[fish1050]

Whoo, OK, sorry, I missed the context.
Yeah, as has been said, if the price is close, send it back and wait. I just bought the A35, I knew the new model was coming, I don't think there is significant difference - except for the DAC feature, that is very nice! - but I paid $120 and for the difference I'm fine with the outgoing model.
Hopefully you make a good choice, and enjoy, because these Sony players are getting better and better.
Cheers!

Depends on how important AptX support is for you and I want to see if Sony has improved the boot time. The specs on the Sony sites indicate a quick charge feature but I can't find any mention of quick charge time as it says it is still 4 hours. I would imagine there will be a price drop on the A35 once the A45 is released so if the price drop is significant the A35 might still be a good choice if boot time is the same and you don't need AptX support.

 

[lostman]

The pricing seems odd. I see preorders for 16GB for around $200 and 64GB for around $400. I think 64GB includes some earphones (which I don't want!) and I don't see the earphone-less version anywhere. In any case that's a big premium for another 48GB! 16GB + microSD seems to be the way to go.

Also, this page mentions AptX HD and MQA:
https://www.phileweb.com/review/article/201709/27/2743.html

With only Google Translate I can't quite figure out what it says

Sony Japan page mentions LDAC and AptX but not AptX HD.

I think I'm going to get one of those. Looks sweet.

 

[fish1050]

The pricing seems odd. I see preorders for 16GB for around $200 and 64GB for around $400. I think 64GB includes some earphones (which I don't want!) and I don't see the earphone-less version anywhere. In any case that's a big premium for another 48GB! 16GB + microSD seems to be the way to go.

Also, this page mentions AptX HD and MQA:
https://www.phileweb.com/review/article/201709/27/2743.html

With only Google Translate I can't quite figure out what it says

Sony Japan page mentions LDAC and AptX but not AptX HD.

I think I'm going to get one of those. Looks sweet.

the Sony Asia site http://www.sony-asia.com/electronics/walkman/nw-a40-series/specifications shows the A47 version without the headphones. I think it depends on where you live as to what models will be available. The models with the iems have the HN added to the model number. Not sure how much cheaper the A47 model without the iems will be. As far as AptX goes I think the ZX300 has AptX HD and the A40 series has AptX at least according to the specs available from Sony.

 

[jeffhawke]

the Sony Asia site http://www.sony-asia.com/electronics/walkman/nw-a40-series/specifications shows the A47 version without the headphones. I think it depends on where you live as to what models will be available. The models with the iems have the HN added to the model number. Not sure how much cheaper the A47 model without the iems will be. As far as AptX goes I think the ZX300 has AptX HD and the A40 series has AptX at least according to the specs available from Sony.

Qualcomm showcases the A40 series (together with other products) in their AptX HD page: https://www.aptx.com/products?field_aptx_type_tid=483

 

[fish1050]

Qualcomm showcases the A40 series (together with other products) in their AptX HD page: https://www.aptx.com/products?field_aptx_type_tid=483

That is great news, I know AptX HD was confirmed on the ZX300 but I wasn't sure about the A40 series

 

[Vartanarsen]

Does that mean i should return my A35? I am withni the Crutchfield 60 day window

 

[fish1050]

I recently came into some money and I thought about treating myself to the ZX300 instead of getting the A45. But given that the A45 does apparently have AptX HD I can't see enough of a difference between the A45 and ZX300 to spend 2.5x more. Outside of having a balanced output which I don't need and an extra 20 mW per channel they both have all the same features I want.

While I am sure the ZX300 will sound better I can't believe there will be that much of a difference to justify the significant price difference. The phileweb review linked in an earlier post indicates a noticeable improvement in sound quality from the A35 which should further narrow the sound quality gap between the A45 and ZX300. The ZX300 has slightly more power using SE HO and offers balanced output, The A40 series offers much better battery life at 45 hours vs 30 hours for the ZX300 and a faster charge time of 4 hours vs 5.5 hours and costs about 2.5 X less. For me I will take 15 hours extra battery life over balanced HO (don't need) and 20 mW per channel extra power. I know from demoing the A35 that the A45 has more than enough power for my headphones.

As much as I would love to own a higher end DAP finally I just can't justify spending the money on the ZX300 when the A45 stacks up so well against it for the price. Heck I can buy an A45 and a Shanling M3S as a backup, a 200 GB microsd card and still have money left over vs buying the ZX300 at least based on sony.ca suggested pricing.

I haven't been this excited about a new toy in a very long time.

 

[fish1050]

Does that mean i should return my A35? I am withni the Crutchfield 60 day window

I definitely would as the A45 from details so far is a significant upgrade over the A35. Improved sound quality and more features for the same price as the A35

 

[tenedosian]

Depends on how important AptX support is for you and I want to see if Sony has improved the boot time. The specs on the Sony sites indicate a quick charge feature but I can't find any mention of quick charge time as it says it is still 4 hours. I would imagine there will be a price drop on the A35 once the A45 is released so if the price drop is significant the A35 might still be a good choice if boot time is the same and you don't need AptX support.

I almost all the time charge my past & present Walkman's (WM1A, WM1Z, ZX1, ZX2, ZX100, A16, A25, A35) matching wm-port cable with a travel adapter (of Samsung) for years.

Despite not being %100 sure that this is a most healthy choice for battery, charging WM1A fully over 3 to 4 hours is nice.

This option might deserve a look in case it is risk free.

 

[Vartanarsen]

ok, so Filed my Return to Crutchfield for a refund of $217, and Pre-Ordered the A45 from B& H for $218 (Which comes with free Sony buds--that the A35 did not come with)

I wonder what the Solder business is all about? looks like shinier metal? lol. Also what is MQA? just a Hi Res NOOB here...

 

[fish1050]

I almost all the time charge my past & present Walkman's (WM1A, WM1Z, ZX1, ZX2, ZX100, A16, A25, A35) matching wm-port cable with a travel adapter (of Samsung) for years.

Despite not being %100 sure that this is a most healthy choice for battery, charging WM1A fully over 3 to 4 hours is nice.

This option might deserve a look in case it is risk free.

I took another look at the information posted for the A40 series on sony.ca and it indicates that AptX HD support will come in a later firmware update. Perhaps it is the same with the Quick Charge feature and may be why Sony has not stated a Quick Charge time in the specs. Given Sony's great battery life for their DAP's I certainly don't have a problem waiting for 4 hours to charge my battery every 10 days or so. But still there are times when I am in a rush and need to charge my DAP so using Quick Charge periodically would be nice.

 

[fish1050]

So the A35 seems to have suffered a quick death in Canada. The only place you can find an A35 in stock is from Sony's online store. All the other dealers at least in Toronto either never got stock or are currently sold out. This may be one of the few times getting terribly late Sony DAP releases in Canada might be a good thing. Hopefully Sony will release the A45 here sooner given the absence of A35 stock for sale. Crossing my fingers.

 

[fish1050]

ok, so Filed my Return to Crutchfield for a refund of $217, and Pre-Ordered the A45 from B& H for $218 (Which comes with free Sony buds--that the A35 did not come with)

I wonder what the Solder business is all about? looks like shinier metal? lol. Also what is MQA? just a Hi Res NOOB here...

Is it confirmed you will get the earbuds as only Sony models with HN in the model number include the earbuds. I could be wrong but I thought only the A46 and A47 models would also be available as HN as an option to get the earbuds.

 

[Vartanarsen]

Hi Fish - here is the purchase page: https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1362077-REG/sony_nwa45_b_a45_digital_music_player.html

 

[fish1050]

Hi Fish - here is the purchase page: https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1362077-REG/sony_nwa45_b_a45_digital_music_player.html

I have purchased camera equipment from bhphotovideo and I was aware of the pre-order page for the A45. So I just spoke to bhphotovideo about the purchase page for the A45 and they are also confused. While I was on hold they contacted their Sony sales rep for clarification. The indication is that the model number shown does not include the earbuds and the listed selling price of $218.00 is the suggested US retail price from Sony for the A45 without earbuds. I suggested that they remove the two images showing earbuds to prevent confusion for customers unless they are included as part of a promotion. They hope to update the purchase page with more information as it becomes available from Sony. Ebay.com is taking pre-orders for the A45 as well but at a higher price and they don't have any images with the earbuds.

I to was looking to possibly pre-order an A45 from bhphotovideo but now I think I will wait until Black Friday to purchase. Hopefully by then the A45 will be available in Canada and there should be plenty of feedback on the A45 by then.