Digitale Audio Systeme

ALBUM OF THE MONTH

MORGAN LUNA
FRANCISCO ZAMORA VEGA

This month’s album of the month is very special; not because of its sonic merits, although the recording quality is high. But because it was never recorded. Puzzled?

The music is pop-infused, soulful blues or bluesy soul-pop – whichever you prefer. The music is remarkable, firstly because it’s truly excellently produced and really gets under your skin. But even more so, because in its production not a single musician has ever played a note, nor has a singer ever sung a single tone. It has been synthezised entirely by an LLM algorithm. Listening tips:
1. You lost me forever
2. You are my Heaven
3. I won’t cry for You

One can roughly work out which musical templates the software was prompted to drawn upon, and yet … the result is unbelievably good. The lyrics come across as though someone with genuine emotional experiences had written them. The music is among the very best that bluesy soul-pop has ever had to offer. … and the voice is simply breathtaking: from a delicate whisper to a brittle, strained tone, everything is imbued with a powerful emotional presence. Perfect down to the smallest detail: the intonation and modulation of the voice match the content of the lyrics perfectly; even the breathing is used to emphasise the emotional significance of the lyrics.

If computer software can produce such good music in such a short space of time, the question naturally arises as to whether anyone will still bother to make real music in the future. It typically takes months to produce an album and costs a small fortune: writing lyrics, composing music, putting together a band, rehearsing the band, and recording in the studio. … and the result is usually an album featuring one or two good tracks, perhaps another two or three decent ones, and a large, uninteresting remainder. Here, however, we have an AI that, with a well-written prompt and a bit of AI processing power, churns out world-class music in quick succession.

This is where the only discernible drawback of AI becomes apparent: after a while, the music all starts to sound very similar. The AI varies a few existing musical concepts ad nauseam. This could be the death of creativity. But even so - when consumed in small doses - the music is absolutely stunning.

The next question then is whether it matters that a soulless piece of software can synthesise highly emotional music so convincingly – something that has, until now, been the prerogative of creative, emotional human artists. Many people listen to music in order to: feel emotions, share human experiences and identify with artists. But what if the artists do not exist, but are fictional? Moreover, AI can produce music that is optimized to evoke certain emotional responses, turning the music into an instrument of psychological manipulation. Of course, that has always been true also of human musicians to some degree, but reaches a new level of perfection with the calculation power of AI.

There is a disturbing element of abuse in all of this. But again: does it matter?

Label: 6723747 Records DK – DistroKid (producer: Francisco Zamora Vega)
Format: PCM 44,1kHz, 16bit

IMPRESSIONS FROM THE HIGHEND 2026 IN VIENNA

During the HighEnd fair’s first year in Vienna in 2026, the Wiener Lautsprecher Manufaktur and Digital Audio Systems jointly presented a selection of their products on level 2, room no. 2.97.

A lot of praise was heard from the visitors of our demo room about the quality of the sound presentation. On Saturday, Stereo-Magazin’s Mathias Böde used our room to demo a new release of Harry Belafonte’s famous recording of his Carnegie Hall Concert of April 1959, comparing analogue releases on reel-to-reel tape and vinyl with a digital release. Here are some impressions of the show:

In parallel with the HighEnd Vienna, DAS - together with Wiener Lautsprecher Manufaktur and Accuphase - organised a series of exclusive demonstrations at the Husarenhaus on the Kohlmarkt in the heart of Vienna.

Every evening, there were entertaining and informative talks on the history of sound recording, Vienna’s centuries-long contribution to high-fidelity, the basics of digital audio, and the management of room acoustics. This was followed by drinks and informal discussions in smaller groups. On Friday, Accuphase’s board of directors had travelled from Japan to attend. Here are a few impressions: https://digital-audio-systems.com/impressions-from-viennas-most-exclusive-audiophile-event-2026/?lang=en

Home Page | digitale audio systeme Digitale Audio Systeme (DAS) ist eine Manufaktur für Entwicklung, Bau und Vertrieb digitaler Musikserver, Streamer und Verstärker höchster Güte. Unabhängige Testberichte zählen unsere Produkte zu den besten der Welt.

We are preparing something big for you!

It will be quite sensational.

Details to follow.

WELCOME HIGHEND TO THE WORLD CAPITAL OF MUSIC!

From 2026, Vienna – our home city – will be the official venue for the HighEnd, the world’s leading exhibition for audio electronics. We will of course be there, exhibiting alongside our dear friends from the Wiener Lautsprecher Manufaktur:


DATES:
4 to 7 June 2026

OPENING HOURS:
Thursday: 10:00 to 18:00 h
Friday: 10:00 to 18:00h
Saturday: 10:00 10 18:00h
Sunday: 10:00 to 16:00h

VENUE:
Austria Center Vienna (ACV)
Bruno-Kreisky-Platz 1
1220 Wien

ROOM:
Raum 2.97/2.98 (Level 2)

You will find a clickabel map of the ACV here: https://digital-audio-systems.com/welcome-highend-to-the-world-capital-of-music/?lang=en