{"id":13189,"date":"2024-11-02T01:50:48","date_gmt":"2024-11-02T01:50:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/topat10.com\/?p=13189"},"modified":"2024-11-02T01:50:48","modified_gmt":"2024-11-02T01:50:48","slug":"activo-p1-review-wired-sound-tired-looks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/topat10.com\/?p=13189","title":{"rendered":"Activo P1 Review: Wired Sound, Tired Looks"},"content":{"rendered":"


\n<\/p>\n

\n

Acclaimed portable audio<\/span> brand Astell & Kern<\/a> has engaged in what I\u2019m going to call a \u201creverse Toyota.\u201d The Japanese hero of affordable, reliable motoring wanted a piece of the premium automotive action, and so developed an entirely new luxury brand called Lexus. (Fun fact: The brand name stands for \u201cLuxury Export US.\u201d)<\/p>\n

Astell & Kern, having established itself as the planet\u2019s leading purveyor of high-performance, high-bling, high-priced, high-resolution digital audio players, has developed Activo. It\u2019s a subbrand that allows Astell & Kern to compete in those areas of the digital audio player market it has long since abandoned in its remorseless drive upward.<\/p>\n

Mind you, when you line up this P1 device against competitors from the likes of FiiO<\/a> and Sony<\/a> it doesn\u2019t really seem all that affordable. Entry level is relative, and the P1 has been pitched into an area of the market that is, if anything, even more competitive than the rather rarefied areas Astell & Kern is contesting these days.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

But then it\u2019s not as if the Activo P1 hasn\u2019t been equipped to compete; a quick glance at its specifications is enough to confirm it has what it takes. Is it worth the extra cost for Astell & Kern lite? That depends on how much you care about looks.<\/p>\n

\n