Pioneer cranks up the In-Car Sound Experience with Windows Media� Audio playback

The MP3 format is currently the most commonly used format for computer storage and transmission of music allowing consumers to "burn" up to 15 music albums in a single compact disc. The emerging WMA format, however, with CD quality audio and considerably increased capacity, is set to become the future format of choice.

Ronan Mc Donagh, Manager, Car Audio & AV Planning, Pioneer Europe NV says, "The MP3 format has become very popular in recent years and is an important inclusion in our car audio product range, however, Pioneer expects WMA will overtake MP3 in the coming years. Our goal is to always be at the forefront in providing our customers with the best quality products, and the inclusion of WMA brings improved audio quality, almost indistinguishable from original CDs at the right compression rate, not to mention the capacity for considerably more music to be stored on CD."

Both units play standard audio CDs, finalised CD-Rs and CD-RWs, as well as finalised CD-Rs and CD-RWs that contain MP3 and/or WMA files.

About WMA (Windows Media™ Audio)
WMA is a music compression format developed by the Microsoft Corporation. It uses the latest coding technologies to compress an original audio track, minimising file sizes while maintaining good audio quality even at rates as low as 64 kb/second. In subjective testing, it is widely agreed that at low bit rates, WMA offers better sound quality than MP3 recorded at the same data rates. This means that WMA allows you to put more files of a certain sound quality on your CD, or to put the same number of files, but a higher sound quality, compared with MP3. Thanks to the inclusion of Digital Rights Management features, it is also expected that the distribution of WMA format files over the Internet will become increasingly popular which in turn should also drive the demand for WMA products. Pioneer's WMA products support all standard compression rates (48kps-192 kbps) as well as the WMA text format.

As well as the addition of WMA to Pioneer's car audio offering, there are many other significant features of these new CD tuners.

New Dual Faceplate Design
Unique to the Pioneer DEH-P8400MP is its Dual Faceplate Design. In its original state, when the moveable front panel is closed, only the essential data appears on the screen. The panel, encased in a stylish silver finish, is extremely elegant featuring only the rotary volume knob, preset buttons and LCD screen. When the user wants additional information or entertainment features, at the touch of a button, the motorised display slides open to reveal a larger Organic Electroluminescent (OEL) screen with a 128 x 33 pixel resolution, doubling the display area and increasing the opportunity for customisation and interactivity.

OEL display technology offers a fast refresh rate for vivid three-dimensional images and screensaver images, such as cart races or dolphins, which can dance on the display along with your music. In addition it boasts a wide viewing angle with high visibility under any brightness condition. The display's smart functionality lets you control and confirm play source operating information at a glance, providing plenty of space for text, lists of tracks and other data on disc.

Cutting-edge Combination
The DEH-P9400MP offers an unparallelled combination of the ultimate audio performance and stunning ergonomic design. Combining the MOSFET amplifier to deliver high power under any conditions with distortion-free sound and built-in Digital Signal Processor (DSP), users have all the tools to achieve clean sound tailored specifically to their tastes. User friendly features of DSP such as Auto Equaliser (EQ) and Automatic Sound Leveliser (ASL) ensure acoustically tuning the system and keeping the tuning optimised is a breeze. Network control features, including Time Alignment and Standard Network mode, also allow for a fully customised system set-up while making the most of the three Hi-Volt RCA Pre-Outs which offer improved sound quality and a wider dynamic range. The digital 13-band graphic equaliser's fine-tuning flexibility finds the perfect balance of lows, mids and highs and Source EQ memory recalls the tone settings the user has set for each individual audio source.

The ultimate sound experience is wrapped in a suitably attractive package. It's motorised front panel, housed in a black chrome finish, features a large bi-colour white/blue OEL display with an amazing 256 x 80 pixel resolution. It comes programmed with standard movies and stills to keep users entertained however for a customised solution they can add their own animation using Pioneer's PC Link Kit which can easily be added to the system.

The Soft Key Concept, a popular feature first introduced in the DEH-P9300R has also been incorporated into the cutting-edge DEH-P9400MP to deliver an ergonomic user interface that results in more functions with fewer buttons. The button assignments change depending on the source or function engaged, allowing users to access the function they need with one touch.

Key features of the DEH-P8400MP include:

• CD Tuner with MP3 and WMA playback compatibility
• Dual Faceplate Design
• OEL display
• MOSFET50 Amplifier
• EEQ+ Equaliser system
• 3 Hi-volt Pre-Outs

PDF Fact sheet DEH-P8400MP

Key features of the DEH-P9400MP include:

• CD Tuner with MP3 and WMA playback compatibility
• DSP with Time Alignment, Auto Equaliser, Sound Field Control
• Professional network set-up mode
• Large sized OEL display with Soft Key Control
• MOSFET 50 Amplifier
• 3 Hi-volt Pre-Outs

PDF Fact sheet DEH-P9400MP

Both units also feature Pioneer's IP-Bus control line to include Multi-CD, DAB Digital Radio and a TV Tuner.

Both MP3/WMA CD tuners are available throughout Europe from April 2002.

For further information, please contact your local Pioneer distributor:

About Pioneer
Pioneer Corporation is a global leader in electronics and audio/video products for the home, car, commerce and industry, particularly in the two core multimedia technologies - Digital Versatile Disc (DVD) and plasma display panels (PDP). Its shares are traded on the New York Stock Exchange (ticker symbol: PIO), Euronext Amsterdam, Tokyo Stock Exchange, and Osaka Securities Exchange.

8400 9400 P8400 P9400