Audison bit Play HD

Digital Music Player

Audison bit Play HD

In the last issue of Driving Sounds we heralded the arrival of HD music in the car with the launch of the unique Audison bit Play HD music server. This we demonstrated to great effect over last summer but in case you missed it, read on.

HD music like HD TV adds a lot more depth to your listening. There is finer detail, further instrument separation and more accurate and faithful reproduction of your favourite sounds. To us converts, HD music is a fantastic development and furthermore it has given a lot of “heritage performers” the opportunity to remix, re-master and generally revive their back catalogues as well as allowing producers to use the “extra space” that abounds within this extended capability when working on contemporary recordings. 12 months on, I have enjoyed learning more about HD music not least, how to listen to it.

As a result of the last 15 years where a bigger library of music was given precedence over its quality, the public at large has stopped really listening to music in preference to just having it on in the background. I can strongly recommend you all try to find a bit of time now and again to put on a favourite piece of music and do nothing else but listen to it.  This is what HD has done for me and I am loving it and where better to do it than when sat in your car!

HD in the car still has just a few fans however Audison has delivered a product that adds enormously to the quality of sound available in a car. The product is not flawless yet but the platform is solid and future-proof with radical improvements in functionality, integration and the user experience delivered via a simple upload. We are expecting a major upgrade very soon and all those who chose to take the product early in its development will benefit from a free upgrade.  We are promised that the new software update will add additional flexibility as well as a more modern, comfortable and easy to use interface.

The product is available in two flavours; one is strictly for streaming from a mobile device and ultimately the internet, while the other has a 240 GB SSD installed on which to store your library.

But the key point of the massive amount of work that Audison has dedicated to sonic purity in a car is its connectivity. The addition of Audison bit processors and amplifiers with direct digital inputs means that from source to amplifier, audio signals can be delivered in an interference-immune manner that accurately conveys every bit issued by whatever source is selected. In the case of bit Play HD this can be 16-bit WAV files or gorgeous 24-bit 96kHz FLAC files or anything in between.

Describing the result in sonic terms is quite difficult and the best way to appreciate the clarity and accuracy of reproduction is to listen to it oneself. We often hear people say that they like music but they don't really have the equipment to hear the difference between MP3 or CD. This is very rarely the case in my experience. It is more a matter of exposure. If you have never tried a fine dining experience and eat fast food all of the time it doesn't mean you cannot discern the difference but more that you may have not been in a position to judge the difference other than by the price on the menu. Ultimately the disparity in price becomes a major obstacle and has us creating all sorts of non-issues to justify our abstinence! The same could be said for “Fine Listening” and to continue the analogy, once you start moving away from “Fast Sound” toward “Fine Listening” the price increases with the experience. To complete the analogy, perhaps we have been lured by the convenience of “Fast” and simply forgotten about “Fine”.

Get yourself back on the path to quality and visit your local FOUR MASTER

www.fourmasterscaraudio.co.uk (QR code directly to here please Andy: http://www.fourmasterscaraudio.co.uk/four-masters/)

Top Five HD Tracks:

Satellite of Love – Lou Reed

Snowtime – James Taylor

Lazarus – David Bowie

Eternal Life – Jeff Buckley

Happiness is Easy – Talk Talk