My iPhone 4 went ‘honk honk.’ It was from my 13-year old daughter.
It read, “OMG where do I put the silver CD thing and how to choose? xxx.”
It was my daughter attempting to play a CD on my home system. Staring at the multiple boxes and various buttons, she could not understand why it was so complicated to play a silver disk and did not know where to start.
This really drove home how traditional two-channel audio has not kept pace with the music-loving general public who have embraced audio with open arms through the personal computer and an omnipresent music software platform called iTunes.
We are fortunate in that we are in the midst of a technological surge that makes Moore’s Law seem like it is in urgent need of a Windows Update. With the ‘technological arms race’ of e-tablets, e-books, smartphone et al, one advantage is that audio has been brought back into the mainstream consciousness.
Audio format evolution, not revolution
Within the space of only a few short years, the iPod/smartphone has drawn the public in droves back into music on a global scale not seen since the Cliff Richard “Wired for Sound” days of the Sony Walkman; an achievement that has been nothing short of truly astonishing. The UK telecommunication watchdog OFCOM recently announced that over 30% of adults and over 60% of teenagers use a smartphone. Wherever we look, people everywhere are seen listening to music on headphones. Behind all of this is a computer on which all the music is centrally stored.
The driving force behind the iPod/smartphone is our pursuit of ever-greater convenience. In the 1950s there was the 12” vinyl record; in the eighties the 5” compact disk; and now the 2.5” hard disk drive. This latest format makes handling the music catalogue no longer a physical, but a virtual reality; in a computer-generated world that is uncannily reminiscent of “The Grid” in Tron: Classic and Tron: Legacy.
The two-channel audio generation in its pursuit of the highest quality of music playback is coming around to computer-audio. Even the most ardent technophobe will acknowledge that this is the future because high-definition music is accessed through this medium. High-Definition (HD) music being 24-Bit carries more information in comparison to Standard-Definition (SD) compact disk on 16-Bit. All things being equal, if properly executed, HD audio has the potential to deliver exquisite vocals, stunning dynamics and a canyon-wide soundstage. Surely your audio pulse is racing now!
Juxtaposed by a huge slice of serendipity is the unrivalled convenience of computer-based audio which rather than separating us further from our music, actually enables us to be more intimate with our music collection than ever before. How? The answer is finger touch control from the listening chair. With precise and immediate access to the whole of our music collection, vinyl and CD could never match such expediency.
The aim of this series of computer-audio papers is to introduce, outline and suggest approaches on the Apple (OS X) and Microsoft (Windows) platforms. Of course, one may also wish to take a different route and purchase a “plug and play” Network Audio Source. The choice is yours and the list is endless. One thing is for sure, the benefits are aplenty…
There are only two questions to answer:
Do you like higher-quality music?
Do you wish to be drawn into your music?
If the answer is a resounding “yes” to both, then read on…
The perfect source: PFP, NAS or CAS
There are three main approaches to a computer-audio source front-end:
1.Portable File Player (PFP): of the three approaches, the Portable File Player as portability is key, it has the most compromised sonic performance out of CAS/NAS or CD player. This is to be expected as the setup is comprised of a small, portable music player such as an iPod that docks into a station/base that takes the digital signal which is sent to a separate DAC component. Convenience is the advantage but a computer is still required behind the scenes to load/manage/store the music library. A typical iPod with a 16GB storage capacity can only store ~50 CD albums on a lossy compression format (i.e. lowest sound quality music file).
2.Network Attached Storage (NAS): a front-end interface that requires/connects to a Wi-Fi Router or Ethernet connection. The front-end such as a Logitech Squeezebox acts as the source as it receives the streamed music from the router. NAS systems are often at least partially ‘closed’ as the hardware and software comes pre-installed/fixed by the vendor. Network knowledge or specialist setup is required at the outset and the user is tied to the vendor’s default platform. Compared to CAS setups that use specialised software, the NAS sonic performance is not as impressive. NAS-based systems (such as Sonos) only play up to 24/96kHz and the playback chain may not be ‘Bit-Perfect’.
3.Computer Audio Source (CAS): a laptop/desktop with an audio playback program such as CPlay or Audirvana connected to a DAC via USB/SPDIF. Such a system is ‘open’ as the computer hardware/software and DAC are ‘user-definable’ which along with ‘Bit-Perfect’ capability, forms the basis for the highest sound quality. This approach offers greater flexibility as the software can be constantly improved by the user to attain the latest and highest-level of sonic playback to stay at the lead-edge.
Computer audio oozes tech appeal
Computer-based audio, fanned by its inherent technological nature, has an amazing kaleidoscope of attractive features that makes an original Western Electric 300B valve seem like a 30W light bulb. The following is an overview of the ten most attractive features.
1. Unwind into your music like never before
On an equal footing with better sound quality, unparalleled access to the music is a key reason why computer-based audio should make any music lover’s ears prick up.
Habitually, we listen to 10% of our CD/vinyl collection 90% of the time. Ever wondered why? The answer is lack of accessibility. It is just not practical to leaf through +1,500 vinyl/CD albums each time one wishes to play music. The physical nature of one’s vinyl/CD collection means it is habitually arranged in a certain way such as by genre or alphabetically.
With computer audio, imagine being sat in your listening chair and with a swipe of the finger, directly access your entire music collection. Neither CD nor vinyl could ever be that expedient.
2. The computer is the 21st century source
Around the globe, the sheer number of iPod/smartphone users has already established the computer as the main audio source. In the era of the touchscreen ‘tablet’ one should similarly expect a touchscreen audio source with the same, attractiveness/features.
With computer-based audio there is the garden-variety standard Windows remote control unit but far more exciting is the smartphone/tablet remote control options supported by a virtually endless array of iPad/iPhone/Android downloadable ‘applications’.
3. Computer audio has come of age; ‘Bit-Perfect’ playback
In the early days of computer audio, the primary culprit for poor sound was the Kernel Mixer incorporated into the computer’s operating system. The ‘mixer’ carried out forced manipulation of the audio signal leaving it sounding ‘hard’ and ‘artificial’.
The reason behind this artificial manipulation uses a mathematical program to recalculate the music signal leaving it degraded because the Upsampling process is lossy by nature so ‘Bit-Imperfect’. The human ear is highly sensitive and is able to easily detect such flaws.
In recent times, the most important single advancement in computer audio playback has been the ability of virtually all music software programs to execute Bit-Perfect audio playback.
The following table is a synopsis of the different aspects of the three main approaches to computer-based audio: outlining the key considerations from price to features to technical setup/maintenance. 
4. HD and SD are complimentary, not competing formats
High-Definition (HD) 24-Bit music is encoded using the same Pulse Code Modulation (PCM) as 16-Bit Standard-Definition (SD) compact disk recordings. Transferring compact disk music to SD (on a Hard Disk Drive) is the way forward. With ‘current’ and ‘future’ audio formats encoded the same, one may simultaneously enjoy both formats. We anticipate a format ‘evolution’ rather than ‘revolution’. We believe the transformation by CD music from a physical silver disk to a virtual music file has ensured its longevity and popularity for a number of years to come.
Some manufacturers such as Linn have made the decision to no longer manufacture CD players. We can also see the strong sense of déjà vu as the decline in demand for CD players is reminiscent of the early eighties when turntables were shunned in favour of the first Compact Disk players. Taking a more avaricious stance, one can straddle both HD and SD formats equally. Follow the music and enjoy the best of both HD and SD.
What’s more, vinyl lovers are also included. With HD 24-Bit/96kHz Analogue-to-Digital converters to digitise vinyl onto the HD audio format, vinyl will also enjoy a lift from the HD standard.
5. HD audio strong demand pull
With convenience at the forefront, downloadable High-Definition music is driving the surge in popularity of DAC machines. Over the long term, HD audio is well-positioned to be the format to carry the “’format baton’.
The ascendency of HD audio is underpinned in no small part by the proliferation of streamed video such as Love Film and Netflix; which have popularised streamed content via the Internet. This means ready mainstream acceptance/understanding of downloadable/virtual music access.
For HD music, the medium is downloads from online music vendors. It is therefore a logical progression that the purchase/storage/playback is all handled by the same component; the personal computer (strengthened by the fact that Steve Jobs recently announced Apple’s drive towards cloud computing is just around the corner which promises convenient backup/sharing et cetera…).
Coupled with the overriding environmentally-friendly and space-saving consumer trends, High-Definition and Standard-Definition music downloads is set to go from strength to strength.
It is worth identifying two side points:
i.The traditional physical CD format is not able to handle High-Definition music files.
ii.Sony and Philips the original designers, launched the SACD format in 1999. The Direct Stream Digital (DSD) technology behind SACD has been claimed by some to drive computer audio demand forward. This is unlikely as it has and is expected to remain niche. Presently, the total SACD library stands at only ~ 6,500 titles and in 2007, Sony deleted SACD playback from the Playstation 3. With this track record, both SACD and DVD-A formats are confined to the audio recycle bin of time.
6. Gargantuan storage capacity in the price sweet spot
Most audio lovers typically own a collection of +1,500 LPs/CDs. Taking into account the physical space such a music collection occupies in today’s ever decreasing size of homes means it is becoming increasingly more invasive (ergo, less likely to sneak past the other half).
7. Multi-room music access
It is fast becoming standard that computer audio software programs will wirelessly stream the music file from the computer via the wireless router to an iPhone or similar product. Therefore, should one wish, at bedtime to unwind to a lullaby, simply put on a pair of headphones and use the smartphone to stream from the computer.
Imagine being in the garden listening to a HD music file of the original 1963 Columbia vinyl pressing of The Dave Brubeck Quartet at Carnegie Hall wirelessly streamed to your iPod docking station whilst sipping a refreshing Pimms with a sizzling Angus sirloin steak on the barbeque…life really does not get much better.
8. Global social interaction
Nowadays, in the age of Facebook and Twitter, social networking has become a key part of our daily routine. With music very much organised into social groups, self and social integration via websites such as last.fm offer music as a social tool to assemble an ‘infinite self-assembling playlist’ to recommend to others.
9. Integration of digital room correction
It is often said that the room is the last chain in the audio system. We completely agree. Room correction systems range from £500 to £10,000+ and there is the complex technical setup to also consider. The major advantage of computer-based audio is that digital room correction via computer software is less complicated and more economic (~£200); two very compelling reasons indeed.
10. Computer-based audio makes economic sense
Consider the following two cost propositions:
More so than before, under the current climate of economic prudence, one would be remiss if Option B: the Touchscreen personal computer did not warrant serious consideration.
From a sonic performance point of view, now that the computer has more than the measure of compact disk playback, the decision is virtually academic.
Next time, what you need to move to computer audio!
By Vincent Luke
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