When buying a new car, the sound system isn’t always your top priority. We wanted to change that.
We created a test drive experience like no other together with Volvo Cars and Harman Kardon: 4,500 drivers in 55 cars set off on a unique sonic adventure through the vibrant city of Madrid.
The test-drive experience was created together with Volvo Cars and Harman Kardon, and involved setting up trigger points strategically across the city. Each trigger point was designed to tell a story in sound. When one of our test cars passed a trigger point, sounds tailored to that specific location were activated and played via the car’s sound system.
To create this unique sound experience we needed reliable, seamless technology that was capable of functioning every day for 8 weeks – in 50 different cars! The technology would also require minimum maintenance and would not spoil the look of the car’s interior with cables or boxes.
The solution was to create a GPS–based app, which would connect to each car’s sound system via Bluetooth. The device running the app was completely hidden in the car’s luggage compartment – no wires, no boxes, just pure Harman Kardon sound.
All sounds used during the test drive were specifically produced and optimized to suit the car’s sound system, and mixed so that people in both the front and back rows experienced the best sound quality possible.
Throughout the test drive, we played different pieces of music connected to specific landmarks located along the specially created test route. To heighten the sound experience further, we then added ambient sounds and a voiceover explaining the unique benefits of the Harman Kardon sound system.
For example, when approaching Plaza de Colon, the historic town square built to celebrate Christopher Columbus, the bass kicked in and Columbus’s famous voyages of discovery were brought to life by the mighty roar of the ocean. And because everything was automatic, the drivers could simply sit back and enjoy the sounds of this famous city.
By the end of the test drive, everyone had a new appreciation of what premium sound can bring to the driving experience.
