Audeze LCD_4

[Sean Olive]

My interest in measuring and evaluating magnetic planar headphones continues. I previously posted measurements of two affordable magnetic planars: HiFiMan Sundara ($349) and Dan Clark Aeon2 Noire($899).

Here is a more expensive example: Audeze LCD-4 ($3999.) an open back magnetic planar measured on my G.R.A.S. CA 45-10. For $3999 you get more luxury and 735 g of weight, more than 2x the weight of the Sundara and Aeon2 Noire. This is the heaviest headphone I've come across.

I don't have a sophisticated multi-band EQ but I was able to make it sound significantly better with just 3 bands of EQ using the TotalMix app that comes with my RME Fireface UCX.

 

[Shazb0t]

Curious about the distortion! They definitely took the flat thing to heart in the wrong way

 

[cursive]

Thanks Sean, always nice to see more headphone measurements. Can't believe these are twice as heavy as those other two models, that is some serious weight on the head and neck.

I notice the huge drop at around 10k, is that accurate, or more of an artifact from measuring frequency that high?

 

[Matias]

What are the 3 PEQ parameters? I'm curious.

 

[Sean Olive]

Thanks Sean, always nice to see more headphone measurements. Can't believe these are twice as heavy as those other two models, that is some serious weight on the head and neck.

I notice the huge drop at around 10k, is that accurate, or more of an artifact from measuring frequency that high?

The steep notch at 9 kHz could be a reflection cancellation in the pinna. You see a smaller versions of these notches in the other two magnetic planars I posted. I need to confirm. The 45CA-10 is accurate to 20kHz.

Yes that is a lot of weight. You put it on you feel like your head is going to tip over. When you move your head, you can feel it shift on your head and you feel like it might fall off or your head might tip over. Comes with an optional neck brace..

Impossible not to identify in a blind test even with your eyes closed.

 

[Helicopter]

Thanks for sharing your measurements and thoughts.

Someone a while back was complaining about the preference curve and thought the response should mimic good speakers. Looks like we found the headphone for that person.

 

[Sean Olive]

What are the 3 PEQ parameters? I'm curious.

Well, by memory it was:

1. LF shelf @ 112 Hz, Q = 0.7, 5 dB
2. Peak @ 4 kHz, Q = 0.7 , 6.6 dB
3. Peak @ 8.8 kHz, Q = 0.7, 3.5 dB

I didn't right them down unfortunately, and was playing with them a bit while listening to music so those values may not reflect the measurements

 

[Sean Olive]

Thanks for sharing your measurements and thoughts.

Someone a while back was complaining about the preference curve and thought the response should mimic good speakers. Looks like we found the headphone for that person.

By that you mean flat.. but flat measured on an ear simulator. The error curve in the graph better represents how it sounds. It sounds very dull, with recessed mids.

It is interesting that many people don't like this headphone without EQ but with EQ they love it because it has "detail" and "resolution", whatever that may be.

After EQ I think it sounds good but not $3900 better than the K371, and not $3000 better than the Aeon2 Noire, IMO

 

[Helicopter]

By that you mean flat.. but flat measured on an ear simulator. The error curve in the graph better represents how it sounds. It sounds very dull, with recessed mids.

It is interesting that many people don't like this headphone without EQ but with EQ they love it because it has "detail" and "resolution", whatever that may be.

After EQ I think it sounds good but not $3900 better than the K371, and not $3000 better than the Aeon2 Noire, IMO

Yes, I agree your approach makes sense and gives neutral sound maybe with a little extra bass, maybe just plain neutral, compared to the flawed flat raw response of this headphone. I just wonder if Audeze made the same error as that member and targeted this response.

With EQ, do you prefer it to the Aeon 2 Noire?

 

[Sean Olive]

Yes, I agree your approach makes sense and gives neutral sound maybe with a little extra bass, maybe just plain neutral, compared to the flawed flat raw response of this headphone. I just wonder if Audeze made the same error as that member and targeted this response.

With EQ, do you prefer it to the Aeon 2 Noire?

Have't done any A/B between it and the Noire. Will let you know.

 

[Sean Olive]

Curious about the distortion! They definitely took the flat thing to heart in the wrong way

I hope to add distortion and other measurements soon. The software I have doesn't allow calibration with my GRAS 42AA microphone calibrator (114 dB @ 250 Hz) so I need to switch to something more professional like Listen SoundCheck or AP Flex that can work with my pistonphone.

 

[Sean Olive]

Yes, I agree your approach makes sense and gives neutral sound maybe with a little extra bass, maybe just plain neutral, compared to the flawed flat raw response of this headphone. I just wonder if Audeze made the same error as that member and targeted this response.

With EQ, do you prefer it to the Aeon 2 Noire?

That would be embarrassing if it was designed on a false premise that the ear simulator resonance at 3 kHz should be removed so that the curve is flat.


If you look at their in-ear headphone called the Sine it has 3 kHz bump so they figured it out at some point. Many people think it is one of the better sounding models with the gaming headphone being the best.

 

[BrokenEnglishGuy]

I haven't hear that headphone, but in my opinion the people like because of his hard hitting bass

One thing that is important to me in headphones is how tactile feel the bass, for example i has hear the sundara many times and no matter how loud go you the bass is just not tactile
How call the bass when is solid and bla bla? dynamic?, many words for the same thing
for example the aeon have a small driver than ether flow, same idea. Pretty sure these 2 headphones doesn't sound the same even with the same FR


Same happen in in-ear monitors, when you have Balanced armature In ear monitor and another with dynamic driver like 12mm in bass, rest of b.a, both in ears can be flat but the in ear with dd gonna sound more solid. I have a friend that have almost all the hi-end in ears monitors and no matter which in ear we are talking about, a ba in ear bass (both with flat bas ) just can't be as tactile as a good DD.
I didn't hear all of his in ears, but i had a few of in ears before my speaker

imho

 

[MC_RME]

I don't have a sophisticated multi-band EQ but I was able to make it sound significantly better with just 3 bands of EQ using the TotalMix app that comes with my RME Fireface UCX.

The man himself uses our baby?

 

[bobbooo]

My interest in measuring and evaluating magnetic planar headphones continues. I previously posted measurements of two affordable magnetic planars: HiFiMan Sundara ($349) and Dan Clark Aeon2 Noire($899).

For a truly affordable planar, try the HiFiMan HE4XX. At $180 via Drop they're almost half the price of the Sundara but measure fairly similarly (that's compared to the 'original' Sundara, but I suspect if you swapped the pads from the 'revised' Sundara you have onto a pair of HE4XX's you'd get similar measurements between them too).

 

[Helicopter]

I hope to add distortion and other measurements soon. The software I have doesn't allow calibration with my GRAS 42AA microphone calibrator (114 dB @ 250 Hz) so I need to switch to something more professional like Listen SoundCheck or AP Flex that can work with my pistonphone.

@scott wurcer do you have anything already coded that mighr help here?... just a thought.

 

[Vini darko]

Is it using ferrite magnets? Gonna be needing some serious fetlocks for this lump.

 

[scott wurcer]

@scott wurcer do you have anything already coded that mighr help here?... just a thought.

The hardware here is more the issue.

 

[Sean Olive]

The hardware here is more the issue.

Are you saying the performance of the RME is not good enough to measure distortion of headphones? The output impedance is relatively high (30 ohms) and it probably doesn't have enough power to drive insensitive headphones.


Hopefully, will be getting something to replace it soon.

 

[MC_RME]

There is no headphone that wouldn't distort magnitudes higher than the UCX phones output. But if you want to the measure all parameters including very high SPL on insensitive phones then you indeed need a more powerful phones amp.