Astell & Kern PD5: Two-minute reviewIt’s been a long time since Astell & Kern has had a genuinely affordable digital audio player in its line-up, and the launch of the PD5 does nothing to change that. It’s been a while since the company had anything as visually unremarkable as this in its catalog, too — but try not to get hung up on the perceived value and instead concentrate on the priceless nature of its sound quality.And besides, a considerable amount of money put Astell & Kern’s way for a PD5 may not buy you much in the way of design or tactility but it gets you an extremely thoroughly specified device. Eight Cirrus Logic DACs? 20-point EQ adjustment? Balanced and unbalanced headphone outputs? The ability to work as a desktop DAC? Enough power to get a tune out even the most uncooperative headphones? The PD5 has all of this, and more — and it’s all in the service of audio performance that’s as good as any portable device at anything like this price point.When it comes to clarity, to detail retrieval and to outright fidelity, the PD5 is extremely hard to criticise and yes, it fully emphatically deserves a place in our best MP3 players guide. And its talents don’t stop there, not even close — its sound is punchily robust, effortlessly dynamic, brilliantly controlled and organised, and thoroughly engaging. If you take your portable listening experience seriously (or your desktop listening experience for that matter — the PD5 is also an excellent USB DAC), this Astell & Kern absolutely demands your attention. Away from audio quality the PD5 isn’t perfect; there are rare occasions on which it can be glitchy in operation, its on-screen menus are approaching ‘miniscule’, and it neither looks nor feels quite as expensive as it actually is. All of this, though, is made to seem fairly trivial by the way the PD5 performs its primary function. (Image credit: Future / Simon Lucas)Astell & Kern PD5 review: Price and release datePriced $1,049 / £899 / AU$1,349Announced in August 2026; released in September 2026The Astell & Kern PD5 digital audio player is on sale now, and in the United Kingdom it costs £899. In the United States it will set you back $1,049, while in Australia it goes for AU$1,349. Anyone familiar with such devices knows that for an A&K player, that's actually not so expensive — again, note my 'for an A&K player' wording there. This company's flagship DAPs go for $3,999 / £3,799 / AU$6,599 (Astell & Kern A&ultima SP4000 and its newer T-suffixed sibling, I'm looking at you), but you can also get a hi-res player from A&K's sub-brand — called the Activo P1 — for $430 / £399 (around AU$869). There are crucial differences in the specifications which I'll go into, but it's good to have an idea of the market at least, when looking at such a fee and being told by its makers that it is "entry level". (Image credit: Future / Simon Lucas)Astell & Kern PD5 review: FeaturesEight (count ‘em!) Cirrus Logic CS43198 DACs Balanced and unbalanced headphone outputsBluetooth 5.3 with aptX HD supportThe PD5 isn’t the first Astell & Kern product that’s been so thoroughly specified that discussing every one of its features in any kind of depth might take up most of your day. So let’s say right from the off that no eventuality has been overlooked where the PD5 is concerned, and then let’s deal with the headlines and then try not to get too bogged down in all the rest of it…Never knowingly understated, Astell & Kern has fitted eight Cirrus Logic CS43198 DAC chipsets here. The user interface gives you the option of listening using four, or all eight — listening in octa-mode offers optimal sound quality, but eats into battery life quite badly (engage all eight DACs and you’re looking at 15 hours of playback as opposed to the 28 or so you should get when listening to ‘just’ four). Taking the battery from ‘flat’ to ‘full’ takes around two-and-a-half hours.In terms of feeding digital audio content to that considerable digital-to-analog conversion line-up, you have a few options. The bare-bones Android user interface Astell & Kern has deployed here, along with dual-band wi-fi, allows you to download the app of your favourite music streaming service(s), and 64GB of internal memory allows you to store some content to the PD5’s local storage. There’s a microSD card slot on the bottom of the frame (next to the USB-C slot that’s used for data transfer and for battery charging) too — it can accept cards of up to 1.5TB, which should prove adequate for all the hi-res content you might desire. The player can deal with resolutions of up to 32bit/384kHz PCM and DSD256, and is Roon Ready as well as featuring full-on Qobuz Connect integration. Or you might decide to bypass the fancy-pants D-to-A circuitry altogether and use Bluetooth to drive a pair of wireless headphones (although it does seem a bit of a weird idea to spend £899 on a player in order to use it like a smartphone). (Image credit: Future / Simon Lucas)The PD5 features Bluetooth 5.3 with codec support up to and including aptX HD. It also has two headphone outputs: an unbalanced 3.5mm socket and a balanced 4.4mm alternative that’s compatible with five-pole jacks. Use the 4.4mm output, select octa-DAC mode, and the Astell & Kern can summon a mammoth 8Vrms of power — so even the most demanding headphones will have to do as they are told. But there are quite a few ways in which the sound can be affected, both by the device and by the person using it, before it reaches these outputs.The ‘EnviroTune’ feature uses a mic integrated into the top edge of the PD5 to analyse ambient noise in real time and correct those frequencies affected by it without just making everything louder. The ‘Teraton Alpha’ audio engine that’s familiar from some of Astell & Kern’s uber-pricey DAPs minimises noise from the power supply and creates amplification that’s as stable and distortion-free as possible. And ‘Enhanced Signal Alignment’ technology synchronises outgoing signals in an effort to negate phase distortion and deliver the most coherent sonic image possible. The end user, meanwhile, gets a choice of digital filters and some quite in-depth EQ adjustment to look into. The default filter is ‘low latency fast’, and it is as distinct in its effect as ‘low latency slow’, ‘phase compensated fast’ and ‘phase compensated slow’ are from each other. A ten-band EQ offers fairly granular adjustment of the sound, and an ‘advanced’ EQ interface allows frequency response to be defined using a graph with 20 (!) plotting points. The PD5 will function as a desktop too, thanks to its USB-C slot’s ability with data transfer. Simply make a hard connection to, say, your laptop, select ‘DAC input’ in the ‘USB Mode’ sub-menu, and the Astell & Kern automatically switches on octa-DAC mode in order to give your computer a proper go at sounding decent for once.Features score: 5 / 5(Image credit: Future / Simon Lucas)Astell & Kern PD5 review: Sound qualityClarity, detail and dynamism in equal measureOrganised and fully resolved soundWell-controlled punch and driveThe Astell & Kern PD5 is an admirably unpicky device, although obviously there are limits. Give it the sort of standard content available on a proper music streaming service (which means a CD-quality resolution of 16bit/44.1kHz) and it does an admirable job of maximising the information available to it. Step down from there, though, to the sort of squashed nonsense served up by Apple Music or Spotify, and the PD5 struggles to conceal its disdain. But you didn’t spend proper money to listen to compressed poverty-spec streams, did you? So a 16bit/44.1kHz stream of Hood’s Western Housing Concerns is delivered in tremendous fashion. The presentation is open and spacious, with an expansive soundstage on which each element of the recording gets ample room in which to stretch out and express itself. The layout is rigorously observed, and the PD5’s powers or organisation mean the stage is locked in place and completely convincing.Tonality is absolutely neutral, the player offering neither heat nor chill to the colour of the recording. There’s excellent clarity to the presentation, a really dark and quiet background in front of which the band perform — and at every stage of the frequency range, there’s absolutely fanatical attention to detail. No matter how minor an occurrence, how far back in the mix, or how fleeting, the Astell & Kern will seize upon it and give it precisely the amount of weight and emphasis it requires.Frequency response is similarly even-handed, and similarly convincing as a result. A switch to a DSD64 file of Michael Jackson’s Don’t Stop ‘Til You Get Enough reveals deep, textured, tremendously varied and thrillingly solid low-frequency response, and bass is controlled to the point that rhythmic expression is never less than positive and confident. Midrange resolution is no less accomplished, with the singer’s mic technique made every bit as apparent as his tone and timbre. The top of the frequency range strikes a lovely balance between substance and brilliance, and again there’s an absolutely stack of information available. The PD5 doesn’t over- or underemphasise any part of the frequency range, and as a result this glossy, audibly expensive recording sounds as natural and polished as it ever did.Dynamic headroom is considerable when it’s time to describe big variations in volume or intensity or attack, and the more subtle dynamics of harmonic variation and transient response are never overlooked. The entire presentation hangs together seamlessly, the Astell & Kern offering a proper sense of unity and singularity to recordings of every type.And perhaps best of all, there’s nothing show-y or even especially analytical about the way the PD5 goes about things. As far as insight into a recording goes it’s basically untouchable at the money, but that’s not what defines the Astell & Kern. It’s the energy of its sound, the engaged and engaging nature of its performance, that makes it as entertaining a listen as you’ll get from a portable device costing less than four figures. Sound quality score: 5 / 5(Image credit: Future / Simon Lucas)Astell & Kern PD5 review: Design120 x 70 x 16mm (HxWxD)4.1in touchscreen display198gThere’s absolutely nothing wrong with the Astell & Kern PD5 as a physical object, let me make that clear from the off. The dimensions are nicely palm-sized, the weight is sufficient to make it feel like a premium product without being a burden to a jacket pocket, and the standard of fit and finish is impeccable.And I’m not about to pretend I miss the painfully pointy edges of some previous Astell & Kern models, either — the PD5 is a much friendlier proposition in this respect — nor the painfully self-conscious offset screen of the old SR35. But there’s nothing remarkable about the design of the PD5, nothing to set it apart from the pack of products competing with it for your hard-earned. Even the volume dial, previously a little Astell & Kern design flourish, is unremarkable here. I realise I can’t have it all ways, and a calm and sensible aesthetic is preferable to something overwrought and wilful. But I find myself slightly concerned that for the PD5, Astell & Kern may have bypassed its industrial design team altogether… Design score: 4.5 / 5 (Image credit: Future / Simon Lucas)Astell & Kern PD5 review: Usability and setupBright, rather reflective screenIn-depth menusOccasional operational odditiesAs mentioned, the PD5 uses a stripped-back version of Android as its user interface — and it’s all the better for it. Too many digital audio players pointlessly include a lot of your smartphone’s functionality for no reason, as far as I can tell, other than to eat into the machine’s local memory.The 4.1in touchscreen is bright, although rather more reflective than is ideal, and it’s responsive without being on a hair trigger. The Astell & Kern’s menus are extensive, and as a result the font size is really very small — but squint and you should be able to make out what’s what (even if the occasional use of ‘red on black’ for text is a terrible idea).Setting up the PD5 to your satisfaction isn’t the work of a moment. But when you finally get finished you can at least be sure you have a digital audio player that’s primed to do exactly what you want, and in the manner you want it. There are occasional glitches in operation, though — or, at least, that’s my experience. I install the Tidal music streaming app, and also insert a microSD card full of hi-res content. But every now and then, both sources will play at the same time. Pressing ‘play’ on a Tidal file usually stops playback from the local storage and vice versa — but not always, which is a weird one and no mistake.Usability and setup score: 3.5 / 5 (Image credit: Future / Simon Lucas)Astell & Kern PD5 review: ValueBecause the majority of the money you’ve spent on a PD5 has gone on the internals, it’s difficult to suggest its perceived value is especially high even if you accept that it’s beautifully constructed and even quite tactile. No, the value for money Astell & Kern is offering here doesn’t reveal itself until you start listening — and then it becomes quickly apparent that your money has been very well spent indeed.Value score: 4.5 / 5Should I buy the Astell & Kern PD5? Buy it if... You have needy headphonesThe PD5 is equipped to make even the most difficult headphones bend to its will.You’re after uncompromised sound qualityWith the Astell & Kern you get what you pay for and then some.You’re sharp-eyed as well as sharp-earedNavigating those set-up menus is no job for anyone who’s misplaced their spectacles. Don't buy it if... You want to see, as well as hear, where your money has goneThe PD5 is a perfectly pleasant little device, but its appearance doesn’t exactly shout “almost a grand!”You don’t own decent wired headphonesThe Astell & Kern sounds perfectly fine via Bluetooth, but really your smartphone will do a pretty similar job. Astell & Kern PD5 review: Also considerFiiO M23The FiiO M23 has been around for a couple of years now, but really this only means it’s now competing almost directly with the PD5 on price. It remains a biggish, bulky-ish device, it’s true, but it also remains one of the most poised, direct and downright musical digital audio players around. Give it the right stuff to work with in terms of content and headphones, and the sound quality is enthralling. Read our full FiiO M23 reviewHow I tested the Astell & Kern PD5Listened using Tidal and Qobuz filesPopped a 512GB microSD card loaded with extremely hi-res content into itUsed Sennheiser IE900 and Meze Audio Strada for most of my testingI installed the Tidal music streaming app and also deployed Qobuz Connect (it’s a slicker experience altogether than installing the app onto the player), and I inserted a 512GB microSD card loaded with extremely high-resolution content. Then I connected a pair of Sennheiser IE900 IEMs using the 4.4mm balanced output, and also used a pair of Meze Audio Strada headphones connected the same way. I also investigated the PD5’s desktop DAC credentials by plugging it into an Apple MacBook Pro and using the Qobuz and Tidal desktop apps to listen to hi-res using the same pairs of headphones.First reviewed in October 2026Read TechRadar's reviews guarantee