NEWS >>> AUDIO
Sony Pushes High-Res Audio into the Consumer Market
where high- quality
audio will become
something consumers are not only aware of, but also embrace whole-heartedly. At a small event in
THERE HAVE been a number of forays into the world of high-quality audio formats over the past decade, but despite the
backing of musicians, labels, and manufacturers, none have managed to succeed. The problem has always been (at least in the post- iPod era) that portability and downloadability have been more important. Add to that the success of streaming music services and the cause for audio quality gets even more dire. Yet industry giants Sony seem to believe we are on the verge of a tipping point
>>> INDUSTRY Cadac Licenses Dante
CADAC HAS signed an agreement with Audinate to license its Dante digital audio networking protocol and develop solutions for the two companies’ products. The agreement will enable both companies to develop an
interface solution between Cadac’s MegaCOMMS networking technology and the Dante digital audio networking protocol. “The development is part of an ongoing programme to allow Cadac users all the advantages of MegaCOMMS – higher bit rate, lower latency, greater bandwidth, and significantly more channels – while interfacing with established industry standard networking and transmission protocols,” said Richard Ferriday, Cadac brand development manager. “In the coming months there will be a Cadac designed and manufactured interface box which will enable MegaCOMMS to seamlessly plug in to
Dante-based systems.”
www.cadac-sound.com
www.audiomedia.com December 2013 13
London’s West End, Sony home audio product manager Mike Somerset and technical marketing manager Eric Kingdon gave an in-depth look at the company’s new High-Resolution Audio range (HRA), which runs the gamut from audiophile-worthy hard disc players and true analogue stereo amplifiers to a 32GB portable Walkman. The products are all labelled with Sony’s ‘High-Res Audio’ badge and support formats such as DSD, WAV, AIFF, FLAC, and ALAC. “What we’re really trying to do is offer a range that will provide higher quality than CD playback without neglecting, of course, our customers’ existing collections. It has to cater for everyone,” explains Somerset. “This is very much aimed at people who download music and want the convenience of an iPod but
the quality of, say, a Super Audio CD.” Yet while this new gear
addresses the issue of providing affordable playback of higher-than-CD quality audio, the issue still remains of how to push the technology onto the public who increasingly see audio as a convenience, with quality being a secondary concern.
Kingdon thinks that the answer is right in front of us. “Mobile phones could potentially be the Trojan horse for high-res audio. Companies like Qualcomm are making IC sets that can do it and there are high- resolution phones already on the market,” he explained. “Look at how people listen to music. Yes, they still buy
dedicated music hardware but the phone is now used enormously for listening to music.” With Sony’s latest releases
along with high-resolution audio being backed by the likes of Samsung, LG, and the Consumer Electronics Association, this is definitely a space to watch.
www.sony.co.uk
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