Audeze LCD-XC over-ear planar magnetic Headphones - Official Thread

@Resolve, would you be willing to post raw measurements as well as compensated? I know some find the raw measurements easier to read/understand.

Thank you.

Mainly just raw measurements.

Here they are:

Keep in mind that the bass roll-off is due to ear and cheek simulators not being an actual human head.

Hereā€™s a more realistic representation of the bass.

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Sorry, I guess I meant uncompensated.

Thanks again.

Raw measurements are uncompensated. I donā€™t think Iā€™ll be posting the compensated ones - generally not a fan of that because it can be misleading if you donā€™t know what the target is.

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For anyone wanting the LCD-XC Carbon 2021 EQ, here it is (updated for 2022):

image

Side noteā€¦ I REALLY like this haha.

You can tame the upper treble to taste if you like. And keep in mind the bass response doesnā€™t fully roll off like that.

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Looks great. Really hoping you get a revised 2F to test soon!

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Thanks for this Andrew, I bought a new pair of XC Carbons at the end of February and was unaware of the tuning changes before your livestream.

Iā€™d been using the Oratory1990 profile for the previous iteration, but this revised EQ seems to suit the current version better.

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Good morning,
I would like to ask your advice. I have an LCD-X 2021 here for about 3 weeks, it is a B-stock, so it has played many hours I assume.It sounds super good, I really like this headphones. Inspired by the good reviews of the LCD-XC, I also ordered this headphone to try and I want to keep one. They arrived yesterday and are brand new. My hope was that it would sound just as good as the open LCD-X (If we sit in one room as a family, everyone doing their thing, reading, chatting, TV, etc, a closed KH would be better for everyone). But already after 2 songs (Doinā€™ it right, Daft Punk and ā€œAusklangā€ of the Alpine Symphony (with organ)) it was immediately clear, something is missing. The bass is not transparent, does not resolve as well. No punch compared to the LCD-X. The organ is very restrained. In ā€œDoinā€™ it rightā€ it goes down very low, but the sound usually resonates and is below the rest. Itā€™s like a kind of reverberation, but in the positive. This is clearly audible with the LCD-X (and with the reference speaker system, Genelec 8260, too). I used both times the EQ settings from Andrew @Resolve , partly approximated because of. 5+2 band EQ (with the LCD-XC Iā€™m still waiting for an answer from Audeze support about the FR graph). I use the RME ADI2 DAC.

With the LCX-X the bass is not boosted. With the LCD-XC, I had to use a bass shelf of about 6 dB to get a similar sound in the bass as with the LCD-X. I find this strange, I always thought the burn-in/break-in canā€™t be that relevant, but now itā€™s my only hope because I really want to like and keep the XC. If that doesnā€™t improve, then the LCD-X would be clearly superior imho. After all, that would contradict everything you read, or that the contrast is so great.

Ran pink and white noise tonight and will try again later. What is your experience with XC/X and break-in?

Regards and have a nice weekend, Stefan

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This sounds like what happens when a balanced plug isnā€™t pushed all the way in.

But, I would say something is wrong with one of those headphones. Having heard both, I canā€™t imagine the xc coming across with weaker bass.

Do you wear glasses?

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Hi, yes I wear glasses, but with both HP;) Have to check if it makes a difference. Things seem to improve with playing time. The bass isnā€™t weak with the XC, itā€™s kind of intransparent. But yes, itā€™s weaker than with the Xā€¦

Glasses on the X may not make as much difference as the XC. I would assume the seal matters much more with a closed back.

In my experience, the XC was not very isolating. You should check that it works well in the situation you want to use it.

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Yes, youā€™re right on this. But the new softer pads seem to seal quite good also with glasses.

After torturing the xc with pink and white noise I can say the situation has really improved compared to the first listening.

The isolation is sufficient. But I like the X more, it sounds better to my ears. There is much more air between instruments ā€¦ I guess it all comes down to the question of prefering open or closed back.

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ā€¦ but on the other hand, I have the FiiO FD5 here and the price difference between the 2 of more than 1000ā‚¬ needs to be justified. At the moment I donā€™t see this ā€¦ To the X, yes, I would say you get much more ā€¦ Still hoping that break-in sets in stronger ā€¦

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I feel the same about dunu zen and the lcd-xc. $600 more for an over ear that doesnā€™t beat the Zen to me seems silly. (I donā€™t EQ or maybe I could have helped with the XC)

Only reason I am looking is my ears have started to reject most iem tips. I need a break. And, I like the audeze mobius, but itā€™s not what I want to listen to all the time.

Getting impressions today to start the custom tip/iem process.

Yeah, Iā€™ve followed your impressions about both the XC and the Zen, thanks for sharing. Sometimes reading isnā€™t enough, so it seems I have to explore it by myself. On the other hand this got me buying the FD5 that I really like. Maybe the 2nd best DD iem out there ;)))

Iā€™ve just AB-ed some songs on X/XC again ā€¦ XC and me still no friends ā€¦ Pink noise torture goes on ā€¦
I wish you the best for finding the right tips ā€¦ I can feel your pain, with the FD5 there was only one pair of tips that works up to 80% for me ā€¦ need to try some spinfits ā€¦

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Itā€™s less the tips and more my ears. Lots of them work from a sound perspective but that generally means a deep seal. And a deep seal can irritate me between 90 seconds and two hours. And it seems to be more to do with the specific time used. I have some cheap amazon triple flanges that can work marvelously sometimes and can make my ears burn other times. :frowning:

I wish I could try more iems more easily. They really fit my life better than over ears.

Please find the FR-Graphs I got from Audeze here. Grey line: LCD-X, black line LCD-XC. This explains my issue with the XC. EQ-ing does make them sound very similiar except the general characteristics open/closed remain. But I like the XC now much much more. I could not imagine or at least I didnā€™t find by hearing that the FR-difference is that broadbanded at 1kHz downwards. Imho the XC now delivers 95% (my very subjective value) of the X performance. The trade off for getting a closed back can, so that undisturbed listening in a noisy environment is possible, seems acceptable for me. I think Iā€™m going with the XC. Back and forth comparing of the XC and the FiiO FD5 did make clear to me that the XC gives by far the better listening experience (I know these are different concepts but somehow I need to verify what I have).

Both by listar3, auf Flickr

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Hello everyone! Iā€™m sorry if it is not the right place for the question but Iā€™m about to put my money in LCD XC and the question is: Am I crazy because I wish to buy LCD XC for playing games, watching movies, and listening to Spotify? Should I look for something else?

Iā€™m choosing closed back because Iā€™m a disabled person and use voice control software to operate my PC and Iā€™m worried it will not work because of noise coming out of headphones if it was open one. I have tried Mobius, also closed one and Iā€™m bit worried about soundstage and imaging of LCD XC. My casual ears liked a lot Mobius sound quality but soundstage has been to small. I have no opportunity to try them before buy them so I would like to hear professional opinion :slight_smile:

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No, you are not crazy. I have the mobius now and had the XC. The XC is worldā€™s apart from the mobius and should be very satisfying in similar ways while being worlds better. As a closed back, it is very spacious.

The drop ether cx may be another consideration if you want to spend less money (available on amazon prime for try it and return it purposes). However the XC is a safer tuning. And, based on memory, I think it may fit the gaming purposes a bit better. But I canā€™t say for sure as thatā€™s not my interest.

XC is seriously good. Canā€™t really go wrong with it especially when mobius is your starting point.

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Thank you for your answer! I tried to order XC but in Poland where I live, it seems they are unavailable for nowā€¦ ehh ā€¦ I guess I will wait for them a bit. Other options I have here is Beyerdynamic T5 3rd Gen or Audiotechnica ATH-A2000Z. Both are close back but I guess they will perform more like Mobius then XC. Mobius sounds really good for me but soundstage is way to small.

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