Midrange madness
I love listening to music. I also appreciate solid engineering skills and attention to detail. This combination makes me a bit of a hi-fi buff.
I'm not one of those high-end audio enthusiasts that believe electrons travel way better from one end of the cable to the other than vice versa. I can, however, say if I prefer some audio setup over another. Lately, I've been listening to four different setups that, I think, all have some very nice and rather surprising characteristics. Analyzing all aspects of these setups would take ages and therefore I decided to boil it down to this: two pairs of speakers, two pairs of headphones, mainly concentrating on how these things sound on the midrange.
Speakers 1: Martin Logan Aerius i (1999)
In short, these speakers are fantastic. I love just about everything in them. They do have a lot of oomph in the lower register but they make everything sound extremely effortless and sweet.
Well, at least almost everything. One thing that's slightly annoying about these speakers is that they will pick out every single fault in the audio source. Slightly muffled mastering on some records by Morcheeba? Absolutely muddy on the Logans. A live recording that's a bit too heavy on the bass side? Walls will shake and the earth will move.
But when everything's right and you feed these speakers material they deserve they are sure to reward you. The sound is sweet and intimate with an absolutely peachy midrange. These are the speakers you want when listening to your favorite female vocalists.
Midrange verdict: sweet and intimate but rather dark.
Speakers 2: Sonab NG-11 (ca. 1992)
Well, yeah, these are clearly not in the same league as the Logans. Overall, their sound is very much lacking midrange depth and things tend to sound extremely thin. However, these things have a few pretty neat tricks up their sleeve.
Trick number one is the incredible soundstage these speakers provide. The soundstage is very wide and it seems to float about a meter above the speakers. This gives the whole experience a rather airy feeling.
Trick number two is the way they perform at the lowest end of the audible frequency spectrum. These things go low! Lack of midrange depth somewhat underlines this ability and it may grow tiresome after a while but it is a neat party trick.
The treble end of the spectrum is the third nice surprise of this pair. The dual tweeters are super accurate and extremely crisp giving a nice addition to the wider-than-wide soundstage.
Overall, the Sonabs are not a bad pair of speakers. I wouldn't want these to be part of my primary setup, though. They paint a very big picture but it just isn't that pretty.
Midrange verdict: almost non-existent.
Headphones 1: Beyerdynamic T 90 (2013)
These are pretty good headphones for the money. I know they're nowhere near the bargain bin category but they sound a lot better than some cans with much higher price tags. Being Beyers, they are also very light, comfortable and extremely well made.
They do have the signature Beyerdynamic sound that seems to emphasize the higher mids and trebles. This is a minor fault and one that can rather easily be dismissed when just about everything else is up to par. And personally, I prefer the Beyer sound over the polar opposite of Sennheiser.
The brightness of the sound is somewhat responsible for the overall impression of these cans. The overall impression these headphones give is slightly clinical, analytic and, frankly, a bit cold - Teutonic, if you will. They are very good audio reproduction instruments but that's it.
Midrange verdict: balanced but cold.
Headphones 2: Audeze LCD-2 rev. 3 (2014)
I got a pair of these a while ago and they completely blew me away. These cans are simply un-frigging-believable. It's not just that they sound so damn good - they really do - it's the fact that they make everything sound good when piped through them. I've yet to find a record I didn't like listening on them.
Having a good pair of headphones almost always implies you need a decent amp to drive them. That's not the case with LCD-2s: stick them straight up an iPod's jack and they sound a lot better than almost anything. Of course, that's not how these things are supposed to be used but it's a nice example of how easy these cans are to drive.
The build quality is also top notch. I got my pair with a bamboo body and LFTC cushions. They look and feel absolutely exquisite and I'm pretty sure they'll last forever.
The only issue with these cans is that they are very bulky and heavy. It's not a big issue as they still manage to feel rather comfortable but longer listening sessions could definitely benefit from lighter construction.
Midrange verdict: aural honey. Absolutely gorgeous.