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Added to the Archives This Week

"We are now well past the era in which every review of digital playback equipment had to begin with an apology for the medium," writes Thomas J. Norton. As a case in point, TJN takes the Mark Levinson No.37 CD transport & No.36S D/A converter out for a couple of spins.

John Atkinson and various other Stereophile scribes weigh in on the Spica Angelus loudspeaker. "Why do I seem to prefer the bass featured by sealed-box loudspeakers?" asks JA as he gets to the (you should pardon the expression) bottom of the Angelus' sound.

JA goes on to interview the Angelus' talented designer…

High (End) Wireless Act?

Although it sounds like a disease resulting from poor dental hygiene, Bluetooth is a recently established wireless standard aimed at small-form–factor, low-cost, short-range radio links between mobile PCs, mobile phones, and other electronic devices such as speaker systems. Although there were a few bumps in the road as the standard became established, Cahners In-Stat Group predicts that 1.4 billion Bluetooth-based devices will be shipping annually by 2005.

Last week, Philips Components and Bang & Olufsen announced that B&O will utilize some Philips' wireless technology in the…

Sonic Boom

When it comes to dynamic range, it's the little things that count. As Texas Instruments explains, "Dynamic range is a parameter that expresses numerically how accurately sounds of small amplitude can be reproduced without distortion." In other words, the higher the dynamic range, the higher the quality of the sound, especially at low levels.

With this in mind, TI announced last week a new Digital-to-Analog Converter (DAC) which, it claims, offers the industry's highest dynamic range and which is intended for use in high-end audio equipment. TI says the new PCM1792 utilizes the company's…

The Mobile Audiophile

If you find yourself spending more time in a car seat than in your audio system's sweet spot each day, the trend pairing high-end audio companies with car manufacturers may offer a little relief. Lexus made a big splash last year by incorporating Mark Levinson technology into its latest cars, joining collaborations between Dynaudio and Volvo among others.

Latest to tie the auto/audio knot are Aston Martin and Linn Products, who announced last week that they will work together in a partnership that will result in a "unique audio system" to be offered on the AM V12 Vanquish, and Harman…

DualDisc Arrives in October

Market tests have been conducted, rumors floated, and now official word has arrived that DualDisc, a new two-sided disc format combining a CD on one side with a DVD on the other, will launch this October.

While the CD side of DualDisc will work like a conventional CD in most players, the DVD side of the new format has several potential uses: DVD-Video and all its attendant audio formats such as stereo 24/96 PCM or Dolby Digital 5.1, or optionally, DVD-Audio. Note that SACD is not included. Also, with its slight increase in thickness over a regular CD, DualDisc may have problems in some…

Phoenix Gold Grabs Carver

Last week, Phoenix Gold International announced its acquisition of the marketing assets of Carver Corporation, including the Carver name, along with plans to "actively rebuild the once highly regarded Carver brand, beginning with a full line of new consumer and professional audio products."

Phoenix Gold began its Carver quest when it acquired the company's Professional division in 1995, and it still manufacturers and distributes a full line of power amplifiers for the pro market. At that time, Carver Corporation continued creating and selling products to the consumer market, only to run…

Secrets To Success

Audio retailing has been a tough business in recent years, but two just-released surveys are suggesting that with the right combination of economic factors and dealer preparedness, things could turn around for smart retailers over the coming holiday season.

Last week, Deloitte Research chief economist Carl Steidtmann forecast a jump in consumer spending during the holiday season as a result of increased cash flow to consumers. "Consumers are coming into a great deal of cash, based on various economic factors, and historically when consumers find themselves with this much additional cash,…

Dispatch from the Russian Heartland

Editor's note: For months now, we've been reporting about the the problems and dilemmas created by audio formats such as MP3, which are often used to pirate and illegally distribute music over the Internet. Correspondent Leonid Korostyshevski offers a decidedly unique Russian spin on the situation. His previous stories are here and here. Photos were taken last week by Leonid Korostyshevski

Following the economic and political crisis in Russia last August, audio recordings have reached the highest prices seen in the last couple of years. Original audio CD costs are now at a point that…

AudioBase Partners with Sony, etc. for Online Music Previews

If all goes according to publicists' wishes, Web surfers will be able to access music previews beginning November 15 without the necessity of using a third-party software player, such as RealNetworks G2, to play downloaded audio files. Streaming-audio provider AudioBase.com has signed deals with several heavyweight corporate sponsors for the launch of its music previews. Participants include Sony Music, K-Tel, and Levi-Strauss. The deals are being announced in conjunction with Internet audio conference Webnoize.

Recently formed Spun.com, which provides a search function for music with 30…

Cutting Off the Studio Pirates

It has become commonplace these days for a hot album to hit the streets days—if not weeks or even months—before its official release, inspiring all manner of stupid promo tricks on the part of record labels. Pearl Jam's recent Riot Act was distributed to the press in portable CD players with the lids glued shut and last week saw the White Stripes record label create 500 promo vinyl LPs of the group's impending Elephant release in place of the traditional advance CDs in an effort to stymie the digital pirate's plans.

But all to no avail, since the music from the Stripes and Pearl Jam discs…