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Etymotic Research Cuts the Cord

On November 7, Dr. Mead C. Killion, founder and president of Etymotic Research, invited Stereophile to experience the company's newest in-the-ear high-fidelity earphone, the ety-8. What was so special about these half-ounce 'phones? No wires—the ety-8's are the industry's first and only in-the-ear, high-accuracy, noise-exclusion earphones.

Millennia Offers Online Tutorial on Orchestral Recording

One of the best-sounding recordings I've heard in the last few years is Handel's Messiah performed by Jeffrey Thomas and the American Bach Soloists (Delos DE-3360 CD). The sound is spectacularly natural, with realistic dynamics and a wonderful sense of space. If you haven't heard it, I recommend it highly—but Millennia">http://www.mil-media.com/homepage.shtml">Millennia Music & Media Systems is now offering you a chance to experience the recording on a completely different level.

Beyond the Soundbytes Conference Scheduled for November 15

On Friday, November 3, The Register published an interviewhttp://www.theregister.co.uk/2006/11/03/peter_jenner/">interview; with Peter Jenner, formerly manager of Pink Floyd and Syd Barrett, T. Rex, The Clash, Ian Drury, and Disposable Heroes, as well as Billy Bragg's current manager. The interview was a challenging (and profane) music insider's rant on a variety of subjects ranging from how the dollar download model killed the record store to proposals for a blanket, DRM-free digital music license that would permit consumers to use the music they purchase however they wish.

Advanced Audio 20th Anniversary Celebration on Saturday, November 11

As we reported">http://stereophile.com/news/101606advanced/">reported previously, on Saturday, November 11, retailer Advanced Audio will celebrate its 20th anniversary with "an open format seminar" at the Sheraton Tacoma Hotel (1320 Broadway Plaza, Tacoma, WA 98402. Tel: (253) 572-3200). Seminar participants will include Richard Vandersteen of Vandersteen Audio; Steve Silberman, Ayre Acoustics's national sales manager; Joe Harley, renowned recording producer and AudioQuest vice-president; Shane Buettner, technical editor of Ultimate AV; and Wes Phillips, a senior editor at Stereophile.

Alastair Robertson-Aikman (1924–2006)

One cliché that never loses its aptness is "end of an era." And it certainly applies to the passing on October 29 of SME’s founder, Alastair Robertson-Aikman. While there remain a handful of survivors from the original "golden age" of audio, few of them were still active in 2006. AR-A, as he was known to friends and staff, wasn’t simply still active: he was still tweaking his sound system and planning new products.

JL Audio—An Apology

Kalman Rubinson enthused over JL Audio's Fathom f113 powered subwoofer in his November "Music in the Round" column. Unfortunately, brainfade on my part when I wrote the text for the cover of that issue of Stereophile meant that the subwoofer was credited to "JL Labs." And in all the proof-reading that goes on while an issue of the magazine is being prepared, we all noted a) that the words "JL Labs" were both spelled correctly on the cover and b) that the words "JL Audio" were also spelled correctly on the contents page and all the way through Kals's column.

Industry Update

Free, as in "no charge": RealTraps reports that it has upgraded ModeCalc, a graphical room-mode prediction software that it offers as a free download (Windows only, 1.3MB) to help people design new listening rooms, or assess the low-frequency response in existing rooms. The company says the new version of ModeCalc offers "several clever features, including a display that better identifies modes that are too close together, and a revised and expanded tutorial in the included Help system."

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