Industry Update
New Naims: At CEDIA 2006, Naim introduced two new products to the North American market: the $1500 NAC122x preamplifier and the $5750 n-Vi all-in-one home entertainment system (DVD-CD player/processor/five-channel amplifier).
Industry Update
Free, as in "no charge": RealTraps reports that it has upgraded ModeCalc, a graphical room-mode prediction software that it offers as a free download (Windows only, 1.3MB) to help people design new listening rooms, or assess the low-frequency response in existing rooms. The company says the new version of ModeCalc offers "several clever features, including a display that better identifies modes that are too close together, and a revised and expanded tutorial in the included Help system."
Industry Update
Wireworld: Wireworld has "completely redesigned" its Series 52 (pronounced "five squared") audio cables. Chief engineer David Salz says they deliver the "highest fidelity the company has ever offered."
Industry Update
Jammie Thomas Appeal: Just weeks after having been found liable for $220,000">http://stereophile.com/news/100807jammie/">$220,000 in damages for allegedly offering 24 music tracks on her KaZaa account, Jammie Thomas has filed a notice of remittitur with the US District Court for the District of Minnesota, asking the judge to slash the jury's damage award, contending that she should receive a retrial that assesses the damages based on the actual damages suffered by the labels resulting from her making the files available.
Industry Update
EMI drops: The EMI Group, the British music company, sent its stock prices plummeting 16% with its announcement last week that sales for the fiscal year ending next month would be as much as 9% below those of last year.
Industry Update
ListenUp NHT: NHT's 75W M-00 powered two-way studio monitor has long been an audiophile favorite for the title of "best computer loudspeaker"—not that the competition has been all that fierce. The Benicia, CA–based loudspeaker manufacturer recognized that the powered monitor, initially marketed direct to recording engineers and in-home studio owners, was selling beyond its target audience and repositioned it as part of its PC Hi-Fi line. When Walt Stinson, co-founder of Colorado-based Audio/Video chain ListenUp discovered the M-00s when he was searching for something to pair with his portable player, he was so taken with their performance that he called ListenUp's marketing manager, Phil Murray, and told him that the chain had to carry them, because they were "simply the best multimedia speakers, bar none."
Industry Update
T+A adds tubes and analog to SACD: German high-end manufacturer T+A has announced its new, tubed, $9500 D10 SACD/CD player. The D10 incorporates many of the same components found in the company's SACD 1245R, including the disc mechanism and DAC However, the D10 contains two more powerful power supply sections, a toroidal transformer with a secondary switching section for its digital parts, and a high-voltage mains section with 100,000µF of reservoir capacity for its analog tube stage.
Industry Update
May the Web be with you: You'd think that forward-thinking tech-savvy companies such as those involved in high-end audio would be among the first to get how well the Internet works at spreading the word about their products. In nine cases out of ten, you'd be wrong. Companies introduce new products, upgrade old models, and venture into entirely new technologies without ever changing their websites.
Industry Update
New cable: River">http://www.rivercable.com">River Cable has announced a new speaker cable called Flexygy 8, which employs eight conductors in a flat, flexible topology with "tremendous amounts of copper." Boasting a "unique ratio of low resistance-to-capacitance," Flexygy 8's capacitance is rated at 10pF/ft. Additionally, Flexygy 8 is touted as "an installation dream, [it goes] under carpets, along baseboards, with a super flexibility that can’t be beat in a cable with an aggregate AWG of 7."
Industry Update
Record Q4: Harman International Industries, Inc. (NYSE:HAR) announced record results for the fourth quarter and full fiscal year 2005. Net sales for the quarter were $808 million, compared to $732 million during the same prior year period, an increase of 10%. Net income for the three months was $70.2 million, a 32% increase above the $53 million earned in the fourth quarter last year.