Press Releases
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Neural Audio Showcases Proven Products For Broadcasters Looking To Widen
Media Opportunities at NAB2007
Neural®-THX Surround Technology is Leading the Way in Surround and for Low
Bit Rate Solutions
KIRKLAND, Wash., April 13, 2007 – At NAB 2007, Neural Audio Corporation, the
market leader in developing advanced audio and surround sound technologies, will
showcase Neural-THX Surround products created through its partnership with THX,
Ltd, and will demonstrate existing and innovative industry-leading products for
radio, television and low bit rate broadcast applications at the Harris
Corporation, Broadcast booth (N-2502), April 16-19, 2007, Las Vegas Convention
Center.
Product Demonstrations at NAB 2007
For NAB 2007, Neural Audio will be demonstrating a wide range of products that
will allow broadcasters to tap the potential of their current and future
systems:
• Neural-THX Surround MultiMerge, UpMix and DownMix solutions for professional
studio setup
and DTV transmissions;
• NeuStar 4.0 Codec Pre-Conditioning and Optimization hardware and software
solutions for radio;
• A 7.1 Neural-THX Surround experience using consumer electronic devices from
Onkyo
and AppleTV;
• A multi-channel surround sound headphone demonstration for mission critical
air force and
public safety applications;
• An optimized encoder for mobile operators and Internet content providers and,
the
Neural Enhanced AMR-WB+.
"Broadcasters today must rely on technologies that delivers content to multiple
broadcast platforms such as Internet, cell phones and other mobile devices,"
said Mark Seigle, Neural Audio President and COO. "Neural Audio is uniquely
positioned to assist broadcasters as the only company with audio codec and
surround sound expertise to optimize content for a specific platform."
Neural Audio and Harris are teaming up to provide solutions that will support
both broadcast requirements for lower bit rate and high audio quality.
Harris DTV Center
On display in the Harris digital television center broadcast chain will be the
Neural-THX Surround MultiMerge product that facilitates the smooth transition
from stereo to 5.1 surround sound. By working in the background of the broadcast
chain, the Neural-THX Surround MultiMerge uses intelligent and selective
upmixing to blend any audio – legacy mono, stereo, matrix encoded stereo (LR),
and 5.1 “discrete content” into an uninterrupted 5.1 surround sound stream
without the need of an operator’s intervention for DTV and mobile TV streaming.
MultiMerge can be used in combination with Neural-THX® Surround DownMix, so that
TV technicians can mix, edit and save surround content on existing 2.0 equipment
eliminating the need for costly upgrades. Additionally, the Neural Audio system
is backward and forward compatible with analog, digital, lossy, linear, stereo,
and 5.1 audio formats.
FlexStar® HDI-100 Importer and Harris® NeuStar™ SW4.0 Together
At NAB2007, Neural Audio and Harris Broadcast Communications Division will be
featuring the first public display of the NeuStar™ SW4.0 Codec Pre-Conditioning
Audio Software System embedded in the FlexStar® HDI-100 Importer. The
award-winning, audio conditioner introduced at NAB 2005, NeuStar SW4.0 is the
software version of Neural Audio’s popular NeuStar 4.0 hardware, which can be
positioned ahead of Internet streams, 2.5-3G wireless, DVB-H, DAB, DRM,
satellite, compressed STL, ISDN and other audio services in the transmission
chain for codec improvements and audio processing.
The software version of the NeuStar 4.0 has all the same robust feature sets and
processing algorithms, which allows broadcasters to monitor and process\multiple
digital radio channels (HD2, HD3 and HD4) or Internet streams at extremely bit
rates, and a much lower cost per channel than stand-alone processing.
NeuStar Widens Bandwidth for Multicasting and Revenue Opportunities
With the implementation of multiple audio channels on HD Radio™, codec
processing has become increasingly important in achieving bit rate savings for
the implementation of additional channels. By correcting anomalies in audio
content before they are encoded through the HDC codec, NeuStar 4.0 and SW4.0 are
able to implement the best quality audio for bit rates as low as 16 kbps with
bit savings of up to 30%. These savings can translate into wider bandwidth for
revenue-generating data transmission, supplemental audio channels, Internet or
mobile transmission.
Neural Audio’s NeuStar 4.0 AM/FM and SW4.0 processors are compatible with HD
Radio, Internet, ISDN/POTS, Satellite, DRM, DAB, compressed STLs, mobile and
satellite uplinks, and are fully field upgradeable for future expansion.
Neural Audio and THX Ltd. Partner for Cutting-Edge Surround Capabilities
On the heels of Neural Audio’s announcement of its partnership with THX Ltd., a
driving force in cinema, post-production, game, car audio and home
entertainment, Neural Audio will be demonstrating Neural-THX Surround technology
at NAB 2007.
The Neural Surround-THX UpMix™ and DownMix™ Professional Studio offers an
efficient way for broadcasters and professional mixers to encode and store 5.1
content during a live mix or post session on existing stereo equipment. With the
Neural-THX Surround system, surround content is downmixed and processed into a
Neural-THX Surround encoded, LwRw signal that can be played back in the studio
in full discrete surround for mixing. The 2-D stereo downmix of the original 5.1
material allows seamless and artifact free cross fades from mono/stereo to
surround, surround to mono/stereo and surround to surround.
The Neural-THX Surround system provides the rich envelopment and discrete image
detail of surround sound in a format 100% compatible with stereo for use in
CD's, radios, A/V receivers, digital music players and digital music downloads.
The Neural-THX Surround DownMix and UpMix system will be part of the Harris’
RMXdigital™ console demonstration in the Harris Broadcast booth at NAB.
Neural Audio Technology for Mission Critical Communications
For government communication applications, Neural Audio will present a new
approach to a multi-channel, multiple audio sources for communications utilizing
headphones. System attributes include increased clarity for mission-critical
scenarios that require real-time analysis and decision-making.
Neural Enhanced AMR-WB+ Optimized Encoder for Mobile Operators and Internet
Content Providers
Neural Audio will showcase their new product, the Neural-enhanced AMR-WB+, for
the first time at NAB 2007. Introduced at the recent 3GSM World Congress, the
Neural-AMR-WB+ solution is an optimized encoder for Internet service providers
and mobile operators. The new product is a joint effort by Neural Audio and
VoiceAge Corporation, the world’s premier supplier of speech and audio codecs,
that strives to increase audio quality while reducing bit rate consumption for
audio and music download and streaming applications to mobile devices such as
mobile phones.
The new Neural-optimized AMR-WB+ encoding solution provides superior quality
stereo music streaming and download from extremely low bit rates (16 kbps, and
even lower) for lower communications bandwidth usage for more content with less
download time.
Important Neural Milestones Achieved in 2006
For 2006, Neural Audio technology has posted a number of major milestones
including: the generation of over 15-million continuous, low bit rate broadcast
hours by hundreds of FM HD Radio stations using Neural Audio’s NeuStar Codec
Pre-Conditioner; the digital television implementation of Neural-THX Surround
solutions reaching more than 60 million viewers; and the broadcast of the
Neural-THX Surround encoded library by the Classical Public Radio Network’s (CPRN)
60 station group to listeners across the United States.
Neural Audio has worked with various music labels to create the world’s most
diverse surround sound music library. This Neural-THX Surround encoded library
is available to radio and Internet broadcasters across the world.
ABOUT HARRIS BROADCAST COMMUNICATIONS DIVISION
Harris Broadcast Communications Division is one of four divisions within Harris
Corporation, an international communications equipment company focused on
providing assured communications™ services for government and commercial
customers in more than 150 countries. One of the world's leading suppliers of
broadcast technology, Harris Broadcast Communications Division offers a full
range of solutions that support the digital delivery, automation and management
of audio, video and data. For more information, visit
www.broadcast.harris.com.
ABOUT NEURAL AUDIO
Neural Audio, through its Neural-THX® Surround brand and unique audio
optimization technologies, has become the key enabler in the delivery of high
quality content for the TV, radio, game, Internet, home theatre and mobile
markets. Key broadcast partners and customers such as THX Ltd., XM Satellite
Radio, Yamaha Corporation, Sony Corporation, Pioneer Electronics, Onkyo
Corporation, Denon Electronics, Marantz America and Harris Corporation,
Broadcast Communications have adopted Neural Audio technologies to provide the
best quality audio available today to their customers. For more information,
please visit www.neuralaudio.com,
www.neuralsurround.com.
Neural Surround is a trademark owned by Neural Audio Corporation, THX is a
trademark of THX Ltd., which may be registered in some jurisdictions. All rights
reserved.
CONTACT:
Jackie Broo
Public Relations Coordinator
Neural Audio Corporation
Email: jackie@neuralaudio.com
Office: +1-425-814-3200 x:116
Mobile: +1-513-304-9514
Dakx Turcotte
Marketing and Business Development Manager
Neural Audio Corporation
Email: dakx@neuralaudio.com
Office: +1-425-814-3200 x:135
Mobile: +1-206-499-5855