The universe of audio products equipped with DTS’s wireless Play-Fi multizone-audio technology is expanding.
Definitive Technology and Polk, two of DEI’s Sound United brands, each plan in October to ship five Play-Fi products ranging from wireless speakers to amplifier/receivers and soundbars.
Definitive Technology and Polk, two of DEI’s Sound United brands, each plan in October to ship five Play-Fi products ranging from wireless speakers to amplifier/receivers and soundbars.
With the launches, DTS is moving closer to its goal of broadly licensing its wireless Play-Fi multizone technology so that consumers can create a wireless multiroom-audio experience through multiple brands of interoperable products. Play-Fi-enabled products are currently available from Wren Audio and DTS’s Play-Fi division, formerly DTS subsidiary Phorus. The Fine Sound Group also plans products. Its brands are McIntosh, Wadia, and Sonus Faber.
Play-Fi-equipped products use Wi-Fi to stream high-quality “lossless” audio stored on mobile devices and on networked DLNA-capable computers and NAS drives. One or more Play-Fi products can be controlled from an app running on Android and iOS mobile devices and on Kindle Fire tablets. The apps also accesses vTuner Internet radio stations, podcasts and select Cloud-based music services, then sends the content to Play-Fi products.
Multiple users can each stream a different source simultaneously to different Play-Fi products, or one user can stream to all Play-Fi products in a house.
Definitive Technology’s five products, part of the Wireless Collection, are the $399-suggested W7 wireless speaker, $699 W9 wireless speaker, $1,299 W Studio soundbar, $399 W Adapt streamer to connect to existing stereo systems, and the $499 W Amp, which connects to passive speakers.
Under the Polk brand, the Omni Collection will offer the $179 Omni S2 speaker, $249 Omni S2 Rechargeable portable speaker, $699 Omni SB1 soundbar, $299 Omni P1 adapter, and $399 Omni A1 amplifier/receiver.
For Definitive, the $399 W7 speaker and flagship $699 W9 speaker feature a tri-polar design with drivers in front and on both sides to radiate sound off walls to deliver a broad soundstage.
The $1,299 W Studio soundbar is only 3.5-inches-deep and features HDMI switching and proprietary Spatial Array technology, which delivers a 5.1-channel experience. It comes with compact wireless down-firing 8-inch subwoofer with 200-watt amplifier. The bar features solid aluminum end caps.
The $399 W Adapt streamer adds Pay-Fi capability to existing sound system via digital and analog connections. It also features an optical input. The $499 W Amp features 2×150-watt amplification, customized EQ settings to optimize performance for use with Definitive Technology speakers, a line-level subwoofer output, and left- and right-channel line-level inputs and outputs.
Polk’s $179 S2 ultra-compact speaker comes with black and white swappable grilles. It sits horizontally or stands up to fit in small spaces. The speaker incorporates two 2-inch full-range drivers and two passive radiators.
The $249 S2 Rechargeable is made of rugged ABS, features lithium-ion battery, and plays up to 100 feet from a home’s Wi-Fi router. The battery drives the speaker up to 10 hours on a full charge at moderate listening levels.
The $699 SB1 Sound Bar 3.1-channel soundbar features VoiceAdjust technology to reproduces clear dialog. Full Complement Bass Technology gives the soundbar the ability to create deep bass with very low distortion at high volumes, the company said.
The $299 P1 Adapter features stereo analog output and digital outputs. It also features auxiliary input. The $399 A1 Amplifier includes customized EQ settings for optimizing performance with Polk speakers. Peak power is 2×75 watts. It also features a phono input to connect a turntable.
The products in the two collections connect wirelessly to a smartphone, tablet or PC through the use of a dedicated controller app. One app will be branded for Polk’s system and the other for Definitive.
Play-Fi technology is promoted as overcoming Wi-Fi quality-of-service limitations by prioritizing Play-Fi traffic, compensating for the typical types of interferences suffered by Wi-Fi networks, and synchronizing audio throughout the house by reducing latency to less than one millisecond, eliminating echoes that could otherwise be heard when multiple Play-Fi devices play back music simultaneously in near
