Audiophiles have long looked down on digital music because the sound quality was significantly inferior for listeners with golden ears and distinguished tastes. The development of lossless file formats (such as FLAC) and cheap multi-gigabyte storage have made portable high-fidelity music a reality.
Right now, there are really only two major players in the high-end portable music space: Astell & Kern and Sony (where the Walkman brand is still present). We used earlier versions of each brand, but not current models. Astell & Kern Players start at $1,000 and are strictly for true enthusiasts.
If you’re the kind of person who has hard drives full of uncompressed music audio files – and who can hear the difference between that and relatively low-resolution MP3 and AAC files – then don’t hesitate to pair one of these readers. with the wired headphones of your choice.
Almost all streaming music services now offer lossless or high bitrate options; it’s almost every big player, from Tidal and Qobuz to Amazon and Apple. (Spotify HiFioddly enough, remains a no-show.)
If you like what you hear, consider upgrading to a Decent headphone DAC (it’s “digital-to-analog converter”) like the Dragonfly Audiofly Or iFi Audio Go and a serious pair of wired headphones. You’ll then have a solid audiophile option that’s ideal for the road, without the need for a standalone music player.
