[Onik]

Check your amp gain, even though astell&kern says it only works in low gain this is not the case. The gain settings affects the sound level dramatically. I use the device in high gain with my headphones because it sounds best to me but if I forget to switch it back to low gain it affects the line out playback which I also use frequently. I usually use line out in low gain 2v except in my car which likes .7v for whatever reason. In my kenworth tractor trailor which has a crappy stereo that does not play loud enough, I use mid gain and 1.25v to "force" it to play louder which actually works quite well and sounds better then it should. If you were to leave the amp in high gain and use line out I could see it overloading a lot of devices inputs.

You are 100% right! the bloody Amp was set to High, and I didn't know it affects the Line out.

I changed the Amp to Low and did a Stereo Chanel Test, yes the Distortion gone!

Lucky me if I didn't see this reply, I would be sending this dap back to A&K for repair LOL

Now I'm positive that there's nothing wrong with my KA.

A&K didn't mention this, I think even they didn't know cus they are not smart enough LOL

Huge Thanks m8

 

[Tomm11]

Out of curiosity, I just tried line out for the first time. Set for 2 volts (unbalanced), 3.5mm out direct into my Quicksilver Headphone Amp. No distortion. Nice and clean signal.

At the bottom of the screen where you set the line out voltage there is a message that indicates that the gain should be set to low.

Not quite sure why the gain for the KA internal amp needs to be set to low but whatever the reason, it worked fine with the KA set to low gain. I didn't try mid or high gain.

 

[MikeW9788]

Out of curiosity, I just tried line out for the first time. Set for 2 volts (unbalanced), 3.5mm out direct into my Quicksilver Headphone Amp. No distortion. Nice and clean signal.

At the bottom of the screen where you set the line out voltage there is a message that indicates that the gain should be set to low.

Not quite sure why the gain for the KA internal amp needs to be set to low but whatever the reason, it worked fine with the KA set to low gain. I didn't try mid or high gain.

It doesn't say it needs to be set to low, it says it only works in low which is incorrect. Line out mode is intended to be used in low gain only. I have found in certain circumstances like the crappy stereo in my truck I can get a little more volume if I run it in mid gain and at 1.25v. I think for any kind of normal application I would leave it in low gain so you don't overload the imput but you can always experiment and find what sounds best for your application. From my research I think 2v is pretty standard output for many audio devices so I run 2v in low gain for my home system. Although 1.25 in low gain also sounds good. In my car I use line out quite a bit but use .7v low gain and that matches the level of a cd. Im not sure if the car imput is more sensitive but .7v is definitly best in that setting. It's definitely something you can mess with and find what sounds best for your particular setup. Of course it is not straight foward.

 

[Tomm11]

Understood. But I didn't state that it needed to be set to low. I wrote that the message "indicates that the gain should be set to low".

What the message states exactly is "Line Out is supported when the amplifier is set to low gain"

I assume that the listed voltages are accurate when the amplifier is set to low gain.

Of course, season to taste ...

 

[Onik]

Received email response from A&K support regarding DAC mode, and it dont make any sense.

 

[klyaksa]

Received email response from A&K support regarding DAC mode, and it dont make any sense.

In principle, I thought so. If AK wanted to fix it, they would. But as usual, they will consider it unimportant, such as fast switching of the gain level or self-discharge of the battery in standby mode. Very disappointing.

 

[v3kt0r]

After 5 months of use I more love it than hate only because sound but I think it's not worth msrp. I really hope AK or someone else can help me here.

• I hope there was bi-directional Bluetooth LDAC which is a standard now. Sometimes want to connect it to TV to watch movie in headphones or to a laptop and have to use cable all the time.
• Hope they really update firmware more often and make our life easier with gain control on quick panel for quicker access (still no update sine I got it this summer)
• Hope it wasn't discharging when used as PC DAC. This is really annoying. You listen to it for all day during work and at night when you about to travel home the battery is empty. No matter if I use original cable or 3rd party, 2.4A/5V or regular usb port.

Will appreciate if anyone can give me some hint. If no bi-directional Bluetooth LDAC at least allow it to charge when it's used as a cable DAC, otherwise you leave us no choice

 

[klyaksa]

After 5 months of use I more love it than hate only because sound but I think it's not worth msrp. I really hope AK or someone else can help me here.

• I hope there was bi-directional Bluetooth LDAC which is a standard now. Sometimes want to connect it to TV to watch movie in headphones or to a laptop and have to use cable all the time.
• Hope they really update firmware more often and make our life easier with gain control on quick panel for quicker access (still no update sine I got it this summer)
• Hope it wasn't discharging when used as PC DAC. This is really annoying. You listen to it for all day during work and at night when you about to travel home the battery is empty. No matter if I use original cable or 3rd party, 2.4A/5V or regular usb port.

Will appreciate if anyone can give me some hint

I agree with all of the above, and there is still a lot.

 

[morndewey]

Hi. Does anyone know if Ear Studio app can be loaded to function on Alpha? Thanks

 

[newworld666]

Hi. Does anyone know if Ear Studio app can be loaded to function on Alpha? Thanks

Almost no apps can work on Kann Alpha !!
A very few can be installed, and mostly with limited functions.

 

[klyaksa]

Hi. Does anyone know if Ear Studio app can be loaded to function on Alpha? Thanks

see the allowed applications, but in my opinion there is no such thing

 

[newworld666]

After just one year of trying to use the Kann Alpha ... I could switch to what I was looking for last year => high end open DAP with an integrated powerful amp able to move properly planars or amt headphones..... FIIO did what I was dreaming for with the brand new M17 !!!
I am happy to quit the Kann Alpha which was a real pain to use for most streaming features.

 

[klyaksa]

After just one year of trying to use the Kann Alpha ... I could switch to what I was looking for last year => high end open DAP with an integrated powerful amp able to move properly planars or amt headphones..... FIIO did what I was dreaming for with the brand new M17 !!!
I am happy to quit the Kann Alpha which was a real pain to use for most streaming features.

The only question is, what is the sound of the m17, because Alpha is a cool sound

 

[Onik]

After just one year of trying to use the Kann Alpha ... I could switch to what I was looking for last year => high end open DAP with an integrated powerful amp able to move properly planars or amt headphones..... FIIO did what I was dreaming for with the brand new M17 !!!
I am happy to quit the Kann Alpha which was a real pain to use for most streaming features.

Fiio M17 looks promising.

 

[klyaksa]

Fiio M17 looks promising.

Obviously for the house. Huge.