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Long the bane of finicky audiophiles, Consumer Reports magazine has been measuring just about anything sold in a store since 1936 in an effort to "test products, inform the public, and protect consumers." But when they get around to testing audio gear, the magazine's "lab" has become the target of many audio enthusiasts who don't share CR's views on how to tell good sound from bad. In fact, part of the problem is that CR often reports that sound quality is not always the final factor in rating a product, with concerns about reliablity, ease of use, and fit and finish often skewing results.…
In a move that establishes its leadership in the entertainment business, Seagram Company has purchased PolyGram NV from Philips Electronics NV of Holland. The deal was valued at $10.6 billion.
The sale had been in discussion for two months, and is a major change for both of the huge companies. Philips, 75% owner of PolyGram, is best known as the co-developer of the Compact Disc. The Dutch company manufactures electronics for the consumer, medical, scientific, and engineering markets, and has long operated its own mostly-classical music label. Seagram, primarily known for its liquor…
Making good on a promise made several months back, Avantgarde Acoustic is moving into the retail realm. The company's German-made horn loudspeakers are the featured products at Avantgarde Music & Cinema, a new showroom at 27 West 24th Street, Suite 502 in Manhattan. The store is privately owned and operated by Bob Visintainer, who emphasized that his business is "definitely Avantgarde focused" but also carries other brands of electronics and accessories.
Avantgarde USA, the company's American distributor, will join in celebrating the grand opening of the New York City showroom on…
Michael Fremer has a problem.
Someone unknown sent him a 50-lb box of something, presumably audio-related, back in February, which was left on his doorstep while he was out. Happens all the time if the sender has signed for non-attended delivery. (Not something we recommend.)
However, also while he was out, Fedex came by with a call tag to pick up a review sample for return. Seeing the drop-off, they thought it was the pick-up and took it, leaving a tracking number.
When Mikey got home and saw the note from Fedex, he called the Fedex depot to get the package back and have them…
More from the August issue: Larry Greenhill updates his system with the Mark Levinson No.436 monoblock power amplifier. LG says, "I was concerned when [Mark Levinson] discontinued its entire 300 series of dual-mono amplifiers, but the company reassured me that they had a suitable replacement in the No. 436." Greenhill decides for himself.
Paul Bolin wonders why you'd bet on the format war when you could have the Esoteric DV-50 universal player. But can you have it all and great sound too? Bolin says, "When the bean-counters are set aside and the engineering staff is unleashed, wonderful…
Over the past few years, PS Audio's P300 AC regenerator has been very well received by the audiophile community, winning praise (and a Stereophile "Recommended Components" listing) for its ability to lower the noise floor to vanishing levels and to extract unforeseen levels of performance from users' hi-fi systems. Good as it is, the P300 disappointed some because it can't supply enough current for power amps or other juice-hungry gear needing more than its 300W maximum. Some users also complained that despite the sonic improvement offered, the P300 was too bulky for its power rating, ran…
Last June, Sennheiser, a multinational manufacturer of microphones, headphones, and wireless technology products, celebrated its 60th anniversary. The company was founded as Wennebostel Laboratories (Labor W) in 1945 by Dr. Fritz Sennheiser and seven other employees of the Institute for Radio Frequency Engineering and Electroacoustics at Hanover Technical University. At the time, as Dr. Sennheiser explained when I visited the company's Wennebostel facility 10 years ago, German radio engineers were prohibited by the occupying Allied forces from constructing communications equipment, so he and…
Are order and justice coming to the lawless frontier of the Internet? The American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers has a new tool for cracking down on unauthorized use of copyrighted material on the Internet. Developed by Online Monitoring Services, EZ-Seeker is "web crawler" software that tracks down music and then issues license forms to the users of that music. The announcement followed by less than a week the news (see previous report) of the Recording Industry Association of America's $750,000 settlement from makers of unauthorized "DJ compilations" of hit songs.
EZ-…
Flexibility is the name of the game as Theta Digital plays it. The innovative Agoura Hills, CA company has announced the Casablanca II, a modular upgradable preamp/processor for music and cinema applications, as well as two-channel modules for its Dreadnaught power amplifier.
Improvements on the original Casablanca include circuitry for Dolby Digital EX and DTS ES Matrix soundtracks, 24/96 DACs on nine channels, and up to 12-channel output (including up to five subwoofer outputs). The original Casablanca featured nine channels. Theta also says that the unit will soon accomodate up to 12…
It's the ultimate talent show each year, and I don't think you'll find a bigger collection of musical firepower under one roof (Live 8 was outdoors after all): Paul McCartney, U2, Madonna, Gorillaz, Mariah Carey, Coldplay, Linkin Park, Sly Stone, Herbie Hancock, and on and on.
But how many of Stereophile's readers watched the Grammy Awards this past week? I see two hands. The numbers across the US were not much better, trailing even the poor ratings of the last few years.
Our view from the box seats. (Cameras aren't allowed at the Grammys, but someone from our group snuck one…