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Chinese audio manufacturer Shanling has announced the launch of its new music streamer SM1.3. Billed as a “feature-rich streamer” offering “cutting-edge technology” in a compact, simple-to-use package, the new unit’s premium price of £1,199 / $1,199 / €1,199 puts it in a space with formidable competition from the likes of The five-star CXN100 from Cambridge Audio (£899 / $1,049 / AU$1,899) and the award-winning price EXN100 (£1,599/$1,799).

Shanling recently revealed a pair of luxury wired headphones – the HW600 – to face the power of Focal Clear Mgand now he turns his attention to music banners with the aim of standing out in this increasingly competitive market. To do this, the new SM1.3 uses an AKM4499EX DAC which, combined with the streamer’s AK4191 modulator, aims to deliver “a new sonic standard at this price.”

The new streamer runs on custom Android 12 OS, is DNLA compatible, and is capable of streaming music from NAS drives on the same network. Importantly, the compact unit supports playback of high-resolution files up to 32-bit/768kHz PCM, DSD512, and MQA.

Shanling Streamer supports a wide range of streaming platforms, including Tide, Spotify, Apple Music And Amazon Music. Wi-Fi 6 is supported alongside AirPlay2while a dedicated Ethernet port means you can connect the SM1.3 to your home network using a physical tether. Bluetooth 5.2 is built-in, with superior quality LDAC and aptX HD codecs both supported.

In terms of physical connections, the SM1.3 offers optical and coaxial outputs as well as analog RCA and XLR outputs. The new streamer houses coaxial and optical inputs as well as multiple USB inputs and an M.2 SSD slot, meaning you can access stored digital music collections directly through your network drive. For private listening, there’s also a headphone port on the front of the new network player.

Rather like the Eversolo DMP-A6Shanling’s new unit sports a “clear, fast and responsive” 5.8-inch touchscreen flanked by physical buttons for playing, pausing and skipping tracks, as well as a large rotary dial for adjusting the volume. The SM1.3 can also be controlled via the Eddict app, available for Android and iOS devices.

The Shanling SM1.3 will be available from November 8, priced at £1,199 / $1,199 / €1,199.

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