Audeze Company & Product Overview

Audeze (pronounced awh-deh-zee) was formed in 2008 by a pair of science fiction buffs. Alex Rosson and Sankar Thiagasamudram discovered a technology engineered for NASA spacecraft — so, naturally, they did what any music lovers would do — they put the space-age tech inside headphones!

The founders immediately recognized the huge potential of this special NASA-developed tech for their planar magnetic transducers. Today, Audeze has grown to become the world’s leading manufacturer of planar magnetic over-ear headphones. Passionate about accurate sound, nearly every pair of headphones created by the company is designed and hand-built right in the USA at their Southern California facility.

Audiophiles who appreciate having the most accurate sound money can buy covet Audeze’s over-ear headphones, and these are the brand’s most popular and best-selling in the world. While Audeze offers audiophile-grade headphones across a range of price points, the LCD-X, LCD-XC, and LCD-3 are Audeze’s most successful over-the-ear headphones and come in at under $2,000/pair.

At Audio Advice, we love it when high-end brands use trickle-down technologies to make their less expensive gear better. So, in this comparison, we will put these three wired headphone models into the ring and let them duke it out. We will also weigh the pros and cons of open-back vs closed-back, and discuss which model you should choose. If you have been considering an Audeze headphone in this price range, you will have everything needed to choose the right pair for your listening application.

Tech High-End Audeze Models Share

In our Audeze LCD 2 review, we shared the company’s backstory and how it all began inside of an Orange County, CA garage. The LCD-2 started it all, and this is the model that inspired the higher-end models in this comparison as well.

When it comes to planar magnetic headphones, the name of the game is in making the diaphragm as thin as possible — and this is why the diaphragm in all of Audeze’s planar magnetic headphones is special. Essentially, the lighter and stronger the diaphragm, the faster it can move back and forth, pushing and pulling air around it to create sound.

Similar to a piston, the faster the movement of the diaphragm, the better it’s able to reproduce the most subtle transients as they occur, naturally, in the real world. Think of the fast transient “attack” of a snare drum or the tiny, micro-dynamic details hiding in the Pizzicato finger-picking style of a world-class bass player plucking the strings.

The diaphragm in the LCD-2 was the first to implement a large 106mm, ultra-thin film that produces accurate deep-sounding bass with near-zero distortion. Essentially, this ultra-thin diaphragm is less than 2 microns thin — thinner than a strand of human hair positioned between magnets — and this light weightiness allows the diaphragm to achieve true pistonic back and forth motion at extreme velocity.

As the most popular-selling headphones Audeze makes, there is some tech they all share. For one, the high-end headphones on this list inherit the LCD-2’s large 106mm, ultra-thin diaphragm. Also, similar to the LCD-2, these all reproduce the full spectrum of music and beyond (from 10hz to 50kHz), which is both below and above human hearing (20Hz-20kHz).

Comfort, Design & Build Quality

They all have full-sized earcups that completely cover the ears for a wide soundstage, allowing your ears to breathe and stay cool for longer. Moreover, these high-end models all share Audeze’s special patented “Fazor” waveguide tech, which eliminates diffraction inside the ear cup chambers for the most precise and detailed sound reproduction.

However, where these begin to evolve from the hugely popular LCD-2 is in the magnetic design, itself. The LCD-2 is unique in the way magnets are offset or “staggered” to equalize the magnetic force acting on the diaphragm, helping it move uniformly. This is one of the ways Audeze lowers distortion to near-zero — but the trade-off sacrifices some efficiency.

The most popular high-end Audeze headphones on this list all use a “stacked” or non-staggered magnetic structure and some even use a special proprietary Uniforce™ voice-coil pattern to get back the efficiency — which helps all parts of the diaphragm experience the same force for truly pistonic motion. This improves the tiny micro details you hear even more with the ultra-low distortion people love when you step up to one of these models.

As for the differences between these best-selling Audeze headphone models, they mostly differ in impedance, operating principle, and materials — which all affects the weight on your head, ergonomic scenario, sound profile, and price-point.

As best-sellers, they are some of the most comfortable on the market with thick, “beefy” ear pads and headbands that are fantastically well-padded to distribute the weight evenly, making the earcups practically “hug” your head. This is one of the key reasons why they are the best-selling and most popular headphones Audeze makes — but they fall into two categories: open-back or closed-back and this refers, specifically, to the design of the earcups.

Check out Open-Back vs.Closed-Back Headphones to find out which one you should buy.

In the next section, we're going to quickly dive into each of these elements to compare the selection of materials, best use-case scenario, and their design benefits in order to help you determine which high-end model is right for you.

Performance

One of the coolest things about Audeze headphones is their neutral sound profile. Audeze planar magnetic headphones are very transparent. They tend to have a flatter, neutral frequency response and fantastic detail retrieval, which makes music sound more like the artist intended you to experience it. Clear, resolute, deep bass that you can almost feel hitting you in the chest like a good pair of loudspeakers is another feature Audeze planar magnetic headphones are famous for.

Needless to say, these high-end models are the brand’s most popular all around the world for a reason. Whether you like to listen critically or just like getting lost in the sounds, these can excel for either listening style. However, if you’ve been on the fence, we’ll be sure to point out the ones best suited for your preferred listening application.

We used a Chord Mojo 2 DAC/Headphone amp which is a pocketable DAC/amp with plenty of power to drive even the most power-hungry headphone on this list. Mojo 2 also has two headphone jacks and a very transparent sound — perfect for A/B testing and revealing the full potential of these high-performance headphones.

We listened to a lot of music genres, but the ones that stood out the most had more natural instrumentation like Jazz, Classical, Rock, and Funk. On the other hand, if you are into any kind of electronic music production with powerful low-end like trance or EDM, you will appreciate the deep resolute 10Hz bass response all the Audeze headphones reproduce below.

Audeze LCD-X Over-Ear Planar Magnetic Headphones

Overall, we could hear a very resolute separation of details with a spacious soundstage that let us hear the music more like the artist intended it — and this is why the LCD-X will be really useful for listening more critically. The LCD-X was even designed & handbuilt for use in professional studios for mastering engineers & audiophiles. The earcups are constructed with lightweight aluminum which makes this the lightest and most comfortable headphone to wear for long periods of time.

We played a wide variety of music on them, and even after 4 hours of constant listening, we never got any sense of fatigue. From top to bottom, these headphones are extremely linear. You might expect a planar driver to have a top-end emphasis, but not so with the Audeze LCD-X. The top-end does extend out way beyond the range of human hearing, but it is just super sweet in its presentation with vocals that sounded very natural. When you hear a deep bass instrument, it is full, rich, and it reaches incredibly low.

If you want to hear the LCD-X’s big, full and neutral presentation, check out a very intimate performance by Tyler Childers called “Shake the Frost." Performed live on the air for the Red Barn Radio album, Tyler’s vocal and plucky acoustic banjo came alive with a realism that easily felt like being serenaded by him and the other musicians in the room. So cool!

Audeze LCD-3 Over-Ear Planar Magnetic Headphones

At 110 ohms, you can expect to squeeze every last drop of performance from the LCD-3 by connecting it with a good DAC/headphone amp. We used the Chord Mojo 2 portable DAC/amp for our on-the-go listening tests, however since this one has a higher impedance, and an open-back design, it’s best used at home with a good desktop amp. We connected the LCD-3 to a Naim V1 DAC/amp and this allowed us to drive it to peak performance.

For those familiar with the LCD-2’s wide-open soundstage and resolute sound, the LCD-3 has a mid-range that is slightly less recessed in comparison, giving it a “warmer” tonality in the mid-range and a slightly “smoother” and more musical top-end compared to its LCD-2 predecessor. The LCD-3 is outfitted with natural Zebrano wood rings, and we like how Audeze uses tonewoods that are also used in musical instruments for its more high-end products. As a tonewood, Zebrano is an African hardwood species selected in musical instruments for its full sound and dark harmonic overtones. The finish features a striking pattern of narrow streaks of dark brown stripes that are reminiscent of a zebra.

The voice coils in the LCD-3 are actually longer than those in the LCD-2 & other models in this comparison, which noticeably improved the detail retrieval we could pick out in the presentation. This gave the LCD-3 the most hyper-realistic sense of presentation out of them all that was almost “holographic” in comparison. If you want to experience the LCD-3’s immersive detail-retrieval, go check out Prince’s funky 1979 recording, “I Wanna Be Your Lover”.

It’s pretty well known that Prince was a whiz in the studio who played many of the instruments on his albums, himself. This recording is full of Prince’s multi-instrumental talents and there’s a lot of musical layering and detail in the mix to sink your teeth into. It would have been very easy for us to simply relax, and get lost in all of the details if we wanted to. However, in the bridge, there is a bassline (probably played by a Minimoog synthesizer) and a clavichord harmonically “blended” together to sound like a single multilayered instrument. The harmonic content in the song was so rich with all the instruments combined, it’s easily mistaken as an unrecognizable instrument on other headphones.

On the LCD-3, the details were presented with so much depth and accuracy, the separation allowed us to “pick them apart” like a musical smorgasbord. The musical separation was so alive and three-dimensional, it sounded like we could almost peel back Prince’s soundstage layer by layer. This allowed us to pick and choose what we wanted to sink our teeth into, or simply sit back, relax and enjoy the presentation.

Overall Recommendation

Each Audeze headphone has its price point in the lineup of best-sellers. They are all priced respectively to fit the way you listen to music. Any headphone by Audeze will be an impressive statement piece in your collection of high-end audio gear.

If you are looking for a pair of high-end open-back headphones, we think the high-performance planar magnetic tech and the neutral, linear sound of the LCD-X is a fantastic value at this price point. This model is highly-detailed, revealing the most subtle nuances of world-class musicianship like a microscope — and yet the LCD-X is just so musical — you can relax, kick back, and get lost in all the details if that’s your style.

On the other hand, if you are looking for a closed-back headphone with nearly the same transparent sound and fantastic detail retrieval as the LCD-X, there is not another high-end closed-back headphone that will allow you to hear music the way the artist intended it to sound for the money. LIke the LCD-X that inspired them, the comfort was made for listening hours on end. The closed-back Carbon Fiber earcups add a tiny bit of weight, but this was hardly noticeable and they are tuned specifically for the LCD-XC. To our ears, the LCD-XC performed noticeably better on music with deep bass that was more upfront and personal in the soundstage. For the money, we think the Audeze LCD-XC really offers something special most people have never experienced in a closed-back headphone at this price.

Finally, for users who listen to detail-oriented music that’s organic and natural, we give the LCD-3 open-back a solid thumbs up for the luxury high-end music lover. It suits almost any style of music, but the LCD-3’s true potential does come alive when paired with a good headphone amp at home. When considering the price-points of Audeze’s most expensive luxury audiophile-grade headphones like the flagship LCD-5, the soundstage, openness, detail, and holographic realism are impressive. If you are a casual listener who just wants to kick back and get immersed in your music, and you prefer listening to subtle dynamics that draw you in deeper, then with a good DAC/headphone amp, the LCD-3 delivers powerful bass, a clear, “smooth” top-end, and accurate “warm-sounding” mid-range in a luxurious and well-thought-out design.