D
PERSONAL POWER
You might think the dedicated mp3 player is as dead as chewed-up cassette
tapes and misread MiniDiscs, but hi-res audio has given it an adrenaline shot
ASTELL & KERN SR25
Key specs
O 2x Cirrus Logic CS43198
32-bit DACs O Wi-Fi, LDAC
Bluetooth, aptX, MQA,
USB-C O Up to 21hrs
O 109x63x15mm, 178gSTUFF SAYS The twisted screen isn’t for everyone but it’s obvious A&K is ahead of the competition +++++
£649 / stuff.tv/SR25
AUDIO GUIDE
Digit-all
The SR25 supports
native DSD256 and
32-bit/384kHz audio,
which is surely more
nerdiness than you’ll
ever need.o not adjust your
Stuff. We don’t know
why Astell & Kern
continues to employ wonky
displays on its portable music
players, but at least you won’t
mistake this new entry-level
model for a Walkman or
someone else’s phone.
Geometrics aside, the
SR25 is a slab of aluminium
gorgeousness, with that
skewed 3.6in HD screen
flanked by an oversize volume
wheel, 3.5mm and 2.5mm
headphone ports providing
superior stereo separation
compared to USB-C, and
a microSD slot to boost the
64GB of internal storage.
So far so similar to more
affordable rivals, but swoop
into the specs and the extra
outlay begins to become
clear: native playback for
all hi-res audio files, two
Cirrus Logic CS43198 DACs
supported by a quad-core
CPU, newly designed circuitry
to improve sound quality and,
in a first for an A&K player,
LDAC Bluetooth support so
you can wirelessly stream to
compatible devices in 24-bit
hi-res too. Those with a hi-res
music library can also takeadvantage of a performance
mode that automatically
adapts the player’s allocated
memory to the data size of
a track, to stop audio getting
lost in the transmission
process. It’s the seemingly
small things that go the extra
mile here.
An Android 9 operating
system makes light work
of uploading tracks – unless
you’re using a Mac, when it’s
a faff – but the outcome is you
get to cut iTunes loose, which
has to be a victory.
Going hi-res is all about
capturing intricacies in themusic, and once paired with
good headphones the SR25
delivers in abundance. It
doubles as a decent dedicated
streamer to wireless speakers
too – leaving you safe in the
knowledge that those thrilling
Daniel O’Donnell crescendos
won’t be interrupted by
WhatsApp notification bleeps.