Cambridge Audio Media Player
Bringing you the next step in digital media
Cambridge Audio is an English hi-fi manufacturer beloved by audio-buffs since 1968 for no-nonsense audiophile-quality gear at affordable prices. The Azur line of high-quality products use the attention to detail in acoustic engineering that made Cambridge Audio famous. Recently, Cambridge Audio has developed a music server that replaces the conventional CD player with features that take it in extraordinary directions.
Using their own award-winning CD player as the foundation for the Azur 640H, the revamped CD player is designed to not only play back CDs but replace your entire CD collection. The heart of the Azur 640H music server is Cambridge Audio's own Audio-File technology that will rip any CD placed onto its tray. Using their proprietary audio compression method that retains the CD sound quality, the 160G HDD is capable of storing up to 300 CDs but can hold much more if you're using conventional MP3 compression. Because any finite storage medium is never enough, the Cambridge Audio Azur 640H includes a network capability to get connected with your household music server, either hard cabled or wireless to your hub or router. The high-speed wireless connection is capable of playing back your music files over your network from your master music server. You can also choose to surf Cambridge Audio's own internet music service or select internet radio stations to play back from around the world. The whole system is accessible from menu-driven systems on your TV set. You can sit on your couch and control the world of music via remote control.
The Azur 640H makes a perfect alternative to some of the very pricey home servers out there, or even an HTPC. Bringing the music of your PC network to your main home audio system with a high-end Cambridge Audio unit makes more sense than any PC for retaining that audiophile sound quality. PCs, even an HTPC with ultra-quiet fans and upgraded power supply, are noisy devices. The kind of noise that creates subtle interference with even moderate-quality audio systems during playback is simply impossible to avoid when using a PC to play back MP3s through your home stereo. You have noisy processors and a wealth of extemporaneous processes occurring under the hood of the device that is supposed to produce nothing more than a clean audio signal.
No mass-produced PC or HTPC yet made has a power supply that can match Cambridge Audio components for acoustical purity. If you've been digitizing your CD collection for your mobile MP3 player, this device will provide the bridge to that collection even if it resides on a standalone PC; all you need is an inexpensive hub. If you've never considered digitizing your music, this could be your chance to box away that massive CD collection you keep in your sound room. In the digital format, your music is always available quickly, without fuss, always perfectly catalogued. You can create favorites and playlists according to your moods.
