[xNightBlazex]

Just got my first pair of Audeze's today and for the most I find them quite superb - in the areas that they excel in.

They have tremendous build quality, comfort, sound stage, and quite excellent mids without being too tinny. Great for casual listening in my opinion. They excel at orchestral music, guitar, vocals, and piano to name just a few. However I may be weird saying they do not have the bass I was expecting. For reference I am coming from Sennheiser HD8 DJ headphones which are very bass-centric but quite lacking in detail in the mids and highs. However, I much prefer listening to Electronic music and Rap on them. The feeling of the bass that is hammered into your head makes you appreciate that genre even more. On the contrary, I have a hard time having the same appreciation on the LCD2-C's.

I have been doing research on some headphones and I am wondering if the Massdrop Fostex TR-X00 Ebony (or Mahogany or PurpleHeart) would be a better fit for this genre? I simply cannot do any sort of bright headphones as I tend to listen to my headphones quite loud (85+DB or 90+DB in some cases) and the highs fatigue and hurt my ears. I have heard the mids are not completely lacking but if the lack of highs is comparable to the HD8's I would be ok.

Any feedback would be appreciated.

 

[MellowGold]

Just got my first pair of Audeze's today and for the most I find them quite superb - in the areas that they excel in.

They have tremendous build quality, comfort, sound stage, and quite excellent mids without being too tinny. Great for casual listening in my opinion. They excel at orchestral music, guitar, vocals, and piano to name just a few. However I may be weird saying they do not have the bass I was expecting. For reference I am coming from Sennheiser HD8 DJ headphones which are very bass-centric but quite lacking in detail in the mids and highs. However, I much prefer listening to Electronic music and Rap on them. The feeling of the bass that is hammered into your head makes you appreciate that genre even more. On the contrary, I have a hard time having the same appreciation on the LCD2-C's.

I have been doing research on some headphones and I am wondering if the Massdrop Fostex TR-X00 Ebony (or Mahogany or PurpleHeart) would be a better fit for this genre? I simply cannot do any sort of bright headphones as I tend to listen to my headphones quite loud (85+DB or 90+DB in some cases) and the highs fatigue and hurt my ears. I have heard the mids are not completely lacking but if the lack of highs is comparable to the HD8's I would be ok.

Any feedback would be appreciated.

What amp are you using with the LCD2-C's?

 

[xNightBlazex]

What amp are you using with the LCD2-C's?

Currently using Mayflower’s O2 ODAC from what I understand is a pretty flat amp.

 

[MellowGold]

Currently using Mayflower’s O2 ODAC from what I understand is a pretty flat amp.

So then it doesn't sound like an issue with the amp. I'm guessing that the HD8 DJ's have a massive mid-bass hump and maybe you've become accustomed to that.

The 2C's, on the other hand (being planars), have a linear bass response that does not over emphasize the low end. So you're hearing a relatively neutral sound signature with the 2Cs but I would think they're a good compliment to the bass cannons that you already have. In terms of brightness, I have heard that the Fostex TR-X00 have more fatiguing treble.

All said, I absolutely love the bass on the 2C's. To me, it sounds big and bold, especially in sub-bass extension, an area where most dynamics have a hard time competing.

 

[xNightBlazex]

So then it doesn't sound like an issue with the amp. I'm guessing that the HD8 DJ's have a massive mid-bass hump and maybe you've become accustomed to that.

The 2C's, on the other hand (being planars), have a linear bass response that does not over emphasize the low end. So you're hearing a relatively neutral sound signature with the 2Cs but I would think they're a good compliment to the bass cannons that you already have. In terms of brightness, I have heard that the Fostex TR-X00 have more fatiguing treble.

All said, I absolutely love the bass on the 2C's. To me, it sounds big and bold, especially in sub-bass extension, an area where most dynamics have a hard time competing.

The HD8’s do indeed have a massive bass response that is quite punchy. Paired with the ODAC this is emphasized more. The idea is that you can beat match with them while performing a set. They do incredibly well at this. They are also closed-back which could also add to the response of the thundering bass. I always use Tropakillaz - HIDEHO (Bass Boosted) to test bass on any cans and the LCD2-C have more depth but lack the rumble and punch. I think I will keep the HD8’s around for the hardcore EDM and rap listening sessions I will inevitably have in the future.

I will say however a 6DB boost to the 40-100 range does wonders to the 2C’s to add a bit more rumble. Might be worth getting an amp that does this internally versus using an EQ software side.

As for the Fostex I’ve not heard them so I’m quite skeptical so I appreciate the info. I wish there was a Hi-Fi store near me with a good selection of cans. Despite living near a huge metropolitan there is like no stores for it.

 

[ls13coco]

I had the Fostex, they were too bright for me so I wouldn't recommend them seeing as you mentioned the listening levels/brightness.

I would definitely play around with EQ with your Audeze, they bump well with some low end boost.

 

[xNightBlazex]

I had the Fostex, they were too bright for me so I wouldn't recommend them seeing as you mentioned the listening levels/brightness.

I would definitely play around with EQ with your Audeze, they bump well with some low end boost.

Thanks for that. I’ll be staying away from the Fostex then. I’m currently using Equalizer APO (to run Audeze Reveal VST) but for some reason I can’t seem to give a simple boost without the EQ peaking and normalizing it hurts the quality for some odd reason. I’m gonna try some other EQs (hopefully free lol) and see if I can open up the low ends. Is an external hardware EQ maybe worth it?

 

[ls13coco]

Thanks for that. I’ll be staying away from the Fostex then. I’m currently using Equalizer APO (to run Audeze Reveal VST) but for some reason I can’t seem to give a simple boost without the EQ peaking and normalizing it hurts the quality for some odd reason. I’m gonna try some other EQs (hopefully free lol) and see if I can open up the low ends. Is an external hardware EQ maybe worth it?

No problem, it was the purple heart variant specifically that I had bought for the bass, primarily. I actually sold them after receiving the 2C, I found the bass as good if not better, though less of that dynamic punch I suppose.. though I couldn't confidentially say I hear less punch with the 2C, maybe if I did back to back testing.

Honestly I haven't had much luck with APO either, I use the built in EQ software on my Creative amp/dac. Actually works great, prefer it to foobar, APO or other EQ I've found but.. gotta be something out there.
I myself am going to buy the Schiit Loki at some point, I've heard much praise about it and having analogue EQ that I could use with any amp/dac combo seems like a good idea.

Just a quick side-note, the 2C can pound with low end EQ on my X7, literally head shaking as the Fostex did with the same EQ. The potential is definitely there, I just wish I knew of a free EQ that could do the same without such audible distortion.

 

[xNightBlazex]

No problem, it was the purple heart variant specifically that I had bought for the bass, primarily. I actually sold them after receiving the 2C, I found the bass as good if not better, though less of that dynamic punch I suppose.. though I couldn't confidentially say I hear less punch with the 2C, maybe if I did back to back testing.

Honestly I haven't had much luck with APO either, I use the built in EQ software on my Creative amp/dac. Actually works great, prefer it to foobar, APO or other EQ I've found but.. gotta be something out there.
I myself am going to buy the Schiit Loki at some point, I've heard much praise about it and having analogue EQ that I could use with any amp/dac combo seems like a good idea.

Just a quick side-note, the 2C can pound with low end EQ on my X7, literally head shaking as the Fostex did with the same EQ. The potential is definitely there, I just wish I knew of a free EQ that could do the same without such audible distortion.

Im going to do some hunting / research with EQs on software side first and see if I can get anywhere. I'll definitely report back if I find something dependable. The Schiit Loki seems like a great deal for a hardware EQ just sucks that the Mayflower o2 ODAC has no RCA out or in. I have been playing around with bass testing the LCD2-C on their factory setting with no EQ and they can definitely get low given enough power / volume so I see an EQ being a tremendous help. After getting used to the sound signature of the LCD2-C's I can positively say that they are much more refined than my HD8. The HD8's bass (while stupendous) leaks into the rest of the song which works great for EDM and Hip Hop but not much else (not talking beats level or anything here just comparing them to LCD's there is that stark difference.) If you ever get the chance to try them out (they are discontinued sadly) I would highly recommend as I used them for nearly 5 years and pads are very easy to attain. They literally can give me a ear massage / head massage / ruin my hearing for the night hah. Will keep them around for sure, but looking forward to seeing what I can do with the LCD2-C's.

 

[Kukuk]

I had a similar impression of the LCD2-C. I liked it, but definitely didn't have the bass I was expecting. To my ear there was a gentle decline in the bass the lower they went, so while being relatively flat, they were relatively light in bass.

I recently got a hold of a pair of Hifiman HE-500s, and those blew away my every expectation. Rather than having a gentle decline, these have a gentle raise in the bass. Flat like the LCD-2C, but definitely up in level. It really made all the difference in my enjoyment. They thump harder, they rumble more, and all while keeping that same great control the LCD-2C had.

The treble isn't down in level compared to the LCD-2C, so it might affect your enjoyment at high volumes, but it's also not a bright headphone. To my ear the treble is perfect, with no serious peaks or valleys.

They usually run in the $300-$350 price range on the used market, which is absurdly cheap for their performance.

 

[xNightBlazex]

Have not looked at the HE-500s but most likely going to see what sort of dynamic driver headphones are out there that can provide a bit of punch. Possibly closed back even? I am new to all of this and still very much learning and this is why I wish I could just spend a week at a Hi-Fi store. If there was one actually near me hah.