Harman, via its JBL brand, has announced that the Fiat New 500 ‘La Prima by Bocelli’ will come equipped with a premium sound system engineered and designed by JBL in partnership with internationally renowned tenor Andrea Bocelli. The New 500 La Prima will also become the first city car to be equipped with JBL’s ‘Virtual Venues’ technology.
“When Fiat and JBL come together in the New 500 ‘La Prima by Bocelli’, the result is a fusion of great design, exhilarating sound and impeccable quality. And that is exactly what this car is — a legendary Italian icon of style with a revolutionary sound system mastered by Andrea Bocelli,” said Christian Sobottka, president of Harman Automotive.
Featuring four venues selected by Bocelli, the Virtual Venues feature is stated to offer listeners a virtual-reality audio experience that changes the acoustic characteristics of the car depending on the chosen location, transporting listeners to unique listening environments. These range from an intimate ‘music room’ setting through a clinical recording studio feel to an acoustic recreation of the Giuseppe Verdi Opera House, Pisa, Italy.
The sound system features seven high-performance speakers including two tweeters, two midwoofers, two rear door full range speakers and one subwoofer in the trunk, plus an eight-channel amplifier with an output of 320W. It also includes JBL’s Virtual Center technology, which processes each speaker’s audio signal to guarantee a stereo stage with a center image directly in front of each listener.
