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.
Sorry, no clue what those descriptions mean. |
Glad you are loving your A30! All the filter and phase settings can be changed from the Conductor App, so it is very easy to do A-B comparisons from your listening position. They are in the Settings>Advanced2 menu. I have settled on the following settings, but your preference might be totally different due to system, room, or hearing differences.
You can also choose to upsample. This could be a benefit if you listen to a lot of CD quality files. I haven’t detected any negatives from Aurender’s upsampling algorithm, therefore I leave it at 768 kHz. Keep in mind the settings can be dependent on each other. I think part of the reason I prefer the Super Slow Rolloff 1 digital filter is I primarily listen to high res files and enable the 768 kHz upsampling. The phase + or - setting is not in the settings menu. Instead it is associated with the volume control on the main Conductor screen for quick/easy access. On my iPhone it is on the volume control screen. On my iPad I need to slide the browse pane to the right to uncover it. According to Aurender’s user guide “The "PH+/-" button will invert the phase to correct for out of phase recordings or wiring.” Not all equipment is designed to preserve absolute polarity at inputs and outputs. Phase - swaps the plus and minus analog output signal (“inverts” the phase). I have noticed an audible difference with my system, with the preferred setting typically presenting better focus and more ease. I also leave Critical Listening Mode Enabled as I think it gives a bit more transparency. I also turn off the front display since nothing of value shows with critical listening mode engaged. Above all don’t worry, and enjoy the music! Hope this helps. Happy New Year to you, and to everyone on Audiogon! |
@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! |
@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 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. |
It looks to have everything you would need. How much is it? It uses a lot of separate power supply's, a Teac transport for ripping and a excellent Western Digital Purple 10TB HD. I believe it also has the latest AK DAC. If the price is right I would go for it. The build quality is very high and the Conductor software is one of the best out there. |
