So you now have me even more confused. At 120dB SPL (just to use an extreme) the LCD-R needs 160mA and 320mV. Thats a shit ton of currently, but the susvara, similarly, needs twice the current and 100x the voltage for the same load. I dont realy understand how the current would be an issue in that case tbh. Plus the amp is rated for 45W @ 4 ohm (3.3A, 13V). That still doesn’t add up that current would be the limitation here as far as I can tell.
It’s one of the things where I simply think that most designers aren’t confident their amp can handle a 2 ohm stable load tbh. They aren’t made to handle it most of the time because the majority of amp designers aren’t going out of their way to make a headphone amp capable at 2 ohms load, because almost no headphones would ever come close to touching that. So it’s very well possible to do in theory, but if you asked most headphone amp designers to make it capable for a 2 ohm load, they’d just respond with “why?”
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Problem is those numbers are usually taken with a single frequency (1kHz Sine).
Over the frequency range, resistance can go down (or up) by a lot. Just needs two dips to line up and boom goes the amp.
Meaning below that, it is likely current limited. If you are lucky, you trip OCP or blow a fuse. Or a transistor and then you are SOL.
Could put an output transformer to take power-sweet spot down to 4 Ohm stable 
At least with the lcd r impedance is likely locked at 2 ohms, like most planars with a dead flat impedance curve
LCD 2 impedance curve for example
But it’s always good to assume there could be dips lower for safety. But I bet the impedance is pretty flat and linear
Just use a speaker amp at that point lol, because good ones can handle 2 ohm dips from time to time. I’ve got a transformer coupled solid state (and tube of course), I wonder how it would go. But not going to risk it lol
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I wouldn’t push a transformer coupled tube speaker amp, much below the rating on the output tap.
You half the impedance and double the current flowing through the tube, cathode resistor and the primary on the transformer in most SET designs, and if it’s already a powerful amp, that’s a good way to destroy something expensive.
A 2 Ohm resistor in series on the output seems like cheap insurance, or 6 if the amp doesn’t have a 4 ohm tap.
Most SS speaker amps can deal with loads that low, the Krell’s are rated down to 1 Ohm, and you’re not going to need anything like the voltage needed to drive a pair of speakers, so the PSU’s shouldn’t have a problem with the current draw. Biggest issue is probably getting the volume low enough.
Any engineer if you ask him can I do X and it’s outside the design spec is most likely to knee jerk react with a no, it’s not going to be what the devices were designed for, why take the risk of saying yes, and being held accountable when you destroy the amp or headphone.
Why do you think Audeze explicitly revokes the warranty when using it on other amps, they just don’t want the liability.
That’s what I was thinking, typically that doesn’t yield good results from my experience
Noise floor too
There is no reason for them to say yes, if you have any potential of either a. returning it or trying to rma, b. talking about a negative experience online, or c. making it their problem in any respects
But what do you think about a transformer coupled solid state working? I might try it with the box to be safe as I have with other amps, but I’m just curious
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Generalizing, knowing nothing about the output section of the amps in question, I’d be concerned with any transformer coupled design, it might be fine, in SET tube amps the transformers are part of the primary current path, and that could be the same in a SS design, or it could be like a para feed amp where it’s decoupled from that path and you’d likely be fine.
It’s just a really expensive component if you hurt it.
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Ok, so to piggy back off of this. If yall were to build adaptor boxes how exactly would you go about it? What kind of impedence would you aim for, etc?
For speaker amps 8 Ohms is generally a safe bet.
As to design it depends on what you are going for, whether or not you support plugging and unplugging the headphones while the amp is on, Tubes or just SS etc.
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Mike just confirmed the wa22 will run LCD-R directly
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Ok, so a cool one here. I emailed Eddie current about the balancing act (307A specificaly but that shouldn’t change anything) and their minimum recommended inpedence us 16ohm but transformer can be swapped for a 16/2 or they can even just add an additional transformer for the 2 ohm load. I’m waiting on pricing currently but that could well be an apealing proposition for other LCD-R owners.
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HSA-1B needs an impedence match with work with LCD-R. Just too much hiss otherwise. If I end up getting one (because raal ca blow me away at can jam) ima big viking weave cables to make a custom one to match can and amp output impedences, but it just doesn’t work as standard unfortunateky (think andro on hugo2)
Won’t let me reply again:
I was all scared cause @M0N used the word “relaxed”. This is an excelent portable solution.
I think sometimes the mids can wash out a bit of the rest of the imaging unfortunately but quite quite good. Texture a clear whole tier above jot A
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Lol yeah it is chill, but it’s a good sort of chill, not a bad one. Also yes texture is much better, but I also think presentation is more organic too, staging more wide as well which helps
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I like pretty lush mids so those work for me. My only real complaint would be that the trebble detail kinda washes out a bit especialy with quiet cymbal hits they kinda just disappear entierly. That happens to play pretty nicely with the d8kp taming a bit og that extension though.
K wonder if my initial distate of this thing was cause my gear just wasn’t up to snuff tbh
Could have been that or synergy, it plays differently depending on the headphone of course. Also internal dac performance will not be anywhere near the p6p too so factor that in
So I got the go ahead from Musicktek yesterday that trying the LCD-R directly out of the P6 Pro wouldn’t damage it or anything. While it does work and the tonality hasn’t been fucked by OI or anything its not a fantastic experience tbh. the internal amp just doesn’t have the level of control needed to bring out the detail here and something weird is goin on making it a bit fatiguing as well. Honestly, far worse overall experience than P6P → Jot A but it does work in a pinch at least.
Ive also got the go ahead from woo to try the R on teh wa33 so ima be going back to my dealer this weekend to try that and the solitaire on it and see if maybe my real issue there was just the thinner nature of the d8kp was a bad match up for my prefrences.
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So that was something interesting with the wa8, it’s output impedance is around 20 yet it still sounded pretty controlled and not tonally fucked
Will be very curious on the wa33 as that should really elevate the cans
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I had no idea the OI was that crazy high. It even sounded fine with mest and a few other lower impedance IEMs i tried so I figured it was pretty low.
yah, we will have to see. Obviously not much that you can run these things on in general so would be nice to have another option (though I still wont realy as I have no where I can actually physically fit a wa33, lol). TBH I really wish I could run them on the phantasy II as I think the bit of dryness there wouldn’t really be an issue given the bit richer mids the R has naturally. I think ultimately my plan as of now is to try and hunt down impressions on the wa8 tube options to see if any of them bring it a bit off of the wet line it starts at.
@sa11297 saw that you got LCD-R. How you liking them thus far?
Great write up!
Pretty much my experience as well. The Fazor touching was indeed an issue for me, but other than that it was a pleasant listen.
I hope that Audeze refines the R in future iterations. If they can smooth out the FR making the “Bass Shelf” unnecessary then that would be a headphone I’d love to own.
Probably my favorite Audeze I’ve heard to date.
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