Audeze LCD-X  Headphones Review

The Audeze LCD-X have a warm sound profile. The slightly recessed bass and flat mid-range mean their frequency response more closely resembles the SoundGuys.com Studio Curve than our own. These cans offer a slightly vintage presentation, but still have enough low-end to keep dance music fans happy. If you want to experiment, you can download these EQ presets to shape their sound profile to match our target curve or any of the others in the Graph Tool.

These headphones have very good frequency response consistency. Their bass and treble response doesn't vary much depending on fit and position. Regardless of your head size and any accessories you wear (like glasses), if you take the time to achieve a good fit, you can expect consistent audio with every wear.

These headphones have great compliance with our target curve in the bass range. Though the low-bass and bottom half of the mid-bass is slightly recessed relative to our target, that's to be expected from open-backs. That said, the dip isn't huge, so we could still feel some thump in the bass drum while listening to songs like Easy Lee by Ricardo Villalobos. The high bass is virtually flat, so basslines have plenty of warmth without sounding muddy.

The mid-range compliance is superb. These headphones are virtually flat across the entire region, apart from a small dip in the high-mids that keeps vocals from sounding nasal or honky.

The Audeze LCD-X have disappointing compliance with our target curve in the treble range. The dip in the low-treble continues the trend set by the slightly recessed high-mids, and robs vocals of clarity. There's enough mid-treble to ensure cymbals and hi-hats in songs like Get Lucky by Daft Punk sound present and detailed, but on the whole, these cans present a slightly warmer sound than our target curve aims for. If you find yourself missing some detail and articulation in vocals, consider the Audeze MM-500, which have a less recessed low-treble.

The Audeze LCD-X have very good peaks and dips performance, meaning their frequency response doesn't deviate much from their warm sound profile. The most notable peaks and dips occur in the treble range, where a series of relatively small and narrow peaks and dips can render sounds like sibilants a touch dull or piercing, depending on their pitch.

The Audeze LCD-X have excellent stereo matching performance. The left and right drivers are well matched in amplitude across the frequency response, so objects are correctly placed in the stereo field. The phase response is also well-matched, apart from a large mismatch in the high-treble, but that's inaudible with real-world content. It's noteworthy that stereo matching performance is partially related to quality control, so you may encounter different results with a different pair.

Below 40Hz, the Audeze LCD-X are approximately one wavelength out of phase, which means their group delay score looks poor. However, this phase shift occurs at very low frequencies, where it's extremely difficult to perceive. In practice, we didn't hear any issues. We expect you to experience tight bass and transparent treble with these headphones.

The Audeze LCD-X have acceptable PRTF performance. While they don't produce audio that sounds like it's coming from a pair of angled reference monitors, they still reproduce your audio with a passable sense of depth and width.

The Audeze LCD-X have incredibly low harmonic distortion, even at levels as high as 104 dB SPL. Your audio will be reproduced cleanly and accurately.

These headphones don't require an amp to drive them. You can playback audio at high listening levels on mobile devices like phones and laptops.

These wired, analog headphones don't come with virtual soundstage software. But if you're comfortable using AU, VST, or AAX audio plugins, the Audeze Reveal+ plugin offers some virtual soundstage capabilities.

These are the settings used to test these headphones. Our results are only valid when used in this configuration.

The Audeze LCD-X are black planar-magnetic headphones with large, round ear cups that resemble those of other headphones in the Audeze lineup, like the Audeze MM-100. The black grilles on each ear cup are embossed with the Audeze 'A' logo. The detachable 4-pin XLR cable splits into left and right ends, which you plug into the bottom of each ear cup. You can buy either a leather or a leather-free version of these cans. Finally, their adjustable ski-band headband is also largely black apart from the small metal poles on which the ear cups slide up and down when you make fit adjustments.

The Audeze LCD-X are impressively comfortable, especially given their relatively high weight. While we didn't find it to be an issue, some users have reported that the heavy weight left their neck feeling sore after a while. That said, versions manufactured before the 2021 change were even heavier.

The ear cups are soft, roomy, and lined with a pleasant material that feels great against the skin. The headband distributes weight well, which helps reduce pressure points during extended use. That said, the ear cups can get warm over time, especially if you tend to run hot.

These headphones aren't very portable, but they're not designed to be. As open-backs, they're not a good choice for taking to noisy environments like buses or trains. They're also quite heavy, so these are headphones you'll probably want to leave by your listening station most of the time. That said, if you plan to move them around, you'll likely do so using the fantastic hard-shell case the headphones come with, keeping them safe from drops and spills while on the move.

These headphones come with a superb case. It's a large, hard-shell briefcase mostly meant for transporting the headphones safely from location to location, since these aren't the kind of cans you'll be tossing in your commuter bag each day. Despite its large size, the top-mounted handle makes it easy to carry with one hand, and the plastic feet and aluminium edges give the case a durable feel. Inside, there's a custom foam cutout that keeps the headphones securely in place, and you can also lock the case with the included keys. The locking mechanism is smooth and feels reliable.

These headphones feel as well-built as their premium price implies. The headband combines a solid metal frame with a suspended leather strap that helps distribute weight evenly across your head. The yokes are also metal and feel sturdy, and the hinges are well-engineered, staying firmly in place when adjusted, which is especially important given the heavier ear cups. The ear cups themselves rotate well, making it easy to get a proper seal, and the thick, soft leather padding is both deep and wide enough to fit most ears comfortably. That said, adjusting the hinges by pinching the cups from the sides (without wearing them) can sometimes cause them to skip a notch or two.

We found no obvious weak points, though there's no official IP rating. But we don't expect you to take these headphones to the gym or outside with you.

These headphones aren't especially stable. Sudden movements like headbanging can cause them to shift around on your head and even fall off. On the plus side, their heavier weight means you won't want to move around a lot wearing them.

• Audeze LCD-X
• Card with a code to access the online manual
• Authenticity card
• 4-pin XLR braided cable (1.9 m/75")
• 4-pin XLR adaptor to 1/4"
• 1/4" adaptor to 1/8"
• Hard case
• Keys to unlock the case

These headphones block out almost no noise, but that's one effect of their open-back design. Higher-pitched sounds like fan whine are reduced a little, but you'll hear almost everything else happening around you. The boost in the low-bass on our graph is an artifact of our testing process and not something you'll encounter.

These headphones block out virtually no noise. If you take them on an airplane, you'll hear the engine rumble; if you work in an office, you'll hear the chatter of coworkers. Ultimately, these open-backs aren't designed for shared or noisy spaces. The boost in the low-bass shown on our graph is an artifact of our testing rig and not something you'll encounter with regular listening.

These headphones leak a lot of audio, but since they're open-backs, that's by design. Leakage is concentrated in the mid and treble ranges, so if you listen at moderate volumes, people nearby will hear a thin version of your audio.

These headphones come with a 1.9 m detachable braided cable that ends with a 4-pin XLR connector. Don't worry if you don't own any audio equipment that accepts 4-pin XLR connectors. The headphones come with two short adaptor cables: one from 4-pin XLR to 1/4" AUX, and one from 1/4" to 1/8", so the cans will work with the usual array of headphone amps, DACs, laptops, and interfaces. Latency is negligible via analog connection, so you won't experience any lip-sync issues.

Plugging these headphones into your PC's AUX port will allow you to hear your audio. If you don't have a third-party mic, consider buying Audeze's add-on cable with a built-in mic.

You can plug these headphones directly into your PlayStation's AUX port to hear game audio. If you want to use a mic, Audeze sells a cable with a built-in microphone you can buy separately.

You can receive audio by plugging these cans into your Xbox controller's AUX port. If you'd like to add microphone functionality, you can buy a cable from Audeze with a built-in mic.