NAD Expands Availability of BluOS™ Across Its Product Range

Dallas, TX, September 13, 2016 (Newswire.com) - NAD, one of the world’s most recognized brands in hi-fi has taken the bold step of expanding the availability of the BluOS operating system across its product range. BluOS is a dedicated ‘music only’ operating system first developed by sister company, Bluesound had made only limited appearances in select NAD Masters flagship products. The broader adoption of BluOS into its range of amplifiers, players, receivers, and custom installation products marks a shift in the company’s strategy towards attracting increasingly technology hungry consumers who demand hi-fi quality sound.

BluOS offers numerous benefits, including interoperability among enabled devices and connectivity to numerous cloud and network music sources. It fully supports High Resolution Audio, MQA (Master Quality Authenticated), as well as all popular lossless and lossy codecs. For custom integrators and smart home customers, it also features seamless integrations with common control systems like Control4, Crestron, and RTI, among others. BluOS-enabled devices can be controlled with a free app for Apple and Android devices, and for PC desktops.

"Essentially, NAD's adoption of BluOS means that everyone from the casual music listener to the bona fide audiophile now has access to a wide array of products that addresses every use case in a connected home," said Greg Stidsen, NAD's Director of Technology and Product Planning. "Best of all, because it's the same operating system across all devices, it's easy to set-up and configure for a consumer, while more advanced options are available for custom integrators."

Greg Stidsen, Director of Technology and Product Planning

“Essentially, NAD’s adoption of BluOS means that everyone from the casual music listener to the bona fide audiophile now has access to a wide array of products that addresses every use case in a connected home,” said Greg Stidsen, NAD’s Director of Technology and Product Planning. “Best of all, because it’s the same operating system across all devices, it’s easy to set-up and configure for a consumer, while more advanced options are available for custom integrators.”

Stidsen gave the example of a typical North American household to illustrate the flexibility of BluOS in satisfying a variety of music listening needs: NAD Custom Installation in the living room that pipes music into the common areas using traditional speaker wire distribution; a Home Theater using a BluOS Enabled AV Receiver, a Bluesound PULSE SOUNDBAR with the secondary TV; a few Bluesound PULSE MINIs for the bedrooms; and a reference sound system in the basement that could consist of either an existing amplifier, to which a Bluesound Node2 or Vault2 could be added, or one of NAD’s new Masters or Classic amplifiers that are BluOS-enabled thanks to Modular Design Construction.

BluOS would allow all of the devices in that scenario to communicate over the home’s Wi-Fi network. Users in different rooms could then use the app or a home automation control panel to play music from any number of sources, including from digital streaming services like Tidal, Spotify, or Qobuz, or from a local library stored on a NAS drive or even a USB key. Devices can also be grouped and ungrouped to control the number of rooms or devices that hear the same or different music.

“BluOS really offers something for everyone,” Stidsen continued. “This development from NAD is truly exciting, not just for us, but for hi-fi enthusiasts and the custom integrators we work with.”

“It’s a proud moment,” he beamed.

Some key features of this integration:

• High Resolution (HRA certified) capability to 24/192 – no transcoding to lower resolution
• Certified with Control 4, Crestron, RTI, and others in development
• API available to advanced installers
• Uses standard network and Wi-Fi protocols
• Support for 64 wired zones and 16 wireless zones
• Support for multiple zone synchronized grouping
• All BluOS products interact seamlessly with each other, so AVRs and wireless
• Bluesound speakers can be part of a distributed audio system using NAD CI products
• All models support MQA
• Local sources can be added and distributed (satellite boxes, turntables, etc.)
• Mobile devices can be added and distributed via Wi-Fi or Bluetooth
• Solutions for library sharing across multiple residences are in development

NAD will be exhibiting at CEDIA Expo 2017 in Booth 5716, September 15-17, at the Kay Bailey Hutchinson Convention Center in Dallas, Texas. NAD personnel will be on hand to answer questions about the company’s CI products as well as other NAD models. Sister brands PSB and Bluesound will also be featured in the same exhibit.

About NAD

Founded in 1972 and now sold in over 80 countries, NAD Electronics is renowned for its award-winning line of high quality components for audio, home theater and custom installation applications. The company’s products consistently deliver outstanding performance, value and simplicity. With over forty years of innovation and value, NAD products are proudly distributed in North America by Lenbrook Americas.

NAD Website: http://www.nadelectronics.com

North America Media Relations:
Peter Hoagland
Phone: (540) 349-9648
[email protected]

U.K. Media Relations:
Richard Stevenson
Phone: +44 (0) 7974 926 157
Email: [email protected]

Source: NAD Electronics