[ClieOS]

Thanks for keeping everyone honest, master. I think you might be referring to ibasso bt adapters. Anyhow, maybe that's why some like sources with high impedance because they make their hybrids sounds different? Just a thought. For example, there's a user on this forum who loves using their 5ohm ath-iex1 with their portable tube amp that has 10 ohm output impedance. Different strokes for different folks.

I think personal preference on an individual level is perfectly fine. But for those who are reviewing at a semi-pro / pro / influencer level, the question then becomes much more complicated given people do expect a certain level of objectivity from them. So it isn't just a case of 'I like how my IEM sounds different with this source regardless of what causing it", but more like 'I like how my 5-ohm multi-drivers sounds different with this 10-ohm source and I am going to explain why logically so it will help you, the reader, to make an informed choice.'

The scary part to me as a reader, is that there isn't any easy way to tell apart whether a reviewer who skipped over all the important details is either due to laziness, ignorance, or just simply incompetent.

 

[grumpy213]

After two weeks with the Luxury & Precision W4 I have finished my review here with a rather robust lineup for comparison!

Thanks to @Damz87 for arranging the Australian tour of this technically outstanding dongle!

 

[Andrew_WOT]

After two weeks with the Luxury & Precision W4 I have finished my review here with a rather robust lineup for comparison!

Thanks to @Damz87 for arranging the Australian tour of this technically outstanding dongle!

Any reason you stick with Tune 01 instead of default 02?

 

[grumpy213]

Any reason you stick with Tune 01 instead of default 02?

No particular reason for the purposes of the majority of the review. Had to keep it in some form of “stock” settings for the majority of the review and it arrived to me with Tune 01 but I did experiment with the Tune 02 for some of my time with it.

I suppose I wasn’t aware 02 was default settings!

 

[shez.]

From my experience, Tune 1 works better with most IEMs because it sounds better with a U, V-shaped sound signature. While Tune 2 is better with neutral and mids centric IEMs.

 

[Andrew_WOT]

From my experience, Tune 1 works better with most IEMs because it sounds better with a U, V-shaped sound signature. While Tune 2 is better with neutral and mids centric IEMs.

While L&P is cryptic on actual nature of "Tune" implementation, it does not change FQ response, it's not equalizer, tune 1 is described by L&P as "gentle" and tune 2 "refined". ClieOS suggested that it's 2nd and 3rd degree harmonics compensation here, which sounds like the most plausible thing as Tune 1 sounds softer and more relaxed as with extra distortion in place.

 

[shez.]

While L&P is cryptic on actual nature of "Tune" implementation, it does not change FQ response, it's not equalizer, tune 1 is described by L&P as "gentle" and tune 2 "refined". ClieOS suggested that it's 2nd and 3rd degree harmonics compensation here, which sounds like the most plausible thing as Tune 1 sounds softer and more relaxed as with extra distortion in place.

I’m not saying that it changes fq, but which is more pleasure for what type of IEM. It just how I hear it after testing different IEMs.

 

[Andrew_WOT]

I’m not saying that it changes fq, but which is more pleasure for what type of IEM. It just how I hear it after testing different IEMs.

Not arguing personal preferences, just some clarification of what might be confused for some sort of altered FQ response better suited for U, V, or mid-centric IEM tuning.

 

[tombrisbane]

Luxury & Precision W4 Impressions

Thanks to Luxury & Precision, and @Damz87 , for the Aussie tour of this device. All thoughts are my own and not influenced in anyway.

I had the opportunity to spend a couple of weeks with this dongle, I was thinking about buying it before the tour in the hopes that it would be like a mini LP P6 Pro so having this tour was great!

Much of the build and usability has been discussed in this thread so I'll keep this brief - the packaging and build are nice, user interface paired with the clicky wheel was intuitive and the ability to have incremental changes in volume greater than what’s normally available on my iPhone was great. All up a very user friendly device which I had no issues with.

Pairings: I utilised a few IEM's and HP's for testing, Fir Audio Kr5, Meze Advar / Liric / 109Pro, Sony IER-Z1R, Sennheiser IE300/600, Grado PS500(X) / Hemp / GS3000e / GH2, and Kiwiears Quintet. Driven out of my iPhone (which unfortunately needed the camera adapter, which is just an issue with the test unit, but did limit my ability to test). All up I would have used it for around 20 hours, I'm very familiar with all of the IEM's and HP’s used so it would be easy to see how well this works with them. No issues with driving any of the test equipment.

In its default state the sound is very neutral / transparent, which is what I look for in a dongle as a starting point. The bass wasn’t as impactful as it is on some of my other devices, however comparing to something which I view as extremely neutral (my Topping A90/D90 stack) it’s pretty much in line with that. Across the mids and treble nothing stands out as out of place or coloured, detail retrieval is excellent. All in all, it lets you hear what's been recorded, and the standard tuning of the IEM / HP that you have connected is what you get to experience. It does an admirable job here, and probably the cleanest dongle I've heard.

Where it gets a little more interesting is the tuning options that the device has, you can make it more resolving or warmer by playing around with the tone setting, there are also filter options however the change here is not significant. I liked Tone 1 (warmer) and depending on the equipment I used flicked between the two to get closer to my preference.

In terms of dongles I don’t have many comparison points, namely I have the Apple Dongle (which some people claim is all that you need), along with a FiiO KA1. This device blows both out of the water, and in A/B tests between the two the shortcomings of the other devices really come through (for the Apple Dongle in particular the staging is much narrower).

As mentioned above the soundstage on this device was great, along with imaging, and with the instruments and vocals coming out of silence. Probably the best I’ve heard at this price point. This is obviously HP/IEM dependant, it isn't going to transform your equipment.

If I have any complaints, it would be that it’s perhaps not as musical as I would generally enjoy. This is certainly a preference and can pretty much be overcome with the options that are available on the device, but it never got the level of musicality I get from my Mojo 2 (although it’s a far more convenient setup).

I always find it hard to talk about devices like this, the best praise I can give it is that it's transparent and allows you to enjoy your other equipment. In terms of dongles, with my limited experience with them, it’s by far the best one I’ve ever used, and I think it justifies its price tag. I’m not in the market for a dongle as I have a different portable solution that works for me, and it isn't a mini LP P6 Pro, however should my circumstances change I’d certainly be picking this one up. Strong recommendation from me if you want a fantastic dongle.

 

[Reader]

I just got the W4, it seems the power is over advertised. On my PC W4 is not able to get any louder than TANCHJIM Space when powering the HE-6 SE V2.

I know nether is meant to power the HE-6 but it's the only one allows me to listen to both at absolute max volume, I don't want to ruin my hearing making the comparison.

Both used 4.4 balanced output.

Wonder if anyone else have tested this against other cheaper ones that on paper has noticeable less power?

Edit: on subjective side, Topping G5 absolutely destroys both dongles, which is to be expected.

 

[ClieOS]

I just got the W4, it seems the power is over advertised. On my PC W4 is not able to get any louder than TANCHJIM Space when powering the HE-6 SE V2.

I know nether is meant to power the HE-6 but it's the only one allows me to listen to both at absolute max volume, I don't want to ruin my hearing making the comparison.

Both used 4.4 balanced output.

Wonder if anyone else have tested this against other cheaper ones that on paper has noticeable less power?

Edit: on subjective side, Topping G5 absolutely destroys both dongles, which is to be expected.

I think you might have misunderstood the difference between power (voltage x current) vs. volume (pure voltage). What you seem to want is more voltage rather than more power. Of course, they are not mutually exclusive but having more power doesn't always give you more volume as voltage is only half of what makes up total output power. You can have a device putting out a lot of voltage but very little current to have the equal amount of output power as a device putting out little voltage but a lot of current - but listen to them side-by-side, the latter will be significantly lower in volume, even in equal power

 

[Reader]

I think you might have misunderstood the difference between power (voltage x current) vs. volume (pure voltage). What you seem to want is more voltage rather than more power. Of course, they are not mutually exclusive but having more power doesn't always give you more volume as voltage is only half of what makes up total output power. You can have a device putting out a lot of voltage but very little current to have the equal amount of output power as a device putting out little voltage but a lot of current - but listen to them side-by-side, the latter will be significantly lower in volume, even in equal power

No, I understand it perfectly fine, they advertise in mw not Volts, one advertise more than double the power(in mw)of another in mw to 32ohm. Also since both uses 32ohm to advertise, this means they both should be able to deliver lots of current.

Also saying I want more voltage is wrong, I am testing them using a low senstivity low impedance HE-6, not a 600 ohm DT880, you need both high voltage and high current for this one.

 

[ClieOS]

No, I understand it perfectly fine, they advertise in mw not Volts, one advertise more than double the power(in mw)of another in mw to 32ohm. Also since both uses 32ohm to advertise, this means they both should be able to deliver lots of current.

Also saying I want more voltage is wrong, I am testing them using a low senstivity low impedance HE-6, not a 600 ohm DT880, you need both high voltage and high current for this one.

Hmm...

I just got the W4, it seems the power is over advertised. On my PC W4 is not able to get any louder than TANCHJIM Space when powering the HE-6 SE V2.

I know nether is meant to power the HE-6 but it's the only one allows me to listen to both at absolute max volume, I don't want to ruin my hearing making the comparison.
...

Again, voltage dictates volume, not power.

 

[Reader]

Hmm...



Again, voltage dictates volume, not power.

The adervertised power on both was to 32ohm, to have higher power to the same 32ohm it should have BOTH higher voltage and current. So yes, I want both.

 

[ClieOS]

The adervertised power on both was to 32ohm, to have higher power to the same 32ohm it should have BOTH higher voltage and current. So yes, I want both.

Power is typically tested under a certain load (32 ohm in this case) when the output reached a certain distortion level (1% usually), but never specified at what voltage (or current for that matter), so it is not a guarantee both voltage and current will be at what level. This is why an full audio analyzer test result with the actual power output graphs (which usually also shows both whole voltage and current range as distortion increases) are much more useful than just a number. As much as some complaint about measurement being overly subjective and doesn't reflect what people 'hear', it is still an very useful tool to have and should've been a requirement for all manufacturers. A shame it is not.