Defining Quality Audio in the Connected Car and Beyond

There was a time when audio and visual entertainment could only be experienced in a live context. Then audio and video recording came along and changed everything. For the better? In many ways, yes, because now entertainment was more portable. In other ways entertainment suffered, namely in quality, as recordings could never quite match the level of a live performance.

Technology has advanced so much that people can enjoy good audio almost anywhere, including their cars. But that has brought with it a new set of challenges – as well as innovative solutions – which we’ll explore below.

Defining Quality

How a person measures, or defines, quality audio is really an individual choice. No two people experience music the exact same way and there will always be different opinions when it comes to defining what makes for a quality audio experience. What’s “good enough” for one person might not even be close to satisfactory for another.

This can make it difficult for technology companies to drive interest and value in audio solutions. The same customer wowed by 8k TVs may not care that those devices are equipped with low-quality speakers. Overall, we know that most people either don’t think there’s anything wrong with their audio or simply care less about it than they do picture quality.

We also know, however, that music and audio are incredibly vital parts of any visual story experience. And so, to reach customers less inclined to consider audio, a better approach might be to talk less about quality itself and more about why the quality of the experience is so important.

Why Music Matters

Music has the power to move us because music literally moves through us and can really alter the nervous system. Listening to pleasurable music has been shown to increase the production of dopamine, a neurotransmitter associated with pleasure and reward. This “feel-good” chemical is a key component of the brain’s reward system and contributes to the enjoyable and often addictive nature of music.

The way music interacts with our nervous system can also cement long-term memories associated with major lifetime events and other core memories, ranging from jingles that recall old products to forgotten favorite songs that deliver a flood of emotion associated with the recollections tied to those songs. These musical connections to memories are rooted in the very structure and function of our brains, where sound processing and memory formation are intimately linked.

Recognizing the profound importance music has, it can be quite the disservice when we listen to it in a sub-optimal manner. Exploring better ways to listen to music, including better placement of higher-quality equipment in an acoustically optimal environment, will allow even the doubters to hear music in a deeper and more meaningful way.

Bringing it Together in the Connected Car

So, what then is the most optimal environment to listen to music? Optimal, like quality, can be defined differently by different people, but the most acoustically accurate way to listen is to be in the same room with the musicians when they are performing or recording. Of course, that is a very limiting option for most, which is why the invention of recorded audio became so important.

Today, people have so many options when it comes to listening to music. Digital or analog? Headphones or speakers? Surround sound or not? There are certainly advantages for each source and setup. But no matter the preference, there is actually one space that delivers the best audio experience for many people: the car.

Think about the benefits of in-car audio. For starters, cars are insulated and enclosed. Drivers and passengers are surrounded by speakers, and can adjust volume and balance to their preferences from a fixed listening position. Additionally, people in the car tend to be focused on the road and the music, making it the one place they can be completely surrounded and engrossed by audio.

Car audio can also be optimized using software to create an even better audio experience. For example, even though the listening position of the driver is fixed in a car, it’s not in the exact center of the cabin. At DTS, we can use technology to account for this and to adjust the balance of the speakers accordingly.

Tech Drives Audio Farther

As enjoyable as it is to listen to music in the car, it can always be better. Innovative solutions, like our own DTS AutoStage, are using artificial intelligence and machine learning to deliver personalized music recommendations and adaptive soundscapes. 

Additional emerging technologies such as brain-computer interfaces may allow us to interact with music in entirely new ways, creating customized auditory experiences based on our neural activity. And the integration of haptic feedback and multisensory experiences could further deepen our connection to sound and music.

At DTS, we’re at the forefront of all of it because our team is passionate about the power of great audio experiences and the ability for those uncompromised audio experiences to be enjoyed by everyone, from the home to car and everywhere in between.