BFA Calls for High Definition Audio in the Home

The British Federation of Audio
PO Box 365
Farnham
GU10 2BD
Phone: + 44 (0) 1428 714616
Fax: + 44 (0) 1428 717599

e-mail:
chrisc@british-audio.org.uk

HDTV Deserves Quality Audio-Video Components

The British Federation of Audio (BFA) has welcomed the introduction of large screen high-definition TVs but urges its members and the home entertainment industry in general to educate the consumer to select ancillary equipment of the same high quality.

Customers eager to take advantage of the excellent home entertainment options now available, particularly HDTVs, are spending an inordinate amount on the TV Monitor, several thousands of pounds in some cases. yet will only spend a small sum on the audio section, especially the loudspeakers, for the system.

Poor quality loudspeakers, often bundled with the TV package as a ‘complete home cinema system’ and widely sold by leading high-street department stores, are often to blame suggests the BFA. "It’s a real shame that the general public are sacrificing the true cinematic and musical experience by not buying electronics and speakers of a matching quality to the TVs they buy," says Stephen N Harris, the BFA Chairman, "George Lucas, the founder of Lucasfilm and Director of the Star Wars movies, is on record as saying as much; indeed, he claimed that audio makes up to 50% of the impact of a movie – and he should know."

Although HDTV programming will offer superior ‘CD-quality’ sound, HDTV sets with 5.1 Dolby digital surround-sound will only be able to take full advantage of this, offering the audience a true home-cinema experience, if the accompanying AV system is of a high quality.

Andy Kerr, Deputy Editor of What Hi-f? Sound and Vision*, commented "We've always argued that the best home cinema systems are based on a balanced relationship between sound and vision. In the 1990s, systems would frequently be skewed towards sound, at the expense of suitable vision. Now, the reverse is often true: we frequently see large-screen TVs teamed with cheap, basic home cinema in a box kit, often sold together as package-deal solutions. We'd argue that while these are functional systems, they're far from ideal. Ideally, a well-matched home cinema devotes half its overall budget to vision, half to sound, ensuring that the consumer has sufficient funds to invest in better-quality source components, surround amplification and speakers, all of which will ensure a dramatically more accurate and emotionally engaging listening experience than any 'all-in-one' system. Even if taking this stance means opting for a smaller-screen display in order to fit within total budget, we feel it's the better long-term solution – not least because it should create a more musically enjoyable (and thus more flexible) system, too."

* What Hi-fi? Sound and Vision’s publishers Haymarket are BFA members.