u/Some_Sector5089

This was released by Kill Rock Stars in 2020 to celebrate the 25th anniversary of Elliot's self-titled LP. It's bound like a coffee table book with 55 pages of text and photography by Elliot's close friend JJ Gonson. Includes a remastered neon yellow version of the LP along with the earliest known live performance of the album from 1994. Either/Or & XO get almost all of the love meaning Elliott Smith (the album) has always gone a bit overlooked. It's fully realized (unlike From a Basement on a Hill) and the song crafting is far more mature than Roman Candle. I always found it interesting that he was still performing full-time with Heatmiser while recording this, talk about having to simultaneously inhabit two different artistic worlds! (Or soundscapes I suppose)

I specifically designed my setup to fit on my bedside table and overall I think that has proven to be a win. Will I still be saying this as the DC summer peaks and the Valhalla's ambient heat issues remain? Only time will tell my friends.

Source: HiBy R4 DAP streaming Tidal.

Amplifier: Schiit Valhalla 3 tubie

PEQ: squig.link Audeze LCD-2C AutoEQ preset. Midshelf.

General Impressions:

Impressive packaging, genuinely a giggle to pop the lock on a big ass case like I'm going to put together a sniper rifle. Sturdy build quality. The headband looks a little bit thin (maybe?), but I'm not sure that actually matters. Feels high quality, not worried about the metal deforming or something. The fit is absolutely spot on for my weird head. Going from Grado SR325x to these is like...I don't know these actually fit my head in a pleasant way. The drivers seem to be positioned correctly over my ears and stay there (w/ the Grados it's a constant battle to keep them in the right place & the solution of Dekoni fenestrated sheepskin ear pads overpowers the bass and ruins the sound). They aren't light but the weight is very well distributed and due to some medical stuff I have an extremely strong neck anyways lol. Before plugging them in this is starting well.

Music:

Jeff Buckley - Grace

First few minutes is terrible. What is going on? Oh right the tubes need to warm. Not sure why I always forget about this. Within 10 minutes my face is cracked into a big grin. This is beautiful. Firstly, it's so expansive. When I close my eyes the individual instruments are so, so well defined while not sounding disconnected. This is my first real experience with properly powered planars so a bit of this wonder is just me being a newb, but I digress. There's...bongos in certain sections. I've never previously noticed that before. The vocals are (unsurprisingly) the highlight here. Buckley absolutely soars and the bass attains really good separation allowing them to truly shine during the chorus.

Songs:Ohia - Magnolia Electric Co

I go straight to Hold on Magnolia here because it's the track that has proven to (me at least) to challenge headphones the most. The switches in tempo and the way Jason Molina's voice is difficult to handle but absolutely critical to get right. This is... simply beautiful. This is what I had been planning for when I chose the LCD-2C paired with the R4 and Valhalla. The warmth of these paired up with Jason Molina's harmonies causes a sensation of the music swirling up into a full body bear hug. It's so intimate and simultaneously full and sharp. Warmth without being overly saccharine. The key test is at 6:48 of the track. You get Molina's signature kinda warble and then the fleshed out strings rise into the full power of his pipes. Exquisite. Nailed it. Bravo. Played it back 4 or 5 times to hear that transition again and again. The strings sound so gorgeous, almost distracting but I'm okay with that. I've Been Riding With the Ghost is equally as impressive. It's much more of a Neil Young-ish rocker and keeping Molina's voice as the focus is once again the challenge/goal. You want to enjoy the band (with an especially important but understated drum section) but the star is Jason Molina and his voice and that needs to be in absolutely crystal clear focus. It is. Cannot overstate how important it is to get this right for this particular album.

You Found Me - Kevin Morby & Waxahatchee

How do they handle a duet? Brilliant as well. Though here the mid-range "hole" I read about is kinda obvious. This feels like something that can be EQd away. But the instruments kinda disappear briefly and isolated like that the vocals sound weird and out of place. This is relative, it's not anything that resembles a deal breaker, especially since it's only appearing on this track which is fundamentally different from Buckley and Molina. This is supposed to be a really tight song, so having isolated vocals appear from nowhere is off-putting. Will try fine-tuning the PEQ on the R4 for this while getting some repeated listening sessions under my belt.

Conclusion:

My first spin through with the Audeze LCD-2C is a massive dub. One massive improvement here is that the Valhalla is really able to show its full potential. The Grados simply couldn't handle the pure tube mode and needed to have the power restrained somewhat. I didn't realize how much that restraint was costing me in terms of listening experience. The other thing is that while the Grados add this undeniable excitement to music by making studio albums sound like live performances, that comes at the cost of making it overly frenetic at times. You can't really turn that color off even if the music doesn't really benefit from it.

Thanks for sticking with me, interested in any suggestions for improvements or questions, this has been an incredibly rewarding first experience.