Pros & Cons
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- Brilliantly detailed and balanced sound
- Strong passive isolation
- Quality construction
- Removable cable
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- Heavy
- Expensive
Audeze LCD-S20 Specs
| Connection Type | Stereo 3.5mm |
| Type | Circumaural (over-ear) |
The Audeze LCD-S20 headphones ($499) deliver exceptional audio quality thanks to their planar magnetic drivers and are well-suited to studio use. They feature a closed-back design, low impedance, and swappable parts for enhanced repairability. While expensive at first glance, they're competitively priced for both the planar magnetic and studio headphone markets. They're comfortable, beautifully finished, and sound fantastic, earning our Editors' Choice award for studio headphones. They’re a worthy alternative to the Beyerdynamic DT 1990 Pro ($599.99) for those who require tracking and mixing performance, and they’re a strong upgrade option to the Beyerdynamic DT 700 Pro X ($299) for anyone seeking the precision and clarity of planar magnetic drivers in high-end studio hardware.
Design: Familiar With Minor Tweaks
In addition to offering a more affordable price point than many Audeze headphones, the LCD-S20s also feature a more approachable design that borrows from the Audeze Maxwell gaming-focused headset ($299). They have a simpler steel headband with a lower profile than the one on the pricier $899 LCD-GX headphones that more closely hugs the top of your head and relies on an adjustable leatherette suspension strap to evenly distribute the weight. It's a sensible move, as the LCD-S20 headphones weigh a hefty 1.21 pounds.
(Credit: Mark Knapp)Thankfully, the suspension strap adjusts with little pegs on holes at the ends. It doesn’t allow for the quickest or most nuanced adjustments, but it does stay put. There’s a good reason these cans are so heavy. In addition to the steel headband, they feature sturdy aluminum yokes, glass-infused nylon construction elsewhere, and sizable earcups to house the 90mm planar magnetic drivers, along with acoustic damping material for improved noise isolation. Those earcups also come with large synthetic leather ear cushions that make the headphones even more comfortable by creating space for your ears and distributing the modest clamping force evenly.
(Credit: Mark Knapp)If you ever need to replace the earcup cushions, the process is a breeze. A series of magnets on the headset and in the earcup cushions hold them together, so it just takes a light tug to separate them. The outside of each earcup is covered in fabric, which looks fantastic but may show wear over time, depending on how rough you are with them.
At the bottom of each earcup is a 3.5mm jack, allowing you to connect the included cable to whichever side suits you best. Although many hi-fi headphones require discrete amplifiers to operate effectively, the LCD-S20s are designed to work with a wide range of everyday audio sources, thanks to their low 18-ohm resistance. The headphones have a frequency response of 10Hz to 40kHz, which puts them in high-definition audio territory.
(Credit: Mark Knapp)Audeze includes an 8.2-foot braided cable with a rubberized finish to wire up the headphones. It has a 3.5mm connection on the headphone side and a chunky quarter-inch plug on the other end. Audeze also includes a quarter-inch-to-3.5mm adapter that's cabled and a little ungainly. If Audeze had used a 3.5mm plug on each end of the cable and included a 3.5mm-to-quarter-inch adapter instead, it could've been far more compact. However, as the primary use case is in a studio setting, where it is plugged into an audio interface's quarter-inch jack, many people may never use the adapter. Despite the hefty price tag, Audeze doesn't include a carrying case or a cable with an integrated microphone or volume controls.
Sound: Richly Detailed and Balanced
The LCD-S20 headphones sound exceptional. Whether it's thumpy bass or high-end subtleties, these cans deliver detail with aplomb. The drivers can reach down to 20Hz, although they exhibit some fall-off below 35Hz, resulting in a slightly mellow sub-bass range. Above 35Hz, the headphones have a very flat response, which is ideal for production. They're not the most boisterous headphones, as they don't boost the bass beyond natural levels. But the bass they deliver is clear, and their precise detail, balance, and isolation make them fantastic for critical listening.
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Listening to The Knife’s “Silent Shout” is a brilliant showcase of their range. It kicks off with potent bass triplets and sub-bass quarter notes that the headphones render with ease. At the 7- and 14-second marks, a static sting is delivered with stunning detail, even remaining clear in the mix as it slowly fades over several seconds. It’s all subtly managed, thanks in part to the precision of the drivers, as well as the strong passive isolation, which creates a superb critical listening environment inside the cans, even in a room that’s not perfectly quiet.
(Credit: Mark Knapp)Meanwhile, the synth melody in “Silent Shout” reaches its full potency, with plenty of vibe and brilliance, during its more boisterous moments. Both vocal harmonies have plenty of body and enjoy a clear phasing effect thanks to the wide soundstage the headphones present.
Kendrick Lamar’s “Loyalty” further shows off the depths the LCD-S20 drivers can hit. The track features deep sub-bass content with a line introduced around the 34-second mark, and it comes through wonderfully. The lowest note isn’t quite as pronounced as the rest, but its presence is more felt than heard. Later, during a largely vocal-only segment at the 2:18 mark, the wide soundstage beautifully presents the background vocal phasing from side to side.
Bill Callahan’s “Drover” doesn’t quite call for the same frequency depth that these other tracks do, but it further highlights the detail and soundstage that the LCD-S20 headphones are capable of. The panning of the fiddle and electric guitar is poignant, with the instruments really leaping in from the sides. The acoustic rhythm guitar and fiddle have ample presence, making them feel all the more real. And the sense that the whole recording is happening right in the middle of a room comes through clear, with different instruments sounding out all over the place and the drums at a slight remove. And all through it, the balance is excellent, with the drums never thundering to overtake the rest of the mix and Callahan’s rich baritone always loud and clear.
(Credit: Mark Knapp)The LCD-S20’s knack for clarity and detail naturally lends itself well to critical listening of orchestral music, such as John Adams’ The Gospel According to the Other Mary. The strings are rich and full, while the horns have plenty of bite thanks to the high-end presence and brilliance. The deeper orchestral instruments sound out clearly without getting muddy. The wide soundstage also helps give the choir, lead vocalists, and instruments plenty of room to breathe without cluttering the mix. The passive isolation really helps here again, bringing out the faintest subtleties.
Beyond the LCD-S20 headphones' ability to create sound, they're also superb at isolating it, which is excellent for tracking. Even at a fairly low listening level, the audio coming through the headphones was sufficient to drown out the faint sound of my electric guitar, helping me focus on the sound being recorded. With both a dynamic mic and a condenser mic, the headphones also avoided bleeding much noise back into the mics. A faint amount made it in, but only with the headphones playing at too low a volume. And the trace audio that slipped in was much quieter than any vocals presented to the mic. The combination of flat response and impressive isolation makes these brilliant headphones for recording and mixing.