Things were all a bustle as the California Audio Show got underway at the Hilton in Emeryville, right below Berkeley and Oakland, and across the bay from San Francisco. Happily surprised by a number of last-minute exhibitors, promoters Ann and Constantine Soo had lost count at "something over 100 exhibitors/brands" and 34 exhibit rooms.
Well, all the cool kids are going to want one of these. Rega strikes back with their new RP-1 turntable.
August is here, which means it’s time for <a href="http://www.thecableco.com/">The Cable Company</a>’s Annual “Summer Against Hunger” fundraiser. This marks the 15th year that The Cable Company collaborates with <a href="http://www.care.org/index.asp">CARE</a>, a leading humanitarian effort battling global poverty, with a dollar for dollar donation on purchases of sponsored products in the month of August.
According to the conventional wisdom, companies selling consumer products fall into two categories: those whose sales are "marketing-led" and those whose sales are "product-led." Marketing-led companies tend to sell mature products into a mature market where there are no real differences between competing products—soap powder, mass-market beer, or cigarettes, for example—whereas product-led companies tend to sell new technologies, such as personal computers and high-end hi-fi components. In the audio separates market, conventional wisdom would have a hard time categorizing any individual company: no matter which you choose, it would be simplistic to say that it is either product- or marketing-led. No matter how good the product, without good marketing the manufacturer stands little chance of success; a poor product superbly marketed may make a company successful overnight, but that success will have hit the end stops by the following night. Nevertheless, for this review, I have chosen a model from a company renowned for its marketing strength: Polk Audio.
When <I>Sound + Vision</I> splashed Tom Petty’s still remarkably vital mug across a recent cover it caught my attention. Inside, across 12 pages, they basically anointed his new record <I>Mojo</I>, as disc of the year. So Petty’s blues record, one that was a long time comin’, is the best album of 2010? No offense to Mike Mettler and Ken Richardson, both of whom I consider friends, but the whole thing seemed like a stretch to me.
Stereophile will be reporting live from the show starting July 30.
Reflecting dramatic changes in the high-end industry, British loudspeaker manufacturer Bowers & Wilkins has developed for its products a new US retail outlet. Beginning in October, audio shoppers will be able to audition and buy the company's loudspeakers in Best Buy's chain of Magnolia stores.
Will you be in or around Baltimore tomorrow night? Will you be in the mood for music, hi-fi, and wine? If so, this looks fun:
<a href="http://blog.stereophile.com/stephenmejias/last_night_in_other_music/">L… night</a>, after leaving <a href="http://www.othermusic.com/">Other Music</a>, orange bag in my hand, I stopped in front of <a href="http://www.inlivingstereo.com/">In Living Stereo</a> and gazed dreamily at the window display: A pair of DeVore Fidelity Gibbon 3s (just like home!), a Rega P3 (just like home!), and a…