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Eversolo announces flagship DMP-A10 streaming DAC

  • Good, better, best. It’s a marketing strategy as old as stereo sound. We’ve already seen Eversolo’s ‘good’: the DMP-A6 was 2023’s runaway hit (review here and here). Later that year came the DMP-A8, which (to these ears) sounded quite a bit ‘better’ (review here and here). Now comes the Chinese company’s moonshot: the DMP-A10.

    Will it be Eversolo’s ‘best’? Let’s dive in…

    The DMP-A10 is a DDC, streaming DAC, standalone DAC and — bypassing digital sources, the parametric EQ and Eversolo’s own room correction software — a fully balanced analogue pre-amplifier with balanced XLR inputs and XLR outputs and a resistor ladder volume control.

    Measuring 6.5″ across its diagonal, the A10’s front-panel touchscreen is slightly larger the 6-incher found on the A6 and A8. It still gives us 1) VU meter display via a 2) a heavily customised Android operating system with which we install many of the popular streaming apps. White-listed are Apple Music, Spotify, Tidal, Qobuz, Deezer and Amazon Music (and more). Eversolo’s Original Sampling-rate Audio Engine (EOS) bypasses Android’s SRC to guarantee bit-perfect playback of all streams and we still get a smartphone app that, when turned to landscape mode, can mirror the A10’s display.

    A new feature: Eversolo’s Global Music Search allows us to search across multiple streaming services. Spotify Connect and Tidal Connect will also be onboard from the get-go. Roon Ready certification is still in the works.

    Want to play higher bitrates than Tidal’s or Apple Music’s 24bit/192kHz maximum? The DMP-A10’s undercarriage will accommodate a pair of M.2 NVME SSD drives – and the USB-A socket USB storage devices – for streaming support up to DSD512. Alternatively, we can use the A10’s suite of digital inputs: 2 x coaxial, 2 x TOSLINK, USB and HDMI ARC. Hello TV audio!

    The internal DAC is built around an ESS 9039PRO chip – and not the AKM used in the A8 – but, in a blow to short-cut culture, we aren’t told enough about the analogue output stage or the twin linear “ultra-low noise” power supplies to reliably infer any of the A10’s audible characteristics. (FWIW, Eversolo rates the A10’s THD+N at -122dB with SNR sitting at 130dB). However, we are told that the DAC circuit’s clocking is handled by independent 44.1kHz and 48kHz OCXO oscillators and that the front-panel display is electrically isolated from the analogue circuitry.

    Three surprise inclusions: a nicer-looking remote control, dual subwoofer outputs and an SFB Fiber network port.

    Pricing? US$3680 or โ‚ฌ3780.

    Further information: Eversolo

    Written by John Darko

    John currently lives in Berlin where he creates videos and podcasts for Darko.Audio. He has previously contributed to 6moons, TONEAudio, AudioStream and Stereophile.

    Follow John on YouTube or Instagram

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