Suweeeeet!! I've only found a couple of Panasonic units that are able to play DVD-A. I hope by the time I build my next system there will be SACD/DVD-A combo head units.
Excerpts copied from the December issue of Auto World:
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Acura's new ELS Premium eight-speaker Surround Sound System was developed under the guidance of Elliot Scheiner, a Grammy-winning music producer and engineer. The system includes DVD-Audio, DTS and CD, a six-disc, changer, AM/FM tuner, Dolby cassette and Satellite XM Radio. It's standard in the 2004 TL.
DVD-A 5.1 music discs are recorded in six channels (surround sound) instead of two (stereo) and contain as much as seven times the data capacity of CD. According to Acura, the result is sharply increased fidelity with 24-bit resolution instead of 16 bits for CD. Digital surround sound has 500 times the resolution of CD audio.
A Bose Surround Sound System is standard in the new Cayenne S and Turbo models. A 350-watt digital amplifier delivers output through either separate channels to a massive array of 14 speakers in the dashboard, doors, luggage compartment, D-pillars and spare-tire well of the sport-utility vehicle.
According to Porsche, the system can achieve concert hall volumes with no audible distortion.
AudioPilot noise compensation technology monitors sound through a microphone in the cabin, automatically adjusting output to compensate for unwanted noise.
Lincoln’s THX Ultra Premium Car Audio system is based on [yatta-THX fact-o-rama fluff-yatta), and Lincoln was the first automobile brand to offer it, in the 2003 LS.
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Yargh! But why is it available only to stock systems and there is next to nothing aftermarket supporting hi-res audio?
a: there is no such thing as a truly digital amplifier for audio. b: if they meant a class-D amplifier (switching) then all I can say is.. *BARF* I won't even use a class-D for subs in a car myself.. God forbid one should EVER touch mids and highs.. sound quality? what's that?
Bose in cars is never a good thing (or in the home, for that matter). I have yet to be wowed by an OEM system, be it in a Kia or a Mecedes, and having worked in car audio for many moons, I've seen about all of them - including the upgraded systems many of the better auto makers offer, like the Nakamichi, Harmon, JBL, or Bose systems. I would forgo the OEM option and purchase superior aftermarket equipment for cheaper, and have it installed.
When you get those propriatory OEM systems, it's usually almost impossible to upgrade. And since this is an audiophole forum, I assume you'll be looking for the best possible sound you can get.
yeah I was just about to say the mark Levinson system isn't too bad for OEM, as the entire system was designed into the car with no real compromise. Mark got to pick speaker placement and everything which helps a tremendous amount. Still, like Kurt said, I too have worked in both sales and installation for a small, high end shop since 91, and was amateur prior to that, done the IASCA pro circuits, and so forth, and in all of that time, I have yet to see an OEM system I'd really consider worth the cost. I'd rather do it myself, but not eveyone puts that much stock in car audio. Many people wouldn't know the Levinson offering from a 6x8" single speaker in the dash of a Volare station wagon.
Heat isn't a concern for me. I'll use active cooling if it comes to that. I know plenty of tricks to cooling ampliiers.. but I really just dislike the concept of a class-D amp used for subs because subs supposedly mask the shortcomings and poor audio quality of a class-D amplifier. I'm considering a Zapco class D for the two Onyx LSM12v.2 subs I'm also considering, but the entire idea leaves a bit of a bad taste.. it's just hard anymore to find an amp capable of 1Kw+ in a class-AB for a car. Heck it's hard to find any good class-AB amps over 300 watts these days.
yeah the last IASCA car I owned only used two stereo amplifiers, too. an Orion 2125SX, and an Orion 280GX. I used the 2125 for the mids/highs with passive filters, and the 280 for a pair of C-V 12" subs. worked quite well. The DynAudio three-way set I'm considering now though, eats power.. they can take 300 watts per channel and not even blink.. so that Sinfoni 120.4x should handle those well enough if I bridge it to two channels, and forget rear fill entirely (which is fine, for a good front soundstage) and those Onyx subs are rated to take 500 watts each and do pretty well, so we'll see what happens. usually I don't like throwing a hell of a lot of power into a system, just for the sake of having a lot of power, but in this case, the components I like seem to demand a fair amount of power to really perform at tehir best, so we'll see what happens.
I guess I'm just old-school and set in my ways a bit. I like simple systems, with moderately low amounts of good clean power. I can usually do more with that type of setup, than most people can do with these 3+Kwatt systems that have become so popular now. I'm not an SPL junkie though so I guess that's why. My IASCA setup could hit over 150, and that was loud enough to hurt, so I saw no need for anything more. I never listened to it at those volumes anyway.. haha loud? sure. dangerously loud? nah.
yeah let me clarify, by a lot of power I meant thousands of watts.. when you start getting over 2Kw of power for the audio system, I think it gets a bit ridiculous. I like to keep my total alternator demand, including the car's own systems, under the 300A range *grin* under 270A if I can manage it. Alternators get rather expensive after that point.
Ohio Alternator is another good one. I wonder if the moderators would object to my listing a 150A Lestek alternator in the For Sale section. haha I just got it rewound and rebuilt, but I have no real need for it anymore.
One of my best friends works at the TL plant north of Columbus, Oh. On a recent trip down to Ky, he brought a production TL down with him and we drove around in it for a while. The DVD-Audio function was very sweet. I listened to some Blue Man Group but I didn't have time to tweak the levels.
Also interesting was the navigation system. This was the first time I had been in a car with one, and I found it to be a very handy feature. Pair this with the power and performance of the car, and it seems like a winner!