For many, the name Astell & Kern is synonymous with premium portable music players. We consider many of the Korean brand's PMPs – including the A&norma SR35 and SP3000 – to be some of the best players on the market today, so our ears certainly pricked up when A&K announced that its latest model, the A&Ultima SP3000M, was "the world's finest portable music player". Bold words from a brand that, for the most part, has been able to walk the walk as well as talk the talk.
The A&Ultima SP3000M uses the same 'Hexa' audio circuit design pioneered in the five-star SP3000 model. This new model contains four AK4499EX DACs and two AK4191EQ chips for handling digital signals, with A&K promising "amazingly vivid sound" in the palm of your hand thanks to the player's circuitry design.
