Luxury & Precision W2 Review

Luxury&Precision W2 (12)

 

Menu + Tuning options

When in use, the W2 screen will show you the actual volume, the format, the sample rate/bit depth and the EQ setting.

The first setting in the menu is for the EQ. Here you have the following options: Normal, Game, Movie, Bass, Jazz, Classic, Pop and Rock. I do suggest to use the “Normal” setting for your normal music listening, but you may of course prefer one of the other settings.

The second setting is for the SDF. Depending on your firmware version (a pita to update btw) you here will have the following options: Xelento, SE846, IE800S or Normal. You can play with it depending on the IEM in use, especially if you’re using one of these inears (duh), but I just keep it in Normal as well.

The third setting is the one for the gain. You can just choose between Low and High, but I only few occasions needed to use it. More on that later. I do tend to prefer the Low gain setting, as it sounds more natural and less “forced”.

Setting number four is for the FLT. Here you have the following choices: NOS (minimizes the internal digital processing), LL SLOW, LL FAST, SLOW and FAST. I in most cases prefer the NOS setting but you might like a different one. It also depends on the ear/headphone in use, though the differences aren’t day and night.

Option 5 lets you set the SPDIF on or off. It’s the 3.5mm connector you need to use for that. It works as promised but I have to say I never really used it as I have no need for it. If you do require your dongle to convert your signal to SPDIF for one of you other decoding units, then it is a really nice feature.

Option six is for the display: manual or AutoOff are the only options here. The seventh(!) setting lets you set the HID key to on or off. In very short: in the “On” mode, the W2 uses the volume of the connected source. In the “OFF” mode, you use the W2’s volume control. For me it’s always “Off”

The last setting is for the “Tune” as L&P call it. You have the choice between 01 Gentle, and 02 Refined. I prefer the refined setting but the differences are minimal, yet audible. Tune 01 has a more softer signature where the Refined setting, sound more digital.

W2 Features list

– Flagship Dual DAC chipset(2xCS43198).

– High-Gate-Count FPGA Chip.

– Low-power MCU chip.

– Super-Clean Output.

– Ultra-Low background noise.

– Dual high-power amplification chip.

– Balanced 4.4mm Headphone output.

– Single-ended 3.5mm headphone output.

– SPDIF output(3.5mm).

– Low-power consumption.

– Easy(?!) firmware upgrade.

– Output power up to 230mW @ 32ohms

Luxury&Precision W2 (12)

W2 Specifications

Impedance (Ohm): 125mw @32Ω for 3.5mm & 230mW @32 Ohms for 4.4mm

Sensitivity (dB): 131dB

Source Jack: 3.5mm TRS and 4.4mm TRRS

Dimensions: 60x22x12.5mm

Weight (g): 22 grams

EQ profiles: Classical/Jazz/Rock/Pop/Bass/Movie/Game

Filters: Fast/Slow/NOS/LL Fast/LL Slow

Audio Formats Supported: MP3/WMA/FLAC/WAV/PCM/DSD/APE

Luxury&Precision W2 (12)

Sound – General

For this section, I used the following settings: Low gain, Normal EQ, Normal SDF, NOS FLT. I used  sources such as my laptop, phone and xDuoo X10TII. Connecting the W2 to your phone and laptop is easy and it just works from the start (as it should). The W2 gets recognized et voila (Wasapi on laptop). I mixed up all kinds of IEMs as well as headphones, even all the way up to the Audeze LCD-5. A bit more on this at the end of this article.

With all the IEMs I tried with the W2, there was no noise to be heard and the signal was very clean at all times. The AQ JB FMJ does increase the silence even more, though the W2 on its own is very silent already.

The L&P W2 is full bodied from top to bottom and you always get a weighty presentation. This is good for on the go, though it with a full bodied IEM sometimes becomes a bit too full. That’s personal preference however.

One of the best characteristics of the V2 is its stereo imaging and left/right balance which really is remarkable and a pleasure to listen to. The other big USPs are the smooth mid timbre and the overall very high musicality level.

Luxury&Precision W2 (12)

Detail retrieval-wise the L&P W2 does very well, especially in the lows and mids. If you like good dynamics, then the W2 will certainly please you. Speed-wise the W2 isn’t the best performer but it’s not lacking in speed either. So if PRaT is your main thing, the L&P W2 might sound a bit slower or relaxed. The L&P W2 purely on the technical level scores well, but compared to full sized, desktop gear, there is room for improvement.

Sound stage-wise the W2 is ok, but it’s not the most extended DAC/AMP, especially in the top region. The bottom region extends further with better precision and all-in-all the W2 scores better in depth than in width. The layering in the bass and mid-section is actually very impressive, a little less so in the treble region but still good. Separation-wise the W2 does just fine, but nothing spectacular

The W2 does sound spacious at all times and it has a natural airiness to it, making it realistic in presentation. That being said, the W2 has a smoother delivery and a good amount of warmth, but never too much. Some describe the W2 as being neutral, but “neutral” is not something I would use to describe the W2.

The timbre in lows and mids is very good and the decay and note extension in these regions are a pleasure to the ear. The treble section is on the softer side, but the quality is good and it just has enough energy to keep things lively and exciting.

The part on sounds continues on the next page. Click here.

Page 1: Intro, L&P, W2, Packaging & Accessories, Design & Build Quality, Lay-out & Usability

Page 2: Menu & Tuning Options, Features, Specifications, Sound General

Page 3: Sound Basics, Sound xDuoo XT10TII, Sound Conclusion, Comparisons, End Words 

4.3/5 - (153 votes)
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Lieven is living in Europe and he's the leader of the gang. He's running Headfonia as a side project next to his full time day job in Digital Marketing & Consultancy. He's a big fan of tube amps and custom inear monitors and has published hundreds of product reviews over the years.

9 Comments

  • Reply October 26, 2021

    HeadfoniaReader

    Nice review! I agree on all points. W2 is a bit too smooth for me too so I got a Violectric Chronos for contrast. Should try finding one for next review!

    • Reply October 26, 2021

      Lieven

      Thanks man. Chronos is up for review!

      • Reply October 27, 2021

        Andre

        Looking forward to the review!

        I’ve been having a hard time replacing my Dragonfly Red where it’s not the most technical unit but it just sounds good!

        I like the forward vocal also it just sounds warm and lush where most newer dongle dac just sounds lean and cold.

        Another issue is that most new dongle dac are too smooth and you just don’t get the “bite” you want for rock songs.

        Sounds like W2 is too smooth too so hopefully Violectric Chronos is the ticket!

        Please let me know if the volume button uses its own volume or controls the source volume. Personally I prefer the source volume since I have volume key on keyboard.

        Thanks!

        • Reply October 27, 2021

          Lieven

          Hi Andre, thank you for your comment. On the W2 you can choose the volume: device or source. We will see how that works on the Chronos 🙂

          • Reply October 28, 2021

            Andre

            Awesome, looking forward to the review!
            🙂

    • Reply November 2, 2021

      Andre

      How do you like the Violectric Chronos so far?

      I’m on the fence of buying Luxury & Precision W2 or Violectric Chronos or Burson Playmate 2.

      But it’s so hard to find any review on Violectric Chronos.

      Thanks in advance!

  • Reply December 9, 2021

    Victor Yu

    Hi nice review, how’s the 4.4 balanced output sounds like in this unit as compared to the 3.5mm? Doesn’t seem to find this in the review

  • Reply December 25, 2022

    Jorge

    Hi, great review. Can you help me? I buyed the A&K pee51 4 years ago and I want to have a new DAP or Dongle DAC, how is it compared to L&P w2?

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