ASTELL&KERN KANN ALPHA

Astell&Kern has released the third model in its Kann line of portable digital audio players. As with the previous models, the new Kann Alpha’s headphone amplifier is able drive any headphones. Users can select between low, mid and high gain modes to provide the precise power required, which is delivered via a 2.5mm unbalanced or 4.4mm balanced output.

“The Kann Alpha is the first Astell&Kern player to feature a 4.4mm Pentaconn headphone jack,” said George Poutakidis of BusiSoft AV, which distributes Astell&Kern in Australia. “Users now have more options of headphones and IEMs without worrying about the need for adapters, and in another first for Astell&Kern players, the Alpha features Bluetooth 5.0 which has faster transmission speed and greater range than Bluetooth 4.2. It also supports both LDAC and aptX HD.”

Features on the Kann Alpha include a 125mm HD touchscreen, 64GB of internal memory, support for microSD cards, Wi-Fi, DLNA networking, USB digital audio output, USB-C for data transfer and fast-charge support, and the ability to use KANN ALPHA as a USB DAC. Battery life is claimed as 14.5 hours.

The Kann Alpha supports up to 32bit/384kHz PCM and DSD256 playback. LED lighting indicates format playback information. MQA hardware rendering is built in to support MQA 8x rendering. MQA-CD playback possible if you connect an AC CD-Ripper and play back MQA-CDs. The Alpha also supports Android APK support, allowing users to install additional music streaming services to their player by simply copying and installing the corresponding APK file.

Available now, the Astell&Kern Kann Alpha sells for $1,699 (RRP).

For more information, contact BusiSoft on (03) 9810 2900 or visit www.busisoft.com.au