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Branching out from its portable hi-res players, Astell&Kern has unveiled its new ACRO desktop audio series with the introduction of the ACRO L1000 headphone amplifier/DAC. Featuring two AK4490chips, the ACRO L1000 can playback PCM files up to 32-bit/384kHz with no downsampling and supportsnative DSD up DSD256 without conversion. Crafted in aluminium and designed to sit at a 30° angle for ease of use, it incorporates a balanced XLR jack and speaker binding posts offering a claimed maximum output of up to 15W per channel at 4ohm. Meanwhile 2.

New ‘buds from South Korea

Meet the latest A&norma addition

Limited edition audio player from A&K

What better way to mark the 70th birthday of your company’s founder than to launch a luxury edition of a timeless favourite loudspeaker? That’s precisely what ATC has done in honour of founder and managing director Billy Woodman. Taking the classic design ofthe SCM10 mini monitor from the nineties, the new SCM10SE comes with a lustrous blue piano finish, with silver detailing and a fine-grain blue leather baffle. The original SCM10’s soft dome tweeter has been updated with the recently developed SH25-76S ‘S-spec’ 25mm dual-suspension design alongside the SB45-1255C 125mm mid/bass unit with integral soft dome. In turn the crossover has been reworked for the new unitsusing ATC’s hand-wound air-cored inductors and polypropylene capacitors throughout.

Atlas Cables has announced the release of its new updated Ascent Ultra interconnect and Ascent XLR cable. Hand-built at its factory in Kilmarnock, the Ascent Ultra uses a fluorinated ethylene propylene (FEP), which is extruded around the bare OCC copper conductors. This process, says Atlas, allows the required geometry of the conductor within the dielectric to be maintained and offers greater manufacturing consistency and wider bandwidth. The Ultra Plug has a claimed 57 percent reduction in mass over its predecessor and includes solder-free construction, self-cleaning insertion and material consistency that helps, says Atlas, to deliver the best fidelity.

New power distribution block and balanced digital audio cable from Scotland