[Saraugie]

I think AK is heading towards the route of Bose / B&O. AK380 sounds okay-ish, but is it better than the 240? To my ears the Hugo definitely still stands head and toes above the AK380. This quoted post (and the post quoted by it) seemed to suggest that the difference lies in build quality etc - which is totally fine - as we know, B&O / Bose both have their loyal customers, who think that they are on the top of the audiophile world once they get either brand. I see lots of similarities here. 

Let's not forget that a Hugo and a AK DAP are NOT the same type of gears. Apples to Oranges. A Hugo without a source does not make any sound.

 

[Audiowood]

I agree with this. On the 380 vs. 240 the most obvious is the screen size. Also, the screen tone is very different, more in the yellows for the 240. The ability to use the ecosystem is the second thing. It is useless for me, because I care little about the CD player and do not use external amps for iems. But it might matter to others. I would still say the small difference in SQ is there, less obvious than with a Hugo for instance.

To be totally honest, I am not sure which of these DAPs I could differentiate in a blind test.

 
You're the man!  Finally someone provided a scale to the diff between 240 and 380. This kind of reference is what i am looking for.. Thanks alot my friend!

 

[Mimouille]

You're the man!  Finally someone provided a scale to the diff between 240 and 380. This kind of reference is what i am looking for.. Thanks alot my friend!

Thanks, keep in mind that other people will tell you the difference is very significant, signature wise (more natural) and quality wise (at this level any hearable difference is something. But not that much to me. Might still buy it but not at 3500$.

 

[jlbrach]

you can buy a well cared for 240 for 1500-1700 dollars which is what i did.I cannot imagine paying an additional 2000 dollars for what the 380 offers....

 

[Audiowood]

If its less than Hugo, it pretty subtle in my books... but could meant significant changes to some. I will stay on with Ak240 for now, maybe I will buy when it comes down to $2400-$2800. I will buy it more for the looks and faster UI than the sound itself. I luv the bigger screen. Not interested in CD ripping or amp attached to it.

 

[purk]

  you can buy a well cared for 240 for 1500-1700 dollars which is what i did.I cannot imagine paying an additional 2000 dollars for what the 380 offers....

That is a great point given that you can buy two (2) used AK240 for the price of AK380 and still have $200 left for tunes.  A used AK240 price is justify IMO given that its storage size and build quality.  I have the ZX2 with 128GB and now need more storage.  I may have to buy the 200GB microSD card soon.

 

[coolmingli]

  you can buy a well cared for 240 for 1500-1700 dollars which is what i did.I cannot imagine paying an additional 2000 dollars for what the 380 offers....

not even, I am selling mine for $1400.

 

[AnakChan]

Well that was fast, there are 2nd hand AK380's for sale already (approx $3317) :-

http://www.fujiya-avic.jp/products/detail86493.html

 

[unknownguardian]

Well that was fast, there are 2nd hand AK380's for sale already (approx $3317) :-

http://www.fujiya-avic.jp/products/detail86493.html

which is rather close/similar to the discounted price of 410000yen during the potaken over the weekends.

i am more surprised by the 49500yen ak100ii (and it is gone as i am typing this).

 

[speedracer1]

Well I've had the AK 380 just about a week and I've got some amazing "reference amps" and audio gear to compare it with and listen too .  This is the some of gear I used:

1. Lampi Big7
2. Woo Audio WA5
3. Tubes of all different shapes and sizes
4. Cord Hugo
5. AK 240 
6. AK 380
7. JH Layla's
8. Sen HD-800
9. HE-1000's

 
My impressions are based on 30 years of being an audiophile and a musician not from someone that doesn't own any AK products and just wants to keep bashing them.
This is my preliminary comments as I'm currently breaking-in the amp.  I would like to get about 100 hours on it before making any final comments.  What I've noticed is:

• The AK-380 is developing a deeper richer more full body and more involving sound more towards the lines of a pro home audio system and sounding less and less like the AK-240.  Trust me these guys at AK know what the are doing.
• The AK-380 cannot drive the Senn's or the HE-1000 but neither can the AK-240
• The AK-380 has good battery life upwards of 7 hours maybe more just haven't exhausted the power
• The AK-380 is portable NOT transportable.  Less the amp as I don't have it either
• The AK-380 parametric equalizer is a welcome addition to the AK-380 and has further improved the sound of the Layla's! Thank you they now sound AMAZING!!!  
• The AK-380 parametric equalizer has a bug that AK needs to fix as it does not allow the eq settings to transfer to the Cord Hugo or any other optical device attached that is an amp!
• The AK-380 using the default (factory supplied PRO Eq) settings connected to the Cord Hugo is a better sounding device then the AK-240 with the default (factory supplied PRO Eq) settings connected to the Cord Hugo.
• Listen for yourself.  Give yourself the "proper time" to evaluate the equipment and maker sure you have "reference" materials to use and others systems to compare your results against. Maybe set up a mini-meet with your friends before making a decision to purchase any and all equipment.
• Sincerely your friend in audio -Speed 

 

[JLG12]

Sorry for my bad english 

 
I don't understand because for me for 150GB of music it take 30mn each time i turn on the AK380... Very long and very frustrating... i had already the same problem with my AK240 with various SD card.
With the AK380, It already takes like 10 minutes before the icon 'scanning media' appears on the screen.
My computer is a mac.
I use for the AK380 Sandisk ultra 200 gb micro sd formatted in FAT32 by AK380.
 
Organisation of music is important on the micro sd card?
 
How do you organise your micro sd card ? 
For me this is like that :
SD CARD MUSIC
  ARTIST1
      Album1
         Song1
      Album2
         Song1
  ARTIST2
      Album1
         Song1
      Album2
         Song1
...
Any ideas ?

 

[audionewbi]

You have dirty tags my friend, better clean them.

 

[Mimouille]

  Sorry for my bad english 

 
I don't understand because for me for 150GB of music it take 30mn each time i turn on the AK380... Very long and very frustrating... i had already the same problem with my AK240 with various SD card.
With the AK380, It already takes like 10 minutes before the icon 'scanning media' appears on the screen.
My computer is a mac.
I use for the AK380 Sandisk ultra 200 gb micro sd formatted in FAT32 by AK380.
 
Organisation of music is important on the micro sd card?
 
How do you organise your micro sd card ? 
For me this is like that :
SD CARD MUSIC
  ARTIST1
      Album1
         Song1
      Album2
         Song1
  ARTIST2
      Album1
         Song1
      Album2
         Song1
...
Any ideas ?

Use MP3 Tag and remove all the tags that are not something you use. You need 5 to 6 tags at most in general, and some tracks have 20 fields of crap (thanks itunes).

 

[rudi0504]

@rudi0504


What cable are you using for your MH335DW-SR? 

Hi

I use Wagnus Cable Diamond Dust Anaclasis with Venture Craft Trrs plug

 

[rudi0504]

Hi Rudi,

Congrats on your new AK380, this is a totally different level of enjoyment for this new Astell & Kern.

Especially on the new tuning sound signature.

Hi Chris

Thank you I am agree , AK 380 has special sound signature from AK House