Audeze LCD-R

You would be surprised how many amps are not 2-Ohm-stable.

3 Likes

This raises a new question. Hage you ever heard something that doesnt work aic-10? :joy:

Wait. Fuck. Do I need a wa8 now?

2 Likes

In terms of creating sound and sounding decent? No, but in terms of not being an ideal pairing at the price point? Yes. Wasn’t the fondest of it paired with the mdr r10, adx5k hit or miss, gh50 too colored, vc felt it didn’t take much advantage of it, z1r felt a bit wonky to name a few, beyer t1.2 could have been more impressive

It depends on what sound you are after, I do think it would pair well with a few of your headphones like the 800 and the lcd r now, if you wanted yet another transportable alternative to what you have (would be like the only more relaxed amp you have in your stable iirc lol)

1 Like

Considering some of the synergy abominations that can be produced on the more linear side of things this is all I realy meant. Seems like a solid option for someone who can only realy have 1 chain at that level and can cover at least the majority of cans.

Fwiw, the 800s and clear are likely on their way out (been to lazy to sell but that is the intention). As for being more relaxed than say the phantasy ii, tbh, as is i find the lack of mid detail and overall grip on the phantasy to be a bit annoying when comopaired against 428 (428 technicalities + phantasy tonality would be grail territory for me). Luckily enough the wa8 is something I can actually demo though so I’ll just bring the Rs along when I go to try stealth in a week or two

1 Like

I’d agree, drives a lot of sensitive speakers for nearfield well too

Gotcha

:+1: If they ask what headphone just say it’s a custom lcd 4z so you don’t get in trouble lol

2 Likes

Yah. Kind of one of those I just don’t find myself using more than 1 can as is so no reason to keep more of them around unless I find some that make me switch around. The LCD-R is probabaly only sticking around until I find something better as well tbh.

(Removed. Irrelevant to thread and I know the answer, I just don’t like it)

:joy:

1 Like

Haha…if you decide you do, hit me up.

2 Likes

Today I tagged in the Amber 3 in place of the Bifrost 2 and also have a Goldpoint pre in the chain to get more range on the Jot’s volume knob. Definitely heard improvements in almost every area. The Amber 3 is just fantastic IMO.

I’m now convinced the R has pretty great timbre and a decent amount of texture coming through as well. Stage is deeper and background is blacker so greater detail retrieval still and more immersive spatially. Stage is still average at best but what it does with it I find very enjoyable. Macro is improved but only slightly IMO and while it isn’t deal breaker bad it’s just not something it’s great at (on these electronics).

@M0N I’m scratching my head a bit with your observations with stage (I’m starting to agree and want to know why) and tell me if I’m hearing what you’re hearing or if it’s something else. It feels like sometimes the sounds and instruments don’t feel grounded, kinda like they’re floating. Placement sometimes seems a little hazy when I’m focusing on the entire composition. It’s not a traditional stage but more like sounds surrounding you. Beside, not really behind.

Certainly benefits from a higher tier DAC though which was my main question for today. I think an Yggy is a reasonable option and would get pretty great results with this system for the money. But then there’s the volume control to think about as well.

4 Likes

Sweet sweet I bet. Also did you observe what I was talking about with the pre and the volume on the jot previously out of curiosity?

Yeah the dac can help, but this really feels like something that can only be corrected with a different amp imo (same with stage)

That’s a pretty great description, and yes I agree it’s hard to explain, it’s just a sense of disjointedness and lack of coherency that feels like it’s not laying out accurately and over separating within it’s space. It’s there, but things aren’t put together properly (and also lacks a bit of room to naturally expand too imo). That also leads into my warped window analogy, as how it presents kinda feels like that at times although it’s more variable and not in specific spots (dynamically warped window lol?)

2 Likes

I got the okay from Nelson Pass about the F7 but idk if I’ll explore that option. I haven’t committed to keeping it yet and I wouldn’t want to void a warranty or wreck anything.

Cool cool, good to know. Gotta say it is a pretty enjoyable presentation though. IMO at least.

3 Likes

Yeah, it’s enjoyable for sure, it’s just not organic, but something doesn’t always have to be organic to be enjoyable imo (for example focal staging and presentation, strange and not organic but interesting and enjoyable nonetheless**)

**although I’d argue focal both stages and presents in a more organic way than the lcd r, at least compared to something like a utopia

2 Likes

Something like a Utopia is a pretty strong reason for me not to keep the LCD-R. Plugging a Utopia into my MZ3 I’d probably get a much higher level experience than I’m getting out of the R with the Jot. My 2ch chain is Aries G1 > Amber 3 > MZ3 > F7 so the headphone out of the MZ3 is just sitting there waiting to be used. And I’d come out of it with some extra cash too.

3 Likes

I’d totally agree, although it is a different signature, but the mz3 + utopia combo is going to be a fair bit stronger than the lcd r + jot a imo. The mz3 + utopia + amber has excellent synergy lol

2 Likes

I had a short demo, but had pretty fond experiences with utopia

2 Likes

I’m going to let this headphone play it’s course first anyways. For something that’s detail centric I think this guy is potentially my favourite of what I’ve heard. I took it off my desk and put it in my 2ch area now. I’m almost certainly getting the best possible performance I can out of the Jot A now. Minimal gains from the previous desk setup I mentioned above. It’s just really impressive and enjoyable.

I have a 4z being loaned to me soon so I’ll be able to plug that into the MZ3 when it arrives. Go from there.

2 Likes

Will be curious on your thoughts vs the 4z when you get the chance

1 Like

@M0N back to the w8 → LCD-R for a second. I assume it promotes a bit of organicness, but how is the detail and image clarity compaired to the jot? Tbh I reaoy value those two parts of the can and am not necessarily going for something super liquid and organic if it compromises the detail and clarity (a slot i tend to fill with iems)

Detail is improved, but image clarity does lose a bit of sharpness imo. I do think it places things more naturally with more depth, but I think raw imaging gets a bit more hazy. So in this case this likely isn’t an amp for you lol

1 Like

Hm… tbh I’m still tempted to try it since its not like its all too difficult of an amp to unload. Any chance you’ve tried it with d8kp? Does it loose out in technicalities to the phantasy ii? Tbh I’ve only heard the wa8 alone on LCD-X and clear and it made both of them unpleasantly “gooey” (can’t realy think of a better word) so I’m a bit hesitant

Yep and yes it does lose in terms of technical ability compared to the phantasy ii, but to me the d8kp was a bit too hot on the phantasy for my personal tastes (I actually thought the mk had less hotness than the phantasy in this case, or perhaps less trade offs)

Then I’d pass here, it is a more rich and “gooey” amp given how it’s voiced (and imo can be enjoyable with some headphones, but if you are chasing techincal ability and cleanliness it’s not going to be the amp for you)

1 Like