RMAF 2011

“In nature, sound has three elements,” explained BSG Technologies’ Larry Kay: “Amplitude, frequency, and phase.”

At a hi-fi show, there are many different types of demos. In some, there is music played casually, seemingly without much thought, selected either by the host or by an attendee; in others, music is carefully selected and introduced by your host, each track used to display certain characteristics of the system at hand; in others still, music is certainly played, but only after attendees are offered a detailed explanation of the gear in the room—we learn about the technologies employed and the work that went into creating the product—and we might even learn something about the art and science of listening. These last rooms are like demo-lectures, and they’re my favorite rooms. I feel like I’m in a classroom again, with one of my favorite professors.

“Phase information,” Kay continued, “is the carrier of the geography of sound.”

In electronics, Kay explained, we only get two of sound’s elements: amplitude and frequency; phase information is cancelled out. The audio industry attempts to solve this problem by synthesizing phase information. Algorithms are used to create “fake” information, but “over time, the ear-mind gets annoyed with that fake information,” Kay said.

BSG’s QOL technology is not a signal processor, Kay was careful to point out. “It’s a can opener.” It does not synthesize phase information, but isolates phase information and finds a way to mix it back into the signal. The result should be an easier listening experience—the listener has to do less work because the music is more naturally reproduced.

BSG Technologies’ stand-alone unit costs $3995. It has four sets of inputs, two sets of outputs, a mono switch, and a bypass switch.

We listened to one of Cookie Marenco’s Blue Coast recordings. Using a small remote, I went back and forth between bypass and active modes. Differences were clear. Activating the system resulted in a louder presentation, but also offered greater clarity and enhanced image delineation, bringing the music further into the room.

“We had to do this,” said Kay. “It was not a commercial approach. This is where our hearts are.”

For more information, visit the BSG Technologies website.