Chassis
We designed the chassis ourselves – for maximum freedom from vibration and the airflow the system needs. The top and bottom are 6 mm, the back panel 10 mm, the sides 12 mm and the front 15 mm aluminium to aerospace standard 6061. Every part is CNC-milled and finely sandblasted for an elegant matte finish. The power button and the feet are turned from stainless steel.
Power supply
In any audio component, a fast and stable power supply determines its quality. A good power supply quickly becomes expensive – which is why so many solutions fall short. For the Sperling we developed a linear analog power supply that provides a separate, fully independent rail for every voltage required. It could easily drive a power amplifier. Our experience shows that a digital source reacts to circuit design and component quality just as sensitively as a purely analog component. We invested a great deal of time in developing the power supply, because you cannot buy something like this off the shelf. It is already the fourth generation, and it is remarkable how much authenticity the power supply alone has gained.
At its heart is a full-size custom toroidal transformer from one of the finest manufacturers in the world – multiply shielded and potted in a stainless steel cup (Supreme Audio Grade). A whole bank of 105° Low-ESR Audio Grade capacitors – capacitors valued even by developers of the most exclusive pre- and power amplifiers – supports the supply. Ultra-fast Schottky diodes handle rectification, one quartet per voltage rail. High-precision LDOs with their own reference voltage keep every voltage stable, guarantee extremely low ripple – near battery-like current – and together deliver almost 30 A. An EMI filter directly at the power inlet and a DC filter provide additional protection against electrical pollution and DC from the mains.
Computing power and modular design
In normal operation our computing core is barely taxed and holds enormous reserves in hand – for real-time upsampling (for example for our apolitan Nachtigall DSD DAC) or for complex room correction via DSP. The system always stays stable and responsive. Because no one knows which formats the future will bring, we rely on a modular hardware setup to international industry standards: maximum ease of maintenance and readiness for what comes next.
Software
The Roon Optimized Core Kit provides a hyper-slim operating system optimized purely for music playback. A full Roon Core runs on it and manages every control process. The Sperling plays almost any digital format – including our favourite, native 1-bit DSD.
The apolitan Sperling is delivered fully preconfigured and ready to use.
