Warwick Acoustics Aperio | Electrostatic Reference Headphone System
APERIO Breaches the Summit to Deliver Stratospheric Levels of Sound Performance with Legendary Electronic Engineering
- Revolutionary planar electrostatic technology
- Outstanding comfort, craftsmanship, and durability for a lifetime of exquisite sound
- Features premium "Cabretta" top-grain perforated sheepskin leather ear and headband cusshions
- High Voltage Class A amplifier coupled with Dual 32-Bit 8 Channel DACs
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Bloom's Take Warwick Acoustics Aperio was born from a desire that is simple in word, but incredibly bold and complex in deed: to capture the title of “Best Headphones in the World.” And when you show up to the race and see opponents such as the integrated Sennheiser HE-1 system and a dCS Lina / HiFiMAN Susvara team-up all gunning for the same title, you realize you’re in the Audiophile Olympics. Aperio is a complete system with headphones and an all-in-one proprietary streaming DAC/Amp. Depending on the level of investment you’re willing to make, there’s a choice between silver, black and gold finishes. We’re talking plenty of leather, premium cushioning, and aluminum/high end plastic frame as you’d expect with high end headphones. Same goes with the solid metal chassis DAC/Amp which is well-designed with a build and appearance that meets expectations for its $10,000 and up price range. Everything you need for headphone, network or USB source connectivity is included with options for S/PDIF, AES, RCA or XLR with additional cabling. The connections and switching are simple, and for a package that bridges luxury with high fidelity audio, the simplicity of the setup is a huge win for Aperio. There’s no question as to whether or not a system of this magnitude can provide noticeable improvement over less expensive setups. But Aperio sets itself apart by providing a fullness and richness in sound that exceeds the vast majority of electrostats, along with physical, well-extended bass. Highly revealing with copious amounts of detail, Aperio delivers absolutely top of the line performance offering clear, consistent brilliance. Summarily, when there's a 6-month waiting list (we're not kidding) for a $40,000 headphone system, you're doing something right. |
Ultimate Reference Headphone System
The APERIO reference headphone system By Warwick Acoustics strives to deliver the highest level of audio performance achievable by way of proprietary planar electrostatic technology. The APERIO utilizes a highly-refined, evolutionary advancement of technology developed in-house for it’s ground-breaking and multi-award-winning Sonoma Model One Headphone System.
Headphone Features
BD-HPEL Transducer: The APERIO utilizes a new Balanced-Drive HPEL Transducer (BD-HPEL) – a symmetrically-driven variant of Warwick Acoustics’ High Precision Electrostatic Laminate (HPEL) transducer, originally developed for the Sonoma Model One headphone system.
Injected Magnesium Ear Cups: Major structural components of the headphone, for example, the ear cups, are fabricated with injected Magnesium, a rigid material lighter and significantly better-damped than aluminum and most polymers. Because the Magnesium is injected, complex and precise components that typically would require CNC-machining are possible.
Ear Cushions: In order to achieve outstanding low frequency performance, the APERIO requires a small sealed air volume between the transducer and listener’s head. The APERIO maintains this air volume and requisite air seal through key design features that eliminate air leakage, even with variations in head and ear shape.
Headphone Comfort: The APERIO addresses comfort by minimizing weight and optimizing geometry. The advanced materials utilized in the design, such as Magnesium and Engineering polymers, result in a very low mass of 14.3 ounces.
Electronics
Every functional sub-section of the electronics has been designed to state-of-the-art standards, without compromise.
Cutting-edge Components: The APERIO is a complete sound reproduction system, thus the electronics are optimized specifically for the APERIO headphone. Every element of the sound reproduction chain between raw audio data input (from analog or digital source) and output to the headphone is included and fully optimized within the APERIO electronics.
Analog Line Output: The Analog Line Output section features a novel Class A circuit that can output very high voltages with prodigious current, allowing it to effortlessly drive outboard electronics in any professional or consumer application, even with extremely long cables.
Dual 32-bit, 8 channel DACs: The DAC section of the APERIO electronics is truly state-of-the-art. Dual 32-bit, 8-channel DACs are utilized, one per channel in dual mono configuration, to achieve a SNR of 131 dB.
Customized Cables for the APERIO: Warwick Acoustics supplies high performance input cables with the APERIO. These cables are custom designs, developed by Warwick Acoustics to match the performance and quality level of the rest of the APERIO system.
Specifications
Headphones
- Configuration: Open-back circumnaural
- Transducer: Balanced-Drive High Precision Electrostatic Laminate (BD-HPEL)
- Effective Diaphragm Area: 3570mm²
- Frequency Response: 10Hz - 60kHz
- Ear and Headband Cushions: "Cabretta" top-grain perforated sheepskin leather
- Input: Polarized 4-pin, self-latching connectors for left and right channels
- Drive Cable: 2m, dual mono, shielded, ultra-low capacitance, silver-played OFHC ultra-fine stranded copper, silicone insulation and Kevlar reinforced
- Weight: 14.3 oz (405g) w/o cable
Electronics
- Balanced Analog Inputs: Dual XLR jacks (F) | switchable (high / low) input range | 18 dBu / 10 dBu
- Unbalanced Analog Inputs: Dual RCA jacks | switchable (high / low) input range | 5.0 Vrms / 2.1 Vrms
- USB Digital Input: USB-B 2.0 | accepts digital audio formats up to 32-bit / 384 kHz PCM and DSD (DSD64/DSD128/DSD256) via DoP or Native
- Network (Ethernet LAN) Digital Input: RJ45 jack | DLNA-compatible | accepts digital audio formats up to 32-bit / 384kHz PCM and DSD (DSD64/DSD128/DSD256) via DoP or Native AES3 (AES/EBU) Digital Input XLR (female) jack | accepts digital audio formats up to 24-bit/192 kHz PCM
- S/PDIF Coaxial Digital Input: RCA jack | accepts digital audio formats up to 24-bit/192 kHz PCM
- Line Outputs: Balanced and unbalanced, high current outputs | +5 dB gain | switchable
- Digital Formats: PCM: 16-32 bit / up to 384 kHz | DSD: up to 256 fs DoP and Native Digital Signal Processing (DSP) 64-bit (double-precision) fixed-point processing at native sample rates
- Switchable Gain: Rear panel switch | high level / low level selection for balanced analog input (professional audio and consumer levels) and unbalance analog input
- Source Selection: Multi-position front panel selector with indicator LEDs for all sources
- Level Control: Front panel, 31-position | digital & analog domain volume control (HP & Line Out)
- Status Display: Front panel, 51 mm, full color, QVGA, TFT LCD (240 x 320 pixels)
- Display Functions: Digital readout and bar graph of volume control setting; display of digital audio data format | display of rear panel analog input (gain) settings | display of Ethernet and USB data link transmission lock | display of detected fault modes and output clipping
- Auto Fault Detection: Automatic detection, display and protection for: output amplifier clipping, unplugged connections and malfunctioning wiring, over-temperature conditions and internal electrical faults
- DACs: (x2) dual mono, 32-bit / 384 kHz DACs | balanced outputs, for PCM & DSD inputs
- Amplifier/Energizer: Balanced, discrete MOSFET, high-bias, single-ended Class A output | dual mono topology, including power supply | 1800 VDC bias (charge) voltage
- Distortion + Noise: < 0.001%
- Bandwidth: > 65 kHz
- Enclosure: CNC-machined 6063 aluminum | earth-grounded
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Power Supply
- External: world voltage compatible (90-264 Volt AC, 50-60 Hz) | 24 Volt DC, 200 VA (8.333 A), fixed frequency, class B-compliant SMPS
- Internal: isolated, dual mono; switching and ultra-low-noise linear regulation AC Mains Types B, G, F, I; IEC-60320 C14, earth-grounded power cable; 1.5 meter length
- Dimensions: 16.26" x 13.82" x 2.68" (413mm x 351mm x 68mm)
- Weight: 16.3 lbs (7.4 kg) w/o power supply
