Product Description
JBL System Integration Digital
From the Manufacturer
The right answer to the question "What can I do to improve the sound of my car audio system?" used to depend on the quality and configuration of your system's particular components. Today's answer is, "Just get a JBL MS-8 System Integration Digital Processor." The MS-8 is a new kind of car audio component, an automatic equalizer that can optimize any vehicle's performance in about ten minutes flat. Just follow the step-by-step setup procedure and the MS-8 maximizes frequency response, bass performance, dynamics, clarity, detail and stereo imaging--every important parameter of sonic greatness--from virtually any combination of factory-installed and/or aftermarket components. And after it works its magic? You'll be left with a 31-band graphic equalizer and a full set of preamp controls to fine-tune day-to-day operations.
The JBL MS-8 processor is a sophisticated digital signal processor that will deliver great sound from any car audio system. |
Why JBL Sound?
JBL didn't invent car audio, but what we have done is reinvent the way you upgrade your car audio system. When Hollywood made a long-term commitment to cinema sound in 1927 with the movie the Jazz Singer, JBL was there. We were there on stage at Woodstock with Hendrix and friends. For more than 60 years, JBL products have been bringing home the impact and excitement of the world's best recording studios, movie theaters and concert venues. For years, JBL engineers have been creating these world-class listening experiences in the car. Thanks to advanced technology developed in the professional arena, JBL mobile products simply sound better than the competition. High output, superb bass response, long life and smooth response are all things you can expect from any speaker that wears the JBL badge. And now JBL has completely revolutionized great sound in the car, again, with the ground-breaking MS8 system.
Powerful Processing
What makes the MS-8 unlike the typical car audio product is that rather than replacing a component like a speaker or a head unit, it is designed to be added to your existing system to get great sound from what you already have. So, how does the JBL MS-8 really make an existing system sound better?
The MS-8's uses advanced equalization DSP to improve tonal accuracy |
MS-8 Digital Signal Processor
At the heart of the system is the MS-8 digital signal processor. At JBL, we know audio and we know cars. Our engineers put all this expertise into designing a custom DSP chip that automatically equalizes any car audio system for the best possible sound. Using detailed input from the included binaural headset microphone, it measures and improves every measure of audio performance (including frequency response, bass performance, dynamics, clarity, detail and stereo imaging) from any combination of OEM and aftermarket components. It does this by making millions of calculations every second using thousands of instructions.
Since every vehicle interior is different and can have a great affect on the sound quality of a particular sound system, the MS-8's DSP also improves tonal accuracy by equalizing the system. By looking at the measurements taken from the binaural headset microphone, it compensates and equalizes for the vehicles interior characteristics as well as for the sonic signature of the speakers and electronics being used. And if that weren't enough for a great sounding system already, the MS-8's DSP takes the measurement input and applies an advanced time correction algorithm. By applying this time correction, the MS-8 ensures that sound from all speakers will hit your ears simultaneously. This greatly improves the system's imaging, clarity and realism. In fact, MS-8 is powerful enough to even be able to do this for up to four different individual seating positions.
Getting the sound right is only part of what makes the MS-8 DSP so powerful. Even with the sound fully equalized, it doesn't make for such a great experience if all your music sounds like it is coming from the bottom of your doors. That's where JBL's proprietary Logic 7 surround processing comes in.
Logic 7 surround processing realistic and enveloping 5.1 or 7.1 sound |
Logic 7 Surround Processing
Today we live in a multi-channel world. Much of our stereo, 2-channel listening is a thing of the past. JBL has led the way for a number of years in creating realistic and engaging sound experiences from any material using a proprietary surround processing algorithm called Logic 7. Once having corrected for the audio performance of the sound system, the MS-8 processor employs Logic 7 to create a realistic and enveloping 5.1 or 7.1 sound never before experienced in a vehicle. It's like having a home theater system on wheels. Logic 7 spreads the sound across your dashboard adding a sense of space to the inside of your car. And remember your music crammed in the bottom of your doors? With Logic 7 that's a thing of the past. Vocals and instruments will now be realistically placed across the interior of your vehicle much like having the best seats in the house at your favorite concert. And best of all, Logic 7 is automatic right out of the box.
Complete Customization
The JBL MS-8 is so powerful that right out of the box, it will make your car audio system sound great without the need to do any tweaking. However, if you do want to try your hand at being an audio technician, the MS-8 will let you fine-tune the sound all you want. With a 31-band graphic equalizer at your fingertips, you can override the automatic equalization to suit your personal taste. You can control system volume, subwoofer volume and tone controls. You can even store up to five custom settings for easy one-button recall so that anyone driving can have their own personal settings.
And if you happen to not like the sound of any tweaking you may have done, the MS-8 makes fixing things a snap. With a push of the remote button, the MS-8 processor will revert back to its original settings after calibration so great sound is never far away.
The JBL MS-8 can easily integrate into any combination of factory-installed and/or aftermarket components Click to Enlarge |
The bi-aural microphone headphones, 5-line LCD screen and wireless remote control make setup and use of MS-8 easy. Click to Enlarge |
Easy System Expansion
What makes the JBL MS-8 so revolutionary is that it is designed to make any car audio system sound great including a factory sound system. With a high-quality 20 watt X 8 amplifier onboard in addition to both pre-amp and speaker-level inputs and outputs, it can easily improve the power of a factory or aftermarket head unit. But it doesn't stop there.
The MS-8 will ensure you get all the performance you are paying for out of your aftermarket car audio system. |
When you are ready, the MS-8 can serve as the foundation of a truly special car audio system when you add subwoofers, a center speaker, amplifiers or even video components directly to the MS-8 down the road. It's as close to "Plug-and-Play" as you will find, saving hours on future installation and set-up time.
Installation Made Simple
When it comes to the installation, the key word is simple. Before the JBL MS-8, you needed a pile of components to turn your car audio system into something worth listening to. It was complicated, expensive and required half your car to end up on the installer's floor during installation. With the MS-8, there are a grand total of just three components to be installed. The digital processor, the display and the remote control.
Once you have the MS-8 wired and powered up, calibrating the MS-8 is a piece of cake. Simple menu-driven calibration is accessed from the five-line LCD screen allowing for easy, step-by-step setup that can be completed in about 10 minutes. While the system plays a pre-recorded track from the included test CD, the bi-aural microphone headset is taking digital notes on your vehicle's unique acoustic signature. The headset picks up the tiniest variations is sound absorption and reflection and feeds that information into the MS-8's DSP. You can continue to calibrate up to three additional seating locations and when it is done, you still have a 31-band graphic equalizer and a full set of tone controls to fine tune day to day operations via the wireless remote and LCD display.
The JBL MS-8 is the best first step for getting great sound in your car. |
System Highlights
- Superior Performance from Any System--Improves every measure of audio performance, frequency response, bass performance, dynamics, clarity, detail and stereo imaging from any combination of OEM and aftermarket components.
- Easy, Step-by-Step Setup--Simple menu-driven calibration based on detailed input from a binaural headset microphone
- Optimizes Up To Eight Input Channels--Produces a smooth response, full-bandwidth signal from up to eight input channels.
- DSP Equalization--Improves tonal accuracy by automatically compensating for the sonic characteristics of the speakers, electronics and vehicle interior
- DSP Time Correction--Automatically ensures that the sound from all speakers arrives at the listener's ears simultaneously, in up to four individual seating positions, dramatically improving clarity and imaging.
- Sophisticated Crossover Functions--Precise, user selectable crossover points and crossover slopes for up to eight separate outputs.
- Logic 7 Surround Processing--Creates a realistic 5.1- or 7.1-channel surround experience from 2-channel source material.
- 31-Band Graphic Equalizer--Override automatic equalization to suit personal taste
- Preamplifier Controls--Control system volume, subwoofer volume, left/right balance, front/rear fader, bass/mid/treble tone controls, override DSP equalization, time correction and Logic 7 processing.
- Favorite Settings --Store up to five custom settings for one-button recall
- LCD Display--Five-line, 128 x 64-pixel screen displays setup menus and operation status
- Wireless RF Remote --Controls menu navigation, volume and mute.
- Onboard 20 Watts x 8 Amplifier, Eight-Channel Preamp-Level and Speaker-Level Inputs and Outputs, Full-Range Stereo Aux Input
What's in the Box
JBL MS-8 Digital System Processor, 5-line LCD Display, LCD Display Cable, Wireless Remote Control, Flush and Surface Mount hardware for wireless remote, Bi-aural Microphone Headset, Installation Wiring
