The DMP1 gives you a choice of bitrates (but it cannot play back uncompressed music). Very generally, MP3 files coded at 128 kbps sound pretty good for portable playback, sound quite good at rates above 160 kbps, and excellent above 256 kbps. Also, generally, WMA sounds better than MP3 at the same bitrate; a WMA rate of 128 kbps can sound very good for car playback.

To test the playback sound quality, I listened to several WMA bitrate versions of Seal IV (Warner Brothers). Seal has always remained somewhat out of the mainstream, but each and every album is filled with expressive, passionate, and extremely well-produced songs. The first single, "Waiting For You", features a sparse, funky beat — in fact, the slightly off-beat feel is what makes it more interesting. Coded at a low 48 kbps is unacceptable. There is significant phasing in the chorus, so much so that the horns that wrap up the chorus are almost completely masked. This clears up very nicely when the bitrate is bumped up to 128 kbps. Part of Seal's distinctive sound is created by doubling his vocals. This can really mess up the ripped sound, but at rates above 128 kbps, there really isn't an issue. At 128 kbps, the incredible bass sound in the verses is strong, with a solid punch. The strong acoustic guitar that kicks off the reprise of "Get It Together" has a sharp attack, with a rich resonant sound that was practically indistinguishable from the original at 192 kbps. At anything lower, the guitar loses some of the brilliant high end. The sense of air and the imaging is terrific. The DMP1 proved to be an excellent system at high bitrates.


When you have listened to the hundreds of albums on your hard drive, it's time to swap them for others. That is simply accomplished by carrying the removable drive inside, and connecting it to your PC. It is easy to delete the songs (or move them back to your PC) and transfer new ones to the drive. On the other hand, for the ultimate cool factor, you might want to do that swapping chore wirelessly. With your PC's LAN connection, and some extra hardware, you can leave the removable drive in your car (parked in the driveway or garage) and transmit files from your PC to your car. Very slick. Here's what you need to do: connect your home PC to a Wi-Fi® (802.11b) network using an optional Wi-Fi® adapter and D-Link router, and connect another Wi-Fi® adapter to the car player.

For example, if you are using a notebook at home, plug in a Wi-Fi® PCMCIA card that will talk to a D-Link DI-614+ wireless router. Then, connect a D-Link DWL-121 wireless adapter to the USB port on the car player. Voila. Files can be wirelessly transmitted from your home PC to the player's hard drive. Using SimpleCenter, you can even set the system to automatically update your files, for example, automatically transmitting at 3 am when your car is likely to be parked near your home PC. Of course, Wi-Fi® only operates over relatively short distances, so you can't park down the street or in a remote parking lot. Moreover, Wi-Fi® transfer rates are slower than USB dumps. The DMP1 owner's manual suggests that you install your first massive music library via wired USB, and mainly use the Wi-Fi® to keep it updated with smaller files. In other words, the Wi-Fi® option for the DMP1 is very cool, but not keenly necessary.

The Omnifi? DMP1 is light years beyond traditional car audio products. If you've ever tried to load a CD changer in your trunk while it's raining, or dropped your disc wallet in a puddle, or lost or scratched a valuable CD, or are simply tired of radio, you'll appreciate the value of a secure music library with hundreds of your favorite albums. Moreover, unlike a portable MP3 player that cannot be easily operated in a car, the DMP1 was specifically designed for easy and safe operation while behind the wheel. Most important, the software backbone of this system is easy to use and does everything you need it to do, and it provides the additional perk of setting up your home PC as a music jukebox. Throw in the option of a Wi-Fi® home-to-car connection, and you have one of the most interesting mobile audio products to hit the road in years.


Leslie Shapiro is an audio engineer and a freelance technical writer for several leading consumer electronics publications.