The DigiFi Platform - Digital Fidelity

Digital Fidelity
The DigiFi Platform
A highly flexible licensible platform for building music servers
Overview

Why DigiFi?
The music server market is poised to expand
The consumer likes the idea having all their music easily accessible and in one place.
Manufacturers need to meet these new consumer
requirements with home consumer
electronics products which are based on computer
technology, but are not simply computers
in the living room.
Rather than develop their own new digital
music platform, many manufacturers wish to
enter this market with a turn-key solution
that minimises capital investment and allows
them to concentrate on their core CE manufacturing
and marketing competencies.
The Digifi platform from Digital Fidelity offers
just that opportunity.
What’s happening to music?
In the same way that the arrival of the CD completely changed the industry 20 years ago, there is a
similar format change occurring today in the music market.
This is the age of the iPod and digital music.
Because of these massive changes occuring in the way that consumers will buy and play their music,
they will need more sophisticated ways to manage it at home that are both simple and intuitive to
use.
What exactly is the DigiFi Platform?
Digital Fidelity have developed a platform
(DigiFi) that meets this need by enabling the
consumer to store, digitally, their whole CD
collection (together with any music
downloaded from the internet) in one place.
Using the DigiFi platform they can then
control and manage all this music using their
preferred remote control method from a
choice of easy to use remote control methods
and interfaces.
All of this on a consumer electronics product
with true audiophile capabilites.

Licensing or ‘off the shelf’?
Flexible Solutions
Digital Fidelity has 3 solutions that enable hardware
manufacturers to enter this new market rapidly and with
minimal financial risk;
Licensible, turnkey software system running on a proven
hardware specification – the DigiFi platform,
Custom-build platform to the manufacturers
specification and cost,
Complete ‘off the shelf’ hardware solution for rebadging
via an existing (non-competing) licensee.
High Definition or compressed audio
Digifi supports full bandwidth WAV files to
give true audiophile CD quality but also
supports WMA and MP3 formats for encoding.
iPod
DigiFi by default encodes an MP3 copy of
your music as a ghost copy. When you dock
your iPod, Digifi senses what music is new
and automatically updates your iPod.
Remember when music mattered?
Remember a time when you had a party and the music mattered more than the
food? When it was about the next track, the next song, the next moment?
Remember the elation when the
music hit the spot, and the
disappointment when it missed.
Hand the controller to your guests
and watch what happens.
Suddenly you’re back to what really
matters - the music.
Suddenly the party’s back on track
Multiroom
Each Digifi equipped unit can serve up to 8
independent zones. Adding satellites expand
capability by up to further 8 zones per satellite
Audiophile Capability
True audiophile sound, using uncompressed
WAV, is possible with DigiFi. They said it
couldn’t be done with a PC based player -
we’ve proved them wrong!

What interfaces are provided?
A DigiFi enabled music server product can
be controlled using a number of devices:
PDA using WiFi (or ultimately a bespoke
dedicated WiFi remote)
Infra Red to the box viewed on a connected
TV set
Mini VGA touch screen connected to the box
PC via LAN or WiFi
Crestron or similar control system using
RS232 or I/P
Each control device used in conjunction with a DigiFi enabled music server has a bespoke user interface
that utilises the unique strengths of that device to enable the consumer to manage his digital music
intuitively and simply.
Why should I consider Digital Fidelity?
Flexibiliy of look and feel
Because the core programming layer allows easy skinning, only DigiFi enables the Licensee to maintain
their own brand values within the interface. We believe that one size does not fit all.
Flexibility of Licence Structure
Each manufacuturer has different aspirations - Digital Fidelity recognise this and offer a variety of
commercial options.
Specialists in software
Digital Fidelity is a British software company that specialises in digital audio and is dedicated to
closing the gap between enjoying pure music and finding the time to listen to it.
This also means that if you license DigiFi, you will not be competing with a similar hardware product
- we just do software and leave maunfacturing to those who are good at it.
Specialists in Audio
Althought the technology we use could also handle photos,video and all manner of other content, we
believe that not all consumers want a box that does everything. We can also prove that digital audio
can sound every bit as detailed and compelling as it does from good separates.

Technical Specifications
Software
• Windows XP embedded – robust, well supported, rapid development cycles
• Server & client architecture
• Each physical box, Server or Client, can control up to 8 independent stereo outputs. Allows for OEMs to design their own
product range:
o Single output server, 4-output client to add Multi-room capabilities to an existing box.
o 4 output server, single output client to add audiophile quality to an existing multi-room installation.
• Service based architecture
o Play back
o Ripping
o Encoding
o Utility
• Transactional database – MSDE, runtime version of MS SQL server. Robust and fast.
• Remote Control Protocol – A means whereby User Interfaces can be developed divorced from the complexities of the
workings of the DigiFi.
• Interfaces
o IR/Touch – Can either run directly on a Server unit or remotely on a PC like device.
o PPC 2003 – Runs on any PDA running PPC 2003 and would connect to the DigiFi using WiFi.
o Crestron / AMX – The control unit can connect to the DigiFi using either IP or RS 232
o PC – Runs on a remote PC connected to the DigiFi using either LAN or WiFi
• Ripping & Encoding
o The user can have as much or as little involvement in these processes as they want,
o The basic operation can be as simple as inserting a CD into the drive and approximately 5-6 minutes later taking
it out again.
o The software supports an array of settings for both ripping and encoding that can be changed for individual CDs
if required.
o Ripping supports Burst, Synchronised, Secure and Paranoid settings for exact audio copies.
o Encoding supports WAV (i.e. no encoding), WMA and MP3 and various bit rates
• CD Information & Album Art
o Local CD database
o Internet connectivity for missing CDs
o Album covers downloaded from Digital Fidelity Server.
• Upgrading & Support
o Software updates downloaded from Digital Fidelity Server and applied. This service includes remote interface
upgrades.
o Support information uploaded to Digital Fidelity Server
• Mobile Player synchronisation
o Currently supports Mac & PC formatted iPods
Hardware
Digital Fidelity are primarily a software house but to demonstrate the functionality of our platform we have been involved in
building Hard Disk Audio products. The following is a description of Digital Fidelity’s chosen platform and why.
• Case – HUSH Technologies extended Mini-itx case with minor modifications to make it appear more CE i.e. centralised CD
tray. Capacity for twin 3½ hard drives.
• Motherboard – VIA EPIA M10000 with 512 MB RAM
o 1 G – Powerful CPU required for simultaneous playback, ripping & encoding. Play back only clients can utilise
lower power CPU’s which can be passively cooled and therefore do not require such a substantial case.
o VT 1616 sound chip – high quality on board sound that can deliver in either analogue or digital format.
o S-Video output for TV screen. Composite possible but at expense of SPDIF output
o USB 2.0 and IEEE 1394 (Firewire) WiFi NICs, external hard drives, portable music players
o 10/100 LAN
• Hard drive – Seagate Barracuda 160 GByte drive. Robust and quiet.
• Optical drive - TEAC DW-224E-93 Slimline CD-RW / DVD Drive. Large on-board cache for faster ripping, DVD capacity for
large data transfers to units i.e. upgrading local CD Database.
• Sound Card – M-Audio Delta range. – High quality audio, flexible for multi-room configuration.
• USB NIC - Fujitsu Siemens Connectbird USB WLAN NIC, used external device to give more flexibility for positioning.
• Direct Display - Lilliput 7" Wide Screen VGA TFT Display with Touch screen, used external device to give more flexibility
for positioning.

Contact
Please contact us for further information at:
Digital Fidelity
Adam House
7 Adam Street
London
WC2N 6AA
England
Telephone: +44 (0) 8701 999 400
Fax: +44 (0) 8701 991 041
email: info@digitalfidelity.com
Website: www.digitalfidelity.com