Astell & Kern A&ultima SP3000: One-minute assessment
The Astell & Kern A&ultima SP3000 is the most costly digital audio participant in a product portfolio full of pricey digital audio gamers. It’s specified with out compromise (full impartial balanced and unbalanced audio circuits? Half a dozen DACs caring for enterprise? These are simply a few highlights) and it’s completed to the kind of normal that wouldn’t disgrace any of the world’s main couture jewelry corporations.
Better of all, although, is the way in which it sounds. It’s remarkably agnostic concerning the stuff you prefer to take heed to, the kind of normal of digital file by which it’s contained, and the headphones you employ too – and whenever you give it one of the best stuff to work with, the sound it’s able to producing is nearly humbling in its constancy. Be in little doubt, that is one of the best digital audio participant – aka best MP3 player – with regards to sound high quality you possibly can at the moment purchase. Which, whenever you look once more at how a lot it prices, is concerning the least it must be.
Astell & Kern A&ultima SP3000 assessment: Value and launch date
- Priced at $3,699 / £3,799 / AU$5,499
The Astell & Kern A&ultima SP3000 (which I believe we should always comply with name ‘SP3000’ from right here on out) is on sale now, and in the UK it prices a not-inconsiderable £3799. In america, it’s a barely-more-acceptable $3699, and in Australia you’ll must half with AU$5499.
Want I say with undue emphasis that that is fairly some huge cash for a digital audio participant? I’ve reviewed very first rate digital audio gamers (DAP) from the likes of Sony for TechRadar that value about 10% of this asking value – so why on Earth would you spend ‘Vacation of a Lifetime’ cash on one thing that doesn’t do something your smartphone can’t do?
Astell & Kern A&ultima SP3000 assessment: Options
- Bluetooth 5.0 with aptX HD and LDAC
- Native 32bit/784kHz and DSD512 playback
- Discrete balanced and unbalanced audio circuits
Admittedly, when Astell & Kern says the SP3000 is “the head of audio gamers”, that appears a fairly subjective assertion. When it says that is “the world’s first DAP with impartial audio circuitry”, that’s merely an announcement of truth.
That impartial audio circuitry retains the sign path for the balanced and unbalanced outputs completely separated, and it additionally contains impartial digital and analogue sign processing. Astell & Kern calls the general association ‘HEXA-Audio’ – and it contains 4 of the brand new, top-of-the-shop AKM AK4499EX DAC chipsets together with a few the very-nearly-top-of-the-shop AK4191EQ DACs from the identical firm. Once you add in a single system-on-chip to handle CPU, reminiscence and wi-fi connectivity, it turns into obvious Astell & Kern has chosen to not compromise the place technical specification is worried. And that’s earlier than we get to ‘Teraton X’… this can be a bespoke A&Ok-designed processor that minimises noise derived from each the ability provide and the quite a few DACs, and offers amplification that’s as clear and environment friendly as any digital audio participant has ever loved.
The upshot is a participant that helps each worthwhile digital audio format, can deal with pattern charges of as much as 32bit/784kHz and DSD512 natively, and has Bluetooth 5.0 wi-fi connectivity with SBC, AAC, aptX HD and LDAC codec compatibility. A participant that options half-a-dozen DAC filters so that you can examine, and that may upsample the speed of any given digital audio file in an effort to ship optimum sound high quality. And if you wish to benefit from the sound as if it originates from a pair of loudspeakers fairly than headphones, the SP3000 has a ‘Crossfeed’ characteristic that mixes a part of the sign from one channel into the opposite (with time-adjustment to centre the audio picture) in an effort to do exactly that.
Options rating: 5 / 5
Astell & Kern A&ultima SP3000 assessment: Sound high quality
- Insightful, partaking and convincing sound
- Not too fussy about file sizes
- Solely barely fussy about headphones
Some digital audio gamers are fairly choosy about what goes into them and the way it comes out once more – however fortunately, the SP3000 isn’t amongst them. Clearly it performs to its fullest when given huge, information-rich digital audio recordsdata to work with and is linked to appropriately gifted headphones – but it surely’s not about to have a hissy match if that’s not the case.
So regardless of if you happen to take heed to an enormous 24bit/192kHz FLAC file of Previous Man by Neil Younger or a bog-standard 320kbps MP3 file of Cool About It by boygenius, the SP3000 is unflappable. It doesn’t matter if you happen to join £50-worth of Ultimate Audio E3000 by way of the three.5mm socket or a pair of £1299 Sennheiser IE900 into the 4.4mm socket, the Astell & Kern will make one of the best of the scenario.
In every circumstance, the SP3000 is an uncomplicated pleasure to take heed to. Its general presentation is nearly instinctively right, constructive with out being pushy, and totally convincing. 10 hours of battery life seems completely sufficient when written down, however in apply it’s nothing like lengthy sufficient. I might take heed to this Astell & Kern nearly indefinitely.
Element ranges are excessive in the identical means that The Shard is tall. No ingredient of a recording is just too minor, too peripheral or too transient to elude the SP3000 – it extracts each scrap of data from a digital audio file and organises it confidently. There’s nothing uptight or fussy about the way in which this participant places you within the image, although – all the things is contextualised and serves solely to make sure you’re totally knowledgeable.
Management, from the highest of the frequency vary to the underside, is unarguable. The assault and decay of bass sounds, particularly, is so well-managed that rhythmic expression is totally pure and momentum is maintained in all circumstances, regardless of the appreciable weight and substance of the low finish. There’s equally well-supervised assault on the high of the frequency vary, and in between the Astell & Kern communicates eloquently by means of the midrange.
Dynamic headroom is intensive, so huge shifts in depth and/or quantity are made plain. Decrease-key dynamic variations in voices or harmonics are made completely plain, too. Tonality isn’t something however balanced and naturalistic, and the SP3000 knits the entire frequency vary collectively easily. The soundstage it’s able to producing is well-defined and expansive – even dense or advanced recordings have greater than sufficient elbow-room to let each ingredient specific itself with out hindrance. And the SP3000 achieves this with out dropping sight of the truth that it’s presenting a efficiency – the unity and togetherness of its presentation is direct and unequivocal.
You’ll be able to fiddle across the edges of the way in which the Astell & Kern performs by investigating your DAC filter choices, positive – however in broad phrases, its methodology doesn’t actually change. It’s exact and meticulous, but it surely’s no dry instrument of study. It hits very onerous by means of the low frequencies, but it surely by no means will get slowed down underneath its personal weight. It’s spacious and open, but it surely’s seamlessly unified.
Sound high quality rating: 5 / 5
Astell & Kern A&ultima SP3000 assessment: Design
- 904L stainless-steel chassis
- 493g; 139 x 82 x 18mm (HxWxD)
- 1080 x 1920 touchscreen
‘Transportable’, in fact, is a relative time period. The SP3000 isn’t probably the most transportable product of its kind round – it weighs very almost half a kilo and is 139 x 82 x 18mm (HxWxD) – however if you happen to can slip it right into a bag then I suppose it should rely as ‘transportable’. Its pointy corners rely in opposition to it too, although – and whereas it comes with a protecting case sourced from French tanners ALRA, the very fact it’s product of goatskin isn’t going to enchantment to everybody.
To be truthful, the physique of the SP3000 isn’t as aggressively angular as some A&Ok designs. And the truth that it’s constructed from 904L stainless-steel goes a protracted method to establishing the SP3000’s credentials as a luxurious ‘accent’ (within the method of a watch or another jewelry) in addition to a practical system. 904L stainless-steel resists corrosion like no person’s enterprise, and it will probably additionally settle for a really excessive polish – which is why the likes of Rolex make use of it. I’m assured you’ve by no means seen such a shiny digital audio participant.
The entrance and rear faces of the SP3000 are glass – and on the entrance it makes up a 5.4in 1080 x 1920 touch-screen. The Snapdragon octa-core CPU that’s in cost means it’s a particularly responsive touch-screen, too.
On the highest proper fringe of the chassis there’s the acquainted ‘crown’ management wheel – which is one other design characteristic that ups the SP3000’s desirability. It feels pretty much as good because it seems, and the round mild that sits behind it glows in one in all quite a lot of totally different colors to point the dimensions of the digital audio file that’s enjoying. The alternative edge has three small, a lot much less thrilling, management buttons that work completely properly however have not one of the management wheel’s visible drama or tactile enchantment.
The highest of the SP3000 is residence to 3 headphone sockets. There’s a 3.5mm unbalanced output, and two balanced options – 2.5mm (which works with four-pole connections) and 4.4mm (which helps five-pole connections). On the underside edge, in the meantime, there’s a USB-C socket for charging the inner battery – battery life is round 10 hours in regular circumstances, and a full cost from ‘flat’ takes round three hours. There’s additionally a micro-SD card slot down right here, which can be utilized to spice up the participant’s 256GB of reminiscence by as much as 1TB.
Design rating: 5 / 5
Astell & Kern A&ultima SP3000 assessment: Worth
In absolute phrases, in fact, $3,699 / £3,799 / AU$5,499 for a digital audio participant is nonsense. The regulation of diminishing returns is at work right here as absolutely as it’s anyplace else – and you may get an enormous serving of the SP3000’s abilities by spending lower than half of its asking value (largely, however not completely, by spending it with Astell & Kern itself). However if you would like completely, positively the best-sounding DAP round, and you might be lucky sufficient to have the ability to justify the price to your self, properly, this participant is at the moment primary in a discipline of 1.
Ought to I purchase the Astell & Kern A&ultima SP3000?
Purchase it if…
Do not buy it if…
Astell & Kern A&ultima SP3000 assessment: Additionally take into account
How I examined the Astell & Kern A&ultima SP3000
- Examined for over per week
- Examined indoors and out
- Examined with wired and wi-fi headphones
I loaded the inner reminiscence of the Astell & Kern A&ultima SP3000 with numerous high-resolution digital audio recordsdata, and I additionally put in the Tidal app – so in the end I used to be in a position to lot of various kinds of music by way of plenty of totally different audio file varieties and sizes.
I listened to the participant in my residence and whereas out and about (listening outside made me fairly anxious at first, I don’t thoughts admitting – it’s an costly system, in any case). And I listened to it utilizing a number of wired and wi-fi headphones – usually, headphones in a position to do some justice to the SP3000’s unarguable high quality. I largely used the Sennheiser IE900 by way of the 4.4mm balanced enter and the Bowers & Wilkins’ Px8 by way of Bluetooth.
- First reviewed in December 2023
