[paradoxper]

Take the red pill, sound the dog whistle.

 

[commtrd]

Well there is of course a reason for these absurd prices, not just in audio gear either BTW. But since I already got STIFFLY reprimanded for bringing that up, just know that obtaining the summit-fi gear is going to be expensive, and it's just the way it is. Whether or not the price is too high for any one person is up to that person. For the eroded purchase power of the dollar, the asking price of the new LCD5 IS NOT TOO EXPENSIVE. Have to look at the much bigger picture to see the truth in everything.

 

[Lolito]

Audeze gets around the weight by loosing half of the magnets. They loose half the magnets by utilizing their new parallel uniforce trace diaphram, which allows the headphone to have the same performance with less magnets. They have a patent (pending?), So chances of the price going down THAT much is slim.

I would swear they said magnets number is the exact same, what is lighter is what you can see that is quite smaller than before.

 

[Kammerat Rebekka]

Indeed. The LCD-5 is smaller than any of the previous LCD models. You can see this in the following vid. I am not really a fan of his channel, but at least you can see a direct visual comparison with another LCD.
Also makes perfect sense in that if you want to make a neutral headphone, you’ll need smaller cups in order to attain your goal (and/or drivers placed directly up against your ears). All neutral headphones come with smallish cups ie HD600/650, R70X and the Focals.

 

[chargedcapacitor]

I would swear they said magnets number is the exact same, what is lighter is what you can see that is quite smaller than before.

There are 14 magnets total, 7 on each side. The LCD-5 uses the fluxor magnets, not the double fluxor magnets of the LCD-4/z/MX4/R

 

[Dloines]

looks like 8 on one side

 

[chargedcapacitor]

looks like 8 on one side

That's an old render, the current driver model looks nothing like this. There are 7.

 

[Lolito]

watch the interview with audeze CEO for the lcd5 launch, he said explicitly: the number of magnets it's the exact same. If he is lying or not, that I do not know.

 

[chargedcapacitor]

watch the interview with audeze CEO for the lcd5 launch, he said explicitly: the number of magnets it's the exact same. If he is lying or not, that I do not know.

Yes, he sure does... Interesting since I believe it was mentioned that the LCD-5 had a single sided magnet array. I must have misheard.

 

[Hoegaardener70]

To go back to the LCD-5, and the universal praise for it (seemingly) ... what make you guys so interested in it? I think having a better form factor and less weight is catching up and not a universal improvement. I found that in Currawong's review, it is described as very detailed but somewhat analytical. It wasn't his favorite.

For me personally, I'd need to check:
- Easiness or difficulty to drive. To be honest, a 2021 headphone which cannot be run with a DAP is meh, at least for me
- Comfort. Some here say its super comfy, others from CanJam and reviewers (Resolve, Currawong) pointed out that it clamped quite hard. I guess this depends on head shape, but again, important issue
- Sound: LCD-5 seems to depart from all other Audeze signatures (do I get this right?), so what brings the LCD-5 to the table what the others don't?

If you can help me on any of these three ... appreciated and thanks .

 

[Lolito]

- Sound: LCD-5 seems to depart from all other Audeze signatures (do I get this right?), so what brings the LCD-5 to the table what the others don't?

The information I have found from Audeze says: exact same system and exact same sound as before, they say. Just lighter.
I have not heard them myself, so can not ocmpare.

 

[Widell]

Can the LCD-5 be driven by Chord Hogo 2?

 

[Kammerat Rebekka]

To go back to the LCD-5, and the universal praise for it (seemingly) ... what make you guys so interested in it? I think having a better form factor and less weight is catching up and not a universal improvement. I found that in Currawong's review, it is described as very detailed but somewhat analytical. It wasn't his favorite.

For me personally, I'd need to check:
- Easiness or difficulty to drive. To be honest, a 2021 headphone which cannot be run with a DAP is meh, at least for me
- Comfort. Some here say its super comfy, others from CanJam and reviewers (Resolve, Currawong) pointed out that it clamped quite hard. I guess this depends on head shape, but again, important issue
- Sound: LCD-5 seems to depart from all other Audeze signatures (do I get this right?), so what brings the LCD-5 to the table what the others don't?

If you can help me on any of these three ... appreciated and thanks .

Fairly simple: Audeze made a neutral headphone..so instead of having to fix your old Audeze via the company’s own EQ preset, to make it sound neutral…well they tuned the headphone that way for us
It is a flagship headphone that sounds realistic…which is about as rare as hen’s teeth! Only other one of those is the Utopia…and the original Orpheus.

Edith: Just remembered that the equally new Audeze CRBN is tuned like the LCD-5 as well. I just haven’t had a chance to listen to it yet.
So there’s a very good chance we currently have 3 flagship headphones on the market with a realistic presentation
My admittedly short time with my friend’s new LCD-5 left a huge smile on my face. Maybe I am an old soul in a 39 year old body because I adhere to the original hi-fi ideal: getting as close to real sound as possible.
Neutral boiled down is really about trusting whatever producer to have done his or her job up to snuff. Adding colour via our headphones is similar to adding spice to every new dish put in front of you..before you taste it.
All of this can end up sounding a tad pedantic but then again what alleyway in this hobby doesn’t?
In the end it truly is all about individual preference…and I highly suspect old Sennie fans like myself will love this new heading of Audeze’s, whereas the fans of the warmer midrange-shy tuning of past LCDs won’t.

 

[MacedonianHero]

Can the LCD-5 be driven by Chord Hogo 2?

Absolutely!

 

[xtr4]

I just got my LCD5 and the first thing that comes to mind is how light it is. Build quality is top notch to the touch but the weight seriously will throw you off.
BUT and I may be in the minority in this, the current headband is not designed for people with larger than average craniums. I'm wearing them maxed out and there's a slight hotspot at the top of my cranium. This also causes a slight compression at the sides of my head because the carbon fibre headband isn't very wide. Will see how it goes over the next few nights, but the Susvara's win in this regard. Heck even my Solitaire P-SE's are more comfortable as they share a similar width in terms of the headband but the P-SE compensates with lush cushioning.

Ok, enough about comfort and on to sound impressions. To my ears, the LCD 5 sound like a warmer Susvara with thicker notes, with almost similar levels of details. Staging is smaller in width but goes slightly deeper.
Treble: Very nice extension, sparkly when needed without sibilance
Mids: A bit more forward than neutral. Male vocals are thick and syrupy, whilst females can sound a bit "veiled" due to this.
Bass: Boomy, controlled with a nice "weight"

Gear used: Holo Audio May into Pathos InPol Ear. LCD 5 running balanced via LCD 5 Premium XLR cable.

Of course these are very first impressions right out of the box. YMMV yada yada.

Side note: the clamp force isn't as offensive at the end of my test impressions. I'm either too distracted by the music to notice or my cranium is numb from lack of blood flow hahaha