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Added to the Archives This Week

Stereophile Staff Apr 23, 2000 First Published: Apr 23, 2000

Can Jah Atkinson believe his ears? The PS Audio Power Plant P300 touched an audio nerve with JA, who interviewed the designer, Paul">http://www.stereophile.com//interviews/222/">Paul McGowan: High-End Survivor, for the May 2000 Stereophile. As a bonus, we include JA's">http://www.stereophile.com//accessoryreviews/181/6">JA's follow-up to Robert Deutsch's review of the P300, also from the May issue.

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Another Hot Season for Audio Products

Jon Iverson Apr 23, 2000 First Published: Apr 23, 2000

The healthy trend for the audio market continues: the Consumer">http://www.ce.org">Consumer Electronics Association reported last week that revenues from factory shipments of audio products to dealers this February increased by 8% over last February, to a total of $542 million. "The fantastic sales in February spurred the year-to-date total for audio sales to more than $1 billion; a 6% increase over the first two months of 1999," said the CEA.

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Merger in Works for BMG, Columbia House?

Barry Willis Apr 23, 2000 First Published: Apr 23, 2000

The world's two largest and most active music clubs may become one if preliminary talks between their parent companies bear fruit. Time">http://www.timewarner.com/">Time Warner Inc. and Germany's Bertelsmann">http://www.bertelsmann.de">Bertelsmann AG have conducted discussions with that outcome in mind, according to several reports appearing in late April.

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Despite Legal Pressure, Business Soars for MP3.com

Barry Willis Apr 23, 2000 First Published: Apr 23, 2000

The numbers are looking better for MP3.comhttp://www.mp3.com/">MP3.com;, the music-archiving site under attackhttp://www.stereophile.com/news/10657/">attack; by the Recording Industries Association of America and its allieshttp://www.stereophile.com/news/10708/">allies;. Despite the legal pressure, MP3.com has seen its revenues surge as the popularity of downloadable music continues to grow. On April 20, the San Diego–based company reported that its revenue increased to $17.5 million for the first quarter of 2000 compared to $666,000 for the same period a year earlier. MP3.com now has 10 million registered users, according to CEO Michael Robertson.

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Metallica to Napster: "Don't Tread On Me"

Jon Iverson Apr 16, 2000 First Published: Apr 16, 2000

They may sing about death and destruction, releasing albums with titles such as 1983's Kill 'em All, but underneath the menacing exteriors, Metallicahttp://www.metallica.com">Metallica; is really just a group of sensitive artists.

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Added to the Archives This Week

Stereophile Staff Apr 16, 2000 First Published: Apr 16, 2000

After the bungled launch last year of DVD-Audio, where is a digital audiophile to turn? John Atklinson provides some answers in "Talkin&#039">http://www.stereophile.com//asweseeit/219/">Talkin' 'Bout a Revolution," from the April 2000 Stereophile. "So while the DVD Forum argues about increasingly arcane aspects of the DVD-Audio medium, and John Lennon's record-industry 'men in suits' retreat further into their lawyer-built fortresses, I have bypassed all they have to offer . . . "

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Instant Audio Replay?

Jon Iverson Apr 16, 2000 First Published: Apr 16, 2000

It's not uncommon for bootleggers to record live performances of favorite artists and then send copies of the tapes around the world. But in an interesting twist that could add a whole new dimension to concert merchandising, the Virgin Entertainment Group and Liquid Audio recently teamed up to record a live performance by the Joshua Redman Quartet at the Virgin Megastore in San Francisco. The recording was then immediately digitized and burned onto CD.

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Kennard's Low-Power Radio Plan Blocked by Congress

Barry Willis Apr 16, 2000 First Published: Apr 16, 2000

Congress has blocked a controversial plan that might have launched approximately 1000 low-power community radio stations. On Thursday, April 14, the US House of Representatives voted 274-110 in favor of a bill that would effectively kill development of about 80% of the stations. The vote was a blow to Federal Communications Commission chairman William Kennard, who has been a staunch supporter of the community radio movement, and a gift to the National Association of Broadcasters, which has long opposed low-power radio.

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NAB 2000: No Accord on Digital Radio Standards

Barry Willis Apr 16, 2000 First Published: Apr 16, 2000

A single standard for terrestrial digital radio is still somewhere over the rainbow. Despite pressure from broadcasters to form an industry alliance, leading developers of the new technology are intent on pursuing their own courses, attendees learned at the 2000 National">http://www.nab.org/">National Association of Broadcasters convention in Las Vegas in mid-April. Executives from USA">http://www.usadr.com/">USA Digital Radio and Lucent">http://www.lucentdigitalradio.com/">Lucent Digital Radio, the two biggest players in the sector, told NAB members that their design and testing programs are still in early stages of development, too soon for accord.

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The (Really) Ultimate Audio System?

Jon Iverson Apr 09, 2000 First Published: Apr 09, 2000

For lifelike audio presentation in your living room, what could be better than the real thing? When it comes to putting the sound of a piano in your home, nothing comes close to, well, a real piano. For more than a century, several companies have marketed player pianos, first using rolls of punched paper, and most recently sophisticated MIDI programs. But if a real piano represents the ultimate audio performance in your living room, who has the ultimate real piano?