Not a lot of people would even consider listening to music with smartphone speakers. Normally, those tiny speakers rattle and distort heavily, even with voice. Music reproduction is simple torture, even compared to any cheap plastic Bluetooth speaker. But recent smartphones with dual speaker systems and stereo capabilities are getting much better at sound generation, even being able to playback impressive sound effects from movies and games. Music listening not being a desirable goal - much better delivered on headphones or even connected Bluetooth speakers - is now a possibility, when proper signal processing is applied to compensate directly for all the deficiencies of the actual electroacoustic design.
Through close collaboration, Dirac and ASUS have designed and delivered a completely unique sound experience for the Republic of Gamers (ROG) Phone 5, using technology first created for high-end automotive audio systems to make the ROG 5 a preferable mobile device not just for gaming, but also bearable when used for movie and music listening (when absolutely nothing else is available).
"ASUS and Dirac engineers have managed to create a highly rated, truly advanced mobile audio platform, enabling sound quality never before experienced in a smartphone," says Mats Oberg, Chief Sales Officer, Dirac. "Working with ASUS, Dirac has been able to enhance and optimize the ROG Phone 5’s premium stereo speaker system with patented Dirac technology traditionally associated with audiophile sound experiences. Gamers, music fans and movie enthusiasts will be blown away by the ROG Phone 5’s immersive sound experiences."
The ASUS ROG Phone 5 is the first smartphone to include Dirac’s patented MIMO (multiple-input and multiple-output) mixed-phase speaker co-optimization technology, an industry-first innovation that treats the smartphone’s dual speakers as a single, multi-speaker system in which the individual speakers work together to create the desired acoustical response.
Because smartphone speakers are necessarily small, their acoustics performance is limited. Dirac’s technology does for the ROG Phone 5 what it has done for leading automotive brands, such as Volvo, allowing speakers in the same system to work together to co-optimize the impulse response of the entire system.
Co-optimization of multiple speakers delivers proven higher overall performance than individual optimization of multiple speakers. The result is improved clarity, imaging and bass; richer details; and balanced tonality, resulting in the ROG Phone 5’s sound quality. In addition, Dirac has enhanced its MIMO crosstalk cancellation technology for the ROG Phone 5. First introduced in the ROG Phone 3, Dirac’s crosstalk cancellation overcomes challenges inherent to placing two smartphone speakers in such close proximity, creating an expanded, spatial soundscape.
When two speakers are integrated near each other in a smartphone— rather than physically distanced for clean channel separation —it can create an unsatisfactory, mono-like sound experience, with crosstalk occurring because the left ear hears the right channel, and the right ear hears the left channel. Dirac’s MIMO crosstalk cancellation technology, which has been improved in the ROG Phone 5, ensures clean separation between left and right channels, creating a more natural spatial soundscape and accurate sound localization, which are critical for gaming and immersive cinema experiences.
"ASUS and Dirac continue to push the boundaries of smartphone audio," states Bryan Chang, General Manager, smartphone business unit at ASUS. "With Dirac’s leading audio technologies integrated into the ROG Phone 5, consumers will experience games, music, and movies like never before."
The French audio test laboratories DXOMARK gave the ROG Phone 5 a score of 78 on its audio test suite, making it the best-sounding gaming smartphone ever at the time of its review. It remains the top-rated, globally available smartphone for audio quality.
The ROG Phone 5 series, which includes the ROG Phone 5, ROG Phone 5 Pro and ROG Phone 5 Ultimate, features the Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 5G Mobile Platform, including advanced 5G communications and premium Qualcomm Snapdragon Elite Gaming technology. It includes a 144Hz AMOLED HDR10+ display and an upgraded, Dirac-optimized GameFX audio system with symmetrical, seven-magnet dual speakers. This 7-magnet stereo speaker design is enhanced with a Cirrus Logic amplifier for louder, deeper and less distorted sound effect. Audio specifications also include support for Hi-Res Audio up to 32-bit and 384kHz on the 3.5mm output jack, using an ESS DAC 9280AC Pro on the conversion to analog.
The ROG Phone 5’s AudioWizard app leverages Dirac technologies to easily adjust the phone to gaming, music or cinema modes, depending on the user’s desired sound experience.
www.rog.asus.com
www.dirac.com
