Luxury&Precision L&P P6 Pro Review

P6 Pro – Sound Quick Basics (Bass, mids, treble)

The P6 Pro’s bass is both excellent in quality as well as in quantity. As explained you do get more body and the impact is a bit higher, but you at the same time get increased layering and depth, and the sub bass detail now is heavenly.

The P6 Pro’s bass is even more engaging than the P6’s. The amount of bass is less neutral compared to that of the P6, but it’s still within acceptable margins to be considered as “neutral”. If you felt the bass wasn’t present enough in the P6, then you will most likely find that of the P6 Pro to be spot-on. We all like different things. I can appreciate the extra bass of the P6 Pro, but sometimes it for me is a bit too much already, and I refer the P6’s bass quantity in this regard (not in the quality).

The mid section is ultra spacious this time and it’s till precise and clean. The mids have a very airy and natural presentation. The P6 Pro’s timbre is even better than before and you can add further improved note extension, decay and an even blacker back ground to that. Because of their naturalness and analogue character the mids are very easy to listen, though the more forward energetic vocals could create quicker listening fatigue.

The P6 Pro’s highs hare the same amount of spaciousness and airiness, and they extend even better in all directions. Treble layering is even more impressive and notes are super detailed and precise. The treble section still is engaging and energetic, it’s just at an even higher level. Logically it is never sharp or sibilant. It’s a very easy to listen to, easy to like and musical treble presentation.

P6 Pro – Sound Conclusion

The Luxury & Precision P6 as you read last week, is an incredible player. L&P however wanted it to be even better and the Pro does just that.

You get a higher clarity, lower noise, more precision, better extension, layering etc. I didn’t think they would manage to pull of an even better sounding P6, but they clearly did. The $900 USD price difference is a lot, but if money is no object and you want the best of the best, then the P6 Pro is the one to go for.

Comparisons

If you have read the review up to now, you will have spotted the many comparisons to the P6. So if you took a short cut here to see how it compares to its little brother I have to disappoint you and ask you to start reading from the beginning.

Let’s compare the P6 Pro to the same players we compared the P6 too: the Sony WM1Z, the Astell&Kern SP2000 and the L&P LP6.

As I said before, the Sony’s WM1Z is starting to get older but it’s still a top level player. It’s not as versatile as the SP2000 and in that regard it’s closer to the P6 Pro though the margin has decreases from the P6. Sound-wise both units perform at a very high level and the sound signature here is not as alike as with the P6. The P6 Pro and Sony both have bigger bass reproduction, but the L1P is tighter, clearer and overall technically stronger. The Sony is warmer and smoother sounding, the P6 Pro is more clear, more energetic and has the more forward upper mids and vocals. Especially the treble section of the WM1Z is soft, compared to that of the P6 Pro (and P6). Looking at a pure technical level and the precision that comes with it, I definitely have to give the upper hand to the P6 Pro.

The SP2000 is my most used DAP and I absolutely adore it. The Pro and SP2K are both incredibly good and perform at a high level. The P6 pro actually might even be better when it comes to technicalities. The SP2000 has a more analytic and neutral character, where the P6 Pro keeps its smoother delivery, making it a very musical DAP. So both very good, just different flavors. And it does mean that the SP3000 will have to improve even further if they want to sat ahead of L&P.

L&P’s previous R2R DAP, the LP6 Gold, has a different R2R implementation. The LP6 is the more powerful DAP as it was built to power full-sized headphones on the go (or at home) from a portable source. For the rest the versatility and interface are quite similar, there’s no surprise there as this was the case already when comparing it to the P6. At the same time, the P6 pro (just like the P6) has the BT capability and its design and form factor in its favour.

Sound-wise these two DAPs are very close to each other. Where the LP6 has a slight edge over the P6 for what technicalities are concerned, this is not he case with the Pro. They do however still share the same characteristics and present the music in the same way. If you especially want to power full sized cans, the LP6 is the easy choice.

Conclusion

It’s very easy to conclude that the Luxury & Precision P6 Pro is the improved version of the P6. It was a difficult thing to pull off, but L&P managed to do just that.

The P6 Pro isn’t only the better sounding DAP of both, but with its touch screen (and added features) it’s also the easiest to work with.

If money really is no object and you want the best possible P6, then the Pro version is the easy choice for you. The original P6 is a great player but as you saw last week, we didn’t add it to our recommended buy lists where we award the very best gear. The P6 Pro version however is a fully recommended buy in the high end DAP category. It absolutely deserves its spot there among the very best DAPs on the planet.

If you want extremely good sound, and can live with the fact that you can’t install apps and need to use an external source to stream music, then the P6 pro probably is one of the very best portable players on the market.

Well done!