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Lexus NX to Come With Advanced Harman Clari-Fi Audio Technology

The upcoming Lexus NX sure is a technology-packed beautiful machine, coming with that laptop-like touch pad, wireless charging tray, multi-information display with Lexus-first G sensor and boost meter, head-up display, Dynamic Radar Cruise Control, Blind Spot Monitoring and Rear Cross Traffic Alert. But that’s not all.
Mark Levinson Lexus Premium Audio 1 photo
Photo: Lexus
Premium global audio and infotainment group HARMAN announced that the new Lexus NX will be the first vehicle to incorporate its innovative Clari-Fi technology, as part of the available 14-speaker Mark Levinson premium audio system.

“We are proud to continue our 13-year partnership with Lexus, and excited that the new NX vehicle will be the first automobile in the world to feature Clari-Fi,” said Dinesh C. Paliwal, Chairman, President, and Chief Executive Officer, HARMAN.

“Clari-Fi is a significant technological advancement that transforms the listening experience for the millions of people who don’t want to sacrifice quality for the convenience of downloaded and streaming digital music. At HARMAN, we develop technologies that help recording artists realize their vision,” he added.

HARMAN explains that despite digital audio files today enables for high mobility, because you can stuff an USB stick or smartphone with tons of tracks you can then play in the vehicle, or simply streaming it from internet radio, they also decreased the audio quality due to compression.

You see, uncompressed audio formats like WAV or AIFF are exact copies of the original audio source, meaning the quality they provide is almost at maximum. On the downside, these sort of formats tend to hold up a lot of space on storage devices and here comes compression to the rescue...

Or not... Compressing an audio file is pretty much like taking a PNG picture and turn it into a JPEG. You must have done that at some point and you must have noticed the differences. By compressing the photo, an algorithm copies most of original data but cheats in some areas to discard fine details, which are deleted to save space and replaced by a more chunky version.

Same goes for audio too. It discards “up to 90 percent” of its original content so that you can put hundreds of tracks on mobile devices and enjoy them everywhere. But are those sounds really the ones your favorite band recorded in the studio?

You might find that out soon as HARMAN’s Clari-Fi technology will restore compressed audio files near their original form without affecting space on disk. Their software is said to not just add equalization and boost the bass, but use an algorithm and analyze digital audio signals in real time, rebuilding the missing bits during playback.

Sounds pretty awesome. You’ll still use the same storage space as with MP3, but you’ll receive the same audio quality as uncompressed files provide.

Pair the Clari-Fi technology with the 835 Watt Mark Levinson Premium Surround Sound Audio System Lexus has, with 17 speakers carefully designed and located strategically throughout the cabin, you might feel like your favorite band is having a live concert in the back seat.
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press release
 

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