Audeze LCD-GX
I’ll be the first to admit that when I first saw the launch
of the Audeze LCD-GX headphone/headset, I was quite skeptical. This was a $899
open-back headphone, made for gamers, with a red and black trim and a giant
boom mic. It almost felt like it was a money grab to me, especially after they
already had just released the Audeze Mobius at the time, which I was an early
adopter for. But time went by and I started hearing some good feedback for it.
I was also impressed that they got the weight down to a more manageable and
wearable weight, something that I feel is the biggest flaw of the Audeze LCD
series lineup. I can’t wear any of them for more than a 30 minutes without
physical pain! At least until this one came out….
I’ve used a few lightweight Audeze headphones in the past –
mainly the Audeze Mobius, the Audeze Sine and of course, the iSine series,
which aren’t really over-ear headphones. For the most part, I’ve tried the LCD
series with the most recent being the LCD-X and none of them were anywhere near
comfortable for me to use for any period of time, no matter how nice they may
have sounded.
Anyway, with this pandemic occurring, I had a strange idea
of wondering how using an over-ear headphone would work for conference and
video calls. I actually started using my Hifiman Arya and ZMF Verite with
Audeze boom mic cable for work. But an opportunity arose, and Headphones.com allowed me to borrow the Audeze LCD-GX to try out and so here I am, writing a
short review on this “gaming headset.”
Package/Accessories
The LCD-GX comes with both a normal set of cables as well as
the all-new headset cable that is basically a normal detachable headphone cable
with a boom-style microphone that comes off of one of the 4-pin XLR connectors
that goes into the left cup. This cable turns a normal headphone into a headset
that can be used for gaming communication, or in my case, conference calls.
In my quick experience using them for a couple calls, I had
mixed opinions from other colleagues on the line. Some said I sounded fine, and
others said I sounded a little distant and cutting in and out. It seems like
the microphone needs to be pretty close to your mouth to be most effective and
doesn’t necessarily pick up your voice if it isn’t in direct line of your
voice.
In addition to the cables, the set comes with a large
hard-shell carrying case that is similar to a Pelican travel case, and is
padded with foam that’s been cut-out to fit the headphone and accessories.
The actual headphone itself sports a more modern look
similar to their LCD-4z and LCD-MX4 or the more budget-friendly LCD-1 with a grill
style that is more raised and beveled and is integrated directly into the cup
structure, unlike the other traditional LCD models with a fastened and flatter
plate. Behind the external grill is a popping red colored thick screen that
sort of reminds me of drawer liner, at least from how it looks. The red
contrasts with the black exterior pretty nicely, and I think it looks a lot
better in-person than in the promotional video, which I thought was rather
cheesy.
The GX features a single-sided planar magnet array which is
106mm, which is on the larger-side of drivers. The headphone’s impedance is 20
Ohms and sensitivity is at 100 dB/mW at 1KHz. This makes this planar a bit
easier to drive than some others in Audeze’s lineup as well as others that I’ve
owned myself in the past, including my current Hifiman Arya, which requires a
noticeable amount of additional turn on the dial to get to the same listening
volumes.
One of the benefits of going with a single-sided array is
the weight is kept down to about 460g listed weight. I found that this is one
of the few Audeze headphones that I’ve been able to wear comfortable for more
than just 20-30 minutes. Most of the LCD series is closer too 600-700 grams so
this significant reduction in weight is welcomed, although it still weighs
considerably more than my Arya.
Sound
I was taken aback when I first put on the GX and turned on
some music. I honestly didn’t know what to expect as I hadn’t read too much
about these and only heard some brief impressions from owners. But I was rather
surprised at what I heard. I felt like this is what I was expecting the LCD-X
to sound like, at least in tonality. It does feel a little less technical than
the bright/neutral LCD-X, but this GX has a nice balanced sound that still
sounds like an Audeze, but with a more neutral tilt. It still has a warmer
sound signature, but no where thick and sometimes dark sounding as some of the
others in the LCD series (sans X) that I’ve tried, and this aligns a lot closer
to my preferences.
When I first listened to the GX, I was listening to it with
Alison Kruss & Union Station’s Lonely Runs Both Ways record, which for
those who don’t know, is a bluegrass album that borders pop music. Maybe I was
listening to them a little louder than my normal listening, but I found that
there was a bit of ringing when listening to this song as it does accentuate
the lower treble area with an abundance of harmonic energy from all the various
stringed instruments. When listening to this at my normal listening volumes,
roughly 65-70dB, this ringing isn’t present, and I actually find that the GX plays
this song quite well.
The bass is generally flat, but with the small dip in the
lower treble, as is present in many LCD headphones, the general low end does
sound a bit warmer, though nowhere as thick and slammy as other LCD iterations.
For example, in Beach House’s Lemon Glow, the basslines in
this song can be quite heavy and pounding, however it seems like the GX takes
this on with a bit more subtle hit, and while it’s not as tame as say my
Hifiman Arya in this aspect, it does lack some of that authority in the other
LCD headphones. That’s not to say that bass is light or missing or anything. Subbass
reaches low and the bass response is in-line with how I prefer and it’s the
slightly above neutral sounding warmth is a benefit.
The mid-range is typical Audeze sounding, though perhaps a
little less thickened and more lean, but again, not as lean as your standard
Hifiman, and actually probably matches some of that in it’s tonality. I enjoyed
the fact that males and female vocals seemed in-line with each other and
neither seemed to song tonally inaccurate.
When it comes to treble, I mentioned previously that the GX
is still a little darker than neutral, but only a shade bit. I find this may
actually be the best tuned LCD that I’ve tried and have enough memory of to
really provide a true opinion on. I actually do like the Sine’s signature a lot
as well, and I found it fit more in the Hifiman series than it did the Audeze’s
but with this GX added to the collection and the recent LCD-1, I am seeing some
slight, subtle changes to perhaps the Audeze house sound.
I never did use this headphone for gaming, and I admit that
I don’t game as much as I once did in my younger days. I did however find imaging
and instrument separation to be good and comparable to other headphones in this
price range and what I’d expect from Audeze. The soundstage wasn’t
exceptionally wide, but it didn’t sound closed in, or intimate either. I think it’s
a good listening width and depth was present and did not sound flat.
Overall Thoughts
Resolution on these were surprisingly good for what I would
normally and stereotypically consider a gaming headset to have, which to me
have been the Razer, SteelSeries, and Turtle Beach variety. This is a vast
improvement over the Mobius with a larger sound, a cleaner sound, and improvements
across the board. And despite it being heavier than the Mobius, I find the GX
is more comfortable to wear for longer sessions which may be due to the larger
cup size and the suspension headband with larger surface area.
All in all, the GX is a really solid headphone at it’s price
class. I don’t think it’s better than the more expensive LCDs, but I would take
it over the LCDX for both comfort and tonality, with perhaps a small drop-off
in technical performance and resolution.
I’ll still take my Arya over the GX though, as I find the
Arya signature and soundstage to best the GX for my preferences, as well as resolution
that exceeds it. Where the GX wins is the low end performance, which adds a
little more emphasis than the Arya does.
I feel like the GX just made the LCD2 obsolete here. For a
little bit more money, you get a better sounding headphone, a headset adapter,
significantly less weight and comfort, and equal or better performance overall.
This is perhaps the biggest surprise in the Audeze lineup.
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