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The modified iPods use the MSB protocol to access the digital data directly.
Additional digital inputs include S/PDIF, AES/EBU,TOSLINK, USB, and high-quality Bluetooth. What's that, you say, isn't Bluetooth a strange choice for high quality?. Chord uses Bluetooth to extract the digital data and input it directly into its DAC which incorporates the field programable gate array(specifically, Xilinx Spartan 3, which is customized to a massive" 1.2 million gates). The FPGA then handles S/PDIF switching, decoding the digital PLL< RAM buffer controller, WTA filtering, and a 5th gen Pulse Array DAC.
There's also an analog input (RCA and XLR) and to line level outputs (variable and pass through). There's even a headphone jack.
Of course, its construction is solid chordthe casework is flawless.