The new top of the Astell&Kern range, SP3000, is already available, a new leap forward by A&K in terms of technology and use of materials.
Astell&Kern's A&ultima series has always established the perfect marriage between reference sound and innovative technology.
The A&ultima SP3000 is the new flagship product of the Korean house and represents the essence of everything learned and designed in the last 10 years of digital music development.
A&ultima SP3000 is the first DAP in the world to use dual independent audio circuitry for the two channels and the latest DAC with HEXA-Audio Circuitry structure, implementing all the best audio technologies and the finest materials to let you fully enjoy the overwhelming sound impact of digital music.
Highlights:
• The first DAP in the world to use a special 904L stainless steel for the chassis
• World's first DAP with full separation between analog and digital signals (uses Asahi Kasei's top-of-the-line AK4499EX DAC)
• Amazing audio performance with dual mono audio circuitry
• Employs a high-performance Qualcomm Snapdragon 6125 Octa-Core CPU
• New graphical interface for an even more complete experience
• Support for aptX™-HD and LDAC
• Native DSD512, 32bit/768kHz support
• MQA (Master Quality Authenticated) support
• Certified Roon Ready
• 5.46-inch Full HD display
• AK File Drop for wireless music file transfer
• Qualcomm QC 3.0 fast charge, 3.5 hours for a full charge
• BT Sink function to connect the SP3000 to an external device via Bluetooth and play its music via A&K
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The A&ultima SP3000 is the first DAP in the world to use a special 904L stainless steel for the chassis. To achieve the goal of the A&ultima series, which is to "stand out from the competition by the value of its products, using innovative design and contents without compromise", the SP3000 uses 904L stainless steel, never experienced before in a player portable audio. The use of this material enhances the value of the SP3000 from a simple digital device to a luxury item.
904L stainless steel is harder and more difficult to machine than ordinary stainless steel, requiring significantly more time and effort. However, due to its excellent durability and corrosion resistance, it does not lose its luster and that is why it is used in expensive luxury watches where the perfection of all materials and parts must always be pursued.
TERATON ALPHA, the essence of A&K audio technologies, enclosed in the SP3000
TERATON ALPHA is A&K's latest sonic revolution to reproduce audio as faithfully as possible to the original, through effective power supply noise removal, efficient power consumption, and uncompromising sound amplification.
What makes the Astell&Kern sound different? Many people have similar ideas about what makes sound better; for example they think that the DAC alone determines the sound of the DAP. And so, in the end you will have only the same DAPs, with the same DACs and the same sound quality, for each product. The DAC definitely plays a big part in the quality of a DAP, but it's not the only factor that determines the sound. TERATON ALPHA technology effectively removes power supply noise and provides efficient power consumption and amplification up to the audio output interface stage where digital-to-analog conversion (DAC) occurs - audio technology that Astell&Kern has been continuously developing and perfected over the years. In addition, A&K has designed a HEXA-Audio circuit structure and a dual mono channel configuration for the SP3000, which in combination with TERATON ALPHA technology recreate the ideal sound.
The world's first DAP with complete separation between analog and digital signals
The SP3000 is a top product, employing the latest technology and uncompromising design. Astell&Kern has worked since the beginning in collaboration with AKM, to develop the best DAC inserted in the best possible circuitry.
Thanks to this cooperation, the first four AK4499EX DACs, the latest flagship of AKM, have been put into the SP3000, as well as the innovative HEXA-Audio circuit structure, in which two AK4191EQs processing digital signals are separated for the two channels, to complete the incredible sound that always distinguishes Astell&Kern.
Most digital players process both digital and analog signals within the same DAC. In the SP3000 the HEXA-Audio circuit reduces the noise of the incoming digital signal through the AK4191EQ, a separate delta-sigma digital modulator, while the AK4499EX DAC is designed to process analog signals separately. Thanks to this unique design, for the first time in a digital audio player it has been possible to obtain physically separate digital and analog signal processing and increase the signal-to-noise ratio (130dB), resulting in pristine and never-before-experienced sound.
Silver plated shield
Shielding is applied to prevent various electromagnetic noise and interference from affecting the audio circuits. The SP3000 takes it one step further to achieve excellent audio performance and perfect shielding by applying highly conductive, high-purity silver over the existing shielding package and physically separating the digital and analog signals.
Stunning audio performance with dual independent audio circuitry
To create a truly innovative DAP, A&K has tried to overcome the limitations and space compromises of a DAP, imagining a dual independent audio circuit and a HEXA-Audio circuit structure with unbalanced and balanced outputs.
Almost all other DAPs, including those from Astell&Kern, use a single DAC for unbalanced and balanced outputs. Since the signal from the DAC is split into unbalanced and balanced and then sent to the AMP, an audio switcher is essential. However, when using a switcher, there is a limit on the range that the signal sent from the DAC can receive, so most DAPs reduce the signal size first and then, when the signal is sent back to the amplifier, it is necessary to restore the original signal size. This results in a limitation of the audio performance.
To overcome these limitations, our engineers designed a HEXA audio circuit structure using two AK4191EQs and four AK4499EXs, creating an innovative dual independent unbalanced and balanced audio circuit. As a result, the SP3000 achieves an SNR signal-to-noise ratio of 130dB, the best on the market. With the SP3000 it is possible to perceive the cleanliness and delicacy of the sound, like in no other DAP.
SP3000 Technical characteristics
Model: SP3000
Color: Black or Silver
Chassis: 904L stainless steel
Display: Full HD 5.46” 1080x1920 Touch
Audio Formats: WAV, FLAC, WMA, MP3, OGG, APE, AAC, ALAC, AIFF, DFF, DSF, MQA
CPU: Octa-core
DACs: AKM AK4191 x2(Dual Modulator) & AK4499EX x4 (Dual + Dual DAC)
Sampling: PCM: 8kHz ~ 768kHz (8/16/24/32 bits per sample)
Native DSD: DSD64(1bit 2.8MHz), Stereo / DSD128(1bit 5.6MHz),
Stereo / DSD256(1bit 11.2MHz), DSD512(1bit, 22.4MHz) Stereo
Output Level: Unbalanced 3.3Vrms │ Balanced 6.3Vrms (No Load Condition)
Decoding: Support up to 32bit / 768kHz Bit to Bit playback
Frequency Response: ±0.017dB (Condition: 20Hz~20kHz) Unbalanced / ±0.021dB
(Condition: 20Hz~20kHz) Balanced - ±0.022dB (Condition:
20Hz~70kHz) Unbalanced / ±0.031dB (Condition: 20Hz~70kHz)
Balanced
S/N: - 126dB @ 1kHz, unbalanced, - 130dB @ 1kHz, balanced
THD+N: - 0.0006% @ 1kHz, unbalanced, - 0.0004% @ 1kHz, balanced
prevented output: - Unbalanced output 3.5mm (0.7ohm)
- Balanced output 2.5mm (1.7ohm), 4.4mm (1.6ohm)
Input: USB C (for charging from PC and MAC)
Outputs: Optical and headphone unbalanced (3.5mm) / Balanced x 2 (2.5mm 4-pole and 4.4mm 5-pole)
WiFi: 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac (2.4/5GHz)
Bluetooth: V5.0 (A2DP, AVRCP, Qualcomm aptXTM HD, LDAC)
Internal memory: 256GB (NAND)
External memory: microSDx1 (Max. 1TB)
Battery: 5,050mAh 3.8V Li-Polymer
Charging: about 3.5h (fast 9V/1.67A) | 5.5h (normal 5V/2A)
Playback: about 10 hours (standard: FLAC, 16bit, 44.1kHz, unbalanced,
Vol.40, LCD off, LED on, Low gain mode)
Dimensions: 82.4x139.4x18.3mm (WxHxD)
Weight: about 493gr
Updates: Firmware upgrades (OTA)
Support systems: Windows 10.11 (32/64bit), MAC OS X 10.7
