Amazon Offers Downloads Without DRM

Amazon Offers Downloads Without DRM

On September 25, Amazon <A HREF="http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=176060&p=irol-newsArticle&I…; that its <A HREF="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/browse/-/163856011">Amazon MP3 download store</A> was open as a "public beta" test. Amazon claims it has "more than two million songs by more than 180,000 artists from over 20,000 major and independent labels," which makes it somewhat less diverse than Apple's iTunes Store, which claims six million songs. However, Amazon MP3 has a few advantages in its corner: its MP3s are higher-resolution, variable bit-rate 256kpbs with no digital rights management&mdash;and they are cheaper, 89&ndash;99&#162; per track, as opposed to iTunes' 99&#162; for its 128kbps AAC files (or $1.29 for iTunes+ files, which are DRM-free and 256kbps AAC files).

Hi-Fi Restoration Project

Hello everyone,

I am brand new to the world of "stereophilia", but I am working on a project and you seem like the folks to ask for advice.

I recently inherited my grandparents' old hi-fi console. It is a beautiful piece of furniture with all the original finish and electronics intact. I had the idea that I would like to "remodel" the console to include a high-end-ish stereo but still look vintage on the outside. I am somewhat handy and can probably pull off the woodworking that needs to be done to accomodate the updated system.

Allaerts MC2 Finish Gold phono cartridge

Allaerts MC2 Finish Gold phono cartridge

These are great times for analog, and I'm happy to have played a small part in the revival, but recently the demand for some products has outstripped supply; getting review samples has been next to impossible. I've requested an Audio Research PH7 phono preamplifier for literally years now, but ARC can't build them fast enough, so they don't need a review. The more they sell, the greater the buzz, and the greater the buzz, the more e-mails I get from readers asking for a review. It's not nice to not be needed.

EMI Takes Classical Music Online

EMI Takes Classical Music Online

EMI and Virgin Classics, one of the oldest and two of the most respected names in classical music, have undertaken a series of audiophile-friendly initiatives designed to strengthen their online presence. At the start of September, the labels together launched the EMI and Virgin Classics Listening Club. Open to music lovers who purchase new EMI or Virgin Classics discs marked with the Opendisc logo, the club's "exclusive" online environment offers participants the opportunity to build relationships with some of the labels' top artists.

Help ! NAD325bee and Monitor Audio BR2's - Is adding a sub a stupid idea ?

Hi folks - I am new to this whole hifi audiophile world - and what an interesting world it is !

Heres the guts of it - I finally cleared off my old crappy bits of system to the back shed and forked out on some new gear. After much reading and sussing out a couple of shops I went with the following : NAD 325BEE amp, Monitor Audio BR2 speakers, Cambridge Audio 640P phono pre amp for my old technics turntable and am soon to replace my old sony carosel CD player with a 525BEE NAD to match the amp.

Mono Blocks

are there an advantage in having mono Blocks amps vs. Having stereo amps or Receivers..... I have a couple of Carver Mono Blocks that I have had for 17 years and they work just fine. I was thinking about upgrading to the Krell mono Blocks. are the Krells worth it? ;)

Thanks I'm a newbie here.

SRC and Dither

I've spent most of today evaluating some new software I have, particularly algorithms for sample rate conversion and dithering.

Both processes come into play when creating a CD master. Since I record in high resolution at 24 bit and 96k sampling (with some current experimentation at 192k as well), in order to create a CD master, sampling rate must be brought down to the CD standard 44.1 kHz and word length must be brought down to the CD standard 16 bits.

NEED HELP ON BOSE SYSTEM

hello, im new here so i hope i dont have a stupid question. ok so my wife wants a new "little stereo", her mom has that bose wave system, and so does my mom and she like that system a lot, me well it sounds ok, i used to have a full surround set of Paradigm bookshelves with a denon reciever. so as i said i the bose sounds ok, but i have always heard that BOSE stands for Buy Other Stereo Equipment lol. everyone i see on all the forums say bose is craptackuar! do i buy it if she likes it or is there another system like it for me to get thats better than bose paper speakers?

Bedini Ultra Clarifier Quadri Beam

It's funny how things work out sometimes. I recently purchased a new copy of Sketches of Spain (Gil Evans/Miles Davis) to replace an earlier copy that had become trashed; I never learn that it's best to leave CDs at home when vacationing.

Sketches of Spain strikes me as a exotic sonic sojourn, the product of the genius of Gil Evans (after Rodrigo) contemplating the mysteries of that melting pot of cultures which was Andalusia during the Middle Ages, or so my imagination has it.

$1,000 best? What about EMMLABS or Esoteric

EMMLABS is $13,500 Esoteric is ...all claim to make it SACD like? Now so do these dudes, now let me get this straigt, EMMLABS want's $13,00!!! But PS can do it for $1,000. If these magicians can do this, why isn't this DAC the one to beat, why is EMMLABS doing 2X DSD when these guys ain't yet they claim it's the best. Does claims and marketing need to be truthful, or just claim anything, and see what happens? I use AVA OmegaStar EX hybrid DAC, doesn't claim to make it like SACD, just makes CD's sound great!!!

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement