5 Tracks in DSD 512, New SP2000 Player from Astell & Kern

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bmoura

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Astell & Kern has introduced their newest flagship portable player, the SP 2000, at High End Munich 2019.
Along with a new sampler, 5 Tracks in DSD 512, from NativeDSD Music to hear DSD 512 on the SP 2000 (or other DSD 512 DACs and Portable Players on the market).



Introducing 5 Tracks in DSD 512
Big News from High End Munich at Astell & Kern's SP 2000 Launch Event
Debuting at # 1 on the NativeDSD Best Sellers Chart!


We are pleased to announce the availability of Native DSD Presents 5 Tracks in DSD 512. The album brings you some of the highest quality DSD 256 stereo recordings from the NativeDSD Music catalog in DSD 512 stereo.

This special album made it's debut at 2019 High End Munich, the world's largest audio expo during the launch of the new, top of the line Astell & Kern A&ultima SP2000 Portable Player with DSD 512 Stereo playback and the first product to use the new flagship AKM AK4499EQ current output type audio D/A converter. It is also an album that will bring owners of DSD 512 capable Portable Players and DACs (Digital to Analog Converters) from Chord Electronics, Gryphon Audio, iFi Audio, Kitsune HiFi, Metronome, Oppo, Sony Signature, T+A, Vinnie Rossi and many more audio companies, some amazing DSD 512 listening experiences.

Included in this collection are performances by Les Chats Noirs, Yuko Mabuchi Trio with JJ Kirkpatrick, Rachel Podger with Brecon Baroque, Ricardo Gallen, and The Coo. The music covers a variety of styles and genres including French Vocal and Chanson, Jazz, Classical Ensemble, Guitar, and Acoustic Pop and Vocal.

These higher bit rate DSD 512 tracks are all pure DSD created. They are not up samplings, for there are no PCM or DXD conversions involved in their production. They are re-modulations of the original DSD 256 encoding modulation that produced the DSD 256 releases. The sonic advantage to these new Stereo DSD 512 releases, as with all higher DSD bit rate releases, is the wider frequency passband prior to the onset of modulation noise. This results in the listener’s DAC using gentler and more phase linear filters for playback of the music.

The resulting DSD 512 music files were monitored with a DSD 512 Stereo system that included HiFiMan HE-1000 Stereo Headphones with Lazuli HF Headphone Cables by Dana Cable and the iFi Audio iDSD Micro Black Label Headphone Amp and DAC (available for purchase at the NativeDSD Gear Store).

We want to thank Forward Music Italy, Yarlung Artists, Channel Classics, Eudora and Just Listen for their participation in this project.

Here's a video of the announcement from High End Munich with Katie Springer of Astell & Kern and Floor van der Holst from NativeDSD Music. You can purchase 5 Tracks in DSD 512 today at the NativeDSD Music store.

https://nativedsdpresents.nativedsd.com/albums/NDSD013-nativedsd-presents-5-tracks-in-dsd-512
 
I have a couple of Astell and Kern portable players - great stuff.

The Astell and Kern portable players are the market leaders in the audiophile market.
The new SP 2000 will be their flagship model when it comes out in July 2019.

I downloaded a copy of 5 Tracks in DSD 512 today.
Costs 6.61 euros or $7.43 US Dollars.

Sounds excellent here on the iFi Audio iDSD Micro Black Label Headphone Amp/DAC ($599).

https%3A%2F%2Fblogs-images.forbes.com%2Fmarksparrow%2Ffiles%2F2019%2F05%2FAK4.jpg
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Looking forward to hearing these DSD 512 selections someday on the SP 2000 ($3,500).
https://us.astellnkern.com/blogs/news/astell-kern-launches-four-new-products-at-high-end-2019-munich
 
The Astell and Kern portable players are the market leaders in the audiophile market.
The new SP 2000 will be their flagship model when it comes out in July 2019.

I downloaded a copy of 5 Tracks in DSD 512 today.
Costs 6.61 euros or $7.43 US Dollars.

Sounds excellent here on the iFi Audio iDSD Micro Black Label Headphone Amp/DAC ($599).

https%3A%2F%2Fblogs-images.forbes.com%2Fmarksparrow%2Ffiles%2F2019%2F05%2FAK4.jpg
View attachment 40232

Looking forward to hearing these DSD 512 selections someday on the SP 2000 ($3,500).
https://us.astellnkern.com/blogs/news/astell-kern-launches-four-new-products-at-high-end-2019-munich
My A&Ks are the cheaper ones - AK100 and AK jr - but they do a great job
 
My A&Ks are the cheaper ones - AK100 and AK jr - but they do a great job

Unfortunately those players convert the DSD audio to PCM before playback.
So you don't get the full benefit of DSD with the 100 and Jr.
 
Unfortunately those players convert the DSD audio to PCM before playback.
So you don't get the full benefit of DSD with the 100 and Jr.
True - but I tend to play FLACs on them (mainly CD rips) - I use them when travelling. Even for non-DSD stuff I am impressed with the sound quality. (y)
 
I only have one concern with these products. Can you replace the battery?

I don't own one of the Astell & Kern portable players.

But I do have the Sony Signature NW-WM1Z portable player with DSD 256 Stereo playback.
It has a lithium battery that is recharged through a USB cable. I charge it up before packing it up for travel. Works - and sounds - great.
 
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