I have recently been listening to the LCD-1, and I must say that it has recently thrown me for a loop–and that is a good thing.

It was not too long ago that I reviewed the HiFiMan Sundara and was sincerely impressed with the performance level it achieved; so much so that I declared my personal pick for music listening under $500. The Sundara was an all-around great performer that possessed both a delightful sonic tuning and great technical capabilities. However, now that I have tried the LCD-1, I can say that there is a real contender for my go-to pick in the sub $500 price range.