So, what is "good sound" in audio in Germany?
Fukushima: In Germany, there's a bit more emphasis on the body of the sound, and reviews in domestic magazines often say things like, "This product has a sound with nice body in low-range.”
Is the word "body" as we understood earlier, refers to massiveness in the mid-to-low range?
Fukushima: That's a bit of a tough one to explain. Generally speaking, the word "body" refers to the mid and low range. But in Germany “body” doesn't include the mid-range and is often used to describe the feeling of speedy and clear presence of the low range.
I see that sound preferences are different in the U.K. and Germany. By the way, is there anything that is commonly emphasized in Europe?
Fukushima: European audiophiles place a great deal of importance on the soundstage.
For example, even with two channels of stereo playback, they pay attention to whether the soundstage extends to the outside of the speakers. Another example is when playing back an orchestra, they are focused on the point whether you can express not only the left and right but also the dimension of the stage.
It seems close to Denon's new sound philosophy of "Vivid & Spacious."
Fukushima: Yes, that is right. Denon's sound has gained greater reputation in Europe since our focus on upholding the “Vivid and Spacious” sound our Sound Master has been aiming for went into place. This new approach of “Vivid and Spacious” is a direction nicely reflecting the preferences of the markets like Japan, UK and Germany, while maintaining the Denon philosophy of true audio reproduction.
Work Closely With European Team on Marketing and Sound Quality Studies
Is Denon better known in Europe for its AV amplifiers than for its Hi-Fi components?
Fukushima: Yes, I think that Denon is generally regarded as a manufacturer of AV amplifiers in Europe. One of the reasons why Denon is so well-known in the European home theater market is because of the following story.
Around 1998, Denon's then new 5.1 channel content, Mahler's Symphony No. 5, performed by the Frankfurt Symphony Orchestra with Eiji Oue conducting, was released from the Denon label. At that time, Denon AV amplifiers were the only audio systems capable of playing this content properly, and in fact it was very well received. Denon was the first to present the splendor of multi-channel playback and 3D sound with both software and hardware in Europe, and the perception of "Denon is an AV amplifier company" became widespread after that.
Do you collaborate with Europe in terms of Denon sound?