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During copyright protection hearings in Washington the last week of February, South Carolina Senator Ernest "Fritz" Hollings labored mightily to please patrons Michael Eisner, CEO of Walt Disney Company, and Jack Valenti, president of the Motion Pictures Association of America (MPAA). Hollings' questioning of panelists from concerned industries was generally even-handed, according to several reports, except for his treatment of Intel executive vice president Leslie Vadasz, whose opposition to government-mandated copy control provoked an especially vindictive outpouring of vitriol from the 80…
Paradigm's acquisition of Sonic Frontiers, Inc. is only the first step in salvaging the highly regarded brand, according to Bill VanderMarel, Paradigm's Director of Sales and Marketing. The next step will involve infusions of serious amounts of cash to expand the present network of dealers and to develop new products under the new Sonic Frontiers International banner---an amount VanderMarel expects will run as high as two or three times the purchase price of the temporarily defunct Ontario maker of high-end audio electronics. "Paradigm recognizes the necessity of such a sizable investment…
In the fall of 1999, a couple of Canadian high-end audio companies got together to pool resources with the idea that two heads were better than one when it came to certain new products. Simaudio of Boucherville, Quebec and Magnum Dynalab of Brampton, Ontario formed a strategic alliance with the purpose of sharing various technologies to further enhance each company's product lines.
Simaudio's experience in designing and manufacturing power amplifiers, preamplifiers, and integrated amplifiers combined with Magnum Dynalab's expertise in analog FM tuners, provided the foundation to develop…
Sony Electronics will soon institute some big changes in an effort to become more efficient.
Early in October, the company announced that it would move most of its consumer electronics marketing operations from Park Ridge, NJ to offices in San Diego and San Jose, CA. The move should begin in April of 2004, and will come in the wake of last summer's consolidation of Sony's consumer divisions under new president and chief operating officer Hideki "Dick" Komiyama. Park Ridge employees, now numbering about 1600, will be reduced to about 1000. The goal of the reorganization is to "bring Sony'…
Brian Damkroger ponders the Classé Omega monoblock power amplifier. "The Classé Omega is expensive, costing $25,000/pair," notes BD. But he also finds the amp a "drop-dead-gorgeous, massive, industrial-art chunk of aluminum and steel set off with a subtle mix of curves, contours, finishes, and textures." And then there is that Classé sound.
Has Art Dudley gone mad? In his review of the Spendor S3/5se loudspeaker, AD suggests, "Transistors can be made to sound like tubes, digital can be made to sound like analog, and cables can be made to sound like no cables. You'd almost think we live…
More changes coming to The International Audio Group as it continues to sort its product lines and distribution plans. Starting February 1, 2006, IAG has assigned sole US distribution of its Quad branded products to newly formed Taiga LLC.
According to IAG, preparations for the new distribution plan have been in development for six months and Taiga is an independently owned importer and distributor, and will be led by Jeff Sigmund. For the past four years, Sigmund has served as the Chief Operating Officer of IAG's American subsidiary and has also served as IAG America's vice president of…
Cello Music and Film Systems is not merely one of the world's most prestigious names in audio and video. This week, a plush restaurant is opening at the company's new headquarters at 53 East 77th Street (212 517-1200) on Manhattan’s Upper East Side. Cello, as the bar/restaurant/garden is appropriately named, will serve dinner by invitation only until mid-June, when it will be opened to the public, according to Florence Fabricant in the May 19 edition of the New York Times.
Cello, the company, is in the process of moving into the townhouse, which cost $5 million to renovate. The multi-…
A continuing sales slump has the Tweeter Entertainment Group, Inc. projecting losses for the third straight quarter.
Tweeter announced July 3 that its results would fall short of analysts' forecasts. The Canton, MA–based retailer operates stores in the southwestern, southern, mid-Atlantic, and northeastern regions of the US. For the third quarter of the current fiscal year, sales at stores open at least a year have been down as much as 10%. A slow winter holiday season preceded a spring cutback in discounting and advertising in the Arizona and Florida markets, which combined account for…
Chris Keeler was the first guy I ever knew with an exotic turntable and a record library that most radio stations would envy. The love of music was a driving force throughout his life, one that sustained him right to the end.
I arrived in Atlanta from Berkeley, California in 1980 as an eager audio technician with a similar passion. By then, Chris had already cycled through his first retail venture, The Stereo Shop, one he started in 1974. The generically named business was among that city's first high-end shops, and knowing Chris as I did later, it probably ran its course because it was…
John Atkinson finds that the Dynaudio Contour 1.3 Mk.II loudspeaker—a completely overhauled iteration of the original Contour 1.3 Mk.I, released several years back—reveals details in recordings that most speakers smooth right over. JA reveals other details about the Contour in his review, complete with comments on the Contour 1.3 Special Edition from Sam Tellig.
The toughest test for any speaker may be the comparison of its portrayal of a thunderous symphony orchestra to the real thing. Larry Greenhill, fresh from a live performance of the New York Philharmonic, was prepared to do just…