PS Audio has announced the launch of Sprout – its brand new all-in-one integrated amplifier that made its debut in prototype form at last month's Munich High End Show.
And if its Kickstarter crowdfunding campaign can be used as a yardstick for demand of this latest product, then PS Audio will be very pleased, as Sprout reached its funding target in just one hour.
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The brainchild of PS Audio sales director Scott McGowan, Sprout is said to be a "simple but high-quality hub of a home music system" and is expected to cost $800 (£470).
Sprout boasts a 50W channel integrated amplifier; a phono amplifier; 24-bit/96kHz asynchronous DAC; and a headphone amp under its steel, aluminium and walnut cover.
Its list of features means it will play music from an extensive ranges of sources – turntables to TVs, CD players to computers and any Bluetooth-enabled device too.
The Kickstarter campaign runs until July 16th, with the amount pledged already at $230,230 at the time of writing – compared to its initial target of $36,000.
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McGowan said: "Most people of my generation have grown up with earbuds and cheap plastic home-theatre systems, and have no idea how great music at home can sound.
"This product is our first step in growing awareness of awesome home audio—so we think Sprout is an appropriate name. We expect big things from this little guy."
Sprout is expected to start shipping in Q3. A Kickstarter pledge of $449 or more (£264) gets you a Sprout at a discounted price, with a $75 (£44) charge for international delivery.
BLOG: Munich High End Show 2014 in pictures
It's certainly promising to be one of the most notable AV Kickstarter successes we've seen in the past few months, including the Geek Out DAC seen at the Bristol Show.
And since then, we've also seen Munich-based Bragi announce the "world's first" smart wireless in-ear headphones and Neil Young launch the high-res PonoMusic player.
MORE: Kickstarter launch for Neil Young's PonoMusic
by Pete Hayman
