Octa-core performance
The first KANN with octa-core processors, for faster speeds and a smooth UI.
ASTELL & KERNDIGITAL AUDIO PLAYERCustomer reviews (0)
Astell&Kern KANN Ultra Digital Audio Player
The most powerful KANN yet.
Astell&Kern's KANN Ultra with dual ES9039MPRO DACs, TERATON ALPHA, Triple Output mode, up to 16Vrms and 11 hours of playback.
Regular price
£1,599.00
Unit price
Including VAT
Free next day UK delivery
Awaiting stock arrival date — order now to reserve one from the next delivery. Nothing to pay until it arrives.
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Astell&Kern KANN Ultra Digital Audio Player
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MEET THE KANN
The most powerful KANN yet.
Astell&Kern's KANN Ultra with dual ES9039MPRO DACs, TERATON ALPHA, Triple Output mode, up to 16Vrms and 11 hours of playback.
Triple Output mode
Separately configured circuits and amplifiers, with four gain presets up to 16Vrms.
DAR remastering
Digital Audio Remaster technology and support up to 32-bit/768kHz and DSD512.
Read the full description
The Astell&Kern KANN ULTRA is the fifth KANN player and the most powerful Astell&Kern player yet. Four gain levels reach 16Vrms balanced, desktop hi-fi level output that drives many of today’s headphones with no external amplifier. Two ESS ES9039MPRO DACs feed Astell&Kern’s Triple Output design, with separate headphone, pre and line outputs, and it is the first KANN with an octa-core processor, Digital Audio Remaster and the Crimson interface, with an 8,400mAh battery for about 11 hours.
Triple Output, triple sound
Instead of simply separating the sockets, TERATON ALPHA gives the headphone output and the pre/line output their own amplifier and sound design, so each suits its job: demanding headphones, detailed IEMs or external equipment.
- Headphone out (3.5mm, with S/PDIF optical, and 4.4mm balanced): four gain levels up to 16Vrms, to run demanding high-impedance headphones from the player alone.
- Pre out: a dedicated pre-amplifier rather than the high-power headphone amp, with the volume wheel controlling the level, for an external amplifier or audio device (up to 2Vrms / 4Vrms, no gain settings).
- Line out: the DAC’s output directly, with no amplifier, for the lowest noise into external equipment, at a fixed level (four settings) with no volume control. Never switch Line Out on with headphones plugged into the pre/line socket: it could permanently damage your hearing.
Four gains, up to 16Vrms
To match every IEM and headphone, the output port handles more current at each gain level, and separate balanced and unbalanced amplifiers optimise the current and lower the noise. Compared with the high-output KANN CUBE, the KANN ULTRA has the same output, a larger 5.5-inch screen and a better grip, and is much lighter at 390g (KANN CUBE: 493g).
| Gain | Unbalanced 3.5mm · balanced 4.4mm (no load) |
|---|---|
| Low | 2Vrms · 4Vrms |
| Mid | 4Vrms · 8Vrms |
| High | 6Vrms · 12Vrms |
| Super | 8Vrms · 16Vrms |
TERATON ALPHA and ES9039MPRO
Ultra-high output, Triple Output and a complex, low-noise amplifier in a portable player depend on TERATON ALPHA, now refined with what Astell&Kern learned about noise at very high power from the KANN MAX and CA1000: effective power-noise removal, efficient power management, unwavering amplification and a fully converted output interface.
The two ES9039MPRO DACs are ESS’s newest flagship, an update of the ES9039PRO with a built-in stereo hardware MQA renderer and more advanced modulation that cuts power consumption, noise and distortion, for a richer, more expansive sound. Astell&Kern redesigned the amplifier block so every Triple Output port shows the DACs at their best.
Octa-core, shielded audio
The first KANN with a next-generation octa-core processor runs faster and makes the fourth-generation interface flow more smoothly. The audio circuit is physically separated from the processor area, with its CPU, memory and wireless parts, and has its own shield can to keep their heat and noise away.
Crimson interface and sound tools
The Crimson interface, new to the KANN series, makes it a player for music: browse categories quickly, rediscover songs and search album art, in black with red highlights that reduce visual fatigue, with improved streaming app services, artist view and album sorting. The Roon ARC app is supported through Open Service, for remote access to your whole personal library with rich metadata.
Seven DAC filters let you shape the sound:
| Minimum Phase (default) | Low latency, minimal pre-ringing, low passband ripple |
|---|---|
| Linear Phase Apodizing | Full image rejection by FS/2 to avoid aliasing, smooth roll-off starting before 20kHz |
| Linear Phase Fast Roll-Off | The most common filter: clean suppression, high rejection, crisp highs, for high-transient music |
| Linear Phase Slow Roll-Off | Low group delay, less ringing than fast roll-off, punchier bass with clean highs |
| Minimum Phase Fast Roll-Off | Minimal pre-ringing for imaging and soundstage, stronger bass than linear phase |
| Minimum Phase Slow Roll-Off | Asymmetric, minimal pre-ringing, strong punchy bass with good attack |
| Minimum Phase Slow Roll-Off Low Dispersion | Balances the low latency of minimum phase with the low dispersion of linear phase |
Digital Audio Remaster (DAR) upsamples beyond the source format for more refined, analogue-like playback: in PCM mode, 44.1kHz-family files play at 352.8kHz and 48kHz-family at 384kHz; in DSD mode, PCM below 96kHz plays as DSD128, above 96kHz as DSD256, and DSD below DSD256 as DSD256. Crossfeed sends part of each channel to the other with a small delay to centre the image like speakers, with adjustable Shelf Cutoff, Shelf Gain and Mixer Level, for less fatigue on long sessions.
Everyday features
- Native DSD512 and 32-bit/768kHz bit-to-bit playback, plus MQA.
- LED volume wheel shows the volume or the bit depth of the track, and can be switched off.
- Bluetooth 5.3 with LDAC, LHDC and aptX HD, and BT Sink to play music from your phone through the KANN ULTRA.
- AK File Drop wireless transfers and ReplayGain (up to 24-bit/192kHz).
- Dual-band Wi-Fi (2.4/5GHz) for streaming.
Design: Forceful Impact
The design concept is “Forceful Impact”: an over-scaled volume wheel that looks slammed into the hexagonal KANN body. Visible parting lines are minimised and the edge of the body around the wheel acts as its protector, emphasising a solid chunk of metal. Decorative parts continue the wheel’s serrated pattern to make it look bigger, a hairline spin finish and engraving sit behind it, and the wheel’s orientation was redesigned for use on a desk or in the hand. The aluminium body is Astro Gray.
| DAC | 2 × ESS ES9039MPRO · octa-core CPU |
|---|---|
| Formats | WAV, FLAC, WMA, MP3, OGG, APE, AAC, ALAC, AIFF, DFF, DSF, MQA · PCM 8kHz–768kHz (up to 32-bit) · native DSD64–DSD512 |
| Headphone out | 3.5mm unbalanced (and optical) · 4.4mm balanced (5-pole) · up to 8 / 16Vrms · 1Ω / 1.3Ω |
| Pre/line out | 3.5mm unbalanced · 4.4mm balanced (5-pole) · 2 / 4Vrms |
| Frequency response | Headphone ±0.006dB unbalanced · ±0.004dB balanced (20Hz–20kHz) |
| S/N | Headphone 115 / 119dB · pre 110 / 126dB · line 110 / 125dB (unbalanced / balanced, 1kHz) |
| THD+N | Headphone 0.0004% · pre 0.0012% / 0.0005% · line 0.0013% / 0.0005% · IMD SMPTE 0.0006% |
| Clock jitter | 25ps typical · reference clock 200 femtoseconds |
| Wireless | Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac (2.4/5GHz) · Bluetooth 5.3 (A2DP, AVRCP, aptX HD, LDAC, LHDC) |
| Screen and storage | 5.5-inch 1080 × 1920 touch · 128GB · microSD up to 1TB |
| Battery | 8,400mAh · about 11 hours · charge about 3.5 hours (PD 3.0) |
| Size and weight | 82.4 × 141.1 × 24.4mm (W × H × D) · about 390g · aluminium, Astro Gray |
Good to know
- USB-C charges the player and connects it to a Windows 8/10/11 or Mac computer. Firmware updates over the air.
- The 4.4mm sockets accept 5-pole plugs only. There is no 2.5mm balanced output.
- In the box: KANN ULTRA, USB-C to USB-C cable, three screen protectors, quick start guide and warranty card.
- Compare with the Astell&Kern KANN MAX.
In the box
- Astell&Kern KANN ULTRA player
- USB-C to USB-C Cable
- Three Screen protectors
- Quick start guide
- Warranty Card
Downloads
THE FINER DETAILS
Built for
better listening.
Know what you’re choosing.
Find the right fit for your setup.
- DAC
- 2 × ESS ES9039MPRO
- Headphone outputs
- 3.5mm single-ended · 4.4mm balanced
- Output power
- Up to 16Vrms balanced · 8Vrms single-ended (super gain, no load)
- Hi-res support
- PCM 768kHz/32-bit · DSD512 native · MQA
- Battery
- 8,400mAh · about 11 hours
- Storage
- 128GB · microSD up to 1TB
- Screen
- 5.5" 1080 × 1920
- Bluetooth
- 5.3 · LDAC, LHDC, aptX HD
- Wi-Fi & streaming
- 2.4/5GHz
- Gain modes
- Low / mid / high / super (2–8Vrms unbalanced, 4–16Vrms balanced)
- Signal-to-noise ratio
- 115dB unbalanced · 119dB balanced (headphone out, 1kHz)
- Distortion (THD+N)
- 0.0004% (headphone out, 1kHz)
- Output impedance
- Headphone 1Ω (3.5mm) · 1.3Ω (4.4mm)
- Crosstalk
- −134dB unbalanced · −140dB balanced (headphone out, 1kHz)
- Size (H × W × D)
- 141.1 × 82.4 × 24.4mm
- Weight
- 390g
- Line outputs
- 3.5mm & 4.4mm pre/line out
- Digital outputs
- Optical (3.5mm)
Specifications are based on manufacturer information and may change. Battery life varies with use and settings.
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How does free delivery work?
Every UK order has a free delivery option, and orders of £50 or more qualify for free next day delivery. Order by 12 noon, Monday to Friday, for next day delivery; orders placed after 12 noon, at the weekend or on a bank holiday are dispatched on the next working day. Stock availability and destination also affect arrival — check the options shown at checkout.
Pre-orders ship when stock arrives; the next day service starts after dispatch. Full delivery information
What if it’s not right for me?
Return within 14 days for any reason, or within 30 days if faulty, with free return postage. See our full Returns Policy for conditions and how to start a return.
Can you help me choose headphones?
Absolutely. Tell us what you listen to and the headphones you have — or the ones you’re considering — and we’ll help you find a suitable pairing. Chat with us
How do I request a Price Beat?
Use the Price Beat option on this page to send us the competing offer. The team will review your request; it isn’t an automatic discount. How Price Beat works
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