Considering how often I use my computer as a conduit for music, podcasts, DVDs and streaming radio and TV shows, the thing handles a lot of audio. Promising to enhance the entirety of my computer’s audio output, as GenAudio does with their AstoundStereo Expander, is therefore no small claim. Happily, the claim is fully justified; this easy-to-use download makes a genuine difference, and the difference is fairly astounding.
The MacOS version of the Expander (which is the version I'm reviewing on a two-year-old MacBook) runs in the background, processing all audio produced by any application. Until a similarly comprehensive Windows version becomes available, PC users get a Windows Media Player plug-in that affects only audio coming from that app, excluding DVDs and music with DRM.
I tested it on all the audio hardware I have lying around: a pair of basic Panasonic clip-on headphones, higher-end Bose headphones (in-ear and QuietComfort 2), an off-the-shelf set of powered speakers from Cyber Acoustics, and of course, the laptop's built-in speakers. AstoundStereo installs as a settings pane, which features an enable/disable button and a slider for adjusting the intensity of the effect.
I never would have described the sound coming from my system as "flat," but that's just how normal output sounds after turning the enhancer on and off for comparison (but you don’t have to take my word for it; visit the Web site for samples that do just that). Think of when you finally arrive at a graphic equalizer setting that’s perfect for a certain song, and how it simply sounds "better." Now, imagine that effect increased ten-fold and applied to all of your system's audio, and that's the AstoundStereo Expander.
It certainly sounds deeper in a way that fulfills GenAudio’s promise to confer the spacial sense of surround sound to ordinary audio output, but it sounds richer as well. Every note, sound effect and spoken word gains definition, including those that would normally fade from notice, like a song’s bass track, or the modulated hum underlying the dialogue in a sci-fi program on BBC radio.
Article comments
1 - Brian aka Guppusmaximus
Nice Review...
Unfortunately, none of these types of software ever get fixed because the reality is that equalizers are not necessary if you spent a little money on a decent pair of bookshelf speakers,mid-range receiver(sub woofer is optional if you are watching movies) & a digital coax cable to run the signal from your computer.
2 - AdmChesterMynutz
GenAudio's AstoundSound is not simply a type of EQ setting. I do run high end speakers through digital coax cable, through mid range receiver and the AstoundSound product significantly enhances audio playback well beyond EQ settings.
3 - Gabe Carr
I didn't say it was an EQ setting. I drew a parallel between the hard-to-put-a-finger-on improvement garnered from EQ and that gained from AstoundStereo. In fact, saying it 'significantly enhances audio playback well beyond EQ settings' is just what I was getting at in the last sentence of the paragraph in question.
Sorry if that wasn't clear.
4 - Brian aka Guppusmaximus
Your review was very clear but whether it be AstoundStereo,SRS Audio Sandbox or any other Audio Enhancement software, in essence, it is still an equalizer that is manipulating either the frequencies from the music or the signal that is being delivered to your receiver or speakers.
You should not have to use any of this software or hardware when you purchase quality home stereo equipment...Period.
5 - Gabe Carr
It occurs to me that AdmChesterMynutz was replying to Brian's comment and not referring to the review (which is obvious when looking at the actual page, as opposed to the automated comment email). That makes a lot more sense; sorry for my totally unnecessary reply above...
Anyway, whether it's an equalizer or not, it seems to me that the point of AstoundStereo is to make playback sound noticeably better even on basic hardware. I think that's a viable alternative if, for whatever reason, someone opts against pricier stereo equipment.