#Portable media player update#
#Portable media player portable#
#Portable media player Pc#

A second 3.5mm jack is used to send optical S/PDIF data to the AK100, again via an adapter, so it can operate as a standalone DAC.

(A cute 'SEE YOU SOON' message appears on the display.) Also on the top panel is a 3.5mm stereo jack for connecting headphones, which will also, with an adapter (not included), accept a TosLink optical datalink, so that the AK100 can stream S/PDIF data to an external D/A processor. This button also wakes up the display when music is playing a second push and hold turns the player off.

#Portable media player Pc#

On the left side, three pushbuttons duplicate the onscreen transport controls, while on the bottom are a micro USB port for connecting the AK100 to a PC and, under a slide cover, two Micro-SD memory-card slots.Ī long push of the top-mounted button boots up the AK100. The playback volume can be controlled with the touchscreen, but there's also a small volume wheel mounted on the side, to the right of the screen. A 2.4' color touchscreen grants access to the usual transport controls, as well as the ability to navigate the player's folders and files.

is a small and elegant-looking device, its electronics housed in a case of black-anodized aluminum with a hairline finish. Now I could take my hi-rez files on the road!

#Portable media player update#

This shortcoming was addressed with an early 2013 firmware update (v.1.30), so I arranged for a review sample. This was a major problem for someone like me, whose iTunes library consists almost entirely of ALAC files. (A&K calls hi-rez music Mastering Quality Sound or MQS.) All the usual file types are supportedWAV, FLAC, Ogg, APE, AAC, ALAC, AIFF, MP3but when it was first introduced, the AK100 couldn't play Apple-format files, including those encoded with Apple's Lossless (ALAC) codec.

#Portable media player portable#

At the beginning of 2013, this brand from iRiver, a Korean portable media company, introduced its AK100, a portable player costing a dollar short of $700 and capable of handling 24-bit files with sample rates of up to 192kHz. Those of us with a growing library of high-resolution files are therefore restricted to playing them in our big rigs at home.Įnter Astell&Kern. Ten years later, while the current top-model iPod features a 160GB hard drive, it still can play only files with sample rates of 48kHz and below and a maximum bit depth of 16. Instead, it could play uncompressed or losslessly compressed files with true 'CD quality' users no longer had to compromise sound quality to benefit from the iPod's convenience. Such products cost more, but their audio performance and ability to accommodate virtually every wired headset are worth investing in.Ĭheck out these thoroughly researched MP3 players that are worthy of your ever-growing music collection.Apple's iPod came of age in the fall of 2003, when, with the release of iTunes 4.5, the player was no longer restricted to lossy compressed MP3 or AAC files. When it comes to wired connectivity, avid audiophiles with vast collections of headphones and earbuds should look for players with more outputs. If you are subscribed to one, look for onboard Wi-Fi. On the other hand, Wi-Fi-equipped products are all but guaranteed to bring you access to your favorite streaming service. Connectivityīluetooth connectivity is a must if you plan to use your media player with wireless headphones or earbuds. Today's splurge-worthy MP3 players will most likely offer you a combination of both. You should either consider a product with ample built-in memory, or one with a built-in microSD card slot for easy expansion. In addition to the audio hardware and performance, it's important to consider the amount of available storage an MP3 player offers. A high-end MP3 player will also improve the quality of the sound from high-impedance headphones.īut if you're simply looking to untether your music library from your smartphone, a more affordable model should fit the bill just fine. If you own a lot of music in lossless file formats and don't want to compromise on audio quality, consider getting an MP3 player with an advanced DAC (digital-to-analog converter). When shopping for an MP3 player, consider the size and quality of your digital music collection.