iriver announces the launch of its Astell&Kern AK100 MQS High-Definition Portable Audio System for the U.S. marketplace on December 4, 2012.
The Astell&Kern player is the first portable hi-fi audio device from iriver, capable of Mastering Quality Sound (MQS) playback. MQS files are sound or music files saved as a lossless format, straight from the studio mastering source. Because less data is lost during the digital mastering process and the sound quality is distortion-free, a dramatic difference from the 24bit source data from MQS files and CD (WAV)/MP3s can be heard and felt. MQS files are often in 24bit WAV or FLAC formats. With the encoding process in the AK100 MQS Portable System, MQS music and sounds are more refined and pure.
The AK100 is $699 and is available at high-end audio stores and online at Amazon.com, Buy.com, ebay.com and www.iriverinc.com.