Could the new Audender A30 be "the one" for a simple system?
If this replaces & consolidates the preamp, DAC, headphone amp, CD player/ripper and streamer, all you’d need is your amp and a phonostage. You’d save money in theory, even though this is $18k. I’d buy one! #NeedLottoMoney.
Of course there are other choices, and many people would not want to consolidate their DAC and preamp and prefer separates.
This would be a simple system: A30, amp and speakers (if you’re not a vinyl person). Robert Harley has extolled the wonders of the Aurender Conductor app for managing one’s digital music. I look forward to the reviews, especially of the DAC and headphone amp sections.
A30 is the flagship model from Aurender’s range of analog output digital music players. Like A10 and A100, A30 is, at its essence, a caching music server / streamer & DAC with internal storage and control via Aurender Conductor. The Aurender A30 also includes full MQA Decoder technology which enables you to play back full-resolution MQA audio files and streams, delivering the highest possible sound quality of the original master recording. What distinguishes A30 from the others is the pure audio performance and exhaustive feature set. Aurender have designed A30 to be the comprehensive digital focal point of your system providing useful aides not usually associated with a typical music server. Functions like CD ripping, a high-quality headphone amplifier, 10TB of internal storage, ultra-wide color LCD display and an integrated software suite of metadata editing and library management tools. All this, and much more, makes the A30 the new performance standard in all-in-one digital source components.
@wjt3 The ACS10 would not be comparable because it is designed as a music ripper and library, not a hi-rez streamer, although it can stream. The N20 would probably be at a similar level to the A20 and A30 except that the N20 can use different DACs. If this is not important to you and don't want to spend money on ICs and PCs and Digital ICs then the A20 or A30 would be excellent choices. |
@wjt3 I'm sure the A20 and A30 are excellent and if you're not a tweaker that's they way to go. I run an Aurender N20 into a Musetec 005 DAC with superb results. This DAC is made in China but most of the parts are high quality imported from Europe. It's about $3.200 last time I looked but they have specials. I prefer the N20 because it has a master clock input which you can add later. However I'm sure you'd get good results with a N20 and your PS Audio DS then you can decide if you want to change it later. As I said earlier if you want a one stop/buy and forget solution go for the A20 or A30. |
@wjt3 I have an A20. From a music playback perspective it is identical to the A30, just missing the CD ripper and the fancier headphone amp. I really like it. I have been comparing it to my N20 and a few other separate DACs, and it is neck and neck with my other favorite = N20 plus Tambaqui. The A20 has a few analog and digital filter settings that make an audible difference in the sound character, so try them in multiple combinations to see what you prefer. ICs also make a difference as well as phase + and - depending on the rest of your setup. Good luck! |
