Are you the form of music listener who’ll fortunately pay extra for a set of earphones than you’ll on a pleasant laptop? If that’s the case, Sony has the MP3 gamers for you. The corporate has launched two ultra-high-end Walkman MP3 gamers aimed squarely at audiophiles. The headliner, the $3,700 NW-WM1ZM2 (pictured at left), mates an S-Grasp HX digital amp with “fine-tuned” capacitors, thick Kimber Kable (to hyperlink the amp to the headphone jack) and a 99.99 p.c pure gold-plated, oxygen-free copper chassis — all of which supposedly contribute to “clear, expansive” output. Even the reflow soldering contains gold that purportedly boosts sound localization and widens the sound stage.
You can even count on extra sensible enhancements from the Android-based participant, together with a bigger five-inch (and eventually 720p) show, a bigger energy provide and an improved upscaling algorithm for CD-quality (16-bit, 44/48kHz) audio. You will get 256GB of expandable storage on your tunes, WiFi streaming, a USB-C port and 40 hours of battery life when enjoying 96kHz FLAC audio. The ZM2 helps as much as 32-bit, 384kHz audio in codecs like MQA and WAV, so that you’re extra prone to be restricted by your supply materials than your {hardware}.
Don’t be concerned if that feels extreme, as there’s additionally a lower-cost mannequin… comparatively talking. The $1,400 NW-WM1AM2 (proven at proper) presents a lot of the core performance of the ZM2, however in an aluminum alloy physique with ‘simply’ a low-resistance oxygen-free copper cable. You will additionally need to make do with 128GB of expandable area.
Each Walkman fashions can be found now. As with many units geared toward audiophiles, there is a query of whether or not or not the unique parts and supplies will likely be noticeable in your listening expertise. Furthermore, you are restricted by the bottom frequent denominator in your setup. Even in the event you hearken to songs that may make the most of the design (Apple Music’s 24-bit, 192kHz hi-res lossless instantly appears modest), you will have to search out headphones or audio system which might be as much as the job. Each gamers are primarily geared toward rich music followers decided to maximise audio constancy, even when they may not hear the distinction.
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