BluOS is a premium multi-room audio ecosystem that manages stored and cloud music sources and playback, with support for high-resolution audio streams up to 24-bit/192kHz. Adopted by some of the most renowned hifi audio brands and integrated with numerous smart home and voice control systems, BluOS allows for interoperability among enabled devices across brands, support for all popular streaming music services, high-resolution formats and codecs.
Bluesound owners using the home theater group setting will now have the option of using the Stereo Surround mode. Using proprietary technology borrowed from sister brand NAD, Stereo Surround mixes two-channel sources into the rear surrounds of a home theater group, generating an immersive and natural-sounding surround field. Fans of two-channel sound might enjoy experimenting with the user activated BluOS Stereo Surround listening mode to maximize their surround sound listening experience.
Stereo Surround extracts the natural ambience present in nearly all well-produced stereo recordings. It does not synthesize any ambience or other sonic elements and thus remains truer to the sound of the original recording than most other home entertainment surround options. The Bluesound Pulse Soundbar 2i and Powernode 2i each offer options for users to create a complete wireless home theater system. Dolby recordings are always decoded as intended.
"More and more customers are looking for high-quality, wireless, surround sound options for everyday listening," says Matt Simmonds, Bluesound Product Manager. "Using Stereo Surround provides customers a subtle but highly natural and believable ambience from the surround channels, creating an immersive experience even when playing two-channel content."
More Control Options
BluOS includes its own operating system running on Bluesound products, and a music management and control application for smartphones, tablets, and PC desktops. Specifically for the residential and custom Installation, Bluesound also provides integrations with major smart home automation and control solutions.
Lenbrook International, the developer of BluOS and parent company of Bluesound and NAD Electronics, recently established an expanded collaboration with URC, a global leader in smart home automation and control for residential and commercial applications. URC and BluOS have created integrations between Total Control, URC’s residential and commercial automation platform, and BluOS. This allows seamless control of high-definition audio streaming via URC’s control products to BluOS-enabled products from Bluesound, Bluesound Professional, NAD Electronics, DALI Loudspeakers and Monitor Audio.
The BluOS module provides two-way control and feedback of all BluOS devices. This robust Total Control 2.0 module features a number of insightful innovations developed directly by URC such as macro integration via two-way module commands and automation capabilities with Device Events, ability to assign a different Default Player to any/each interface, and discovery and display of all supported BluOS devices in the system. Another integration from URC includes source distribution, allowing a Bluesound NODE 2i Wireless Multi-Room Hi-Res Music Streamer to be connected as a source to HDA amplifiers for streaming throughout the entire system.
Lenbrook also recently announced the release and Crestron certification of the new BluOS Media Player Driver which, along with the BluOS public API, provides Crestron integrators a complete set of tools for implementing Hi-Res multi-room audio. With this new driver, Crestron integrators now have a content rich UI with full user controls like browse and search while streamlining the setup process. Additionally, it offers support for programmatic control of the player transport, volume and preset recall.
The new BluOS Media Player Driver includes support for Bluesound, Bluesound Professional and NAD products, with automatic player discovery and static IP settings, and support for all BluOS languages.
The new BluOS Music Player Two-Way Module for URC Total Control systems is now available for download in the URC Dealer Portal. The new BluOS Media Player Driver v1.0.1 is available for download in the Crestron Application Market. Both solutions can also be downloaded in the Bluesound and NAD Electronics websites.
URC: www.urc-automation.com
Crestron: www.crestron.com
Lenbrook Group: www.lenbrook.com
BluOS: www.bluos.net
Bluesound: www.bluesound.com/home-theater/
