Astell & Kern was based in 2013 and didn’t take lengthy to grow to be our go-to model for transportable music gamers. The pile of What Hello-Fi? Awards it has gained over that point is sufficient to show the corporate’s means. Surprisingly, A&Ok has by no means gone for the funds market, preferring to stay to the ‘reassuringly costly’ path that has served it properly. Even its present entry-level providing, the wonderful A&norma SR35, which retails for £799 / $799 / AU$1299, falls into the premium class by most judgements.
Good as this and the corporate’s step-up gamers have been, we’ve all the time puzzled what would occur if its engineers had been tasked with producing a real cost-no-object providing. The arrival of the Astell & Kern A&ultima SP3000 solutions that query.
Construct & Design
This participant could also be across the measurement of a big field of matches but it surely weighs in at simply in need of half a kilogram. Whereas the SP3000 is definitely sufficiently small to suit into a garments pocket, it gained’t really feel snug there. The sharp-edged angular casework gained’t assist that trigger both. It’s fabricated from extremely polished 904L stainless-steel, which is thought for being sturdy and proof against corrosion, a lot in order that the likes of Rolex use it for its watches. There are two end choices: black and silver. We suspect each will show to be fingerprint magnets of the best order. The provided ALRAN leather-based case helps after all, and can defend the unit from scratches, if not careless drops.
The SP3000’s most important management interface is the touchscreen, after all. This can be a comparatively crisp 5.46-inch LCD show with a decision of 1080 x 1920. The touchscreen is responsive, although anybody used to the slickness of recent telephones will discover this participant just a little clunky to navigate now and again.
The bodily management rely is minimal with three buttons on the aspect dealing with customary play/pause/skip and scan features, leaving the crown-like quantity dial to double as an on/off change. There are three outputs on the highest of the participant: a 3.5mm that additionally serves as an optical output, a 4.4mm balanced and a 2.5mm balanced. It’s clear that A&Ok is attempting to cowl all bases right here. The unit is charged through a USB-C socket on the bottom, which additionally acts because the enter while you wish to obtain recordsdata into the participant.
Options
There is no such thing as a problem with file compatibility. The SP3000 can deal with high-resolution recordsdata as much as 32-bit/768kHz PCM recordsdata and DSD512. It’ll play all the usual file varieties in addition to MQA. That is all because of using a quartet of Asahi Kasei’s new flagship DAC chip, the AK4499EX. This participant is Roon Prepared, too.
Elsewhere, the engineers have labored onerous to scale back the SP3000’s inside noise ranges and even gone so far as to have separate analogue circuits for the balanced and unbalanced outputs, all with the intention of optimising efficiency.
Astell & Kern A&ultima SP3000 tech specs
Max file help 32-bit/768kHz, DSD512, MQA
Storage 256GB (expandable by 1TB through microSD)
MicroSD slot? Sure
Battery life 10 hours
Headphone outputs 3.5mm, balanced 2.5mm, Pentaconn 4.4mm
Dimensions (hwd) 139 x 82 x 18mm
Weight 493g
Bluetooth is on the menu, so you should utilize wi-fi headphones with this participant, and given the no-compromise nature of this design it comes as no shock to seek out aptX HD and LDAC codecs on the spec listing. The SP3000 also can stream recordsdata throughout your house community and has 256GB of storage inbuilt. These dealing in high-resolution recordsdata could discover this considerably limiting, significantly if in case you have a big assortment, so will probably be glad to discover a microSD card slot which might add a most of 1TB of reminiscence.
The A&Ok’s battery is rated at a reasonably hefty 5050mAh. That is claimed to present round 10 hours of taking part in time with a CD-spec file, a average quantity degree and the show turned off. Underneath regular circumstances anticipate round a 3rd lower than that. Recharge time is round 3.5 hours.
Loading recordsdata onto the SP3000 proves a breeze, being a easy drag-and-drop course of from our MacBook Professional. Our recordsdata are a mixture of high-res and CD-spec, permitting us to check how the A&Ok participant responds to the totally different bit charges. There proves no problem because the participant strikes seamlessly from a DSD file of Stevie Surprise’s Innervisions to a 24-bit/192kHz file of Mahler’s Symphony No.4 with CD-spec albums from Kiasmos (Kiasmos) and Leonard Cohen (I’m Your Man) in between.
We attempt various headphones with the SP3000 starting from the closed-back Sony MDR-Z1R to open-back designs corresponding to Focal’s Utopia (2022) and Yamaha’s YH5000SE. Given the worth of the participant, these are the sorts of premium headphones any potential purchaser ought to think about.
Sound
There are particular traits that come by whatever the music performed. The SP3000 is a splendidly detailed and insightful performer. It has the power to shine a light-weight on the subtlest of element with out dropping observe of the entire. The organisation of data is great, with the participant sounding as cohesive and balanced as they arrive. Whereas the main edges of notes are as crisp as you want, there’s an interesting fullness to the sound that stops the A&Ok from sounding cluttered or hard-edged. Tonally issues are properly judged and it’s a nice shock to seek out out simply how authoritative and muscular the SP3000 sounds. Bass notes have palpable weight and loads of energy but handle to mix seamlessly with the remainder of the frequency vary with out dominating. That’s a neat trick few handle.
The SP3000 is nice at delivering the dimensions and drama of the orchestra within the Mahler Symphony. Dynamic sweeps are rendered with conviction and power. Low-level instrumental strands are tracked with ease and regardless of how dense the music will get, this A&Ok all the time sounds composed and in management.
The story is equally constructive once we stream from our Naim NAS over our devoted community. The SP3000 is glad to ship A Grand Don’t Come For Free from the Streets with the recording’s tough and prepared appeal intact. It reveals the constraints of the recording high quality and manufacturing however nonetheless captures the drive, pleasure and on some tracks, the heartache, within the music. Equally, we’re transported again into time once we take heed to Coltrane’s 1960 launch, Big Stepsthe SP3000 rendering the dynamic and rhythmic shifts of the music brilliantly.
Questioning simply how a lot distinction the balanced headphone output makes, we plug our reference Sony MDR-Z1R into each (not on the similar time, after all) and type a transparent choice for the balanced possibility. It sounds extra exact and warranted, delivering notably extra energy and grip at low frequencies. In case your headphones provide the choice of going balanced that is the route we’d advocate. That stated, we plug each the Yamaha YH5000SE and the Focal Utopia into the three.5mm unbalanced output and the outcomes are nonetheless glorious.
The story is equally constructive once we join by Bluetooth utilizing the Mark Levinson No.5909 wi-fi headphones. The connection is swift and secure. Whereas the sound isn’t pretty much as good because the high-end wired headphones in absolute phrases, by Bluetooth requirements it’s terrific, and a transparent degree higher than the sound we get utilizing our iPhone 12 Professional Max for a similar job. Nonetheless, we can even say that in case your most important method of listening to the SP3000 is by Bluetooth headphones then you’ll by no means hear how good it truly is.
The A&Ok’s apparent rival is the similarly-priced Sony NW-WM1ZM2. Each are superbly made although we really feel the Sony edges it when it comes to precision of construct and high quality really feel. The Sony can be just a little forward in outright evaluation although the SP3000 counters in terms of dynamic contrasts, bass muscularity and rhythmic drive. Total, the A&Ok is the extra musical performer with a richer tonal palette, and in order that’s the place our cash would go.
Verdict
Some folks won’t ever get previous the SP3000’s worth and we are able to perceive that. This can be a big quantity to spend on one thing that will probably be thrown in a bag and used out and about. However put that worth judgement to 1 aspect and it’s simple to admire Astell & Kern’s achievement right here. The SP3000 sounds very good and is full of helpful options. It’s ok for use as the primary supply in a premium dwelling system, which makes that worth only a bit extra palatable. To sum up, the SP3000 is the perfect transportable music participant we’ve heard and the perfect of something not often comes cheaply.
SCORES
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