72% of Online Adults Listen to Audio on Their PCs

A new study by the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) reveals that with the high penetration of computers in the home today (now about 82%), more U.S. consumers are using their home PCs and Macs to listen to audio content rather than using their CD or DVD player, TV or tuner. 86% of these users reported they were satisfied with their computer-sourced audio experience, but more than a third cited the need for improved sound quality.

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Internet delivery of audio. Like the iPod a few years ago, it’s becoming clear that the internet is a platform.

Turtle Beack Ear Force HPA and Tritton AXPC 5.1 Headsets Reviewed

This review features a pair of gaming headsets that feature 5.1 surround sound through strategically placed drivers within the ear cups. The first, the Turtle Beack Ear Force HPA2, plugs right into a 5.1 sound card as if it were a high-end set of speakers. The second, the Tritton AXPC, is a DSP-based USB model that bypasses the sound card altogether. Both brag that they allow you to hear directional sound in games so that nobody can sneak up behind you in, say, Battlefield 2142, ArmA, or STALKER.

How do they fit, how do they feel, and, most importantly, how do they sound?

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I’d been hoping home theatre would be the Trojan horse that got surround music into the home. Perhaps those crazy gamers will help us as well.

Daniel Levitin to Deliver Keynote Address at Fall AES Convention

Daniel Levitin will deliver the keynote address at the 123rd Audio Engineering Society Convention on October 5, 2007 in New York City at the Jacob Javits Center. Levitin is a best-selling author; head of the McGill University Laboratory for Music Perception, Cognition and Expertise; musician; producer; and former stand-up comedian.

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HD Radio’s Uphill Climb

Radio World reports 450,000 weekly listeners to HD Radio: That seems actually quite high to me given how many radios must be in people’s hands–nothing like 450,000. 57 million people in the US listen to Internet radio each week, and satellite radio has 15 million subscribers. 93.5% of Americans listen to terrestrial radio, however, while 30% listen to MP3 players.

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Followup from Pro Audio Companies

This has happened to me a number of times and it makes me a little crazy. I go to an AES Convention. I visit a manufacturer’s booth. They have a new product which I’d like to know more about. They scan my badge.

About a month after I get home I get a package in the mail from the company. Great! Not.

Invariably the package contains information about all the company’s products except for the new one I’m interested in. What a waste of time, postage and paper.

Come on guys. Can’t we be a bit more clever about how we gather data?

The Best Buildings You’ll Ever Hear – New York Times

Could it be that we’re entering a golden age in concert hall design?

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Having recently heard the Musikverein for the first time I find it hard to imagine a better sounding concert hall. But ok. Bring ‘em on! Be sure to check out the “Audio Slide Show”. But beware the ghastly editing of the audio! Let the guy breathe for heaven’s sake.

Sound software should bring peace to the workplace

Open-plan offices are social collaborative places, but they can be noisy – new software lets architects fine tune the space’s acoustics

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DDP for iTunes and other “Digital” Distribution

I just found out that our distributor can use DDPs to “digitize” our content for distribution to iTunes and their ilk. Not only that but it’s much easier for them. Of course it’s easier for me as well since I just run off another copy of the DDP. Wish I’d know this earlier.

I’ve been a fan of and have used DDPs for years. It’s a data file and less flakey than getting info off a Red Book disc.

Good Night, and Good Luck Music Soundtrack

On a typical film, Reeves and her ace band would likely play (or pretend to play) to a prerecorded track, giving the sound team the ability to edit, EQ and remix music recorded later to fit the film and CD soundtrack. But Clooney took a different approach, opting to record the music live on the set in one pass.

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I’ve had this bookmarked for some time and am finally posting a link. I remember going to this film with my wife and being completely knocked out by a scene in which the camera panned to and lingered on the singer and the band in the tv studio. The sound, the performance. Wow!

Later I read that everything had been done live. Clearly, that’s what made the moment stand out. Real musicians playing real music live and captured with good gear by great engineers. It shouldn’t be the case but we rarely hear something this close to real anymore. It had a huge impact on me.

CBS buys Last.fm – and what it means

CBS today will announce the acquisition of Last.fm for $280 million.

What is Last.fm, you ask? It’s a popular social network built around musical tastes, says the LA Times. But what it really is is personalized online radio. It’s radio that learns what you like and gets better – for you personally.

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It is inevitable that radio – or aspects of radio – will become personalized.

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Bad news for HD. Bad news for satellite. And bad news for you if you expect your station’s future to be strictly tied to terrestrial broadcast.

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