The new Apple MacBook Pro 2021 has more surprises under the hood than meets the eye. Headphone lovers can go wild!
A lot has been said and written about Apple’s new 2021 MacBook Pro. The system chip (SoC) consisting of several processor cores and a mountain of GPUs (graphics processors) makes the competition bite the dust. But there are more surprises hidden under the hood. For example, you’ll find a speaker system consisting of six speakers in the latest iteration of the MacBook Pro. However, perhaps the most interesting audio feature has been somewhat hidden under the carpet! Somewhere in the small print of the specifications, Apple writes the MacBook measures the impedance of connected headphones. Based on that value, the output voltage of the headphone connector is adjusted.
Hi-res DAC
It means the Apple MacBook Pro has no trouble driving all types of headphones properly. Including the high-end ones with high impedance. At the same time, it ensures the internal headphone amplifier does not become overloaded. To be complete, the DAC inside the new MacBook Pro offers a maximum quality of 24 bit / 96 kHz. More than enough to stream lossless tracks as offered by more and more music streamers. Including, of course Apple Music. Anyway, the ‘smart’ headphone amp will be handy for sure. Too bad there is no physical output on Apple’s smartphones and tablets anymore. After all, the same technology could have been used there…