Pioneer explores a new frontier with its latest hi-fi media player

Pioneer XDP-100P

Pioneer might be the first name you think of when it comes to receivers, headphones and speakers, but it might soon be the first name you think of when it comes to media players, too.

The company's home entertainment, which was sold to Onkyo in 2014, made a splash at the Custom Electronic Design & Installation Association (CEDIA) Expo this afternoon when it unveiled three new hi-fi products, including a new Android Lollipop-powered music player.

The device is called the XDP-100R, and will be the company's first hi-fi player released in the US (it's previously released one on the company's home turf in Japan called the NSP-D10P).

Sporting a 4.7 inch touchscreen display, the device supports high res audio formats up to DSD 11.2MHz, 384kHz/24bit FLAC/WAV audio files - a slightly better standard than what HD streaming sites like Deezer and Tidal currently support.

Here are the specs in full detail, according to a press release sent to techradar:

  • Aluminum build for extended durability strength with removable bumpers
  • 4.7 inch (1280 x 720) touch screen for easily navigating music files
  • 32GB Internal storage
  • Two SD card slots for extended file storage (Max 256GB/128 x2, Micro SDXC type)
  • Built-In Wi-Fi (802.11b/g/n or 802.11ac)
  • Built-In Bluetooth with aptX (A2DP, AVRCP, HSP, OPP, HID, PAN)
  • Built-in speaker
  • 3.5mm Stereo Phone out
  • Micro USB B/OTG Digital out
  • Battery Life: 10 hours (96kHz/24bit Playback)
  • Separate DAC/AMP circuit board and CPU circuit board
  • Available in Black (XDP-100R-K) and in Silver (XDP-100R-S)

On paper, the device looks like it could offer strong competition for the other hi-fi players on the market, the Sony NWZ-ZX1 and the Pono Player. Though admittedly 32GB of internal storage seems a bit on the low end considering that FLAC files typically range from around 20MB to 50MB in size.

But a hi-fi player wasn't Pioneers only trump card at the show. It also announced the SE-MASTER1 "reference grade" headphones and SX-N30 hi-fi receiver that supports WAV, FLAC, Apple › Lossless, WMA Lossless, WMA, AAC, OGG Vorbis and MP3 files.

The XDP-100R media player is expected to cost $700 (around £450, AU$960), while the headphones and receiver will retail for $2,500 (about £1,600, AU$3,500) and $600 (about £400, AU$800), respectively.

Nick Pino

Nick Pino is Managing Editor, TV and AV for TechRadar's sister site, Tom's Guide. Previously, he was the Senior Editor of Home Entertainment at TechRadar, covering TVs, headphones, speakers, video games, VR and streaming devices. He's also written for GamesRadar+, Official Xbox Magazine, PC Gamer and other outlets over the last decade, and he has a degree in computer science he's not using if anyone wants it.