Latest wireless audio gadgets such as iPods, wireless headphones and cell phones support new wireless protocols. These protocols are supposed to eliminate the cord and deliver perfect high-fidelity audio. We will review some of the latest devices to discover which applications they work for.
Several products are available with wireless already built in while some others, in particular streaming audio products, frequently have optional wireless capability. Latest touch-screen iPods and iPhones already have WiFi and Bluetooth built in.
Bluetooth is a relatively low-cost solution but has some pitfalls which are frequently overlooked.
1) Short range
Bluetooth devices normally merely have a 30-foot range which confines Bluetooth to single-room applications.
2) Audio compression because of limited data rate
Bluetooth offers a maximum reliable data rate of approximately 1 Mbps only. This rate is not high enough to broadcast uncompressed CD-quality audio. Therefore Bluetooth wireless devices apply audio compression. The audio will be degraded to some degree as a consequence of the audio compression. For this reason higher-end audio equipment normally does not use Bluetooth wireless audio.
3) Audio latency
Because of audio compression, Bluetooth will cause a signal delay of at least 10 ms which will cause the audio to be somewhat out of sync in case of video and real-time applications. This is again less of a problem for MP3 players.
4) No multiple headphone support
Bluetooth is fairly restricted in regard to supporting streaming to many headphones. Streaming to numerous headphones is helpful for several people wanting to listen to the same transmitter. This is less of a dilemma for MP3 player applications.
Uncompressed audio streaming is supported by WiFi. WiFi is a very widespread protocol. On the other hand, WiFi also has limitations regarding simultaneous transmission to several receivers. Because of the relatively high power consumption it is hardly ever utilized in wireless headphones however. WiFi is suitable for streaming audio from a PC however because almost all PCs have WiFi access.
Home wireless speaker devices and wireless amplifiers generally employ proprietary protocols. These protocols are especially engineered for real-time audio applications. On the other hand, entry-level wireless speakers and headphones still utilize FM transmission. FM transmission suffers from rather high audio distortion and noise / static.
More advanced wireless protocols are based on digital formats which eliminate audio degradation and incorporate sophisticated features including error correction to cope with interference from competing wireless devices.
Latest-generation wireless amplifiers utilize uncompressed audio transmission. Latest protocols also allow streaming to an infinite number of receivers. This enables whole-house audio distribution.
The audio latency of these wireless amplifiers is normally between 1 ms and 20 ms. A small-latency amplifier is vital for home theater audio. This assures that all speakers will be in sync. Typically newer generation wireless audio transmitters will work at 2.4 GHz. Some transmitters, such as Amphony’s line of devices, work at the less crowded 5.8 GHz frequency band.
Wireless amplifiers offer different levels of audio quality, output power and standby power. Digital amplifiers typically offer a power efficiency of a minimum of 80% and standby power consumption of less than 5 Watts which keeps them cool during operation and helps save energy. However, some Class-D amps have rather high audio distortion. Audiophile wireless amplifiers offer an audio distortion of 0.05% or less.

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