Summary: Astell & Kern just announced the new PS10. This is a new audio player that comes with a special dock that makes it a hub for your home audio.
Astell & Kern’s audio devices are some of the best on the market. Just when you think that the company couldn’t get any better, it launches devices that redefine the industry. Astell & Kern just announced the PS10. This is a new audio player. This is a high-quality audio device that comes with a nifty docking station.
Astell & Kern has been making high-quality audio players for over a decade. While it has several audio players on the market, the company also makes headphones, amplifiers, speakers, audio streamers, and more. It’s a true titan in the audio industry.
Astell & Kern launches the new PS10 audio player
This device retains the more boxy shape that you get with other audio players from the company. While not what you’d call sleek, this device still looks rather nice. The main thing about the design that most people will notice is the lack of the iconic volume wheel that we saw with all other Astell & Kern audio players.
We see all of the controls as buttons sitting on one side of the device. Up top, we see the two headphone jacks along with the power button. So far, it’s pretty straightforward in terms of design, but it’s what on the inside that counts.
The Astell & Kern PS10 has four AKM AK4498EX DACs, and this is the first audio player to use this chip. Along with that, it has two AK4191EQ chips. This setup is pretty unique, as the AK4191EQ chips reduce the noise in the signal, and then it’s passed to the DACs to be converted. The results are a much cleaner sound.
There’s also a new Smart Gain feature. When you plug in a pair of headphones, the device will automatically identify the impedance and adjust the AMP to accommodate. So, when you plug in headphones 32Ω or lower, the device will switch to Normal Gain mode and push a maximum of 5.5Vrms. However, if you plug in headphones with a higher impedance, it will switch to High Gain mode and push a maximum of 8.3Vrms.
Dock
This is probably the most notable device of this pair. When you set the Astell & Kern PS10 in the home dock, you’ll be able to use it as a hub for your home audio. The dock has a USB port and XLR ports that you can use to output the signal to your home audio system. The dock will also charge the device.
Specs
- Display: 6-inch Full HD (1080×2160) touch screen
- Battery: 5,770mAh
- Codecs: aptX HD, LHDC and LDAC™
- Wireless signals: dual-band 2.4/5Ghz a/b/g/n/ac Wi-Fi
- Storage: 256GB (2TB through MicroSD card)
- Bluetooth version: 5.3
- Max audio quality: 32-bit/768kHz
- Output: USB-C
So, if you’re looking for a versatile and high-quality audio player, then you’d want to consider getting the Astell & Kern PS10. It costs a hefty $2,500, and it will come out in May.
