Philips PSC706B/00, PSC705B/00, PSC703B/00, PSC60217, PSC805/00 User Manual

WHITE PAPER: New PC Sound Requirements

Attacking MP3 File Compression and PC Fidelity Input/Output for HOLISTIC Listening Improvement

December 9, 2002

Traditionally, sound in personal computers has not really been
about listening quality. Beeps, chirps and other simple tones
used in personal computers were originally created to
augment various commands, not to support an alternative
listening experience. Used primarily as audio cues, personal
computer sounds were tied to games, productivity applications
or used as a single element in a brand, as in the Microsoft®
“chord” that plays upon the opening of the Windows®
operating system.

Today, however, PC sound is going through a renaissance.
Because of the proliferation and increasing sophistication of
personal computers – and the continued migration of digital
media into the home in general – consumers now want to
listen to their computers in much the same way they listen to
their stereos or TVs. Now, consumers want to improve the
quality of entertainment experiences that are uniquely and
conveniently provided by their computers.

Manufacturers are responding. New computer introductions
are emerging onto the market that position the PC as the
staging area for home entertainment. In addition to enhanced
music capability, these PCs have TV tuner cards, Personal
Video Recorders (PVR), online program guide, etc.

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Similarly, in the past the standalone sound card market was
relegated to serving the needs of vertical segments like
audiophiles and gamers (who were willing to pay quite a bit
for additional sound capability). Today’s market is driven by
mainstream consumers.

The Importance of MP3.

It should be noted that the PC entertainment trend has been
greatly accelerated by the MP3 file format. In fact, MP3 files
have revolutionized consumer music. Recent research*
indicates that one-fifth of Americans, or about 40 million
people, have downloaded digital music from file-sharing
services.

The obvious benefit of MP3 files is that they are compressed
to make Internet transmission easier. Using advanced
compression algorithms, the file shrinkage is significant, usually
at least by a factor of 10. With MP3, Internet transmission
times for a standard song track on a CD were reduced from
hours to minutes.

However, since considerable data is removed in the copying
process, the MP3 format is usually described as “near CD
quality.” Conventional wisdom says that the data loss does not
affect the listening experience of the average user (i.e., sounds
that the human ear can’t hear, louder noises are emphasized).
This, however, was a generous viewpoint established in light of
the significant offsetting benefits of reduced file size and the
accepted usage models of PCs a couple of years ago. The fact
is, the sound quality of MP3 files is substandard when
compared to CDs and home entertainment systems in
general. New standards are emerging for PCs based on the
consumer electronics usage model.

New Requirements.

The emergence of a mainstream market for CD-quality PC
sound should be good news for sound card manufacturers. But
most sound card manufacturers remain focused on optimizing
the processing capability of their cards; and, given the state of
sound card technology in 2002 (16-bit/48KHz data streams
remain the common standard), it’s clear they are struggling to
make noticeable improvements – even to their traditional
audience of audiophiles and gamers. Focusing on changing bit
depths and sampling rates has met the laws of diminishing

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returns, and this approach no longer improves sound quality in
a meaningful way.

Most surprisingly, this traditional view of sound card
functionality has not attempted to address or compensate for the
loss of data in MP3 files. Clearly, the MP3 format (including the
new mp3Pro format) will continue to play a major (if not the
central role) in digital music for years to come. Add to this the
new standards evolving in pricing, ease-of-use and the net
effect of the listening experience in general, and you have a
market in which consumer sophistication and expectations
have outpaced product innovation.

Improving PC sound is no longer a matter of simply optimizing
the sound card itself – it’s a matter of re-defining the listening
experience associated with a personal computer. Sound card
manufacturers need to get out from under the hood of the
car, as it were, and consider where the car is going.

Consumers bring many more variables to the decision
purchase mix vs. vertical markets, each of which must be
addressed. These are:

1. Ease-of-use

2. Reproduced sound quality, especially as it relates to
MP3 files

3. Price

4. Input types

5. Output variables

6. Environment

Clearly, managing all of these variables is difficult. Philips
Electronics has devoted one of its research and development
facilities to this challenge. Located in Tempe, Arizona, the
Philips Audio Lab is a centerpiece to the development of
sound products for the personal computer and digital home
marketplace. One of the latest innovations from those
development efforts are new sound card products based on
the concept of Holistic Sound Management, which is described
below.

New Approaches.

To achieve real innovation – or more specifically, audible
sound differentiation – and put the productivity-oriented
personal computer on a par with home entertainment or

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