STACK #189 Jul 2020

LIFE TECH WELCOME

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TECH LIFE

C lassic Greek philosopher Plato clearly had an ear for a good melody, stating that music “gives soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination, and charm and gaiety to life and to everything”. It’s a sentiment as relevant today as it was 2,400 years ago – life is just better when it’s accompanied by music. Modern technology has made it possible to enjoy the tunes you love in outstanding audio quality whether you listen to them at home, in the garden or when you’re out on the bounce. And it’s not just music either. Maybe you’re a cinephile who wants the best in home entertainment audio from the prized films in your collection, or one of the 30 per cent of Australians that listen to podcasts on a monthly basis. This month in Life Tech, we’re going to take a good look at headphones, portable speakers, soundbars and turntables.

month This

Dolby TrueHD – Proprietary format of lossless audio delivery that supports up to eight audio channels Driver – The round part of a speaker that usually looks somewhat like a cone DTS – Another proprietary format of audio compression DTS-HD Master Audio – A lossless

Audio glossary

A2DP – An easier way of saying “Advanced Audio Distribution Profile”, this is the standard protocol for streaming audio via Bluetooth ANC – Short for “Active Noise Cancellation”, this uses electronics to reduce background noise AptX – Advanced system that allows transmission of high resolution – or quality – audio via Bluetooth Bandwidth – The range between the highest and lowest frequencies in an audio track Bluetooth – A widely-used standard that allows wireless interaction between electronic devices Channel – A single track of audio, so if something is listed as having “5.1 sound” for example, it has five channels of standard audio (usually front left, centre and right and rear left and right) plus one of sub-bass for a subwoofer. Digital optical – Also known as TOSLINK, this is a system that uses a single cable to transmit digital quality audio from one device to another Dolby Atmos – Lossless (all frequencies of the original sound mix are present) multichannel (up to 128) audio processing that moves sound above as well as around the listener, via dedicated up or down firing speakers. Dolby Digital – Proprietary format of lossy – meaning some frequencies are removed – audio compression

proprietary format of audio delivery DTS:X – Multichannel audio that aims for a similar “sound bubble” effect to Dolby Atmos, but without requiring dedicated extra speakers HDMI – An initialism for “High Definition Multimedia Interface”, a system used for video and audio transfer between, usually, home cinema devices HDMI ARC – Short for “Audio Return Channel”, this is a system whereby a television can send 5.1 channel audio backwards through an HDMI cable to an audio receiver, instead of using a separate cable HDMI CEC – Allows control of several HDMI connected devices from one remote HDMI eARC – Newer system much like HDMI ARC – the added ‘e’ is for “enhanced” – which is capable of sending uncompressed audio, including Dolby Atmos and DTS:X, to a receiver or soundbar Midrange – A speaker that transmits middle frequencies from 200 to 2,000 Hz Passive radiator – Also known as a “drone cone”, this uses sound trapped inside a speaker enclosure to add to the bass that you hear

Pre-amp – Otherwise known as a preamplifier, this takes a weak signal – such as from a microphone – and amplifies it

RCA – Old school analogue audio and video connections originally developed in the 1940s

Signal-to-noise ratio - The amount of desired sound that’s present compared to any unwanted sound Subwoofer – A bass speaker that carries very low frequency sounds that even a woofer can’t deliver Surround sound – Audio that literally surrounds you, either by way of front, side and/or rear speaker placement, or created virtually True Wireless – Completely cordless Tweeter – A treble speaker, which carries higher frequency sounds above 2,000 Hz Woofer – A bass speaker, which carries lower frequency sounds below 200 Hz

JULY 2020

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