Hello Fellow Headfiers,
 
I own this DAC for atleast 7 months now and so I thought I would make a review cuz I'm planning to sell this (which I'll tell you why at the end of this review).
I haven't wrote a review for a DAC/AMP so go easy on me.
 
Lets get started with the usual stuff.

Build - If you have owned Marantz products before then you will really appreciate how the keep continuing/improving on the looks whilst keeping the old "marantz" vintage looks, with the wooden looking (its plastic) sides, the marantz display hole (don't know how exactly it is called). The DAC is almost metal except for the sides and hence it is quite heavy around 6 kgs if I remember it right. The volume knobs, on/off switch, source selector switch are all metal (Aluminium I think). I have the Black version and they look stunning. 5/5 stars here. A remote control is also included so you really don't use the knobs much. Also a RCA cable and USB type B connector.
 
Features - It is a DAC, headphone amp that can drive 600 ohm headphones, a preamp too. Can run your Apple devices, has input from AUX, RCA connections, USB ports on front and rear (front for the apple devices and rear for your external hard drives and usb sticks), It supports DSD, FLAC... and the list goes on, literally everything. I mostly listen to flac 24/196 and it sounds amazing. The OSX does not need any drivers to run but windows need some drivers which can be found on the Marantz website. There are three gain levels for the amp section, low, medium and high. 
I usually run my headphones in this order
 
HD600, HD800, DT880 - high gain
LCD XC - Medium gain
Denon D600 - Low gain
 
I found the amp could drive the DT880 600 ohm version almost very easily with the volume knob on less than the mid of the spectrum. Of course to use the DAC section then you need a digital input, a USB, optical connection. 
 
Sound Quality - Before I continue, please keep in mind this is my only desktop amp I have ever owned. The previous amp was a Fiio E12 but thats all. So my comparison is literally against nothing (which isn't even a comparion ) But, I could tell you how it sounds from my liking. 
 
Lows - The Bass reaches very low and has a great punch to it. It adds a lot of bass quality to HD600 and HD800s which many say lack in bass but I find them to be just right. 
 
Mids - The mids are the best part of the DAC comparing to my portable Cowon X7/Fiio E12 combo. The vocals sound very well and guitars sound great. I somehow feel that the HD DAC synchronizes very well with Sennheisers. The guitars sound exactly like the way I want them to be. 
 
Highs - I would say this is a warm sounding DAC and hence there isn't any harshness to the treble. I found this when I first got my HD800s and many said they had issues with the treble peak with them but I never had such an issue. (Maybe I'm treble insensitive? No, cuz I hated the DT880s )
 
Observations (+ Pros, - Con )
+ The builtin jitter remover eliminates every noise from the PC and you literally hear nothing when there is no song playing, No hiss, no statics which is amazing. 
- The Harddrive takes a long time to read (maybe cuz I use a 1TB?)
+ Even a spotify premium connected from an iphone to the DAC sounds amazing ( soooo close that I can't differentiate with a flac or 320 mp3, ok I have attracted some attention by saying that )
- The relay clicks are loud and you could think it is a broken device or something. But it isnt. It only happens when the frequency changes but I think its quite normal.
- Runs quite hot but I saw some videos on how tube amps can fry an egg so I'm fine with this.
+ Waits until your idevice is fully charged and then auto shuts off.
 
Ok, so to the part why I want to sell this amazing dac is, It has no XLR connector. While it is not an issue for most of the users, I have recently "upped" my game to the HD800 and LCD XCs and I also got a very nice XLR connector cables with. And technically a balanced connection should sound better (cuz I have no experience with balanced connection).
But don't get me wrong, this is a very well, clean, smooth and a warm sounding DAC and very nice head amp which can drive most of the headphones (except for some power hungry orthos).
 
Thanks for reading, love you all

Hello Beautiful People
 
Lets get started
 
Disclaimer : All these are based on my personal opinion with my rig and could differ from others. As always I'm open to suggestions and critics, thank you
 
History
I have mostly been a passive headfier but recently I jumped into the game when I first got the HD600s and Marantz HD DAC1. I was very much impressed (still do) with the HD 600s and how well they sounded in the overall FR. Just like the other headfiers here my search didn't end and only the curiousity increased in other highend headphones and how do they perform. So my next step was a HD800. Which was a brilliant step up (very slight step down in mids) in almost everything when compared to HD600s, which led me to sell my HD 600s . And again I wanted to try the Beyers since I have always been using Sennheisers. Unfortunately the Beyers were too airy and had a hot treble which I quite didnt like. Returned them and was only having my HD800s and was quite satisfied except for the treple spike. I came along the Superdupont mod on the HD800s and luckily worked well for me. My curiosity raised again and wanted to try the planar magnetic headphones and was eyeing on the LCD 2. But I read reviews about the LCD XC and how well they sounded and also it was a good idea to get a closed back. Sorry for the long history though
 
Audeze LCD XC
So, I very recently bought the LCD XC. I will keep the review short on the build and comfort and focus more on the sound quality. Also please note I have never used/tried a tube amp, I always use a single ended 1/4 inch jack and have only one DAC/AMP the HD DAC1. I listen to heavy metal and so some alternative metal/rock mostly lossless and some Spotify premium songs.
 
Design 
Pros : One word, Beautiful. Retro looking, polished wooden earcups, the leather earpads, very minimalistic design, quite huge for my head but I dont plan on using it outside. The carry case is perfect for transport and storage.
Cons : I didnt quite like the headband, it is too thin. I covered it with a headband cushion and now it is fine but still could be better.
 
Comfort
Pros : The earcups are very huge and they are soo big and have atleast an inch of depth inside so your ear will never touch the fazor. 
Cons : Just like every other reviewer said, it is toooooo heavy. Around 650gms and with the very thin headband the whole headphone weighs on your head and also some parts of your upper ears can actually hurt after maybe just 20 mins. I also find that the bottom part of the ear cups dont close well around the ears at the bottom part. Maybe I will get used to it but not yet.
 
Sound Quality : Comes the best part, with happy ending
Lows : Probably the best bass I have ever heard in any device that produces music. Very tight, accurate, not boomy, good decay, never overpowering, doesn't indulge into the mids, rolls off exactly at the lower mids which I was always looking for, extends very low, sounds great for all genres, ok thats a lot
 
Lows compared to HD800 - HD800 has a very good bass too, but never extends as low/deep or powerful as the XCs. Maybe the lows on XCs sound better since they are closed back? or they are planars? Lets say the bass of XCs are 100% then HD800s bass would be 85% as good.
 
Mids : Amazing mids, full sounding, never thin, has a soul, sounds musical, vocals sound so nice. Overall presentation of the music is so "into" you and a step inside your brain. The mids isn't as great as the HD600s but the perfect balance of the lows and mids make it feel full sounding with a musical note to it. 
 
Mids compared to HD600 - The acoustic guitars sounds amazing and so open on the HD600s. So keep them as the baseline, I would say the HD800s sound 95% good as the HD600s and the LCD XCs sound 98% as good as HD600s.
 
Treble : Also amazing, I could just write one sentence saying these headphones are *almost* perfect in the overall presentation and FR. The highs are never sharp, don't have any spikes, never harsh but well extended. The cymbals don't sound splashy and maybe this could be a let down for the beyer fans. But don't get me wrong, these have a very well extended, smooth treble.
 
Treble compared to HD800s - They are not too sparky as the stock HD800s (which I found to be tamed after superdupont mod). 
 
Soundstage : Ya, very *open* for a closed headphone.
 
Soundstage compared to HD800s - To be honest, I could never picture myself in center of a concert like many others tell you. I just find the sound coming not just from the sides of your ears but around your head, maybe it's the same. It is proven that the HD800s have the best soundstage and spatial imaging, so contest here.
 
Amping - Ok, so they say it is 20ohms and usable for portable devices. When I first got my headphones I plugged into the HD DAC1 and set the gain to low and was like meh, its alright. Then I read the specifications and it said optimal power requirement 1 to 4 W in Audeze website. So I turned the gain to high, as same as the HD800s and guess what theres a dramatic change in the sound. These cans really need to be amped to get their full potential ( maybe they are even better on a XLR cable?, unforturnately I cant try them now ).
 
Conclusion : These are the best closed headphones you can buy, Period. The only thing that makes you put down these headphones are the weight and when you have to use the toilet.
 
Please leave some feedback/questions on my review if you have any or If I have missed something. I would be more than happy to answer/help you all.

Hello All, 
 
This is my second review on Headfi so bear with me on the details
 
I have been owning these "amazing" IEMs for about an year now. My main source of music is on my iphone 5s with flac files ( through VOX music app).
 
Let me get right to the point.
 
Pros:
Accuracy: Highly accurate with nice mids and highs, has a really nice sound signature, not too bassy but just right. ( If you feel the bass isn't enough, you may have to somehow find the right fit for you and of course if you reading on this IEMs you are not a bass-head )
Isolation : Really good with the triple flanged buds
Accessories: a lot of included ear buds but I think the triple flanged worked well for me.
And of course the sound
 
Cons:
Fit - Man o man it hurts like hell doesn't it. But my ears were getting better after a couple of weeks
Microphonics - Very bad but can be avoided using the included clip
Build quality - Sub par, not really happy for the price I paid
 
Sound Quality:
Lows: Has a very tight low end. For many the bass could not be enough but I find it "just right" with the triple flanged buds.
Mids: Very nice mids (I keep HD 600s as my baseline)+
Highs: really good highs too (Not bright, fatiguing, just right)
Sound stage/Resolution : I find the soundstage a bit narrow maybe even narrower than HD600s. The sound also seem to be a bit conjested with complex/fast music.
 
Conclusion:
Most people find difficulty with the triple flanged buds and when using the other or custom made buds the sound could be different. My personal opinion is this IEM sounds great "only" with the triple flanged buds. I used the other included tips and found them to be bass light, but its perfect with the triple flanged tips. 
Despite the cons this IEMs has more pros which make them a worthy purchase.
 
I wrote this review in a very fast manner, please leave comments or questions if you have any. Much appreciated.
 
Thank you

So I got this headphones used on Amazon for €170 which I think is a pretty good deal. I mostly listen to alternative metal and rock. ( Korn, Deftones, Radiohead, System of a Down, etc.. )
 
Packaging:
Screams Premium. Nice box with soft clothing, two cables ( iPod compatible and a 3m long OFC cable ) and a decent carry case. 
 
Build Quality:
Looks a bit like the beats from the side. But it is very big and heavy (sorry smallheads). The ear cups are very soft but can get hot after long use.
 
Sound Quality:
Lows:
These headphones are really good at the first listen when directly compared with the HD600s since it has a heavier bass (controlled and tight, which doesn't bleed into the mids) 
 
Mids:
Spend more time of with these I find that the mids are slightly recessed (lacking in detail).. not really too much but it is simply not comparable to HD600s (of course these are not mid centric phones)
 
Highs:
The treble is not too much that it might get fatiguing but it is in the right proportion. It is also sibilant on many recordings I tested.
 
Soundstage:
A very decent soundstage for a closed back. Almost similar to the HD600s. 
 
Amplification:
Though these are 32ohms and can be driven by phones and iPods. I tried to use it on my Marantz HD DAC1 and it sounded a bit better/fuller.
 
Conclusion:
Maybe my ears are tuned to HD600s and so these sound harsh to me both on the bass and treble side. But it does not mean these are bad headphones but I simply think these are not worth the premium price for the new ones. Find good used ones and you wont regret it.