Audi, Bang & Olufsen, Fraunhofer IIS team up for 3D auto experience

The folks at three of the biggest names in auto and/or audio have come together this month to bring on a beast of a system for the Audi Q7 for 2013. Bang & Olufsen have partnered with Audi as well as Fraunhofer IIS to bring on a “3D sound experience” for the next generation of Audi vehicles. Fraunhofer IIS, if you did not know, was the “main” inventor (as they say) of the MP3 and is an innovator of next-level audio experiences top to bottom – as any average Joe would tell you.

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The Audi Q7 Concept Car brings this experience on to the universe riding high on the success of the reintroduction of the 3D movie experience here in the 21st century. While 3D movies and the technology behind that visual experience is limited to the movie theater and the home theater with special visual enhancing goggles and the like, the 3D audio experience is ready, here and now, for the high-powered automotive world.

“Bang & Olufsen Audio Systems for cars are widely renowned for their unique ability to turn a car interior into a real high-end listening room, and with the addition of the 3D sound algorithm and associated speaker units and amplifiers in this Audi Q7 Concept Car, we add a new important emotional dimension into the listening experience. Extending beyond the small confined space of the vehicle cabin, the available sound experience now ranges all the way from a very big and open sense of space to the purist setting such as a control room of a recording studio.” – Bjarne Sørensen, Senior Manager Car Concept Creation and Communication

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Using the Audi Multi Media Interface you’re able to work with the vehicle’s 3D sound system, able to, as Harald Popp, head of the Multimedia Realtime Systems department of Fraunhofer IIS notes, “dissolves the geometry of the car.” Inside this vehicle you’ll find an amount of speakers placed to perfection that you’ll have never before experienced:

• Two loudspeakers in the dashboard center (tweeter and broadband)
• Two tweeters in the dashboard (left/right) with acoustic lens
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• One mid-high loudspeaker in each A pillar
• One tweeter in each A pillar
• Two loudspeakers in each front door with a woofer and a midrange
• Three loudspeakers in each rear door with a woofer, midrange and a
tweeter
• Two surround loudspeakers in each D pillar, consisting of a tweeter
and broadband
• One closed subwoofer box in the spare wheel compartment

This experience is such that a user will want to head out to their vehicle to listen to a new album simply to feel completely engulfed in sound. They won’t even feel the need to drive the car – no need for your own home studio anymore! Welcome to the next level – that’s what this team is saying to you, the future Audi owner.

We’ve yet to see this system in a real market-ready auto, but we’re expecting this perfectly tuned and placed system to hit real vehicles some time in 2013 – that’s just an assumption, mind you, but judging by this presentation, they’re ready for action. Have a peek at our Car hub for more information on the power present in the automotive industry today, especially in the technological breakthroughs of tomorrow!


Audi, Bang & Olufsen, Fraunhofer IIS team up for 3D auto experience is written by Chris Burns & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Point MKII Evolution Speakers: See Through to Their Souls

Personally, I prefer speakers that are heard and not seen, but if you’re from the opposite school of thought – and you have deep pockets – you might want some of these ginormous glass speakers for your media room.

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Let’s get this out of the way first – Perfect8′s Point MKII Evolution Speaker System retails for $115,000(USD). Yep, that’s a condo or a small house in some cities. But at PERFECT8 technologies, it buys you a pair of speakers and subwoofers.

The Point MKII Evolution speaker system comes packaged in a a thick glass enclosure, carefully engineered to eliminate any rattle or unwanted noise. Highs are powered by a air-motion transformer with powerful neodymium magnets, while the midrange is provided by a pair of 7″ Mg-Cones, and the low range is powered by a pair of long-stroke 10″ subwoofers with 22 pound magnets, located in the base of the cabinet. Frequency response for the system is rated at 16Hz to 26KHz, with a THD of less than 0.2% at 96dB SPL. Maximum long-term power output for the speakers is 200 watts, with a peak handling capacity of 1000 watts.

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While I have no doubt that these sound incredible, if you just like them because they’re transparent, then you might want to just go for People People’s Transparent Speaker, which you can get for as little as $360(USD) – and you can still put your kids through college.

[via Home Crux via Design You Trust]

Definite Technology Sound Cylinder: Sound in the Round

When my iPad’s sound needs an extra boost, which happens from time to time, I just use an everyday Bluetooth speaker. If that’s not enough, and you want something specifically-designed for your iPad or MacBook, then check out the Sound Cylinder.

definite technology sound cylinder

Definite Technology has been making audiophile gear since the 1990s. Their Sound Cylinder is a compact sound bar designed specifically for your Mac gear. It’s aesthetically pleasing, with a perforated aluminum housing, a magnesium alloy kickstand, with an innovative grip mechanism that’s made to fit an iPad. This mechanism also clips onto other flat devices such as laptop screens and other non-Apple tablets.

definite technology sound cylinder back

The Cylinder has two forward firing 32mm drivers that give good sound from mid to high range. There’s a 43mm side firing driver that handles the lows. It’s made to fit an iPad, so you can even dock it. Naturally, it connects via Bluetooth, so it can work with just about any mobile device. If it doesn’t, there’s a 3.5mm jack just in case. Battery life for the wireless speaker is rated at 10 hours, and it charges up via a microUSB connector.

definite technology sound cylinder down

The Sound Cylinder will sell for $199(USD) and will be available this coming February.

[via core77]

Amazon Lends the Music Industry a Clue with AutoRip

Rumors were circulating earlier this week that Amazon was set to launch a new service called AutoRip. According to those rumors, the service would provide users with digital versions of tracks on physical CD albums that they purchase and no additional cost. The rumors even went so far as to claim Amazon would be making the service retroactive covering any CD that consumers have ever purchased via Amazon.com.

autorip 1

Honestly, the rumor was a bit hard to believe but Amazon has now officially confirmed the service. Even more impressive than buying a CD today and getting free digital versions of the tracks that you can access on your smartphone or tablet is that the service is in fact retroactive. Amazon will give you digital versions of songs on CDs you purchased via Amazon.com as far back as 1998.

amazon autorip 2

At launch, the AutoRip service is offered for over 50,000 albums on Amazon.com with more on the way. Albums available cover everything from new releases to back catalog albums. Amazon’s new service is made possible with deals with major record labels and music publishers. Deals are in place with EMI, Sony, and Warner as well as hundreds of independent music labels. The service is automatically enabled for any music you purchase and is downloadable via the Amazon Cloud Player at no cost.

[via TechCrunch]

Hackers Found Guilty Of Stealing Unreleased Michael Jackson Music

Michael Jackson Moonwalk Hackers Found Guilty Of Stealing Unreleased Michael Jackson MusicTwo hackers from U.K. are sentenced to 100 hours of community service after officials found them guilty of stealing unreleased Michael Jackson tracks from Sony Music Entertainment. 27-year old James Marks and 26-year old James McCormick were arrested in 2011 after Sony contacted U.K. authorities. Marks and McCormick reportedly broke into the servers of Sony in the U.S. and stole the unreleased tracks belonging to the legendary pop icon. (more…)

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: M_A_C_H_I_N_A MIDI controller jacket, TDK Sound Cube: a box full of music,

Gorgeous, Bizarre Wooden Speakers Livestream the Sounds of a Japanese Forest

JVC Kenwood has released a set of bewildering wireless wooden speakers in Japan. Looking more like just a speaker frame, the pair vibrate to produce sounds, which unfortunately means their bass performance is non-existent. More »

Turn Your iPad Into a DJ Station With Two Turntables and Some Suction Cups

iPad docks featuring a set of compact turntables for DJs who like to travel light are nothing new. But ION Audio has come up with a small collection of suction-cuppable accessories that turn the iPad itself into a pair of decks and a mixer on the cheap. More »

Sennheiser MOMENTUM Black headphones hands-on

This week the folks at Sennheiser have shown off their next great hero headphones: MOMENTUM Black. This release takes the greatness of the MOMENTUM series and delivers it in what the company calls a “perfect fusion of style and substance”. They certainly sound great and now, here at CES 2013, they come in a perfect combination of silver metal, black, and red.

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These headphones feel like just about as high quality a construction and amalgamation of materials as we’ve seen in a set of phones the company classifies as “urban design.” With Sennheiser at the helm, you’ve got quality in the sound without a doubt, but it’s all about the industrial design here with the new MOMENTUM Black.

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You’ll have a metal headband slider made of stainless steel and padding along the inside of the top as well as around the earpads with fine black leather. It’s worth noting that this same design with a different color set is available in stores now, that being the MOMENTUM Brown (as it’s been re-named). MOMENTUM as a model offers 110 dB max sound pressure and a 200 mW load rating, the whole unit weighing in at 190 g.

These headphones are available in their Brown iteration for $349.95 while the Black will be hitting your audio equipment collection rather soon. Stick around SlashGear’s mighty CES portal to see the rest of the big push for gadgetry in a hands-on and otherwise in-person way into the future! Stick around for more Sennheiser as well – high fidelity excellence on the way!

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IMG_7569
lux
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Sennheiser MOMENTUM Black headphones hands-on is written by Chris Burns & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Sennheiser Orpheus HE90 First Listen: So This Is What $16,000 Headphones Sound Like

In the early ’90s, Sennheiser gave its engineers a mission: make the best headphones ever, irrespective of price. They came up with the Orpheus HE90. Only 300 were made. They initially sold for $16,000. Today they sell phone upwards of $30,000 on eBay. More »

Beats Electronics To Launch New Music Streaming Service Later This Year

beatsdrenewdaisyjtjt Beats Electronics To Launch New Music Streaming Service Later This YearWe wrote to you about Project “Daisy” last year, a new music streaming service and a potential Spotify rival that Dr. Dre and Nine-Inch Nails frontman, Trent Reznor, are working on. Well, it looks like we’re learning more about the service today. Dr. Dre’s Beat Electronics is announcing the upcoming launch of project “Daisy” with Ian Rogers as its CEO. Rogers will oversee the direction, vision and strategy for project “Daisy” and the talented team developing the service, the company said. (more…)

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: Amazon AutoRip Lets You Download MP3 Versions Of Your Purchased CDs For Free, Outdoor Technology Announces CHIPS Wireless Drop-in Audio System ,