The Lexus NX SUV will be the first car to incorporate Harman’s Clari-Fi technology, which analyzes and improves the audio quality of compressed music files.
How we store and play our songs have shifted in the last decade – CDs are out, and our music is now compressed and stored on portable devices or even streamed over the internet through services such as Spotify or Infogo. Not many people listen to uncompressed FLAC files as they require a bomb in terms of storage space to keep a sizeable library.
Harman says compressing audio can discard up to 90 percent of the original audio content captured in the studio. As a result, consumers cannot experience music in the way the artist originally intended. It’s claimed that the Clari-Fi algorithms can analyze the signals in real time and rebuild them during playback.
Harman says it does not simply add equalization and boost bass, or mask the effects of heavy compression by adding new effects.
Clari-Fi will be a feature of the NX’s Mark Levinson Premium Surround Sound Audio System, which includes 14 speakers in 12 locations, powered by a 10-channel 835 watt ML5 amp.
Mark Levinson is a brand under the Harman group, which also includes AKG, Harman Kardon, Infinity, JBL and Lexicon. Clari-Fi is already included in Harman’s JBL Authentics Series wireless sound systems.
