SONY

Experience Your Music
in Hi-Res Audio

Bringing You A Hi-Res Audio & Wireless Music Experience with LDAC

日本語 (LDAC site)

What is Hi-Res Audio?

Hi-Res Audio is more true to life and delivers superior detail and texture for the ultimate music experience.

Hi-Res Audio is rich in sound details

The Hi-Res Audio content stores a digital, high-definition copy of the original audio's waveform (e.g. 24bit/96 kHz).

High-quality content such as lossless audio and CDs is digitally stored at 16bit/44.1 kHz with high sound quality.
Standard-quality content such as MP3 and AAC is digitally stored at 16bit/44.1 kHz with normal sound quality.


Bluetooth transmission of Hi-Res Audio content is only possible with lossy compression

Since the bandwidth limit for Bluetooth transmission is approximately 1 Mbps, compression is required to transmit 4.6 Mbps Hi-Res Audio content via Bluetooth.
There are two types of sound compression.

(1) Lossless compression
The waveforms before and after compression are identical, but the compression ratio is low and the data size is not reduced by much.
Thus, lossless compression cannot be used for Bluetooth transmission of Hi-Res Audio content.

(2) Lossy compression
Though the waveforms before and after compression are not identical, the compression ratio is high and the data size is significantly reduced.
Therefore, codecs certified with the "Hi-Res Audio Wireless" logo(*) using lossy compression such as LDAC can transmit Hi-Res Audio content while keeping Hi-Res Audio sound quality via Bluetooth.

* "Hi-Res Audio Wireless" logo are registered trademarks or otherwise trademarks of the Japan Audio Society.


Lossy compression of Hi-Res Audio content such as LDAC has higher sound quality than lossless compression of high-quality content

(1) Compared to high-quality content, Hi-Res Audio content has superior sound quality because the waveform of the original sound is digitally stored at a higher resolution.

(2) In lossless compression, the waveforms before and after compression are identical. On the other hand, in lossy compression, the waveforms before and after compression are not identical. However, codecs certified with the "Hi-Res Audio Wireless" logo(*) such as LDAC can transmit Hi-Res Audio content with Hi-Res Audio sound quality via Bluetooth.

(3) Therefore, the sound quality of Hi-Res Audio content transmitted using a codec certified with the "Hi-Res Audio Wireless" logo(*) such as LDAC is superior to that of lossless compression of high-quality content.

Bringing You A Hi-Res Audio & Wireless Music Experience with LDAC

LDAC makes Hi-Res Audio transmissions via Bluetooth® possible

LDAC™(*1) is a state of the art audio technology that allows you to enjoy music in Hi-Res sound quality.
It can transmit approximately three times (*2) the amount of data than can be done with conventional Bluetooth transmissions.

*1 LDAC and LDAC logo are trademarks of Sony Corporation.
*2 Bluetooth A2DP - SBC(328kbps,44.1kHz).

LDAC provides an enhanced wireless listening experience for your entire music library, including Hi-Res Audio content.

Hi-Res Audio wireless transmission via Bluetooth

Hi-Res Audio content, as well as conventional types of content, can be enjoyed wirelessly with a high quality of sound when used with LDAC-compatible devices. By applying highly efficient encoding and optimized packet distribution, LDAC makes it possible to transmit approximately three times the amount data compared to that of conventional technologies, all without down-converting Hi-Res Audio content from 96 kHz/24 bit to 48 kHz/16 bit.
*LDAC is a certified Bluetooth codec of Japan Audio Society's "Hi-Res Audio Wireless" logo.

(*) LDAC satisfies the requirement of "Hi-Res Audio Wireless" logo at the transfer rate of 990 kbps.
(*) “Hi-Res Audio” logo and “Hi-Res Audio Wireless” logo are registered trademarks or otherwise trademarks of Japan Audio Society.


High connectivity with high sound quality

Stable transmissions are made a reality with "Best Effort" mode, which automatically controls the transmission quality and throughput according to the surrounding radio wave conditions.
The transmission quality is automatically controlled to ensure the highest sound quality under good radio wave conditions, and to prevent the audio being disrupted even if the radio wave conditions deteriorate.


Enjoy Hi-Res Audio on a wide range of devices

(1) A wide variety of Hi-Res Audio content

  • Enjoy an array of high-quality music, with the quality unchanged from the original.

(2) Approximately 80% of Android smartphones are compatible with LDAC (*1)

  • LDAC is available on smartphones that run Android™ 8 (*2) or later versions.

(3) Over 100 partners have launched LDAC-compatible products.

  • LDAC is available on a variety of product categories, including truly wireless earbuds, headphones, speakers, and car audio.

*1 Research by Sony (as of September, 2022).
*2 For more information, please contact the individual smartphone manufacturer.

LDAC is ideal for Hi-Res Audio and streaming services with high sound quality

Hi-Res Audio and high-sound-quality content are available through various music streaming services(*).
The audio content on those services can be reproduced with the best sound quality when transmitted wirelessly via LDAC.

*Please refer to each service provider's website for details.

* Not all high quality music streaming services are covered.

Enjoy wireless Hi-Res Audio anywhere

Outdoors, indoors, and even in the car.

Outdoors
(Headphones)

Outdoors
(Speaker)

Indoors

In the Car

Outdoors (Headphones)

With headphones

With a smartphone or portable player and headphones, you can enjoy Hi-Res Audio in your own space, anytime and anywhere.

Outdoors (Speaker)

With speakers

You and your party can enjoy Hi-Res Audio anytime and anywhere, making things feel free and fun.

Indoors

With immersion

The room-filling Hi-Res Audio lets you spend time blissfully and fully immersed in the world of music.

In the Car

With car audio

Hi-Res Audio turns the inside of your car into a luxury space, even making the rush hour traffic jams a stress-free experience.

LDAC partners

LDAC-compatible products are available from various partners.

For more information on each product, please refer to the websites of each partner.

LDAC licensing

Learn more about LDAC licensing
https://www.sony.net/Products/LDAC

Other Sony audio technologies

Immersive music experiences

360 Reality Audio is a new immersive music experience that uses Sony's 360 Spatial Sound technology. Listeners can be immersed in a field of sound exactly as intended by artists and creators.
https://www.sony.net/360RA