(August 20, 216) Clarion, the global automotive audio and multimedia brand, has won the prestigious European In-Car Innovation 2016-2017 Award for its revolutionary Full Digital Sound system.

The annual award — from EISA, the European Imaging and Sound Association — is an emphatic recognition of Clarion’s pioneering approach to innovation, and firmly positions the brand as a leader in the embedded electronics industry.

Full Digital Sound, premiered by Clarion at the Frankfurt Motor Show in September 2015 and announced in the UK earlier this year, is the world’s fully digital loudspeaker system employing unique technologies that enable pure high-resolution digital sound reproduction from the audio source to the listener, for an unprecedented audio experience.

A spokesperson for EISA’s In-Car Expert Group commented: "Full Digital Sound by Clarion is no ordinary digital car audio component: it’s the industry’s first automotive solution that operates wholly in the digital domain from the audio source to the speaker’s voice coils. It’s less power hungry than comparable traditional systems and is fully controlled by the latest DSP technology, so it’s perfectly compatible with any car audio system. Fully Digital Sound is future technology that you can buy today."



Norman Hiller, product manager for Clarion Europe, added: “Clarion has unblemished experience as a sound expert for the last 76 years. Through Full Digital Sound we have reinvented the loudspeaker, using advanced technologies that are perfectly in tune with current and future needs. Full Digital Sound is the missing link in the all-digital channel. This is a significant advance and improvement, not only for lovers of sound quality, but also for installers and car manufacturers, who will find simple and decisive answers to compatibility issues, integration and practical installation constraints.

Once installed, it is simply "tuned" to the vehicle interior by the user with a smartphone or tablet, running Clarion’s proprietary tuning app. This intuitive app provides Full Digital Sound system owners with the tools needed to fully customize their in-car audio experience or to let the system be optimally tuned for the characteristics of the specific listening environment.