[Somatic]

Haha! It does provide those. But, really I just use that EQ for Run the Jewels and a few others. For everything else, I use either no EQ or my own riff on Resolve's EQ. I'm after neutral when it comes right down to it.

Still, I'd recommend trying some outlandish bass boost with the 5, even if it's just to demonstrate its abilities. There seems to be no end to the amount of bass that these transducers can cleanly deliver. It'd be shame not to let them flex their muscles every now and then.

You can always tap into the balanced outs from the rear XLRs if you need more headroom. The TT2 has more power than the LCD 5 could ever need, regardless of EQ pregain adjustment.

Are you using the SE outputs for the LCD5?

 

[Somatic]

I like no EQ or slight EQ in general. More like tone control. Bass shelf or high shelf? Does anyone have a simple EQ to bring up the treble if needed? What would your settings be? Thanks.

 

[BowWazoo]

Time to read this thread, Bud...

 

[chargedcapacitor]

Time to read this thread, Bud...

Unrelated, but I see that you have listed in your past headphones the 009S. Were you able to compare the two side by side, and how would you rate the detail / speed difference between the two? Does elevating the treble on the LCD-5 with EQ push it closer in comparison, or is the 009S still in another league?

 

[Somatic]

Time to read this thread, Bud...

Thanks Bud.

 

[BowWazoo]

Unrelated, but I see that you have listed in your past headphones the 009S. Were you able to compare the two side by side, and how would you rate the detail / speed difference between the two? Does elevating the treble on the LCD-5 with EQ push it closer in comparison, or is the 009S still in another league?

Unfortunately, I can only make the comparison from memory, since it's been over a year, since I had the 009S at home.
At that time, I made a direct comparison to the Utopia.
The Utopia was my winner.
And the LCD-5 has replaced the Utopia.
I clearly consider the LCD-5 as an upgrade to the Utopia, so I can only conclude (as I said from memory, that the LCD-5, is also an upgrade to the 009S).

Perhaps the text that I wrote at the time of the comparison of the Utopia to the 009S is interesting for you.

A few hours of listening later:

First of all, looks and touch quality.
The Utopia clearly has the edge here.
If I spend 4000 € on a headphone,
i expect to be able to feel and see that in some way.
That is given with the Focal, not with the Stax.

Before i come to my sound impressions,
i must mention again that both KH are set according to Oratory's EQ settings (Harman target).

Without this, the 009, would be completely unusable for me.
Very bright, strongly mid-emphasized, and extremely low bass.
So I would describe the 009
"stock" describe.
In other words: my personal nightmare.

Adjusted according to Harmann, both headphones are on par.
Both are a hi-fi revelation in my opinion.

The Stax completely stress-free, extremely high-resolution, and indescribably musical.
The Focal equally stress-free, incredibly dynamic and energetic, and almost as finely resolving.

The biggest surprise for me was that the Utopia showed the 009 what to do with female and male voices.
These sounded more harmonious, more present, more engaged, and above all more emotional on the Utopia.
In addition, the Utopia has a better "grip" on S-sounds.

The decisive factor for me is ultimately which HP can convey more emotion,
and there the Utopia is my personal winner.
Whether Mark Knopfler or Xavier Naidoo, they "had" more feeling on the Utopia.

But as I said, actually, both are on par.

Each track brings new insights.

The trumpet on track #3 sounds sharp (almost squeaky) and unnatural on the 009, despite EQ.
Quite different on the Utopia.
Here it sounds much more natural, balanced, with a pound more substance.

Back to the present.
Finally, I have to mention again that when I make a direct comparison, I adjust the tonality. The goal is to compare the technical capabilities, not the FR (tonality) specified by the manufacturer.

 

[chargedcapacitor]

Unfortunately, I can only make the comparison from memory, since it's been over a year, since I had the 009S at home.
At that time, I made a direct comparison to the Utopia.
The Utopia was my winner.
And the LCD-5 has replaced the Utopia.
I clearly consider the LCD-5 an upgrade to the Utopia, so I can only conclude (as I said from memory, that the LCD-5, is also an upgrade to the 009S).

Perhaps the text that I wrote at the time of the comparison of the Utopia to the 009S is interesting for you.



A few hours of listening later:

First of all, looks and touch quality.
The Utopia clearly has the edge here.
If I spend 4000 € on a headphone,
i expect to be able to feel and see that in some way.
That is given with the Focal, not with the Stax.

Before i come to my sound impressions,
i must mention again that both KH are set according to Oratory's EQ settings (Harman target).

Without this, the 009, would be completely unusable for me.
Very bright, strongly mid-emphasized, and extremely low bass.
So I would describe the 009
"stock" describe.
In other words: my personal nightmare.

Adjusted according to Harmann, both headphones are on par.
Both are a hi-fi revelation in my opinion.

The Stax completely stress-free, extremely high-resolution, and indescribably musical.
The Focal equally stress-free, incredibly dynamic and energetic, and almost as finely resolving.

The biggest surprise for me was that the Utopia showed the 009 what to do with female and male voices.
These sounded more harmonious, more present, more engaged, and above all more emotional on the Utopia.
In addition, the Utopia has a better "grip" on S-sounds.

The decisive factor for me is ultimately which HP can convey more emotion,
and there the Utopia is my personal winner.
Whether Mark Knopfler or Xavier Naidoo, they "had" more feeling on the Utopia.

But as I said, actually, both are on par.




Each track brings new insights.

The trumpet on track #3 sounds sharp (almost squeaky) and unnatural on the 009, despite EQ.
Quite different on the Utopia.
Here it sounds much more natural, balanced, with a pound more substance.

Thanks for the insight!

 

[Somatic]

The LCD-5's seems to be getting better and better sounding the more time I put on them. I find myself reaching for them a lot lately.

Do you find them a nice compliment to the Solitaire Ps? What are your 2 main headphones?

 

[phthora]

I like no EQ or slight EQ in general. More like tone control. Bass shelf or high shelf? Does anyone have a simple EQ to bring up the treble if needed? What would your settings be? Thanks.

Here's the EQ that I mentioned in the post you quoted. I based my EQ profiles off of Resolve, but I found I didn't quite like how his upper mids and treble ended up. Likely an issue of unit variation there. This EQ may not be your cup of tea, but it should help you identify the points in the frequency response to address then you can tinker with gain to suit your taste. If you're interested in a different EQ (I got a bunch), just hit me up.

 

[BowWazoo]

Thanks Bud.

With pleasure, Bud.

@LogicSound

Yes, as always you could say.


Preamp -9db
Adjust band 4 for airness, 6 for bass, 8 for treble

 

[JLoud]

Couldn't resist.

 

[BowWazoo]

And I can't resist ending the day like this

 

[nonamerat]

Does anyone else have a squeaky ear cup? I just received my LCD-5 and the left cup makes a squeak/creak with the slightest movement. The right cup is silent. It seems like it's the two joints that connect to the headband. I've had this on other headphones before and it usually goes away with time, but I am wondering if there is something that can be adjusted or lubricated?

 

[ra990]

Are you using the SE outputs for the LCD5?

Yep, they use less power than the Stealth and I have no problems using those with TT2's SE out.

 

[Slim1970]

Do you find them a nice compliment to the Solitaire Ps? What are your 2 main headphones?

I’ve since parted ways with my LCD-5’s. I went back to the LCD-4’s. My top two headphones that have getting time lately have been my LCD-4’s and Eikon’s. This is just based on my mood.