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Audeze LCD-4 Over Ear | Open Back Headphone | Ebony Wood Ring | Leather Ear Pads

4.8 4.8 out of 5 stars 7 ratings

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Brand Audeze
Model Name language _ tag
Color Ebony
Form Factor Over Ear
Connectivity Technology Wired

About this item

  • Acoustically engineered for accuracy The LCD-4 is far and away Audeze’s most advanced headphone featuring innovative planar magnetic technology that delivers startling dynamics and incredibly open and spacious sound.
  • Near weightless nano-scale diaphragm The LCD-4 features our most advanced diaphragm design; our exclusive nano-scale film actually weighs less than the air it displaces! Benefits include faster response times for better imaging, and the flattest, deepest, most accurate bass response of any headphone available.
  • Audeze nearly doubles the magnetic driving force Double Fluxor Magnet Arrays focus the magnetic flux to a previously unheard of 1.5 Tesla, nearly doubling the power driving the diaphragm for improved transient response and far greater resolution.
  • Near zero distortion Patented Fluxor Magnet Arrays focus the magnetic flux nearly doubling the power driving the diaphragm for even lower distortion and greater accuracy.
  • Internal soundwaves Patented Fazor Elements guide internal headphone soundwaves to avoid resonance for a more accurate waveform.

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Audeze LCD-4 Over Ear | Open Back Headphone | Ebony Wood Ring | Leather Ear Pads
Audeze LCD-4 Over Ear | Open Back Headphone | Ebony Wood Ring | Leather Ear Pads
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PriceCurrently unavailable.-35% $149.95
List:$229.25
$69.99$299.00-34% $295.83
List:$449.95
-16% $759.00
Typical:$899.00
Delivery
Get it as soon as Wednesday, Apr 3
Get it as soon as Wednesday, Apr 3
Get it as soon as Wednesday, Apr 3
Get it as soon as Wednesday, Apr 3
Get it as soon as Wednesday, Apr 3
Customer Ratings
Sound quality
4.6
4.5
4.5
4.7
4.7
Quality of material
3.8
4.4
4.0
4.1
4.0
Comfort
4.4
4.4
4.2
4.5
Noise cancellation
2.6
2.4
2.2
Bass quality
4.0
3.9
4.1
Sold By
ARF Tech
Bsd Wholesale
GRAMOPHONE
Amazon.com
HIFIMAN
connectivity tech
Wired
Wired
Wired
Wired
Wired
Wired
headphones form factor
Over Ear
Over Ear
Over Ear
Over Ear
Over Ear
Over Ear
connector type
XLR
1/4-inch, 3.5mm Jack
3.5mm Jack, 1/4-inch
3.5mm Jack
3.5mm Jack
3.5mm Jack, 1/4-inch
headphones jack
XLR
3.5 mm Jack
3.5 mm Jack
3.5 mm Jack
3.5 mm Jack
3.5 mm Jack
cable feature
Retractable
Detachable
Detachable
Detachable
Without Cable, Detachable
Retractable
control type
control
Media Control
Noise Control
Media Control

Product Description

The LCD-4 is by far Audeze’s most advanced headphone featuring innovative planar magnetic technology that delivers startling dynamics and incredibly open and spacious sound. It features our most advanced diaphragm design; our exclusive nano-scale film actually weighs less than the air it displaces! Benefits include much faster response times for better imaging, and the flattest, deepest, most accurate bass response of any headphone available.

Audeze LCD-4 Planar Magnetic Headphones with Ebony wood & Leather Earpads

LCD4 headphone

ABOUT AUDEZE

LCD4 headphone

Audeze started in 2008 in a garage (of course!) when its founders came across a revolutionary flexible circuit material developed for NASA. Realizing this could be a great advance in planar magnetic technology, they first started to make pro audio PA speakers, but dropped this project and started making headphones – the LCD-1.

Taking this first headphone to the Rocky Mountain Audio Fest, it was a tremendous hit, and that success launched the company. Hanging on that garage wall was the 2001 Space Odyssey poster, and that inspired the company’s name. The founders wanted a name that had something to do with a “journey through audio,” so Odyssey would be perfect, and that’s how the name Audeze (pronounced “odyssey”) was born.

AUDEZE'S PLANAR MAGNETIC TECHNOLOGY

image of technical parts

Acoustically engineered for accuracy

Audeze’s innovative planar magnetic technology delivers clear and accurate sound that reveals everything on the recording.

Diaphragms thinner than a human hair

We use space-age materials in an ultra thin diaphragm four times larger than typical headphones for fast response times, dramatically reduced distortion, higher resolution and improved imaging.

Near zero distortion

Double-sided magnet arrays delivers a uniform driving force across the entire diaphragm for near zero distortion.

Internal waveguide

Patented Fazor Elements guide internal headphone soundwaves to avoid resonances for a more accurate waveform.

More on the LCD-4 Headphones

LCD-4 image

NEAR WEIGHTLES NANO-SCALE DIAPHRAGM: The LCD-4 features our most advanced diaphragm design; our exclusive nano-scale film actually weighs less than the air it displaces!

LCD-4 image

Engineered and Handcrafted in Audeze's California Factory

The headphone is thoroughly engineered and meticulously hand-built using the most luxurious materials combined with cutting-edge technology.

Image of LCD-4 grill

We closely match our planar transducers, and match our beautiful factory-made wood rings by grain and color.

What's in the box

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    Customer reviews

    4.8 out of 5 stars
    4.8 out of 5
    7 global ratings
    Climbing the Audiophile Headphones Ladder
    5 Stars
    Climbing the Audiophile Headphones Ladder
    I guess I have become somewhat of an incurable audiophile chasing that elusive goal of attaining the “endgame” in sonic bliss. You climb one mountain and a new higher one stands in front of you to climb yet again. Working in the musical instruments industry and constantly conversing with world class musicians as well as having been a passionate music fan since being exposed to Beethoven when I was a toddler, great sound is something I take very seriously and pursue - both professionally and personally.Now that I’m reaching the peak of my career as a senior-level exec after toiling for three decades in the industry, I can now afford to indulge somewhat in high-end audio gear and spend more time enjoying music that I’ve always wanted to delve into but just couldn’t find the time to do - mainly classical music. My serious audiophile journey started around 5 years ago when I purchased the Sennheiser HD800 S along with the Chord Electronics Hugo DAC. Through a professional musician, I was also introduced the world of custom IEMs and I splurged on the JH Audio Layla IEM along with a Chord Mojo DAC for mobile usage.I tried all kinds of headphones and in-ear phones over many years that wouldn’t be considered high-end audiophile stuff: Bose, Sony, Shure, AKG, RHA, Etymotic, Beyerdynamic, midrange Sennheiser, etc. They were all very good at the time I used them and certainly the only ones I could afford. I had a budget and I stuck with it. But, as time went by and I got more and more serious about sound as well as derive more income, I couldn’t help but be seduced by the lure of attaining the highest level of sound quality during my listening sessions.I wrote a lengthy review of the Sennheiser HD800 S nearly four years ago here on Amazon and I see that it’s been helpful to quite a few people. At that time, it really was like the “endgame” headphone for me. It was a big jump as I had not spent more than $700 on a headphone before then. But, as time passes, one can’t help but get curious about what else is out there. After trying out the Beyerdynamic T1 Version 2 which I found quite nice but not exactly to my liking, I was drawn to the Audeze LCD-3.So, a couple of years ago I decided to give the LCD-3 a shot as a headphone that would be “complementary” to the HD800 S - something with a different “tonal flavor”, so to speak. I had done a lot of research and the LCD-3 seemed like what I wanted without going overboard. It turned out to be what I expected. It sounded completely different from the HD800 S with warmth and an amazing bass that the HD800 S inherently seemed to lack. It was great for modern music like rock, pop, and electronica but for classical music (which I listen to the great majority of the time), it didn’t have the soundstage and the silky treble and high-mids that the HD800 S excelled in. In any case, I decided it was a keeper to complement the HD800 S.Having been thoroughly impressed by the LCD-3 with its high resolution and the great low-end and midrange warmth, I decided I needed a high-end in-ears to complement the JH Audio Layla that had been relegated to use in the car during long commutes in SoCal. I tried all kinds of in-ears up to the $1K range and none of them could get even close to the Layla. Well, I figured you get what you pay for and decided to take the plunge on the Audeze LCD-i4. You can read my review of the LCD-i4 and how ecstatic I was about it. It literally changed my life, forcing me to go outdoors to take long hikes every single day to take in nature while enjoying the sonic nirvana the LCD-i4 delivered in an extremely comfortable mobile package.The LCD-i4 was a revelation and quite surprising as it doesn’t sound anything like the LCD-3. It reminded me much more of the HD800 S than the LCD-3 with its brilliant treble, wide soundstage, detail, and imaging while having some of that characteristic Audeze low-end and midrange warmth. The LCD-i4 was so good that I had to get another one for my wife but that meant I couldn’t keep the LCD-3. Something had to give. For over-ears, I could only keep one and I decided I’ll stick with the HD800 S as I have a preference for something brighter with a wider soundstage.The LCD-i4 completely changed my perspective of what a headphone should sound like and the HD800 S started gathering dust, getting little usage sitting on my headphone stand beneath my home office desk. At the same time, I realized that I still missed the LCD-3 for its warmth and the powerful bass. I started thinking, “Would the LCD-4 sound like the best of both worlds?” The LCD-i4 sounds incredible but it still didn’t have that midrange warmth and the low-end slam of the LCD-3.Fast forward a year and I decided I could now afford to find out if the LCD-4 could be that “endgame” over-the-ear headphones. Of course, there is no such thing as “endgame” but this would certainly be amongst the highest echelon and I felt I was ready to experience it. Hey, business is booming despite the pandemic and I can indulge on this instead of a costly vacation trip which I can’t take anyway.Of course, I did a lot more research, reading up on the hi-fi mag reviews and watching the YouTube video reviews of a bunch of guys talking about it and wondering if they hear things the way I would. I was also very interested in the comparisons to other “pinnacle” headphones (i.e. super expensive) like the Focal Utopia, the Abyss AB-1266, Hifiman Susvara and HE1000se, and Meze Empyrean. As much as I would have loved to try them all and decide what’s best for me, that’s just not practical and I had to go by what I’ve read or heard from people who’ve tried them.I’m sure all of these headphones sound amazing in their own right but, based on my very pleasant experiences with the LCD-3 and the LCD-i4, I could imagine what the LCD-4 will sound like and that it would have the quality, tonality and sonic characteristics I wanted. I owned the HD800 S for years and had plenty of time with the LCD-3 and the LCD-i4 and I wanted something that would combine the best of all of them.Finally, after figuring out the finances and things like that, I decided to go for it and order the LCD-4 direct from Audeze. Overall, my expectations were high but I certainly understood the law of diminishing returns on super high-end gear like this. It will be better but by how much for well over twice the price of the HD800 S and nearly twice as much as the LCD-3 and LCD-i4? Will it be 10% or more like 15 or 20?Once I made up my mind I wasted no time in ordering it and it got delivered within a few days since Audeze is literally like a next neighbor in SoCal. Having purchased the LCD-3 and two LCD-i4 units already, I knew what to expect in terms of packaging, which is excellent with the military grade Pelican carrying case. Taking it out of the case, I certainly felt the heft. Putting it over my head, it did initially feel heavy but balanced out nicely and settled in quite comfortably. I can see why the weight can be an issue for some people but, honestly, it doesn’t bother me at all.The overall fit-and-finish is certainly a step up above the LCD-3. There’s a synergy in the design and the materials: the Macassar Ebony wood rings, the ridiculously luxurious leather ear pads, the chrome head cup plates, and the carbon fiber headband. They all just fit together so well. If it was looks alone, the LCD-4 wins hands-down - to me at least. It just looks so much better than the aforementioned “pinnacle” headphones.Of course, the looks and the build quality are very important in high-end gear like this but a very small portion of the overall experience since it’s mainly about the sound it delivers. So, how does it sound? When I first the heard the music coming through, I immediately heard the improvements and it actually sounded exactly as I had expected - big, clear, warm, super detailed, and spacious (but not quite as much as the HD800 S) with great imaging. Overall, it sounded much more coherent in how the instruments were mixed than the HD800 S did.But, I must admit, I couldn’t help but think, “Is this really worth twice the money? Everything obviously sounds better and it does have the qualities of the HD800 S, the LCD-3 and the LCD-i4 rolled into one but, overall, it’s like a 7 to 8 % improvement at best. That being said, I knew that I still had to break the headphones in with some extensive playing time (100+ hours) to make sure the diaphragm has loosened up.So, I patiently kept listening while having music play through it overnight and whenever I wasn’t home for over a week nonstop. After a few days, I started hearing a noticeable improvement across the board. The bass seemed to tighten, the highs were sweeter, the midrange richer, the soundstage wider and the imaging clearer, even if just a little in each area. Collectively, the difference became significant with each passing day.After a full week (160+ hours), I was able to hear that the headphone had fully “matured” and “seasoned”. By this time, I was able to conclude that the LCD-4 had exceeded my great expectations. It really had the best qualities of the HD800 S, the LCD-3 and the LCD-i4 but it was more than that. There was a coherence and an overall musicality that exceeded the sum of its various sonic parts.First, the resolution: it’s amazingly good and unreal - especially when listening to well-recorded, engineered and mastered recordings. And I can’t emphasize this enough: this headphone demands great recordings. Badly recorded stuff will sound even worse. This headphone reveals all the blips, clicks, hiss and chirps that the recording musicians and engineers may have thought would never get noticed.The HD800 and HD800 S are famously known for their detail and resolution to the point that some people complain that they are too “analytical”. Well, having owned the HD800 S for over 4 years, I can say that the LCD-4 takes the resolution and detail to another level. And, for me, that’s exactly what I want since I mostly listen to classical music with its very nuanced instruments and extreme dynamics.Next thing to discuss is the soundstage and imaging, also an area that HD800/S is well renowned for. Honestly, I do think the HD800 S does have a wider and more spacious soundstage than the LCD-4 but I have come to see (well, hear) that this is not always an ideal thing. One does not always want a small jazz combo or a string quartet sound like they are playing in a cavernous hall and that the instruments are spaced out widely on a huge stage when they are actually right next to each other.To me, the soundstage of the LCD-4 is more than ample but not too wide and actually it sounds more natural. The instruments sound like they are all in the same room or stage but I can still discern them clearly. As for the imaging, the instruments or voices are not spread out as distinctly as they are on the HD800 S but, again, this is not a negative at all and can be viewed as more of a positive depending on what you are listening to. Even with large orchestras performing grandiose works from the likes of Wagner, Bruckner and Mahler, the imaging is balanced as well as being huge. Overall, it’s a more “dense” sound than the “diffuse” imaging of the HD800 S. You feel like you are closer to the stage than being further back in the hall.Tonality or “voicing”-wise, it’s a much more balanced and coherent sound than that of the HD800 S or the LCD-3. Audeze described it as “neutral” which I can agree with since I don’t like to use the EQ and prefer listening to recordings with the EQ set to flat as much as possible. For my ears, the LCD-4 still has a wee bit more bass and low-midrange than I would like so I do EQ the low frequencies down a few db while boosting the high-mids a few db as well. But that’s the only tweaking I need for that “perfect” sound.The top-end clarity is quite beautiful - sweeter and noticeably more “transparent” and “airy” than what I’m used to hearing on the HD800 S. I used to think that the HD800 S would be really hard to beat in this area but I had already come to prefer the treble and high-mids of the LCD-i4 over the HD800 S so this wasn’t surprising. The top-end is not at the forefront like some other headphones and I’ve seen some reviewers describe it as being “subdued” but I can guarantee that you’ll hear the clarity and its silkiness. Personally, I love it. Maybe I’m getting old but I don’t want to hear spiky highs. I want clarity, detail and resolution but I prefer sweetness over cutting sharpness.There isn’t too much I can say about the bass other than this is probably the universally acclaimed aspect of the “Audeze Sound”. It’s fast, defined, punchy, and tight yet warm and smooth, never overwhelming. With the LCD-3, I thought that it was a little too much on the forefront. I liked it but wished that it was tamed back a bit and that the highs were clearer. The LCD-4 has as much great bass as you would ever want or need but now it’s in harmony with the treble and the mids and that’s exactly what I had been hoping to hear.Now, onto the all-critical midrange. This is where our ears naturally tune to. Working in the musical instruments industry developing, manufacturing and marketing high-end electric guitars, I can confidently say that this is where an instrument’s overall tonality and sonic character is defined. The treble and presence (the high-order harmonics) tend to be something that listeners “sense” while the bass tends to be something they “feel” while the midrange is what we really “hear” and discern.After several hundred hours of listening time on the LCD-4 now, I can say that the midrange is where I am actually most pleased with and where it exceeded even my highest expectations. It is also the frequency range that is most at the forefront compared to the other headphones and IEMs that I have tried. I’m not a hardcore technical audiophile who measures frequency responses on Audio Precision machines and things like that. I divide the midrange to three ranges: low-mids, mid-mids and high-mids and that’s it. So, my “listening EQ”, whether that’s musical instruments, amplifiers or audiophile gear only has five bands: bass, the three bands of mids and treble (and perhaps the presence for the very high frequency ranges that we tend to sense more than hear).Overall, amongst the three general midrange bands, the LCD-4 does tend to have a slight bump or boost in the low-mids while the mid-mids and the high-mids are more or less smooth and flat. This seems to have an effect of really excelling in bringing the human voice to the forefront with startling clarity. The singers, whether it’s someone like Paul McCartney or Prince or Luciano Pavarotti, shine like they never have before and I hear the details in their voices that I have never heard before. Well, that goes for various instruments as well but it’s the voice where the LCD-4 really excels at.I test various musical instruments and components during product development and I’m always listening for how the midrange is “voiced” to produce certain sonic qualities. I now listen to headphones and audiophile gear in the same manner. Honestly, I have no interest in the technical aspects and the jargon that many audiophile reviewers talk or write about and which really fly right over my head and which I’m sure fly over many others’ heads. I will always trust my own ears over their jargon which they seem to spew out to “prove” their expertise.Based on how I analyze and grade the sonic characters of guitars and guitar amplifiers, effects devices, and other instrument components, I’d describe the LCD-4’s midrange as rich and warm, which means there’s a good deal of elasticity (some would describe as “loose”) as opposed to analytical and dry (which some would say is cold, hard and sterile). To some, the LCD-4 may sound and “feel” a little spongy. But, the thing is, the articulation, the clarity and the resolution are all there in spades, making it an extremely pleasing listening experience. And that’s what I’ve read from quite a few reviewers and owners describe it as: a really fun and enjoyable headphone.Although I now mainly listen to classical music very seriously, I certainly made it a point to sample all the genres, styles, and artists I have loved and grown up with: classic rock of the Beatles to Led Zeppelin, the prog rock of Pink Floyd, the pop-rock genius of Prince, old jazz ranging from Thelonious Monk to 60’s era Miles and Coltrane, fusion brilliance of Allan Holdsworth to Pat Metheny, alternative rock of Jeff Buckley to Radiohead, metal assault from Metallica to Meshuggah, experimental electronica of Autechre to DJ techno of Armin van Buuren, syrupy New Age of Kitaro to Secret Garden, and even my old pop nostalgia stuff ranging from ABBA to Stevie Wonder, my tastes in music do run wide. In all cases, the LCD-4 revealed new details I had not heard before in all of these familiar recordings.This being said, I’m a classical buff now and classical is what I listen to well over 90% of the time. I listen to everything from pre-Bach Renaissance music to early-20th century but my favorites composers are still Beethoven, Brahms and Wagner with Bach, Mozart, and Schubert comprising the next group and Chopin, Vivaldi, Haydn and Verdi rounding out my top 10. It’s a vast world and I still have so much to explore. Overall, I wanted the ultimate set of headphones for this huge journey that I have undertaken and which I firmly believe will take a lifetime.I used to think that the HD800 S is the ultimate headphone for classical music but it isn’t what one would describe as lush and rich sounding and I have come to think that this character is needed as well to fully absorb and enjoy classical. Well, I can confidently say that the LCD-4 delivers all the qualities, sonic characteristics, the resolution and that undefinable musicality that I wanted to hear in a headphone. Is it the “end game” headphone? Oh, I would never say that. Who knows what will come around 4 years from now and how I will feel then.So, where do I go from here? Enjoy the music, of course, but I’m already plotting how I can maximize what I can get out of the LCD-4 over the next several years. What does that mean? Well, my Chord Electronics Hugo DAC is now getting long in the tooth. The LCD-4 paired with this is great but I know it can be better. Now that the “pinnacle” headphone has been established for myself, I’m gazing at Chord’s new generation Hugo 2 TT DAC/headphone amp. And then this can be further upgraded with the Hugo M Scaler which scales (upsamples) the typical CD-quality 44.1kHz files to 705.6kHz resolution for super high-definition clarity. Nope, there’s no end to it but that’s part of the fun. “Endgame” is always temporary but I do now believe that this temporary period will last quite a few years and that’s definitely something to look forward to.In conclusion, just how much better is the LCD-4 over the HD800 S I had enjoyed for over 4 years? It's really hard to put a solid objective number on that as sound is so subjective. Is it 235% better in terms of pricing? Of course not since there's a distinct law of diminishing returns in play here for such high-end products. But, if I had to put a number on it, I'd say it's like a 30~35% improvement in overall sound quality and I believe that's quite significant over what is already a great headphone. There is greater resolution and detail across the entire sonic spectrum, the bass is obviously much stronger and simply better, the highs are silkier and sweeter, the soundstage is more realistic, and there's a lushness that is simply very pleasing to the ears. Is it worth nearly 2.5 times the price of the HD800 S? Ultimately, that's up to the beholder and, to me, yes, it definitely is.
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    Top reviews from the United States

    Reviewed in the United States on April 13, 2022
    Reviewed in the United States on July 25, 2020
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    5.0 out of 5 stars Climbing the Audiophile Headphones Ladder
    Reviewed in the United States on July 25, 2020
    I guess I have become somewhat of an incurable audiophile chasing that elusive goal of attaining the “endgame” in sonic bliss. You climb one mountain and a new higher one stands in front of you to climb yet again. Working in the musical instruments industry and constantly conversing with world class musicians as well as having been a passionate music fan since being exposed to Beethoven when I was a toddler, great sound is something I take very seriously and pursue - both professionally and personally.

    Now that I’m reaching the peak of my career as a senior-level exec after toiling for three decades in the industry, I can now afford to indulge somewhat in high-end audio gear and spend more time enjoying music that I’ve always wanted to delve into but just couldn’t find the time to do - mainly classical music. My serious audiophile journey started around 5 years ago when I purchased the Sennheiser HD800 S along with the Chord Electronics Hugo DAC. Through a professional musician, I was also introduced the world of custom IEMs and I splurged on the JH Audio Layla IEM along with a Chord Mojo DAC for mobile usage.

    I tried all kinds of headphones and in-ear phones over many years that wouldn’t be considered high-end audiophile stuff: Bose, Sony, Shure, AKG, RHA, Etymotic, Beyerdynamic, midrange Sennheiser, etc. They were all very good at the time I used them and certainly the only ones I could afford. I had a budget and I stuck with it. But, as time went by and I got more and more serious about sound as well as derive more income, I couldn’t help but be seduced by the lure of attaining the highest level of sound quality during my listening sessions.

    I wrote a lengthy review of the Sennheiser HD800 S nearly four years ago here on Amazon and I see that it’s been helpful to quite a few people. At that time, it really was like the “endgame” headphone for me. It was a big jump as I had not spent more than $700 on a headphone before then. But, as time passes, one can’t help but get curious about what else is out there. After trying out the Beyerdynamic T1 Version 2 which I found quite nice but not exactly to my liking, I was drawn to the Audeze LCD-3.

    So, a couple of years ago I decided to give the LCD-3 a shot as a headphone that would be “complementary” to the HD800 S - something with a different “tonal flavor”, so to speak. I had done a lot of research and the LCD-3 seemed like what I wanted without going overboard. It turned out to be what I expected. It sounded completely different from the HD800 S with warmth and an amazing bass that the HD800 S inherently seemed to lack. It was great for modern music like rock, pop, and electronica but for classical music (which I listen to the great majority of the time), it didn’t have the soundstage and the silky treble and high-mids that the HD800 S excelled in. In any case, I decided it was a keeper to complement the HD800 S.

    Having been thoroughly impressed by the LCD-3 with its high resolution and the great low-end and midrange warmth, I decided I needed a high-end in-ears to complement the JH Audio Layla that had been relegated to use in the car during long commutes in SoCal. I tried all kinds of in-ears up to the $1K range and none of them could get even close to the Layla. Well, I figured you get what you pay for and decided to take the plunge on the Audeze LCD-i4. You can read my review of the LCD-i4 and how ecstatic I was about it. It literally changed my life, forcing me to go outdoors to take long hikes every single day to take in nature while enjoying the sonic nirvana the LCD-i4 delivered in an extremely comfortable mobile package.

    The LCD-i4 was a revelation and quite surprising as it doesn’t sound anything like the LCD-3. It reminded me much more of the HD800 S than the LCD-3 with its brilliant treble, wide soundstage, detail, and imaging while having some of that characteristic Audeze low-end and midrange warmth. The LCD-i4 was so good that I had to get another one for my wife but that meant I couldn’t keep the LCD-3. Something had to give. For over-ears, I could only keep one and I decided I’ll stick with the HD800 S as I have a preference for something brighter with a wider soundstage.

    The LCD-i4 completely changed my perspective of what a headphone should sound like and the HD800 S started gathering dust, getting little usage sitting on my headphone stand beneath my home office desk. At the same time, I realized that I still missed the LCD-3 for its warmth and the powerful bass. I started thinking, “Would the LCD-4 sound like the best of both worlds?” The LCD-i4 sounds incredible but it still didn’t have that midrange warmth and the low-end slam of the LCD-3.

    Fast forward a year and I decided I could now afford to find out if the LCD-4 could be that “endgame” over-the-ear headphones. Of course, there is no such thing as “endgame” but this would certainly be amongst the highest echelon and I felt I was ready to experience it. Hey, business is booming despite the pandemic and I can indulge on this instead of a costly vacation trip which I can’t take anyway.

    Of course, I did a lot more research, reading up on the hi-fi mag reviews and watching the YouTube video reviews of a bunch of guys talking about it and wondering if they hear things the way I would. I was also very interested in the comparisons to other “pinnacle” headphones (i.e. super expensive) like the Focal Utopia, the Abyss AB-1266, Hifiman Susvara and HE1000se, and Meze Empyrean. As much as I would have loved to try them all and decide what’s best for me, that’s just not practical and I had to go by what I’ve read or heard from people who’ve tried them.

    I’m sure all of these headphones sound amazing in their own right but, based on my very pleasant experiences with the LCD-3 and the LCD-i4, I could imagine what the LCD-4 will sound like and that it would have the quality, tonality and sonic characteristics I wanted. I owned the HD800 S for years and had plenty of time with the LCD-3 and the LCD-i4 and I wanted something that would combine the best of all of them.

    Finally, after figuring out the finances and things like that, I decided to go for it and order the LCD-4 direct from Audeze. Overall, my expectations were high but I certainly understood the law of diminishing returns on super high-end gear like this. It will be better but by how much for well over twice the price of the HD800 S and nearly twice as much as the LCD-3 and LCD-i4? Will it be 10% or more like 15 or 20?

    Once I made up my mind I wasted no time in ordering it and it got delivered within a few days since Audeze is literally like a next neighbor in SoCal. Having purchased the LCD-3 and two LCD-i4 units already, I knew what to expect in terms of packaging, which is excellent with the military grade Pelican carrying case. Taking it out of the case, I certainly felt the heft. Putting it over my head, it did initially feel heavy but balanced out nicely and settled in quite comfortably. I can see why the weight can be an issue for some people but, honestly, it doesn’t bother me at all.

    The overall fit-and-finish is certainly a step up above the LCD-3. There’s a synergy in the design and the materials: the Macassar Ebony wood rings, the ridiculously luxurious leather ear pads, the chrome head cup plates, and the carbon fiber headband. They all just fit together so well. If it was looks alone, the LCD-4 wins hands-down - to me at least. It just looks so much better than the aforementioned “pinnacle” headphones.

    Of course, the looks and the build quality are very important in high-end gear like this but a very small portion of the overall experience since it’s mainly about the sound it delivers. So, how does it sound? When I first the heard the music coming through, I immediately heard the improvements and it actually sounded exactly as I had expected - big, clear, warm, super detailed, and spacious (but not quite as much as the HD800 S) with great imaging. Overall, it sounded much more coherent in how the instruments were mixed than the HD800 S did.

    But, I must admit, I couldn’t help but think, “Is this really worth twice the money? Everything obviously sounds better and it does have the qualities of the HD800 S, the LCD-3 and the LCD-i4 rolled into one but, overall, it’s like a 7 to 8 % improvement at best. That being said, I knew that I still had to break the headphones in with some extensive playing time (100+ hours) to make sure the diaphragm has loosened up.

    So, I patiently kept listening while having music play through it overnight and whenever I wasn’t home for over a week nonstop. After a few days, I started hearing a noticeable improvement across the board. The bass seemed to tighten, the highs were sweeter, the midrange richer, the soundstage wider and the imaging clearer, even if just a little in each area. Collectively, the difference became significant with each passing day.

    After a full week (160+ hours), I was able to hear that the headphone had fully “matured” and “seasoned”. By this time, I was able to conclude that the LCD-4 had exceeded my great expectations. It really had the best qualities of the HD800 S, the LCD-3 and the LCD-i4 but it was more than that. There was a coherence and an overall musicality that exceeded the sum of its various sonic parts.

    First, the resolution: it’s amazingly good and unreal - especially when listening to well-recorded, engineered and mastered recordings. And I can’t emphasize this enough: this headphone demands great recordings. Badly recorded stuff will sound even worse. This headphone reveals all the blips, clicks, hiss and chirps that the recording musicians and engineers may have thought would never get noticed.

    The HD800 and HD800 S are famously known for their detail and resolution to the point that some people complain that they are too “analytical”. Well, having owned the HD800 S for over 4 years, I can say that the LCD-4 takes the resolution and detail to another level. And, for me, that’s exactly what I want since I mostly listen to classical music with its very nuanced instruments and extreme dynamics.

    Next thing to discuss is the soundstage and imaging, also an area that HD800/S is well renowned for. Honestly, I do think the HD800 S does have a wider and more spacious soundstage than the LCD-4 but I have come to see (well, hear) that this is not always an ideal thing. One does not always want a small jazz combo or a string quartet sound like they are playing in a cavernous hall and that the instruments are spaced out widely on a huge stage when they are actually right next to each other.

    To me, the soundstage of the LCD-4 is more than ample but not too wide and actually it sounds more natural. The instruments sound like they are all in the same room or stage but I can still discern them clearly. As for the imaging, the instruments or voices are not spread out as distinctly as they are on the HD800 S but, again, this is not a negative at all and can be viewed as more of a positive depending on what you are listening to. Even with large orchestras performing grandiose works from the likes of Wagner, Bruckner and Mahler, the imaging is balanced as well as being huge. Overall, it’s a more “dense” sound than the “diffuse” imaging of the HD800 S. You feel like you are closer to the stage than being further back in the hall.

    Tonality or “voicing”-wise, it’s a much more balanced and coherent sound than that of the HD800 S or the LCD-3. Audeze described it as “neutral” which I can agree with since I don’t like to use the EQ and prefer listening to recordings with the EQ set to flat as much as possible. For my ears, the LCD-4 still has a wee bit more bass and low-midrange than I would like so I do EQ the low frequencies down a few db while boosting the high-mids a few db as well. But that’s the only tweaking I need for that “perfect” sound.

    The top-end clarity is quite beautiful - sweeter and noticeably more “transparent” and “airy” than what I’m used to hearing on the HD800 S. I used to think that the HD800 S would be really hard to beat in this area but I had already come to prefer the treble and high-mids of the LCD-i4 over the HD800 S so this wasn’t surprising. The top-end is not at the forefront like some other headphones and I’ve seen some reviewers describe it as being “subdued” but I can guarantee that you’ll hear the clarity and its silkiness. Personally, I love it. Maybe I’m getting old but I don’t want to hear spiky highs. I want clarity, detail and resolution but I prefer sweetness over cutting sharpness.

    There isn’t too much I can say about the bass other than this is probably the universally acclaimed aspect of the “Audeze Sound”. It’s fast, defined, punchy, and tight yet warm and smooth, never overwhelming. With the LCD-3, I thought that it was a little too much on the forefront. I liked it but wished that it was tamed back a bit and that the highs were clearer. The LCD-4 has as much great bass as you would ever want or need but now it’s in harmony with the treble and the mids and that’s exactly what I had been hoping to hear.

    Now, onto the all-critical midrange. This is where our ears naturally tune to. Working in the musical instruments industry developing, manufacturing and marketing high-end electric guitars, I can confidently say that this is where an instrument’s overall tonality and sonic character is defined. The treble and presence (the high-order harmonics) tend to be something that listeners “sense” while the bass tends to be something they “feel” while the midrange is what we really “hear” and discern.

    After several hundred hours of listening time on the LCD-4 now, I can say that the midrange is where I am actually most pleased with and where it exceeded even my highest expectations. It is also the frequency range that is most at the forefront compared to the other headphones and IEMs that I have tried. I’m not a hardcore technical audiophile who measures frequency responses on Audio Precision machines and things like that. I divide the midrange to three ranges: low-mids, mid-mids and high-mids and that’s it. So, my “listening EQ”, whether that’s musical instruments, amplifiers or audiophile gear only has five bands: bass, the three bands of mids and treble (and perhaps the presence for the very high frequency ranges that we tend to sense more than hear).

    Overall, amongst the three general midrange bands, the LCD-4 does tend to have a slight bump or boost in the low-mids while the mid-mids and the high-mids are more or less smooth and flat. This seems to have an effect of really excelling in bringing the human voice to the forefront with startling clarity. The singers, whether it’s someone like Paul McCartney or Prince or Luciano Pavarotti, shine like they never have before and I hear the details in their voices that I have never heard before. Well, that goes for various instruments as well but it’s the voice where the LCD-4 really excels at.

    I test various musical instruments and components during product development and I’m always listening for how the midrange is “voiced” to produce certain sonic qualities. I now listen to headphones and audiophile gear in the same manner. Honestly, I have no interest in the technical aspects and the jargon that many audiophile reviewers talk or write about and which really fly right over my head and which I’m sure fly over many others’ heads. I will always trust my own ears over their jargon which they seem to spew out to “prove” their expertise.

    Based on how I analyze and grade the sonic characters of guitars and guitar amplifiers, effects devices, and other instrument components, I’d describe the LCD-4’s midrange as rich and warm, which means there’s a good deal of elasticity (some would describe as “loose”) as opposed to analytical and dry (which some would say is cold, hard and sterile). To some, the LCD-4 may sound and “feel” a little spongy. But, the thing is, the articulation, the clarity and the resolution are all there in spades, making it an extremely pleasing listening experience. And that’s what I’ve read from quite a few reviewers and owners describe it as: a really fun and enjoyable headphone.

    Although I now mainly listen to classical music very seriously, I certainly made it a point to sample all the genres, styles, and artists I have loved and grown up with: classic rock of the Beatles to Led Zeppelin, the prog rock of Pink Floyd, the pop-rock genius of Prince, old jazz ranging from Thelonious Monk to 60’s era Miles and Coltrane, fusion brilliance of Allan Holdsworth to Pat Metheny, alternative rock of Jeff Buckley to Radiohead, metal assault from Metallica to Meshuggah, experimental electronica of Autechre to DJ techno of Armin van Buuren, syrupy New Age of Kitaro to Secret Garden, and even my old pop nostalgia stuff ranging from ABBA to Stevie Wonder, my tastes in music do run wide. In all cases, the LCD-4 revealed new details I had not heard before in all of these familiar recordings.

    This being said, I’m a classical buff now and classical is what I listen to well over 90% of the time. I listen to everything from pre-Bach Renaissance music to early-20th century but my favorites composers are still Beethoven, Brahms and Wagner with Bach, Mozart, and Schubert comprising the next group and Chopin, Vivaldi, Haydn and Verdi rounding out my top 10. It’s a vast world and I still have so much to explore. Overall, I wanted the ultimate set of headphones for this huge journey that I have undertaken and which I firmly believe will take a lifetime.

    I used to think that the HD800 S is the ultimate headphone for classical music but it isn’t what one would describe as lush and rich sounding and I have come to think that this character is needed as well to fully absorb and enjoy classical. Well, I can confidently say that the LCD-4 delivers all the qualities, sonic characteristics, the resolution and that undefinable musicality that I wanted to hear in a headphone. Is it the “end game” headphone? Oh, I would never say that. Who knows what will come around 4 years from now and how I will feel then.

    So, where do I go from here? Enjoy the music, of course, but I’m already plotting how I can maximize what I can get out of the LCD-4 over the next several years. What does that mean? Well, my Chord Electronics Hugo DAC is now getting long in the tooth. The LCD-4 paired with this is great but I know it can be better. Now that the “pinnacle” headphone has been established for myself, I’m gazing at Chord’s new generation Hugo 2 TT DAC/headphone amp. And then this can be further upgraded with the Hugo M Scaler which scales (upsamples) the typical CD-quality 44.1kHz files to 705.6kHz resolution for super high-definition clarity. Nope, there’s no end to it but that’s part of the fun. “Endgame” is always temporary but I do now believe that this temporary period will last quite a few years and that’s definitely something to look forward to.

    In conclusion, just how much better is the LCD-4 over the HD800 S I had enjoyed for over 4 years? It's really hard to put a solid objective number on that as sound is so subjective. Is it 235% better in terms of pricing? Of course not since there's a distinct law of diminishing returns in play here for such high-end products. But, if I had to put a number on it, I'd say it's like a 30~35% improvement in overall sound quality and I believe that's quite significant over what is already a great headphone. There is greater resolution and detail across the entire sonic spectrum, the bass is obviously much stronger and simply better, the highs are silkier and sweeter, the soundstage is more realistic, and there's a lushness that is simply very pleasing to the ears. Is it worth nearly 2.5 times the price of the HD800 S? Ultimately, that's up to the beholder and, to me, yes, it definitely is.
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    Reviewed in the United States on June 25, 2016
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