digital audio
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Engadget Primed: digital audio basics
Primed goes in-depth on the technobabble you hear on Engadget every day -- we dig deep into each topic's history and how it benefits our lives. You can follow the series here. Looking to suggest a piece of technology for us to break down? Drop us a line at primed *at* engadget *dawt* com. Digital audio. There's a very good chance that you've enjoyed some today. It's one of the more universal aspects of technology. In fact, perhaps the more relevant question would be, when was the last time you listened to an analog format? The truth, for many, will be quite some time ago -- vinyl purists and the odd cassette fanatic aside. Yet, despite its ubiquity, there's a lot of misunderstanding and confusion about digital audio. Some believe it'll never match analog for true fidelity, some assert quite the opposite. Many lament the lack of a tactile format, while others love the portability that comes with zeros and ones. In this installment of Primed, we take a look at the history of digital sound, as well as provide an introduction to some of its key components, with the view to helping us understand it better. Wondering what bitrate to encode your MP3s at? Or whether you should choose a 96 or 44.1KHz sample rate? We thought as much. By the time we're through, these questions should no longer lay heavy on your mind, and you can enjoy that latest Knife Party, or Britney track as much as its bit depth allows. What's bit depth you say? Well, read on to find out...
Yamaha's singing keyboard makes X Factor even more redundant (video)
Tired of singers over pro-ho-ho-ho-nouncing every vowel? Perhaps the solution is to just remove their ilk from the equation altogether. That's the idea behind Yamaha's new Vocaloid Keyboard, which transforms the Vocaloid software into a ready-to-play device. 16 keys represent consonants, vowels and the types of voicing marks used in Japanese, while at the same time selecting a tone on the keyboard. An LED display prints out each letter as its plays, ensuring that you aren't making any playing errors (or should that be "typing errors?"). Experienced musicians who have used the device found that they were able to produce nursery rhymes after three hours of practice, but sadly the company isn't planning to press it into production. Instead, as the chip inside is "removable," it might contemplate licensing it to another interested party, Simon Cowell, perhaps.
iPod nano review (2010)
Apple's sixth generation of the iPod nano is essentially the first complete rethinking the product has had since its debut in 2005. The previous form factor -- slim and light with a decently sized display and clickwheel -- has been all but abandoned. The new design is a complete departure; a full touchscreen device that brings to mind something more like a large, living postage stamp than a portable music player. Along with the radical hardware redesign, Apple has infused the media player with a brand new operating system as well -- an interface that looks and plays more like iOS than iPod. We've spent the past week or so knocking the nano around to see if it's worth your hard-earned dollars, and we've got the answers inside -- so read on for our full review. %Gallery-101628%
SanDisk debuts newly designed Sansa Fuze+ PMPs
SanDisk's finally updated its Fuze PMP with the Sansa Fuze+. The newly designed device boasts a 2.4-inch LCD, with three capacities -- 4GB, 8GB, and 16GB -- to choose from. It also comes in red, white, purple, blue and black in the latter two models, while the 16GB only comes in black. Other than that, it's pretty low on features: the Fuze+ (you'll be happy to know) features full compatibility with slotRadio (and all microSDHC cards), supports all the major file formats, and a new barebones user interface. The Fuze+ lineup is available today, and the 4GB will cost you $79, the 8GB model will run $89, while the 16GB is priced at $119. Full press release follows below.
Major labels show eagerness to fail with new CMX digital audio format
Let's think about this, shall we? How did Sony's ATRAC format do? How did all those DRM-laced formats fare? Call us zany, but we've got a feeling an all new format developed by the astoundingly brilliant (ahem) minds at the world's largest record labels is apt to follow the aforementioned formats right on down to Irrelevant Boulevard. According to Times Online, Sony, Warner, Universal and EMI are currently looking to go head-to-head with Apple's own "Cocktail" by introducing a CMX format (codenamed) that will "give music fans a computerized version of the sleeve notes that come as standard with a CD, including lyrics and artwork, and videos." Reportedly, the format is expected to launch in November in an effort to boost whole album downloads (as opposed to singles), and while the labels approached Apple in order to gain its support, the Cupertino-based company purportedly decided to concoct its own mixture. Oh, and you can pretty much consider this extra DOA should iTunes not support it; fair or not, that's just the way it is.[Via Guardian]
Maxian's E900T PMP / GPS navigator offers near-endless possibilities
At a glance, it's easy to mistake the Maxian E900T for other members of the Maxian family, such as the E900DIC or D900 Neo. Let's face it -- this company has some fundamental problems when it comes to differentiating between models. The latest entry into the lineup comes in the form of a wild, do-it-all PMP -- one which incorporates audio and video playback, a DMB receiver, GPS navigation, and an always-handy dictionary into one delicious package. The Windows CE-based system boasts an 800 x 480 4.3-inch touchscreen, a 30GB or 60GB hard drive, support for WMV, MPEG-2, MPEG-4, DiVX / XviD, H.264, WMA, AAC, MP3, and OGG formats (amongst others), plus the aforementioned DMB compatibility. The E900T is capable of outputting 720p HD video, sports Dolby Digital and DTS surround sound, and includes Burr-Brown audio circuitry which it outputs via S/PDIF. When you slap this thing into its carmount, it also becomes a full featured GPS navigator, taking advantage of the GPS receiver in the cradle to provide turn-by-turn directions and other navigation functions you know and love, like locating Wendy's (in Korea, at least). No word on when, or if, this will be available in the States, but it couldn't hurt to write some letters of encouragement.[Via Navigadget]
iLink dock provides iPod digital output
We have to start waking up earlier if we're going to scoop "best tech blog" Engadget (congratulations y'all!) on the iPod news. Conrad is reporting that MSB Technology has released the iLink digital output dock for current full-size iPods, providing true digital-out for the audiophiles among us.There are a few caveats for this product: first, you need to upgrade your iPod to work with the dock ($200). Second, the dock package, if bought with an iPod upgrade, is a screamingly expensive $1,995. Third, if you've already ripped your music as AAC or MP3, you'll want to go back to the original CDs and redo all the songs in Apple Lossless format for optimal sound (not to mention that anything purchased from the iTunes Store will sound less than ideal). What price perfection? I guess we know.
iLink dock brings digital output to iPod, with a catch
There's no doubt that the audio industry loves audiophiles: a group of people searching for high fidelity who happen to pick up a whole lot of expensive kit on the way (that's where the love comes in). A company called MSB Technology is attempting to tap into this lucrative and exclusive demographic with its iLink Docking System for the iPod. On its own the iLink isn't particularly special, but when it's coupled with an MSB-upgraded iPod it can output true digital audio, something the analog-only iPod has never been capable of doing. You can either opt to send your own 5.5G iPod to MSB -- where they'll upgrade it for you for $199 and provide their own warranty -- or you can go for the full $1995 iLink system -- which includes an iPod upgrade, and an iLink dock that taps into a digital audio enabled iPod's dock connector. Although we don't claim to be audiophiles ourselves, we see a couple of potential problems here, not least the issue of the iPod being an inherently flawed device to market to audiophiles (compressed music = bad). The other little niggle is the two grand price tag, which isn't too far removed from the asking prices of the high-end CD players it's designed to replace.
Apacer's Audio Steno AU522 flash-based DAP
What do you get when you cross an iPod Shuffle with Nokia's 7280 fashion phone? (Hint: it's not Transcend's T.Sonic 310, but good guess.) Why, Apacer's upcoming Audio Steno AU522 DAP, of course. This fairly-stylish little number comes in capacities ranging from 256MB to 2GB, supports MP3, WMA, and WAV files, and includes a memory card slot for boosting storage by another gig. A built-in USB connector allows you to use the AU522 as a flash drive or reader for all those MMCmicro cards you have lying around, and you can also record directly from the FM tuner and share your music with a friend thanks to dual headphone jacks. The two-color, 128 x 64 OLED screen is another nice touch, though it probably contributes to the player's mere eight hours of battery life. No word so far on either pricing or availability, but if you really have a desire to snatch one of these up, we're confident that you'll be able to make it happen.[Via MP3 Player Guide]
M-Bird's XZ-22 flash media player
It's been a while since we last heard from M-Bird, but it looks like maybe, just maybe, they've shed their egregiously awful stylings for a milder, more Cingular 8125-ish looking enclosure. Their XZ-22 media player features 2.2-inch 260k color display, USB On-The-Go, and 512MB / 1 / 2GB capacities in 1.9 x 3.5 x 0.6-inch body. Nothing mind blowing, but it's an aesthetic step forward for one of the worst habitual offenders of taste in the audio player world, that's for sure.
