In September 2019, I made an afternoon visit to National Sawdust, a vibrant, innovative performance space in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, to attend a demonstration of the new Constellation and Spacemap systems installed there by Meyer Sound. According to Meyer Sound designer Steve Ellison, the two systems permit control of the space's acoustics (Constellation) and empower performers and sound designers to construct a soundscape (Spacemap) in which voices, instruments, and other sounds can be located virtually anywhere within as well as beyond the confines of the performance space.
The buzz at the 2019 Audio Engineering Society (AES) convention in New York was immersive audio, as it has been for the last several years. I witnessed developments that may have a big impact on the future of multichannel audio.
Until about a week ago, I thought Classé Audio was out of business. Imagine my surprise when I discovered that Classé was not just alive but also kicking, with a new line of high-end electronics, which were being showcased, along with flagship products from Marantz and Polk Audio, at Montreal audio-video importer Sherpa Group's offices. What's more, it was happening tomorrow–that is, the day after I found out about Classé's resurgence.
Spectral analysis of a live blues band recording made by John Atkinson, showing content up to 40kHz, from "What's Going On Up There?"
At the October 2019 Audio Engineering Society convention in New York, Yuki Fukuda and Shunsuke Ishimitsu, both of Hiroshima City University, presented results that show quite clearly that listeners can distinguish sounds encoded and reproduced at different sampling frequencies. Their trials differed from the previous ones in one important way: Instead of exposing test subjects to music at different resolutions, they used test tones.
Bellevue, Washington: On Wednesday and Thursday, Nov 13 and 14, Definitive Audio in Bellevue hosted multiple by-invitation showings of Wilson Audio’s just-unveiled Chronosonic XVX loudspeaker.
On November 23, 6–9pm: Excel Audio in Newport Beach, California, invites everyone to join us to experience Wilson Audio’s latest, the Chronosonic XVX, driven by D’Agostino electronics with digital by dCS and vinyl played on the Clearaudio Statement turntable.
On Friday, November 22, from 4–9pm, at Audio Advisors in West Palm Beach, Florida, Peter McGrath of Wilson Audio will be demonstrating the WAMM Master Chronosonic with the WAMM Master Subsonic Subwoofers.
New York, NY. On November 8, at the very small New York Audio Show, Paris-based music streaming service Qobuz announced that it has streamlined its subscription plans, lowered prices, and discontinued MP3 streaming.
Please join Suncoast Audio in Sarasota, Florida, for the MBL X-treme Roadshow on Saturday, November 16th. Jeremy and Tara Bryan from MBL North America will present the 101 X-treme Radialstrahler loudspeaker system driven by MBL’s Reference Line Electronics.
On Thursday, November 14, from 5–9pm, the Innovative Audio Video Showrooms at 150 E. 58th St, NYC, will host Richard Fryer, the Founder and President of Spectral Audio, to celebrate their more than 40 years of producing state-of-the-art music components with the East Coast debut of the DMA-300SV Reference Standard Stereo Amplifier.
Thursday, November 14, 6–9pm: Join Denver, Colorado's Soundings Fine Audio Video for an evening of Hifi awesomeness as they host friends and representatives from Boulder Amplifiers, Rockport Technologies, and Nordost Cables. The event will include the worldwide debut of the Boulder 866 integrated amplifier.
The Hi-Fi Show Live 2019, U.K’s largest specialty high-end audio event, will take place this Saturday and Sunday at the Ascot Racecourse Grandstand in Ascot, England.
Under the category of "abundance of musical riches," there are two fantastic series about music airing on PBS right now. You probably already know about one of them, but another, which many readers will like even better, is getting far less press.