Swedish digital audio developer Dirac and Chinese EV manufacturer Nio are to collaborate on the latter’s ET7 sound system, which will adopt the automotive sound optimization solution Dirac Opteo Professional.
The ET7 features a standard configuration of 23 speakers and 20, 1,000W amplifier output channels. Its four main channels are composed of high, middle and bass speakers in three units, with a subwoofer and four overhead channel speakers.
“At Nio, we wanted to deliver the ultimate immersive sound experience in the ET7 – so that passengers across all seats can listen to music as if they were in a concert hall,” said Danilo Teobaldi, Nio Engineers VP. “As we knew doing so required more than enabling immersive content, we built the best possible sound system for the ET7, then turned to Dirac and its industry-leading digital optimization to take the performance to an even higher level. Our collaboration with Dirac helped us ensure that our users could experience the best automotive sound system on the market.”
A car cabin is regarded as one of the most challenging acoustic environments, as in-car speakers cannot perform as intended regardless of their price-point and design. Within the cabin, speakers can’t be positioned as optimally as they would, for example, in a home theater. As a result, speakers interfere with each other, causing distortion and reducing audio clarity. The interference increases when more speakers are used. In addition, the car cabin itself adds unwanted sound coloration, resulting in muddy, booming sound that makes it difficult to discern where sound is coming from.
Featuring patented multiple-input/multiple-output (MIMO) mixed phase impulse response correction technology, Dirac Opteo Professional solution addresses these challenges by enabling all the speakers in a car to work intelligently together and co-correct each other’s impulse response.
The solution is stated to ‘erase’ the car cabin – removing the unwanted effects of the cabin in ways previously regarded as possible only in theory. It also creates ideal loudspeaker responses for maximum fidelity and achieves unparalleled bass performance.
“Dirac is the world leader in automobile audio optimization, thanks to our solution’s unique ability to maximize the sound created by today’s increasingly complex, immersive car audio systems,” commented Lars Carlsson, Dirac general manager of Automotive Audio. “The more speakers that auto makers use to achieve a signature sound, the more important it is for Dirac to digitally optimize their performance and ensure the perfect listening experience, especially when enjoying immersive content. The Nio ET7 includes a sound system worthy of a concert hall. Dirac is proud to enable the faithful reproduction of drivers’ favorite, most immersive sound experiences. With Nio, we are raising the bar for in-car sound experiences.”
