True audiophiles almost universally agree — analog consumer music formats, such as vinyl and magnetic tape, simply sound better than digital consumer music formats, such as CDs and MP3s. There’s no doubt that digital music is unrivaled in terms of absolute clarity — your iTunes playlist suffers from none of the hiss, pops, noise, and distortion that plague even the most expensive record players and tape decks. However, analog recording and playback methods remarkably replicate the sound waves of the original recording session. Digital technology, which samples the original analog sound waves at a specified rate, seems sonically cold and hollow by comparison.
The McIntosh MHA50 Portable Decoding Amplifier may be the solution to combining the fully warm sound of analog playback with the clarity, convenience, and portability of today’s digital formats. Through its high-performance 32-bit digital-to-analog converter, this product decodes music files from almost any digital source to output audio that rivals the analog equipment of even the most fanatic audiophile. The McIntosh MHA50 Portable Decoding Amplifier allows you to carry most if not all of your music library in your pocket and access it in full wave analog glory through any portable speaker or pair of headphones. Made for the iPhone and iPad, this rechargeable product provides up to 6 hours of playback via Bluetooth and can last even longer when using wired connections.