Read the full review: Astell & Kern A&futura SE180

With built-in wi-fi as well as direct access to streaming service apps in its menu, the SE180 doesn’t make hard work of your music however you'd like to play it. Whether you consider the modular design valuable or not, even straight from the box, the SE180 is one of the best performance-per-pound offerings in the company’s line-up. It supports 32-bit/384kHz PCM, native DSD256 and MQA audio and has 2.5mm, 3.5mm and 4.4mm outputs to cater for a wide range of headphones.

After all, the SE180 is an all-in-one player in itself, with the default module containing the ESS ES9038PRO DAC. Of course, these can be considered optional extras experimental paths that can be taken or completely ignored. The concept: Astell & Kern releases a series of DAC modules, all with different sonic characters, so that owners can purchase them and swap them in over the standard supplied module, if they so wish.

To personally tailor your sound, the SE180 goes one step further than the slightly older SE200 (which has two user-selectable DAC configurations built into the player) in that it features an interchangeable DAC module design. The new SE180 is the third model in Astell & Kern’s near-flagship A&futura range, following the inaugural SE100 and SE200, both of which gained Awards from this very publication in 20 respectively (and are listed below). How about a customisable PMP with interchangeable DAC modules? That's the idea here – and we liked it so much, we gave it a What Hi-Fi? 2021 Award. It’s important to note that wi-fi streaming is still off the menu – so you will have to go without on-the-go streaming from Tidal, Deezer and others – but if you have the files and like the idea of pairing your portable music player either to a wireless speaker or pair of headphones for one of the smallest wireless systems you’ve seen, there’s no better shout currently on the market for the money. This is a talented player that's sonically similar in character to its older siblings, but there are small upgrades here in terms of rhythm, timing, detail and musicality. There is support for 24-bit/192kHz WAV, FLAC, ALAC, AIFF and DSD128 file compatibility too – and that support is native, so DSD files aren’t converted to PCM during playback. The D3 boasts a seriously impressive battery life of up to 45 hours if you’re playing MP3 files, or a solid 30 hours when listening to hi-res files at 'normal' volume. The cracking new volume dial on the top right of the player feels like an homage to far pricier Astell & Kern players (several of which are listed below) and makes this little machine feel much more expensive than it is. Now into its third iteration, Cowon has added Bluetooth, a volume wheel and a dual DAC to its 2021-issue bijou matchbox-sized player – and produced a What Hi-Fi? 2021 Award-winner.

Best portable audio player 2018