Burmester's 113 Super DAC — it's got apt-X on board, along with every other conceivable wired and wireless digital connection. The profile's presence on this ultra-high end unit (at ~$6,000, it's meant for serious audiophiles) is interesting indeed.
A prototype wireless soundbar employing CSR's new low-latency apt-X implementation.
We've talked a bit over the past year about CSR's apt-X Bluetooth audio profile; while we've been impressed with the performance of the receivers we've been able to listen to, and at CES we found apt-X in a wide variety of products, including Monster's new boombox, affordable DACs from Arcam and Cambridge Audio, NAD's iOS dock, and even Burmester's audiophile-only ultra-high-end 113 "super DAC."
While previous apt-X implementations like the Creative system we'd reviewed had depended on a transmission dongle, the profile has finally begun turning up in a few sources: Motorola's Droid Razr; the Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.7 Plus, and — more importantly — the Mac OS (originally just the Mac Mini was said to support, but CSR tells us that all Intel machines running 10.6.5 and up should be able to broadcast apt-X).
CSR's Sarah Thornbury tells us a little about the current state of apt-X and the new low-latency version (currently at 30ms, CSR's trying to reduce that considerably to eliminate lip-sync issues that'll make it possible to use wireless Bluetooth to connect speakers or headphones for watching video) that's in development.
Looks like a good step in the proper direction for Burmester's 113 Super DAC. The Apt-x would most probably pop up in more and more sound devices in the near future as more manufacturers include them in their audio devices. However, $6000 is still extremely pricey, and because it is still in its infancy stages, I really wonder how many people would actually buy it.
Sam