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Yamaha's latest turntable streams multi-room audio via WiFi
You can pair a turntable with a multi-room audio setup (Sonos even offers a bundle), but that usually means wiring your record player into that setup at some point. Yamaha thinks it can do better. Its newly launched MusicCast Vinyl 500 turntable uses WiFi to stream records wirelessly to MusicCast speakers in your home. If you don't insist on that distinctive vinyl sound, the machine will natively stream digital services like Spotify, Pandora and Tidal.
Smart record presses promise consistent audio quality at a global scale
The manufacturer of what's one of the best sounding record pressing machines today is taking a step into the future. Viryl Technologies recently announced its WarmTone and LiteTone models will soon connect to the internet. After a test pressing is complete, an engineer will upload the press' settings to the cloud. The promise is two records that sound near-identical regardless if one was made in America and another in Germany. That consistency is important, as the sound quality and audio characteristics can vary wildly from record to record, plant to plant and pressing to pressing. Every one of its 40ish machines across the globe will operate from the same data for each album.
Sonos bundles offer audio options for home theater, vinyl and more
As we head towards Sonos' home theater event on June 6th, the company has just revealed new speaker bundles that will help you save on a Sonos-based home sound system.
HD vinyl is a promise, not a product
Günter Loibl thinks vinyl needs an update. Two years ago he filed a patent for a new way to make records, using lasers (rather than a traditional cutting lathe) to pack the grooves tighter and add 30 percent more usable space. Thanks to the laser, it's actually better for the environment too. The promise is records with longer playing times, more dynamic range and extra amplitude. Supposedly you can even enjoy the benefits of "HD vinyl" albums on the turntable and needle you already own. On paper, this all seems like a win-win. But there's a problem: This isn't the first time someone promised an upgraded listening experience, and music collectors tend to be a skeptical bunch. Vinyl lovers have less to complain about lately too, thanks to advances in pressing technology that make new records sound pristine, free from the format's pops and crackles. You won't be able to buy an album on HD vinyl until next year, at least, and once you can, it's going to cost quite a bit more than a traditional album. Loibl's company, Rebeat Innovations, doesn't have any test pressings for proof and won't until at least this August. Still, Loibl wants you to trust him. "Be a little patient and let me convince you," he said.
After Math: The golden age of streaming
We're winding down a freaky week of bad omens, unconvincing congressional testimony and sterling new streaming services. While most eyes were fixated on Mark Zuckerberg doing his best real boy impression, GTA IV lost most of its Russian tunes, ESPN debuted a new mobile app and vinyl got a high tech upgrade that nobody asked for. Numbers, because how else are you going to stretch your entertainment dollar?
Apparently high-definition vinyl is coming next year
The process of making records hasn't changed much over the last hundred or so years, but that itself could change soon. Austria-based Rebeat Innovation has begun the work to bring vinyl into the 21st century. Of course, that involves lasers. Specifically, converting analog audio information into a digital, 3D topographic map of the music, and then etching that into a platter with light. According to Pitchfork, this process will result in around 40 percent longer playing times per side, 30 percent more amplitude and will offer better sound quality overall. It'd also sidestep the chemicals typically used in the record-making process.
After Math: Business as usual
While most everybody's eyes were glued on the happenings at GDC 2018 this week, the rest of the business world quietly continued turning. Google offered $40 million for the Lytro camera company, DJI constructed a legion of drones for a construction crew, 2 million Spotify users nixed the ads on their free service and the President decided to start a trade war with China. Numbers, because how else will you figure out how much more your electronics and appliances will cost?
CDs and vinyl are outselling digital music downloads
Digital music downloads began to outsell physical media since 2012. It took four more years for digital music revenue to surpass those from physical media as well. Then streaming happened, and last year generated more money in the US than all the other formats. Now, digital downloads are coming in dead last, with fewer sales than CDs, vinyl or other physical media, according to the latest annual report from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).
The best ways to track your TV, music and reading habits
We've all done it: browsed friends' bookshelves, riffled through their vinyl collection or peeked through a stack of video games left in front of their TV. You can learn a lot about people based on what media they consume and leave lying around their house. And perhaps you're familiar with what director John Waters said you shouldn't do if someone doesn't have books in their house? Unfortunately, the modern streaming age means that we aren't collecting music or movies the way we used to -- we might put a few tomes on our coffee table as decoration, but stacks of books or CDs aren't practical anymore. So how do we remember everything we've listened to lately? How do we show off what we've read? Indeed, there are quite a few apps dedicated to showcasing the media experiences we've "collected." We've gathered some of the better ones so you can easily keep track of -- and brag about -- what you're watching, listening to, playing and reading in this digital age.
Indie hit 'What Remains of Edith Finch' gets limited physical release
Limited-run physical indie game releases may be an endangered species thanks to the ESRB and console makers, but that's not stopping at least one hit title from getting the hard copy treatment. The team at iam8bit has started pre-orders for both a limited disc version of Giant Sparrow's What Remains of Edith Finch for PS4 and a vinyl edition of Fargo composer Jeff Russo's accompanying soundtrack. The game ships in late December for $30, and it includes reversible cover art in addition to a region-free copy of the title itself.
NASA to release Voyager Golden Record as a vinyl box set
Speaking as a space-loving child of the '70s and a music fan, it was hard to contain my excitement when NASA took to Kickstarter to fund a pressing of the space agency's Voyager Golden Records. Sent into space in 1977, the Golden Record contained sounds of nature, greetings in many different languages and classical and rock music in the hopes that any aliens that found the space probe would better know humanity. The crowdfunding was successful, thankfully, and you can now get a box set of the watershed discs, this time on vinyl (or CD, if you must).
Sainsbury’s bets on the vinyl revival with its own record label
Helped by big-name retailers like HMV, Tesco and Sainsbury's, vinyl has seen a big revival in the UK. Based on Official Charts Company data, over 3.2 million vinyls were purchased last year alone, reaching heights not seen since 1991. It's a trend that doesn't seem to be dying off, especially given the news that Sainsbury's has today launched it's very own music label. From Friday November 3rd, the supermarket will stock two vinyl compilation albums from its new Own Label imprint, with help from Universal and Warner Music.
Universal debuts a vinyl buying service based on SMS recommendations
It isn't hard to find vinyl subscription services these days. All it takes is a scroll through your Facebook News Feed and you're bound to stumble across at least a few. While outfits like Turntable Lab and Vinyl Me, Please offer exclusive reissues (like Gorillaz's Demon Days), there's a lot of chaff in the mix as well. That's something Universal Music Group's new service The Sound of Vinyl might address.
Technics' SP-10R is its latest high-end throwback turntable
If you thought Technic's SL-1200 reissue was expensive, you haven't seen anything yet. Meet the SP-10R. Technics calls the throwback deck its "most premium turntable ever" and its 7kg (almost 15.5 pounds) brass, rubber and aluminum platter drives that claim home even further. "By optimizing the natural frequency of each ayer, external vibrations are thoroughly suppressed resulting in a beautifully clear and crisp audio experience," a very technically-worded press release says.
Classic action game 'Another World' is headed to your turntable
If you've played Éric Chahi's classic action-adventure Another World (aka Out of this World), there's a good chance you remember the soundtrack. Large chunks of the game were punctuated by silence, but you knew something special was happening whenever Jean-François Freitas' ethereal, Vangelis-like score began to play. Now, you can relive those moments on your turntable. Black Screen Records is releasing a vinyl (plus a CD, we'd add) version of the soundtrack, making it available for the first time beyond the deluxe editions of the game's 20th anniversary release.
Aphex Twin is the latest artist to open an online record store
Aphex Twin is opening an online record store. For his own music, of course. The Vinyl Factory reports that Richard D. James has started his direct-to-fans store with reissues of his back catalog including ... I Care Because You Do and newer stuff like Computer Controlled Acoustic Instruments pt2. More than that, there's a ton of digital-only and unreleased music on offer as well. What's available today isn't the half of it, though. "ALL Rephlex material will be going up here in due course+xtras," a note at the bottom of the site reads.
Australia's first vinyl factory in 30 years will open next year
Thanks to new production technology and the support of big companies like Sony, vinyl is hot these days. Trent Reznor is releasing his Quake score for LP, the Contra soundtrack is available as a record at Comic-Con this year, and Blu-ray versions of Deadpool and Logan come with their own vinyl counterparts. Now there's a new pressing plant set to open in Melbourne, making it the first modern record press in Australia in 30 years.
Recommended Reading: Spotify's other playlist problem
Spotify Sweats Over Bandwidth Problem as Labels Vie for Playlist Spots Andy Gensler , Billboard Spotify was forced to defend itself against allegations it uses fake artists to cut costs last week, but the streaming service is facing another playlist problem. Billboard reports on the limited amount of space that record labels have to promote tunes on the service. Labels want their tunes at the top of the streaming charts, so the pressure is on the most popular subscription option.
Sony plans to revive its vinyl record production
Sony was late to the vinyl resurgence with a new turntable of its own, and it's going to be later yet with its effort to jump back into pressing records. Nikkei reports that thanks to demand, the perpetually tardy tech company will first start putting Japanese music (and some modern hits) to wax, with production starting next March. In fact, the company has already outfitted a recording studio with a press so it can produce masters in situ. If there's a roadblock, it's that Sony is apparently having a hard time finding engineers to help guide the pressing process.
Trent Reznor blows dust off the 'Quake' score for vinyl reissue
Quake was a groundbreaking game in a number of ways, and that included its soundtrack -- id Software scored a coup when it got Nine Inch Nails (technically, Trent Reznor) to score the grim first-person shooter. Until now, though, listening to that soundtrack has usually meant digging up your circa-1996 game CD or (let's be honest) finding a YouTube rip. Thankfully, you'll soon have an alternative if you own a turntable. As part of a larger wave of back catalog releases, Reznor is making the Quake soundtrack available on vinyl -- you too can listen to that memorable theme in your living room.
