6 Pop Songs Great for Audio Demos
Worst DIY Installs Ever Part 7
10 Must-Have Products for Your Next Install
6 Amazing High-End Home Theaters
Print
Email
Comments (5)
Share
Voco Could Give Sonos a Run with Voice-Enabled Audio System
Wireless multiroom music system features cloud-based speech-recognition engine for search; may give Sonos some fresh competition.
Tom Gotuzza demonstrate speech recognition for Voco multiroom wireless audio system from Navvo.
If voice recognition ever had a use within the home, then music is it. And one of the most promising implementations comes from Navvo, whose Voco system is much more than a solid wireless audio system with voice-enabled search capabilities.
Voco was one of our “Hidden Gems of CEDIA 2011,” and when we finally checked out the system at the Expo, we were not disappointed.
With Voco, a user simply speaks the name of an artist, song, album or other piece of metadata into an Android-enabled device (iOS on the way), and the system pulls up a variety of options from both local and cloud-based sources.
The system succeeds on many levels as a music management system, starting with Voco’s voice recognition system. During the demo at CEDIA, despite background noise, the speaker-independent engine worked perfectly.
Senior VP Tom Gotuzza tells CE Pro that the system worked fine even with non-American-English speakers.
“It did work with their accents, at least by the second try,” he says, “and then it was good thereafter.”
Learn more about cloud-based content and home control at the virtual trade event CEProLive! October 27, 2011.What makes the speech engine so successful is that the processing occurs in the cloud, enabling Voco to provide a much more powerful engine than could otherwise be packed into a lightweight device such as a phone (the voice application also can be download a computer).
It may be a little slower than locally running voice-recognition apps, especially in an exhibit hall where Internet service is spotty, but it is accurate. In the CEDIA demos, a search took about four seconds to process.
But voice-enabled content navigation is only as good as the content management system behind it. There, too, Voco delivers.
In the CEDIA demo, Gotuzza said “Jumpin’ Jack Flash,” and the system found the song stored locally. Pressing the button for the song brought up a menu that gave the options PLAY, ADD TO CURRENT PLAYLIST, ADD TO PLAYLIST, SHOW SONGS, SEARCH TUNEIN RADIO or SEARCH YOUTUBE for an Internet video of the song.
He also demonstrated a search for the artist Kings of Leon, which came back with nothing on the local network, but gave the options of finding the artist currently playing (or having a high propensity to play) on any of 50,000 Internet radio stations in the TuneIn database.
The system can also query YouTube, but currently has no way to output the content to a TV screen (see below). In addition, Voco plans to incorporate Flickr and Picasa, providing access to photos via the TV. The user simply requests “family vacations” or some other tag.
[Story continues after video]
VIDEO: Demo of V-Zone speech-enabled music management system at CEDIA 2011
Navvo’s first product was the V-Zone receiver ($250), which is a Sonos-like solution for streaming music throughout the home via WiFi or hardwired Ethernet. Music and zones are selected via the Voco app on a Wi-Fi-enabled Android phone (or a PC running Voco software).
The device has no internal amplifier, so powered speakers or a stereo system are required.
It does feature an HDMI port, which is not currently enabled, but in the future will allow users to summons videos and play them on a connected TV.
Navvo also previewed for the first time at CEDIA at CEDIA the Voco V-Zone Pro for the custom electronics channel.
Navvo CEO Wade Fenn says the unit features a “professional-quality DAC” (digital audio converter), as well as an IR blaster for controlling A/V devices from the unit.
The V-Zone Pro also offers an internal WAP, internal/external support for e-sata drives, and line-in via an RCA jack.
It will retail for $500 to $600.
Finally, Navvo showcased the self-contained V-Spot powered speaker, which blends elements of both the standard V-Zone receiver and the V-Zone Pro. The unit features hard buttons that let users easily select specific playlists, music stations and other sources from the speaker itself – a convenience not offered with Sonos’s powered speakers.
DIY-oriented wireless music V-Zone music systetm
Custom-oriented Voco V-Zone Pro with high-quality DAC, previewed at CEDIA 2011
V-Spot powered speaker that incorporates features of V-Zone and V-Zone Pro.
Voco was one of our “Hidden Gems of CEDIA 2011,” and when we finally checked out the system at the Expo, we were not disappointed.
With Voco, a user simply speaks the name of an artist, song, album or other piece of metadata into an Android-enabled device (iOS on the way), and the system pulls up a variety of options from both local and cloud-based sources.
The system succeeds on many levels as a music management system, starting with Voco’s voice recognition system. During the demo at CEDIA, despite background noise, the speaker-independent engine worked perfectly.
Senior VP Tom Gotuzza tells CE Pro that the system worked fine even with non-American-English speakers.
“It did work with their accents, at least by the second try,” he says, “and then it was good thereafter.”
Learn more about cloud-based content and home control at the virtual trade event CEProLive! October 27, 2011.
It may be a little slower than locally running voice-recognition apps, especially in an exhibit hall where Internet service is spotty, but it is accurate. In the CEDIA demos, a search took about four seconds to process.
Strong Content Management/Search Capabilities
But voice-enabled content navigation is only as good as the content management system behind it. There, too, Voco delivers.
In the CEDIA demo, Gotuzza said “Jumpin’ Jack Flash,” and the system found the song stored locally. Pressing the button for the song brought up a menu that gave the options PLAY, ADD TO CURRENT PLAYLIST, ADD TO PLAYLIST, SHOW SONGS, SEARCH TUNEIN RADIO or SEARCH YOUTUBE for an Internet video of the song.
He also demonstrated a search for the artist Kings of Leon, which came back with nothing on the local network, but gave the options of finding the artist currently playing (or having a high propensity to play) on any of 50,000 Internet radio stations in the TuneIn database.
The system can also query YouTube, but currently has no way to output the content to a TV screen (see below). In addition, Voco plans to incorporate Flickr and Picasa, providing access to photos via the TV. The user simply requests “family vacations” or some other tag.
[Story continues after video]
VIDEO: Demo of V-Zone speech-enabled music management system at CEDIA 2011
Content Distribution Over Home Network
Navvo’s first product was the V-Zone receiver ($250), which is a Sonos-like solution for streaming music throughout the home via WiFi or hardwired Ethernet. Music and zones are selected via the Voco app on a Wi-Fi-enabled Android phone (or a PC running Voco software).
The device has no internal amplifier, so powered speakers or a stereo system are required.
It does feature an HDMI port, which is not currently enabled, but in the future will allow users to summons videos and play them on a connected TV.
Navvo also previewed for the first time at CEDIA at CEDIA the Voco V-Zone Pro for the custom electronics channel.
Navvo CEO Wade Fenn says the unit features a “professional-quality DAC” (digital audio converter), as well as an IR blaster for controlling A/V devices from the unit.
The V-Zone Pro also offers an internal WAP, internal/external support for e-sata drives, and line-in via an RCA jack.
It will retail for $500 to $600.
Finally, Navvo showcased the self-contained V-Spot powered speaker, which blends elements of both the standard V-Zone receiver and the V-Zone Pro. The unit features hard buttons that let users easily select specific playlists, music stations and other sources from the speaker itself – a convenience not offered with Sonos’s powered speakers.
DIY-oriented wireless music V-Zone music systetm
Custom-oriented Voco V-Zone Pro with high-quality DAC, previewed at CEDIA 2011
V-Spot powered speaker that incorporates features of V-Zone and V-Zone Pro.
Spotlight on CEDIA
|
CEDIA White Paper Examines How to Build Mobile Device Wireless Networks Why Key Suppliers Are Skipping Trade Shows CEDIA Lifetime Achievement Award Nominations Due May 25 CEA, CEDIA Issue Updated Home Theater Standard Physicist Dr. Michio Kaku Will Deliver CEDIA Expo 2012 Opening Keynote CEDIA Offers Customized Business Analysis for Integrators CEDIA Expo 2012 Expands Training About IP & Networking Q&A: CEDIA Chairman Federico Bausone More filed in CEDIA |
8 Manliest Products at CEDIA Expo
 Editor’s Picks: Top Products of CEDIA Expo 2011  |
|
Subscribe to the CE Pro Newsletter
Read more Wireless A/V stories
The Next Big Thing From Sonos: What Could it Be?Atlona at ISE 2012: 4X4 HDBaseT, More Wireless Coming
NuVo Readies Wireless Multiroom Audio System, Android Controller
Russound DMS3.1 is First Player with Multiple AirPlay Streams
WiSA to Set Standard for Wireless Audio
More in Wireless A/V
Article Topics
News · Product News · Audio · Distributed Audio · Events · CEDIA · Wireless A/V · Wireless Audio · Navvo · Voco · Voice Recognition ·About the Author
Julie Jacobson, Editor-at-large, CE Pro
Julie Jacobson is co-founder of EH Publishing and currently spends most of her time writing for CE Pro, mostly in the areas of home automation, networked A/V and the business of home systems integration. She majored in Economics at the University of Michigan, earned an MBA from the University of Texas at Austin, and has never taken a journalism class in her life. Julie is a washed-up Ultimate Frisbee player with the scars to prove it. Follow her on Twitter @juliejacobson.
5 Comments (displayed in order by date/time)
HA ha, that’s definitely a big “could.” Nobody has ever come close, but this is the best shot I’ve seen so far. Assuming the two companies are tied on UI and audio quality, Sonos still has one big advantage and that’s QoS for audio, which is important for sync’ing multiple zones. Voco claims low latency over WiFi but is that good enough?
The biggest thing they have going for them is integrators are actively looking to find a solution allowing them to drop Sonos.
Sonos has used voice on Droid since their app was released. Im sure iOS is not far behind.
Indeed it does, Gun. thanks for pointing that out. the last time I checked it out, though, it didn’t have a universal search feature to hunt for songs both on the network and online. I believe you have to first go into the source you’d like to search. Please correct me if I’m wrong!
Page 1 of 1 comment pages
Seriously?
And I’m going to win the next World Poker Tournament.