\/the-fantastic-audeze-lcd-x\/","title":{"rendered":"The Fantastic Audeze LCD-X"},"content":{"rendered":"

A few years ago I found the best headphones I’ve ever heard, the Audeze LCD-2<\/a>. These are the 2014 Fazor version. A while later I made them even better with a subtle parametric EQ<\/a>. That may sound like sacrilege to some audiophiles, but it works for me. The LCD-2 has\u00a0 enhanced my late-night music listening and I still enjoy and use them regularly.<\/p>\n

Since then, Audeze came out with another headphone: the LCD-X<\/a>. It is designed to have a more neutral (flatter) frequency response and faster\/cleaner transient response. Both of these claims are substantiated by measurements<\/a>. But how do they sound?<\/strong> I wanted to find out. Audeze had a sale so I ordered a pair to get a listen.<\/p>\n

Dimensionally, the X are exactly the same as my 2, or so close I couldn’t tell the difference. They’re black and made of metal, where the 2 are wood. The X are a bit heavier, but I didn’t feel the difference. Clamping force, fit, they felt exactly the same on my head.<\/p>\n

I ran the comparison through my Behringer DEQ2496<\/a>. More precisely, CDs played on my Oppo BDP-83, toslink to DEQ2496, toslink to Oppo HA-1, balanced headphone out. The DEQ2496 enabled me to level match within 0.5 dB, keeping the signal otherwise unchanged, or apply EQ as mentioned below. This doesn’t use the DEQ2496’s DA or AD converters; it operates in pure digital mode. Subjectively, I found the X to be 8.5 dB louder than the 2, so used this to equalize the levels.<\/p>\n

Tech note: According to specs the X is about 11 dB louder than the 2 at the same volume setting. According to Audeze specs, the X makes 103 dB with 1 mW of power and has a 20 ohm impedance. Since it’s planar magnetic, the impedance is flat vs. frequency. That means 0.1414 V (141 mV) will make 103 dB, so 0.0317 V (32 mV) will make 90 dB. The voltage sensitivity of the LCD-2 is 0.114 V @ 1 kHz @ 90 dB. So we have 20*log(0.141\/0.032) = 12.9 dB. My subjective impression was slightly different. Attenuated by 13 dB, the X was quieter than the 2; I used 8.5 dB.<\/p>\n

First I did the fair comparison<\/strong>: head to head, no EQ. Here it was no contest: the X was easy to differentiate, and overall better sound:<\/p>\n