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Astell & Kern Junior (AK Jr.) Impressions Thread
Jun 19, 2015 at 2:10 AM Post #526 of 3,321
My biggest issue with the interface would probably be the scrolling through lists by swiping. It just feels so stutter-y and not.. smooth. Thankfully, I've gotten used to dragging the scroll bar up and down instead of having to swipe.
 
Jun 19, 2015 at 6:28 AM Post #527 of 3,321

Also very disappointed with the UI and have contacted the store where I bought mine about a return and they are working with the AK rep to try and resolve my issues with the Jr. I like the form factor and light weight and sound of the unit but am very disappointed with the buggy UI. At this price point it is just plain unacceptable, particularly when their more expensive products work very well. If I don't get my UI issues sorted out soon, I will return mine for a refund and will probably have to take it in the shorts for the shipping charges (approx.AU$100.00), not an insignificant amount. This is almost what I paid for my FiiO X1 which works just fine. Why the hell can't a $500.00 DAP work properly!!!!!???? A&K are you listening? A piss poor show by A&K.
 
Jun 19, 2015 at 7:55 PM Post #528 of 3,321
swannie007 said:
 
Also very disappointed with the UI and have contacted the store where I bought mine about a return and they are working with the AK rep to try and resolve my issues with the Jr. I like the form factor and light weight and sound of the unit but am very disappointed with the buggy UI. At this price point it is just plain unacceptable, particularly when their more expensive products work very well. If I don't get my UI issues sorted out soon, I will return mine for a refund and will probably have to take it in the shorts for the shipping charges (approx.AU$100.00), not an insignificant amount. This is almost what I paid for my FiiO X1 which works just fine. Why the hell can't a $500.00 DAP work properly!!!!!???? A&K are you listening? A piss poor show by A&K.
Click to expand...

Why don't you ask for a completely new unit? Maybe you just got a lemon.
 
Jun 19, 2015 at 8:32 PM Post #532 of 3,321
dbdynsty25 said:
   
Seeing as how he's not the only one that finds the UI crappy, I doubt it's a lemon.  Sad as it may be.
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Well, I find the Jr. UI a bit snappier then my old AK120 but that's just me. I kind of expected the slight lag when navigating to the other screens and the semi smooth scroll when swiping down and up through my album list. I don't know, maybe its just because I've become used to it. 
 
Jun 19, 2015 at 8:34 PM Post #533 of 3,321
dbdynsty25 said:
   
Yes.  Works fine.
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Good to know I'm not the only one who was surprised when I threw in my 128 GB card. anyone know why AK rates the Jr. as only 64 GB compliant?
 
Jun 19, 2015 at 8:48 PM Post #534 of 3,321
digitalfreak said:
  Quick question guys, has anyone tried using a 128 GB Micro SD card with this player yet?
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200GB Sandisk works, as well. I only tried FAT32 format in the AK Jr, but 200GB exFAT works in the AK240 & AK120 II.
 
Jun 19, 2015 at 9:18 PM Post #535 of 3,321
digitalfreak said:
  Good to know I'm not the only one who was surprised when I threw in my 128 GB card. anyone know why AK rates the Jr. as only 64 GB compliant?
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Actually, if you look at the back of the Jr. box, down towards the bottom left corner, under device specifications, it specifically states that the MicroSD card supports a MAX of 32GB.
 
At least, that's what it says on my box.
 
I assume it's a technicality. They probably have to perform a series of Q/A and regression testing on any new capacity, just to make sure there aren't any unforeseen glitches. And I imagine AK would probably prefer to just save the money and tell people that 64GB is the max. That way, if there are any unforeseen problems, they can brush off any customer complaints.
 
But then again, I'm horribly jaded, so...take that theory for what it's worth.
 
Jun 20, 2015 at 1:52 AM Post #536 of 3,321
I don't think the UI is crappy at all... It is a music player, not a high power Android phone or an iPhone.  
wink.gif

 
Here's a quick video I did tonight to give everyone some perspective on the UI and its responsiveness.
 
 
 
Jun 20, 2015 at 1:58 AM Post #537 of 3,321
I agree, it isn't the most polished software as it probably wasn't worked on by a huge team of people like Android or iOS. It is a little slow, especially if you're comparing it to Android/iOS, but it's definitely usable. IMO, describing it as 'crappy' or 'unusable' is a little exaggerated. But I guess that's just what happens when people had really high expectations. 
 
Jun 20, 2015 at 2:52 AM Post #538 of 3,321
hifiguy528 said:
  I don't think the UI is crappy at all... It is a music player, not a high power Android phone or an iPhone.  
wink.gif

 
Here's a quick video I did tonight to give everyone some perspective on the UI and its responsiveness.
 
 
Click to expand...


 
Hey Mike, turn on the Pro EQ setting, you're missing out. Also, if you run your finger along the slider located underneath the album art on the now playing screen you can quickly FF to another part of the song.
 
Jun 20, 2015 at 3:04 AM Post #539 of 3,321
dbdynsty25 said:
   
Seeing as how he's not the only one that finds the UI crappy, I doubt it's a lemon.  Sad as it may be.
Click to expand...


I agree with this sentiment, I doubt it is a lemon as others are experiencing similar problems with the UI. I love the size,etc of this unit as well as the sound but the UI is unacceptable in it's current form. Why is it that DAP's costing far less than this have UI's that work and this one is buggy?
I have reported my problems to the retailer where I purchased my unit and he has passed this along to his A&K rep and the response I got was that it is probably a problem with iTunes if I am using it to load my unit.???What! I use iTunes in ALAC and AAC formats to drag and drop load my other DAP's with no problem. Perhaps others can chime in on this one as I would be curious to see if anyone else has problems loading their Jr from iTunes.
Also, I was given a link to the owners manual to read(link does not work) and try to solve my problem. If this is A&K's idea of customer service then all I can say is that it is dismissive and insulting! I bough an expensive(to me) product with the full expectation that it would perform as advertised, or at least as well as less expensive units, and have good customer service if I encountered a problem. Well, I have encountered a problem and the solution so far appears to be to blame iTunes and tell me to read the manual! This is unacceptable and I have let the retailer know this, it is not their problem that the unit has problems, and they have been very responsive so far and have assured me they will not leave me with a faulty product. My concern at this stage is that A&K don't seem to be responsive to this problem and seem to be brushing it off and if I choose to return the unit and get a refund, I may have to eat the postage costs and they are quite a bit to and from Australia(approx.AU$100.00) which could go some way to the purchase cost of another DAP. This is an unfortunate situation and I am quite pissed that I may be out of pocket due to being supplied with a faulty product, therefore I am doing my best to get this situation rectified without shipping the unit back for a refund,however,early indications are that A&K just don't seem to give a **** and have released a product to market before working out all the bugs and are using their customers as an R&D department to work out the bugs. Sheesh, I should have listened to that little voice that said I should pass on this one until it has some history in the marketplace but it's just so damn pretty!
Oh well, I am ever hopeful that these issues will be resolved. I will report back on further developments. Cheers. 
 
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