Details of the standard, two years in preparation, were sparse, but we find it significant that the chairman of WG-4, Bike H. Suzuki, felt it necessary to say that "The WG-4 recognizes that the music industryÆs top priority is…
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As expected, the DVD WG-4 Audio Working Group announced at CES that it has released a draft of its DVD-Audio specification to the 10 original DVD consortium companies, and to music-industry associations RIAA (Recording Industry Association of America), RIAJ (Recording Industry Association of Japan), and IFPI (International Federation of the Phonographic Industry).
Michael Brecker, the legendary tenor saxophonist, has been a staple in the recording scene for more than 30 years now—we were first bowled over by his work on drummer Billy Cobham's 1974 album Crosswinds, although we could have just as easily mentioned hundreds of titles where he supported other musicians as a first-tier studio player. Along with his brother, trumpeter Randy Brecker, he co-led the Brecker Brothers band in the 1970s and, since 1987, has released intelligent, challenging records as a headliner, including our favorite, 2001's The Nearness of You: The Ballad Book (Verve 549705 CD…
EMI Group PLC has gotten serious about surviving in a depressed market. In the wake of a disastrous multimillion-dollar payout to pop singer Mariah Carey, the UK music label has announced sweeping cutbacks in its workforce—including many American executives—and in its roster of artists.
On Wednesday, March 20, EMI's chief of recorded music, Alain Levy, revealed a plan to cut 1800 jobs, approximately 20% of its workforce. Sources say 27% of the jobs lost will be in North America. The company will also reduce stock dividends by 50%.
EMI will cut around 400 performing artists from its…
In this age of the major record labels maximizing music profits at all costs, even if it involves installing spyware on consumers' computers, www.Magnatune.com stands apart. The website offers entire albums' worth of music of high quality for download in a choice of formats, from highest-quality MP3 (three times the size of iTunes MP3 files) to CD-quality WAV files. It also gives 50% of the money it collects directly to its artists. Magnatune founder John Buckman, 36, who divides his time between London and Berkeley, chose the site's motto: "Internet Music Without the Guilt: Magnatune, the…
Tonal accuracy vs. soundstage? "Achieving an optimum balance between the two philosophical extremes of recording is where much of the art lies. It also begs the question, of course, of why it's impossible to have both: a recording with a virtual-reality sense of imaging that also captures all the sound without any coloration." While recording the Sonata CD for Stereophile, John Atkinson wrestles with every recording engineer's dilemma. Read about the struggle to capture Robert Silverman performing Liszt's monumental B-Minor Piano Sonata and the ultimate solution in "Fate, I Defy You,"…
FireWire's prospects got a little hotter last week, as equipment manufacturers Denon Electronics and Onkyo announced new license agreements with Digital Harmony Technologies. The companies say that they have selected Digital Harmony to add standards-based IEEE-1394 (aka FireWire or iLink) interfaces to their product lines, and both companies expect to release Digital Harmony-powered products in 2000, each certified for compatibility with a number of 1394-based products made by other Digital Harmony partners in the US and Europe.
According to Denon and Onkyo, prototypes of the first devices…
President George W. Bush has created a new senior level position, aimed at combating the global counterfeiting and piracy of American intellectual property—a category that encompasses everything from copies of Hollywood films to faked auto parts. The new IP czar will be Chris Israel, currently deputy chief of staff for Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez.
Israel served as deputy director of international public policy for AOL Time Warner and as a senior public policy analyst for Time Warner, Inc. from 1997 until joining the Commerce Department in 2001. Mr. Israel also has Congressional…
It may read like a page out of a classic corporate crime thriller, but the threat is real. ExpoPul, a company whose factory in Saratov, Russia manufactures vacuum tubes under the brand names Sovtek, Electro-Harmonix, Tungsol, Svetlana, Mullard, and others—tubes that include the 6H30 "super tube"—is threatened by one of the many Russian corporate "raiders" who are increasingly stealing businesses from their rightful owners. If the threatened hostile takeover proves successful, two-thirds of the world's supply of vacuum tubes—tubes vital to the sound of audiophile gear and instruments from such…
In his essay "Let's Face the Music and Dance," John Marks, founder of John Marks Records, asks: "Does high-end audio have a future?" Of course it does, he says. But will it be one worth the price? Marks writes, "for most of its potential consumers, high-end audio is now a matter of sharply diminishing economic returns. A large incremental expenditure guarantees only a relatively modest, even marginal improvement in sound quality." How to forge ahead anyway? Marks offers his advice to our "dysfunctional" audio family.
"You know, Wes," exclaims John Atkinson, "you can't describe us setting…
In his review of the Conrad-Johnson Premier Twelve monoblock amplifier, Michael Fremer notes, "Conrad-Johnson is one of audio's 'marquee' companies, and charges accordingly." MF uncovers what you really get for your $7000, aside from 140Wpc and a top-shelf name.
The year was 1986 and CD players were still in short pants. John Atkinson reviewed the California Audio Labs Tempest CD player (his first review for Stereophile!) and wrote, "Now, at least, it should be possible to enjoy CD without guilt." In his review, JA dissects the Philips-based machine, exploring one of the earliest examples…