Esoteric K-03XD Super Audio CD Player

Esoteric K-03XD Super Audio CD Player

Name: Esoteric K-03XD Super Audio CD Player
Brand: Esoteric
Price: 21900.00 NZD
Availability: OutOfStock

$21,900.00

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Product variants

Since the first debut of the K-01 and K-03 Super Audio CD Players, Esoteric’s integrated digital players have captivated listeners with their unrivaled playback of musical sources. They have also gone on to win numerous awards as they have come to be regarded as the gold standard of digital players around the world. This new “XD” edition boasts even more advanced features, combining two innovative technologies originally developed for Esoteric’s flagship Grandioso K-1X model: VRDS-ATLAS, the superlative Super Audio CD transport mechanism, and Master Sound Discrete DAC, designed completely in-house by ESOTERIC to provide even more enhanced playback from digital musical sources.

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Specifications

Playable disc types Super Audio CD, CD (including CD-R and CD-RW)

Anaog audio outputs
XLR/ESL-A 1 pair (L/R)
Output impedance 114Ω
Maximum output level
5.0Vrms (1kHz, 10kΩ loaded)

RCA 1 pair (L/R)
Output impedance 34Ω
Maximum output level 2.5Vrms (1kHz, 10kΩ loaded)

Digital audio outputs
XLR 1
Output impedance 3Vp-p (110Ω loaded)
Output signal formats Linear PCM (AES/EBU) 44.1kHz,16-bit（CD）
RCA 1
Output impedance 0.5Vp-p (75Ω loaded)
Output signal formats Linear PCM (IEC60958) 44.1kHz,16-bit（CD）

Digital audio inputs
RCA 1
Input signal formats

Linear PCM 32k to 192kHz, 16/24-bit (IEC60958)
DSD
2.8MHz (DoP)
OPTICAL 1
Input signal formats

Linear PCM
32k to 192kHz, 16/24-bit (IEC60958)
DSD
2.8MHz (DoP)

USB B
1 (USB2.0 supported)
Input signal formats

Linear PCM
44.1k to 384kHz, 16/24/32-bit (IEC60958)
DSD
2.8MHz, 5.6MHz, 11.2MHz, 22.5MHz

Bringing out all the dynamics and energy of music

The Absolute Sound

Introducing the K-03XD

ESOTERIC proudly announces a new Super Audio CD player, model K-03XD. By utilizing the most cutting-edge electro-acoustic engineering technologies available today, the K-03XD is designed and engineered exclusively for true music lovers and dedicated audiophiles.

The new XD edition boasts even more advanced features, combining two innovative technologies originally developed for Esoteric's flagship Grandioso K1X model. The new VRDS-ATLAS disc transport dampens the smallest disc vibrations. The second significant upgrade is the new Master Sound Discrete DAC discrete D/A converter. The Master Sound DAC is a series of carefully chosen selection of rigorously tested discrete components into a complete circuit that could perfectly reproduce all the dynamics and energy of music- something simply unattainable using ordinary integrated chips.

Wide, Low Center-of-Gravity Design

Adopting a wide, low-profile design for the entire transport mechanism helped achieve a lower center-of-gravity, while the relocation of the turntable motor to below the turntable from its previous position above the bridge dramatically shortened the route for grounding vibration and reducing mechanical noise. Tray hollowing has also been minimized for increased rigidity, and special stoppers made from vibration-absorbing elastomer cancel out resonance when the tray is in its closed position.

High-Performance Power Supply

The key to the powerful and deeply luxurious sound quality of the K series has always been their high-performance power supplies. This new XD edition features a significantly enhanced power supply design that delivers even richer, more lifelike sound. The K-03XD features a total of two high-capacity toroidal power transformers with independent power supplies for the digital and analog circuitry.

With these reservations in mind, the K-03X provided a level of sonic micro and macro thrills in more areas than I’ve ever encountered before in a digital component. Regardless of format—CD, SACD, and high-resolution over USB—recordings that I’d heard dozens of times before suddenly didn’t sound quite as blandly familiar.

To hell with the audiophile in-crowd. I’m giving the Esoteric K-03 a Reviewers’ Choice award, no ifs, ands, or buts. It’s the Swiss Army Knife of high-end audio. In fact, it does so many things so well that if Esoteric told me that an amplifier, a pair of tower speakers, and 50 jazz CDs were jammed into its box, I almost wouldn’t be surprised. More important, the K-03 does all of these things at an uncommon level of performance.