Description Freakuence! | Cambridge Audio 851N
Network player from the fine 851 line. The dac decodes with great conviction. Famous player, but oh well, opponents are bound to be found too. Feel free to stop by for a demo!
Retail price: | Cambridge Audio 851N
1,699.00
Details | Cambridge Audio 851N
No worries! We offer a very good 12-month warranty on used products.
General description | Cambridge Audio 851N
This network player offers extensive connectivity options, including compatibility with UPnP, NAS drives, Tidal, Qobuz, Spotify Connect, Apple AirPlay and DSD. The device supports various audio formats, including ALAC, WAV, FLAC, AIFF, WMA, MP3, AAC, HE AAC, AAC+ and OGG Vorbis. Accurate digital-to-analog conversion is achieved with 2nd-generation ATF2 up-sampling to 24-bit/384kHz and dual Analog Devices AD1955 24-bit DACs. The digital filter offers modes for linear phase, minimum phase and steep filters. Analog outputs include both balanced XLR and unbalanced RCA connections. The unit has a standby power consumption of less than 0.5W and measures 115 x 430 x 360 mm with a weight of 8.1 kg.
General description | Cambridge Audio 851N
We are an official dealer and can provide all other products and designs. We can often bring stuff from many other manufacturers to the shop as well. Feel free to ask! We trade in both new and used.
Still prefer to place it out of sight? There is the option of looping the infrared signal from the remote control. You connect an infrared extender to this device, and you can still use the remote control while the device is in a cabinet. Be sure to ensure adequate ventilation/airflow.
Equipped with balanced capabilities (XLR).
SPDIF is the abbreviation for Sony/Philips Digital Interface Format. (Nice that we, as a small country, have had influence there!) It is a standard for the transmission of a digital signal between, for example, a streamer or CD drive to dac. The cable used makes quite a difference in playback. A standard cable shows mostly a messy and abundant low, and the middle and high sludge into a mess. There are many who dispute this. Be skeptical, but there has to be a time for evaluation.
Optical input, interference-free and therefore proven to be the better option with some dacs, although they are often limiting in bitrate (yet there are dacs that let in up to 24 bit/192 kHz). The cable used is hugely important we can report, we'd be happy to let you assess these differences.
USB ports can transport up to the highest possible bit rate. Although sometimes they are only for connecting an external drive.
An AES/EBU cable can be used for professional transmission of digital audio signals. AES3 was developed in a collaboration between the Audio Engineering Society (AES) and the European Broadcasting Union (EBU). An AES3 signal can carry two channels of PCM audio through various transfer media, including balanced cable, unbalanced cable, and optical fiber cable.
Via the digital output, you can have the streamer part bypass the internal dac, and then connect this digital signal to another dac (analog you can then continue to output as well). Interesting in any dac upgrade, or as a fun dac comparison experiment with audio friends. You could also take the digital signal to another dac in a different zone, this allows you to play the same music in multiple places, while the analog volume of both rooms can be different.
Pull albums straight from the music library of music services or from your own NAS. The streamer does this easily via your phone, tablet or laptop.
The network function allows you to connect it to your home network to send music from your PC, tablet or phone to the device. Depending on the device, there is its own app, use your music service's app, or grab a streaming app like M-Connect, giving you full-fledged streaming functionality for music services like Spotify, Tidal, Deezer and Qobuz.
Ability to play DSD (Direct Stream Digital). Is not easy to find much true DSD, but once found .... enjoyment blown.
Roon ready! Suitable for Roon, making streaming a real party. Perfect control, and also some tricks to improve playback. Almost always requires a Core, feel free to ask.
Background information | Cambridge Audio 851N
The Cambridge Audio 851N was designed in London by Cambridge Audio's British engineering team with the aim of maximum musical transparency. It uses high-quality components such as dual Analog Devices AD1955 DACs, an all-metal cabinet and a specially designed toroidal power supply. Internal Leaf source code and ATF2 upsampling technology ensure exceptional detail reproduction.
