Got RDX 2019 as a loaner. It can play 5.1 surround, but it is a little tricky.

1) USB stick should be formatted FAT32 or exFAT. NTFS is a no go, the stick will not be recognized.
2) 5.1 FLAC encoding should be with zero compression, 24/48 or 16/48 only. Everything else 5.1 (including standard 24/96) would not play at all, or would be decoded incorrectly and would play as stereo (or at least without meaningful sound from rear channels). Zero compression can be set up, for example, when you encode with Foobar.

I heard that 5.1 .wav files can also be played, but also only 24/48.

With stereo FLAC, the range of options in terms of bitrate is wider.

I did not make up my mind about the sound quality of ELS 3D yet as I had only one 5.1 music track on my flash drive that would play correctly. The first impression, I did not hear a lot of difference compared to regular ELS. Maybe I'll do more tests before returning the loaner.

 

I post this already on a different thread :



Rip this DVD-A on a Flac lossless audio music . Its from a demo disc that was given to Acura TL owners way back then
There is a track in that DVD disc that introduces the power and clarity of the 5.1 ELS system, narrated by Elliot Scheiner himself , it's based on the Winelight by Grover Washington Jr . A classic by it self .
It started with each channels on the 5 points of speaker source, and started with each music instruments starting from Front Driver seat , Center Front , Front Passenger Seat , Rear Right Seat, Rear Left Seat and finally the Sub woofer / After he intro'ed each channels independently , at the end he combined all the 6 sound sources into one .... Talk about audio heaven ...
Blows away Lexus Mark Levinson, Bose, Bang and Olufsen , Harman Kardon car audio system .. IMHO

Every time I demo'ed this to strangers,, their mouth literally just dropped in awe

 

Completed more testing of 5.1 playback in 2019 RDX. Converted tracks from J.M.Jarre , Eagles, and a couple of tracks of Diana Krall to a compatible format. I listened to these tracks many times with standard ELS surround in earlier models of MDX and RDX, so I know how they sound. Also, J.M.J. tracks have huge surround sound effects, which was good for the purpose of this test.

As for file conversion goes, the biggest pain in the *** is to make sure that FLAC is encoded with compression level zero. I tried several tools, the only one which explicitly enables one to set the compression level to zero is Foobar2000. The other tools, including eac3to, tend to create FLAC with undefined compression level and evidently not with zero, as these files do not play. So the workflow ends up being converting from whatever format you have to wav with an appropriate tool, then downsampling or upsampling the wav file to 48000 (neither 44,100 on DTS-CDs nor 5.1 24/96,000 as used on most DVD-audios or sold online would play), then converting them to flac with mandatory zero compression level with foobar. A little more involved process than it should be, but it works.

Sound quality of ELS 3D (5.1 surround from flash drive).

In the driver seat, I would say, ELS 3D sounds a little worse than standard ELS in the previous generations of Acura (I did not have an opportunity to compare ELS 3D and standard ELS in the new RDX and cannot speak about it). Somehow, to my ear, "old" ELS sounds a little smoother, fills space a little better. Additionally, separate subwoofer level adjustment is lacking which makes it difficult to properly balance the bass on some tracks. Worse or not, it is still a very good sound, which could've been even better if this thing could play 5.1 24/96.

In the front passenger seat, sound about the same as older generation ELS.

In the rear seats, ELS 3D sounds hugely better than with old ELS. The rear speakers do not yell into passengers ears, and you can actually hear and enjoy surround sound in the rear seat! This is very impressive. I think this rebalancing actually took its toll, to a small degree, on the balance and quality of sound in the driver seat. If something gets tons better in the back, something should give a little in the front. I was actually amazed how relatively little the sound degraded in the rear seats! I think Studio Surround took the first step in this direction, and now it is the second step.

 

Have to do some more testing, but it looks like xrecode3 is a good tool for batch conversion which has the required settings available, and it is very fast. It is a shame that a collection of DVD-A and DTS-CDs will no longer be needed, but at least there is a way to replace them.

 

Based upon this and some other similar threads I went into my CD collection and dug out the DVD-Audio Demo disc that I got with my 07 TL. Popped it into the player last night and enjoyed the full capabilities of the ELS system.
I remember years ago trying to find more of these discs but only remember a small section in the Borders music section. I wish that I had purchased more back then. Would love to find more now that the RDX (and presumably soon other Acura models) will have the ELS 3D system. The 5.1 system is really great in the car and I enjoyed the channel by channel demo with the different instruments.



Does anyone know where there might be a source of 5.1 audio files? I could only find a few DVD-Audio discs online.

 

I have the 2008 version of the ELS disc.

 

There are a lot more posts about the ELS 3D Audio system in the Third Generation RDX electronics section of this forum.

https://acurazine.com/forums/3g-rdx-...avigation-455/

Also, there were 4 variations of the Acura ELS Demo DVD-A, from 2004, 2005, 2006 and 2008/2009. 3 were from WB/Rhino, the 2006 disc was from Universal.

There was also a BOSE Demo DVD-A that went with the DVD-A system in the RL's, which was NOT ELS.

However, the Bose DVD-A is mostly jazz and easy listening stuff from AIX.

 

Here's the Bose RL Disc Cover:

 

I have been browsing (and buying) the Bluray Audio discs available on Amazon. There are quite a few already and I hope they keep making them. Too bad the powers that be decided not to add the bluray capability in our vehicles.. too worried that people will watch videos while driving, I guess

 

Do you guys know any good sources for these and other 5.1 audio?
I am downloading some 5.1 stuff off of archive.org but looking for other online sources.
I am trying to learn as much as I can about the details of the ELS system (been to their Facebook site and Quadraphonicquad)
As soon as my 07 TL dies or has a $$$ repair that I can not handle I will be picking up an RDX A-Spec so I would like to build a library of good high quality music to take advantage of the system.

 

DVD-Audio discs are getting rarely by the day. Amazon.com does have some available. Even eBay has a good selection

 

Best sources for modern 5.1 audio are DVD-A's, SACD's, DTS-CDs, and BluRay Audio's. To get an idea as to what is "out there", check out this poll from QuadraphonicQuad:

QuadraphonicQuad - Surround Polls

Everything listed is in 5.1 and is/was available. You can find most of these on eBay or via mail order. All 4 disc types can be ripped to .flac and put on a USB stick. Copy protection is NOT an issue once you get the discs ripped.

 

thanks for the link.....
ebay and amazon have limited choices for DVD-A, so knowing that other formats are able to be ripped to .flac is good news. I should have bought a bunch back in 07 at the Borders in West Hartford when I had the chance.

 

Obviously, in this forum we can only discuss legal sources.

You can buy some DVD-a from AIX Records web page (AIX Records - Home Page). I collected almost everything that they released over the years. They record local artists not very well known outside of the greater LA area, but recording and surround sound mix are top notch and there are some very nice tunes on some of the albums. They still have quite a few titles available on DVD-Audio, and you can listen to samples from the albums available for purchase online. Additionally, they sell most, if not all of their albums, in FLAC 5.1 format through the iTrax.com web site (although it is 24/96).

What I would like to bring up here is that you can make your own surround albums from your favorite CDs. This can be done using software from the web site surroundbyus.com. That site does not distribute any music. It is founded by an enthusiast who developed a very nice software for conversion of stereo to 5.1.The conversion software is free (but you need to register on the site to download it), but to run it, you need Plogue Bidule which is currently sold for $90. You end up with 5.1 .wav file which you can then use to create a DVD-A or DTS-CD or FLAC, depending on what your car can play. The general principle of the software is that it wraps stereo image around you, i.e., changes it from maybe 45 to 90 degrees typical for stereo to 360 degrees for surround. There are quite a few settings which you can play with to achieve the best result, so it is not a fully automated conversion. There is some learning curve associated with it, but it is not rocket science either. I used it for probably 80 to 100 conversions, with great results. Some of them were quite amazing, actually.

Ebay of course is always a good source. There are many, many albums available. I have over 1000 surround albums in my collection, and by the time I upgrade the car I will need to convert all of them into 24/48 FLAC...

Great 5.1 labels are AIX records, Tacet, 2L, GoldFish. Chesky is not bad. Silverline is total garbage whose 5.1 barely has any surround, stay away from their records. Pink Floyd in surround (Dark Side, Wish you were here, Animals, The Division Bell, Endless River, the Wall) is always an enjoyable listen in surround.

ELS sounds like a $250 jukebox in stereo and like a $5000 sound system is surround, the difference in sound quality is so huge that it is obvious that it was never meant to play stereo.

 

Good info. As far as the surroundbyus folks, who are amazing, BTW, they have a newer version of their software that is easier to use and does not require Plogue Bidule. It's called SPECWEB, now at version 1.5. It's a web based version of the SPEC software, and you basically drop a stereo wav or flac file on an icon on your desktop, and a process runs which results in a really nice 5.1 audio file that you can open in an audio editor, play around with, or just set up to go right to USB stick in the Acura. SPECWEB is free as well, but remember, the result is a function of how much phase information is in the stereo file. Some songs result in amazing listening - others don't.

And you are also right about the sound. A 5.1 file sounds amazing in the car, a stereo file - um, not so much. (But it's clearly better than my 17 RDX.

 

I seems a shame there there is no way to play native formats (an actual disc) on this system, for those of us who don't want to jump through the hoops of trying to create some strange file format and hope it is as good as the original.

 

So you would rather play a surround sound with a disc player ,, kinda like going back to 8 track , when you have digital music player

 

Agreed. Out of curiosity, I did go through the excellent "DVD-A to 5.1 .flac, step by step" process posted by oblio98 in another thread, and it does sound amazing. But 1) it takes time to create these files, 2) there is only one usb port in the console to connect to the infotainment system. and 3) the owners manual says to not keep a thumb drive connected. I have my iPhone connected there for Apple Carplay, so I'm never going to go through the effort of plugging in a thumb drive. Why just one usb that can play audio? Even my old 2015 Honda CRV had 2 audio usb connections to the system, and I kept a micro usb plugged into one all the time.

 

The positive side is that there will be no mechanical issues with the player. If I remember correctly, I got my CD/DVD changer replaced in two MDXs which I owned since 2001 three times. Each time it was a little under $1000. Rubber rollers and belts wear out and stop move disks as they should. One can complain that Acura could have anticipated this and could have made it an easy replacement, but the reality is that they did not.

 

Because developers at Panasonic have a different idea than you and I what consumers need. They may be right in their own way. Indeed, most consumers will never even use the USB connector. They will just play mp3s or streaming audio off their phones. I am pleasantly surprised that ELS Surround is still offered.

 

That's exactly why digital music player is the future . No mechanical things to break like a Disc Player . And also the lens inside the disc player is also prone to failure after multi years of usage with all the heat and vibrations

 

FWIW I never used the CD player in my car in the last 5+ years - and in the car before then I used it once just to make sure it worked. So very much better to have 30 hours of music on one flash drive versus 30 minutes on a disc.

 

...not to mention scratches and scuffs to original CDs bought in the '80s and long since out of print.

 

I used to have a Jeep that had 40 GB of memory for Music, pictures, etc. I could save music off of CD's onto the system and not have to worry about wearing out anything and would always have the music at my fingertips. I believe the Jeeps still have this feature. Seems an oversight to only external devices as the way to bring in music.

 

Today you can get a 1 TeraByte USB Memory Stick and plug it in the USB slot and get 25 times your puny 40GB memory in your Jeep for cheap . And its also faster to copy and transfer your media into the USB , comparing to your Jeep that you have to sync your music media .
That 1 Terabyte storage is infinitely upgradeable , because just in case you filled it up , there is a 2 Tera USB memory stick waiting or even a 10 Tera coming soon
How's that for progress !!!

 

Great, so long as I don't need to use that particular plug for anything else - like navigation. I've yet to really like the map that comes in a vehicle and I love it when the dealer says you don't need a map updated but once have 3-4 years. That's ridiculous. They should be sending map updates down like they do other updates, if they really intended people to use them as their primary navigation system.

 

Navigation does not need the USB plug , only if you want the Navigation from Apple Car Play .
The built in Navigation system is based on Google Android , so a derivative of Google Map .
When you update it , you need to use the USB slot but only once to get the updates and then you can plug in your 1 Terabyte Memory stick to get massive music collection
We all need it because RDX owners does not want to hear a stereo music aka 2 channel music non 3D like the one in the Jeep . We are spoiled listening to a 5.1 channel surround ELS 3D music that takes a lot of storage to hear pristine music
Also don't you know Acura gives out Lifetime Map updates unlike your Jeep or other car manufacturer that ask you to subscribe ....

 

1 Terabyte USB Memory stick from Ebay

 

Last question (for now) for those how understand this much more than me. I apologize if this is super stupid....
I have a bunch of DVD discs (video) for concerts/bands that have the audio in 5.1. Is there any way to extract the audio from the DVD and convert to .flac and maintain the 5.1 surround in the proper format to play in the Acura ELS system.
If so, does anyone have a particular software program that they would recommend for this task?

 

Covered here:

https://acurazine.com/forums/3g-rdx-...p-step-971819/

 

Thanks.....I did not know if the process was different when going from DVD-Audio vs a video DVD with dts or Dolby.
Still learning about all of this and excited to be able to get excellent quality music to take full advantage of ELS system.

 

Actually.............. that thread is for DVD-Audio discs. The program I suggest in that thread is a free program that is specifically designed for DVD-Audio disc.

So, to confuse things a little bit more, for DVD's you need DVD Audio Extractor, which is not free. Here's a link to their site. It's a good program by the way, worth the $38 bucks. You can download the program and use it for 30 days for free, so you might be able to rip everything and not have to buy it, but it's so cheap that you might as well have it for the future.

 

ahhh....thanks. Thought that I was going nuts. The DVD audio extractor was not recognizing the Audio_TS.IFO files....which makes sense.

I will try the link. Thanks again everyone for the help. I have all of these 5.1 concert DVDs that I would love to bring over.

 

I hear you. There are some real nice 5.1 mixes on concert DVD's and BluRays. Look for concerts mixed by Elliot Scheiner (of ELS fame). He tends to create a more active mix than just concert in the fronts, audience in the backs.

 

I found that a couple of the Porcupine Tree DVD-A didn't work with DVDAExplorer, so I used DVD-Audio Extractor to create multi channel .WAV files that I then used Foobar to convert to 48/24 .FLAC files

After you make a few, it is pretty easy and not hard at all.

 

I downloaded the DVD Audio Extractor from the CAS site with the trial software. It seems that you can do a direct conversion of the files straight to .flac.
I think that I set all of the parameters correctly to get the 5.1 (or default 6 channel) output that I want.
I might drop my samples onto a flash drive and go make a visit to my local Acura dealer to see if it worked.

 

I used DVD Audio Extractor during my recent test. Used it to extract files from "Aero" by JMJ, which is a DVD video disk. From two "test" tracks, one track played, the second one did not. That was weird. I did not test enough to confirm, just sharing this limited experience, and I cannot recall if I found a setting for compression level in DVD Audio extractor. I could have done something wrong. But in any case, you can extract tracks as wav and convert to FLAC in foobar, it is very quick. The good thing about DVD video disks is that audio tracks are 48 kHz, just what new sound system likes. You do not need to resample.

 

 

And you believe a car salesman that probably has no technical bones in him .. FYI : Google map has the best map updates in any smartphone .
How do you think the map updates on a 2019 RDX Infotainment that is based on Google Android with a Navigation that is based on Google Maps ???

 

One more observation/opinion to share.... I ended up keeping the loaner over the weekend. Compared sound in second generation MDX and 2019 RDX with ELS 3D using "Amused to Death" by Roger Waters [it was chosen the best surround sound album in 2016]. Below is a purely personal opinion, but this is what I concluded.

1. Depth and resolution of surround sound image is better in old MDX. Rear channels are very pronounced, they are very much behind you, while with ELS 3D they stand out quite a bit less. This makes me curious to hear how the not 3D system sounds in lower trims of 2019 RDX. It might actually sound better for the driver than 3D (for the rear seat passengers, it is a different story and just the opposite).

2. Sound in old MDX is richer because it has more full and balanced bass. Somehow, bass in ELS 3D is poorly balanced. Subwoofer may woof, but low frequencies between sub and bass speakers are somehow not quite as much filled, as if there was a gap somewhere between 40 Hz and 60 Hz. I already wrote above that there is only one adjustment for bass, not separate adjustments for bass and subwoofer as in the old system. This is kind of a bummer.

3. Sound in 2019 RDX with ELS 3D is cleaner and crispier, whereas in old MDX it feels a little muddier in the area of mid and high frequencies.

Frankly, I would rather take the cleanliness of trembles from the new system and everything else from the old...