Taking a low-quality MP3 and converting it into a much higher-quality file seems like an idea that could only work via some kind of dark magic. How could you possibly recreate all of the frequencies lost in MP3 compression without having the original studio master to refer back to? It’d be like trying to complete a jigsaw puzzle with half of the pieces missing, or if someone melted a chocolate bar and then told you to piece it back together.
But upscaling technology is capable of exactly that - transforming fuzzy, low-resolution audio files into something that’s much easier on the ears - and here at Sony we have our own version which we like to call DSEE HX (Digital Sound Enhancement Engine). Upscaling doesn’t just apply to music either; Blu-Ray players have been upscaling the quality of our regular DVDs for years now.
Upscalers are complex beasts, but we’ll use an analogy to help you get your head around how they work. Let’s think of a low-quality MP3 as a paint-by-numbers picture that only uses 10 different colours. It’s quick and easy to fill in, but the finished product lacks any sense of realism - the sky is never just one shade of blue, for example. But feed that MP3 through an upscaler, and it will break down the picture into thousands of tiny sections, each one using a different shade and hue. Suddenly everything is more tangible and detailed - the sky looks real, and you can notice parts of the picture that were invisible beforehand.
In order to restore audio faithfully and accurately, upscalers work at an astounding rate. They’re capable of looking behind and ahead of time in a song to make a note of any essential signal patterns and frequencies that need to be restored, and they can even be pre-programmed to behave in a certain way when faced with specific audio signals. So while you’re busy enjoying the first few seconds of your favourite Miles Davis or Bob Dylan track, the upscaler in your device could be scanning the last few bars at the end to see where it needs to work hardest.
In short, technologies like DSEE HX breathe new life into your music collection, letting you appreciate even the grainiest of tracks in a much higher quality than before.
