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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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