Sony unveils streaming and MQA compatible Walkmans at the IFA 2019 consumer electronics show to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the very first Sony Walkman. The latest Walkmans feature support for a range of HiRes formats including DSD and MQA encoded files, WiFi and Bluetooth connectivity and the ability to store music on both internal and SD card storage.
The NW-A100 series and its upmarket sibling the NW-ZX500 are available in 40th anniversary editions which feature a special Cassette Tape user interface and screensaver in a nod to the iconic original Walkman. The cassette tape visual that appears on the Walkman display varies depending on the codec of the music that you are listening to.
MQA support will provide users of these Walkmans the ability to stream HiRes music services from TIDAL, Xiami Music and nugs.net.
Mike Jbara, MQA CEO, said, “The launch of the new streaming Walkman products from our partner Sony is an event that will excite every music fan listening to music on the go. Together we are enabling music lovers to listen to studio quality music whenever and wherever they want.”
The Sony Walkman NW-ZX507 will retail in the UK for £750 and the NW-A100 series for around half that depending on specification. Availability in the UK will be from the 11th November.
The Walkman NW-ZX507 supports a wide range of HiRes audio formats including DSD Native (11.2MHz) and 384kHz/32bit PCM playback supported by S-master HX. There is also DSEE HX support which upscales your existing music to near high-resolution quality. The player also has Android and Wi-Fi support enabling you to access millions of songs with ease to stream or download with your favourite apps or you can connect to your PC to access your music collection. The Walkman is also compatible with the Sony Original Music Player App for those who want to continue using it.
For a full technical specification on the NW-ZX507 go here.
For a full technical specification on the NW-A100 series go here.
