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QSC Will Support Hales Loudspeakers, Says Brand's Founder

Barry Willis Dec 24, 2000 First Published: Dec 24, 2000

The fatehttp://www.stereophile.com/news/10924/">fate; of Hales Loudspeakers has been a subject of much concern and discussion among audiophiles since the shuttering of parent company Wadia Digital a few months ago. There is now considerable light at the end of the tunnel, as revealed by Hales founder L. Paul Hales in a telephone interview December 22.

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Both DVD-Audio and SACD Get Much Needed Software Boost

Jon Iverson Dec 24, 2000 First Published: Dec 24, 2000

If it's the software that sells a new format, then several recent announcements bode well for both SACD and DVD-Audio. Last week, DTS announced plans to begin shipment of the first DVD-Audio music recordings produced by its company-owned DTS">http://www.dtsonline.com">DTS Entertainment record label by late February 2001. Also, the first multichannel SACD to be produced by a major label from an original multitrack master, Mike Oldfield's recently remastered 1971 classic Tubular Bells is due for release from Virgin Records in February 2001.

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Rudi Gassner, New President of BMG Entertainment, Dies at 58

Stereophile Staff Dec 24, 2000 First Published: Dec 24, 2000

Music industry veteran Rudi Gassner died Saturday, December 23 at his vacation home in the Bavarian town of Samerberg. Recently appointed as president and chief executive of BMG">http://www.bmg.com">BMG Entertainment, Gassner had yet to assume the helm at the record label. The cause of death was a heart attack, according to a statement issued by his family. Gassner was 58.

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CEA Reports a Sluggish Month For Audio Components

Jon Iverson Dec 24, 2000 First Published: Dec 24, 2000

It would be easy to blame the popularity of home computers for a recent slowdown in audio component sales, except for the fact that PCs are having a tough season themselves. Maybe all of those audio dollars are being spent to cover losses in the stock market or to buy new PlayStation 2s. Regardless, sales of audio products suffered a bit of a slump this past October compared to last year.

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New 10-Disc Beethoven Piano Sonata Boxed Set Available for Sale On the Web Site

Stereophile Staff Dec 17, 2000 First Published: Dec 17, 2000

We've just posted something new for sale on Stereophile's Recordingshttps://secure.stereophile.com/stereophile/record.html">Recordings; page. But this is not just any new CD release—it's a comprehensive 10-CD boxed set of Robert Silverman performing the 32 Beethoven Piano Sonatas, recorded by our very own John Atkinson. Cheapskates rejoice: the complete 10-disc set retails for a very reasonable $65, bringing the price of each CD in the box to a mere $6.50.

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After Long Absence, Threshold Will Return to CES

Barry Willis Dec 17, 2000 First Published: Dec 17, 2000

After three years in limbo, Threshold will make an official return to the audio market at the upcoming Consumer Electronics Show. The new company's initial emphasis will be on professional equipment with crossover appeal for audiophiles, according to Threshold's former national sales manager Chris English, a principal in the new venture. A name for the new company has yet to be decided.

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Pioneering Record Company Director Teresa Sterne Dies

Wes Phillips Dec 17, 2000 First Published: Dec 17, 2000

Teresa Sterne, a pioneer in the production of classical music recordings and a visionary marketer of classical and ethnomusicological recordings, died December 10, 2000 of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (Lou Gerhrig's disease). She was 73.

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Digital Audio Amplification Reaching Critical Mass?

Jon Iverson Dec 17, 2000 First Published: Dec 17, 2000

Although it first appeared as an infant technology more than 20 years ago, digital audio amplification may finally be coming of age. Recent months have seen announcements from several companies, including news of Apogee's DDX technology (see previous">http://www.stereophile.com/news/10893/">previous report) and Cirrus Logic who recently purchased their Pulse Width Modulation (PWM) digital amplification technology from B&W Loudspeakers (see previous">http://www.stereophile.com/news/10866/">previous report).

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Added to the Archives This Week

Stereophile Staff Dec 17, 2000 First Published: Dec 17, 2000

Record 10 CDs worth of music in one weekend? John Atkinson writes: "I blanched. This was an enormous task: 32 sonatas; 103 individual movements; more than 11 hours of music—11 hours, 26 minutes, and 25 seconds, as it turned out." How to record Canadian pianist Robert Silverman performing Ludwig">http://www.stereophile.com//musicrecordings/298/">Ludwig van Beethoven's 32 Piano Sonatas in such a short time? JA explains the revolutionary process in detail.

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Fate of Hales Loudspeakers Still Unknown

Barry Willis Dec 17, 2000 First Published: Dec 17, 2000

Many audiophiles—especially owners of Hales loudspeakers—have wondered whether or not the brand will be revived, in view of a recent">http://www.stereophile.com/news/10918/">recent announcement by Audio Video Research of Ann Arbor, Michigan that it has acquired the assets of Wadia Digital and plans to resume production and product development of the revered name. Wadia acquired Hales (two of whose products were still Stereophile "Recommended Components" as of October 2000) last year, just a few months before financial difficulties put Wadia into a nosedive from which it could not recover.