Astell&Kern SA700 High-resolution portable music player with Wi-Fi® and Bluetooth® (Vegas Gold)

Features
Specifications

Features

Overview: The Astell&Kern SA700 (PPM51) portable high-resolution music player delivers true audiophile quality playback. The SA700 is based on the original design of the AK120, a first generation Astell&Kern portable digital audio player, but with updated technology. It features dual DACs (digital-to-audio converters) with balanced and unbalanced analog outputs. It has a large internal memory and a slot for high-capacity microSD cards to let you store thousands of high-resolution music files. The SA700 has a 4.1" HD touchscreen display, plus built-in Wi-Fi and Bluetooth with Qualcomm aptX HD.

Design and Construction: The Astell&Kern SA700 is constructed of durable stainless steel. The rotary volume knob on the right side features a unique LED indicator ring. The ring illuminates in a color to reflect the bit depth of the currently playing song: red (16-bit), green (24-bit), blue (32-bit), or purple (DSD). The SA700 is approximately 2-5/8" (w) x 4-9/16" (h) x 11/16" (d), and weighs 10.68 ounces.

Digital Storage: The SA700 has a 128 GB internal memory. It also has a microSD card slot to let you add even more memory. The unit will accept microSD cards up to 1 TB.

Dual DACs: The SA700 is equipped with two Asahi Kasei AK4492ECB DACs that support native playback of 32-bit/384 kHz PCM and DSD256 without downsampling. The SA700 provides rich and vivid audio reproduction, allowing you to enjoy the music as it was meant to be heard.

Compatible Audio Files: The SA700 supports the following audio file formats - WAV, FLAC, WMA, MP3, OGG, APE, AAC, ALAC, AIFF, DFF, DSF, & MQA.

• PCM Sample Rate: It supports 8kHz - 384kHz (8/16/24/32 bits per sample)
• DSD Native: DSD64 (1-bit/2.8MHz - Stereo), DSD128 (1-bit/5.6MHz - Stereo), and DSD256 (1-bit/11.2MHz - Stereo)
• MQA: 44-384kHz (16/24-bit)

MQA (Mastering Quality Audio): The Astell&Kern SA700 natively supports MQA, which is the closest quality to the original sound intended by a recording artist. Mastering Quality Audio (MQA) is an acronym of collective lossless & high-resolution audio source formats that typically come encoded with 24-bit, 44-192kHz of bit/sampling rates. Since MQA delivers about 6.5x more detail than a conventional CD (16bit/44.1kHz), listeners can enjoy a more realistic music experience. You will need to download the MQS Streaming Server to your computer (32 and 64-bit versions of Windows 7, 8, 10; Mac OS X 10.7 Lion or later).

20-band Parametric EQ: The SA700 features a parametric EQ to allow you to make detailed adjustments in the original sound to suit your tastes. The device has a 20-band EQ with ±5.0dB gain adjustments in 0.1dB increments. The EQ frequency bands include: 30Hz, 45Hz, 60Hz, 90Hz, 120Hz, 180Hz, 250Hz, 380Hz, 500Hz, 750Hz, 1kHz, 1.5kHz, 2kHz, 3kHz, 4kHz, 6kHz, 8kHz, 12kHz, 14kHz, and 18kHz. You can adjust the gain from -5dB to +5dB in 0.1dB increments, and the Q from 2.0dB to 4.0dB in 0.1dB increments. You can create, name, and save up to 20 User EQ presets.

USB DAC: You can use the SA700 as an external USB DAC which supports Native DSD playback. With the Dual DACs and the exclusive DSD chip, the SA700 delivers much better sounding audio than your computer's built-in sound card. Connect the unit via USB from your computer and listen to your stored digital music with headphones, powered speakers, or home stereo. Volume is controlled using the device's rotary knob. The USB DAC is compatible with the following computer operating systems and audio formats.

• Computer OS: Windows XP, 7, 8, 10 (32-/64-bit versions) and Mac OS X 10.7 (Lion)-up.
• Audio Formats: PCM (8-384 kHz (8/16/24/32-bit) and DSD (2.8/5.6/11.2 MHz).

Balanced/Unbalanced Outputs: The Astell&Kern SA700 offers both balanced (L+/L-/R+/R-) and unbalanced outputs (L+/R+/GND). Balanced outputs have an additional "cold" signal to compliment the hot signal, which reduces external noise and increases output. The balanced output is a 4-conductor 2.5mm port (1 ohm) on the top of the device. The unbalanced output is a 3.5mm analog stereo output.

User Interface: The Astell&Kern SA700's user interface provides a simple, minimalist menu design and structure, allowing users to access features and functions quickly and easily. The user interface makes it easy to find and select your music files, change the volume (0 to 150), and adjust the sound. The high-definition 4.1" touchscreen display (720 x 1280 pixels) makes your song and player information easy to read on the larger, brighter screen. In addition, the player has a rotary volume wheel with a click response as you raise or lower the volume.

USB-C: The SA700 has a USB-C port on the bottom of the unit for connecting the unit to your computer for downloading music files and for charging the battery. USB Type-C support allows faster file transfer speeds and supports both data transfer and charging from the same cable. USB 3.0 protocol transfers data twice as fast when compared to non-USB-C players. The SA700 is compatible with Windows 7, 8, and 10 (32 and 64-bit), as well as Mac OS X 10.7 (Lion) or later.

Wi-Fi: The SA700 features built-in Wi-Fi (802.11 b/g/n - 2.4 GHz), allowing you to connect the device and your computer to the same network for streaming and downloading music.

Bluetooth w/ aptX HD: The SA700 also has built-in Bluetooth V4.2 with A2DP/AVRCP support for connecting a Bluetooth device to listen to music wirelessly. Qualcomm's aptX HD allows audio to be wirelessly streamed in significantly higher quality than over standard Bluetooth. The aptX HD codec supports 24-bit music quality over Bluetooth, so you'll hear fine details in your music, with more extensive dynamic range, deeper bass, and crystal-clear top end.

Rechargeable Battery: The SA700 is equipped with a built-in rechargeable Lithium-Polymer battery (3150mAh / 3.7V). The battery charges in approximately 4.5 hours via USB-C (with a 5V / 2A charging adapter). It is not compatible with 9V or 12V fast charging adapters. No charging device is included with the product. A fully charged battery can provide up to approximately 8.5 hours of continuous playback time (based on FLAC, 16-bit, 44.1 kHz, Unbalanced, Volume 80, EQ Off, LCD off).

Protective Film: The unit includes a protective film to keep the touchscreen and the rear panel scratch-free. Two sets of the protective film are included for the front and the back.

Specifications