Importance of clear audio for VoIP

VoIP systems, including Skype, Google Talk, Gizmo and Vonage employ several techniques to make audio transmission more efficient. These techniques take advantage of the properties of human speech to economize the process of audio transmission over the internet. In order to ensure that such techniques minimize the degradation of audio quality by such techniques, it is important to ensure that clear audio is sent into the system regardless of the environment in which the end users are located. To read more about this subject, please review our SkypeJournal blog posting.

What exactly is clear audio?

For the purposes of speech communication, clear audio can be defined as an audio stream that has a low noise component (ideally no noise), and a high speech component (the audio content that we are trying to transmit). However, this specification alone is not sufficient to describe clear audio. We need the speech signal to be transmitted to the listener at the other end of the communication system with the least possible modification along the way (ideally with no modification at all: the listener should hear the audio exactly as the speaker spoke it).

How good is theBoom’s technology for VoIP (Skype/Vonage/SIP)?

theBoom microphones employ patented passive noise cancellation technology that provides a uniquely powerful combination of high speech/noise ratio and high fidelity of speech transmission. The benefit of passive technology is that the voice of the user is not morphed in any way, providing a clear and full sound spectrum. Active noise Canceling technology has the disadvantage of having to guess what the noise is and then create an inverse waveform of the noise in question. This technique - especailly in varying noise conditions - results in some of the users voice being mistakenly considered as noise and also causes the transmission to sound 'tinny,' unnatural or robotic.

The effectiveness of theBoom technology in providing clear audio has been proven for applications that demand high quality audio, such as speech recognition, in highly noisy environments like wall street trading floors and Blackhawk helicopters. theBoom’s noise Canceling microphone technology has also been evaluated both in-house and by independent testers including the AFRL (Air Force Research Lab) and Knowbrainer, and proven to be superior to other available technology.

The ability to “Whisper and be Heard.”

There are many situations where the user’s privacy is important during communication. theBoom is unique in its ability in that the user can speak so softly, that a neighbor sitting close by cannot overhear the conversation where as the person at the other end of the line can hear the speaker with crystal clarity.

This is accomplished because the patented shape of UmeVoice technology gives an automatic +4db gain to outgoing transmissions. Once again, this is accomplished by using the physics of acoustics and is a completely passive solution. It has no impact on the battery life of the cell phone or device it is connected to.

How people are using theBoom

theBoom headsets are being used to greatly enhance the quality of VoIP communication from any environment, no matter how noisy:

1. Skype: To make clear and effective calls on a PC or Mac laptop using Skype from airports, cafes, conferences and other noisy environments where clear communication would otherwise be impossible.
2. VoIP office phones: In office environments where clarity and privacy are important for business communication
3. Home VoIP service: In homes/home-offices where you have to make clear calls in the presence of noisy pets/children
4. With audio enhancements to Skype (extras) such as our own speech recognition application UmeSkype.

Other benefits of using theBoom headsets

theBoom headsets are designed with universal connectivity in mind, and can be used with a wide variety of devices. Adapters are available for most cell phones, home and office phones, PC sound cards, PC/Mac USB ports and PDAs.

With theBoom headsets, people can use VoIP applications effectively in practically any environment.

Summary: How VoIP users can benefit

theBoom headsets are ideally suited for VoIP applications because:

1. They provide unparalleled audio clarity and speech fidelity for the clearest communications – whether it is for critical business needs or of a personal nature
2. They virtually eliminate the need to repeat yourself, making communication more effective
3. They minimize the degradation of audio quality by VoIP technologies by providing a virtually background noise-free audio signal
4. By allowing you to just “whisper and be heard”, theBoom headsets make private communication possible even in public places, thus making mobile VoIP use (from your laptop or handheld device) more practical from anywhere for any purpose.

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