Classical News – Dr. Sun Yat-Sen is a new Chinese opera which was to have been premiered at the Beijing National Center for the Performing Arts. The premiere was to coincide with the centenary of the Chinese Republic—Sun was its first president. But a government official attended a rehearsal and deemed the music too modern, so it will instead get premiered by Opera Hong Kong. Kennedy Center Concert Hall is getting a new $2 million pipe organ, donated by Kennedy Center Chairman and philanthropist David M. Rubenstein. His gift is in recognition of the 80th anniversary of the National Symphony Orchestra and the 40th of the Kennedy Center. Kansas City has a new Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts—a striking hanger-like structure with grand consecutive arches in an art-deco style. It was privately financed and has two separate theaters: a 1800-seat home to the KC Ballet and Lyric Opera, and a 1600-seat hall that is home to the Kansas City Symphony.
Meridian Adds L/C/R DSP Speaker – High end manufacturer Meridian has added an active DSP speaker which can be used as a L, Center or R speaker, and either horizontally oriented or vertically. It uses a 3.35-inch wide-range driver surround on both sides by 6.5-inch woofers. The biamplified speaker features digital active crossover, digital upsampling and a D-A that converts the signal to analog for amplification by two 75-watt amps. The DSP incorporates loudness control and dynamic bass protection. The DSP3300 speaker comes in either high-gloss black or white finishes and SRP is $4000 each.
Consumers Balk at Purchase of Certain CE Items Online – According to a new report from the NPD Group, as online web-shopping increases, U.S. consumers are reluctant to buy certain consumer electronics products online. TVs are the fourth most-likely item which consumers research online prior to purchase, but they are the least-likely electronic product that consumers would actually purchase online (only 19%). Smartphones show a higher level of research vs. buying online. The top items which electronics products consumers were very likely to purchase online included computer software, e-readers, digital cameras, computer accessories, printers, smartphones, Blu-ray players and home audio. 76% of consumers said they have used a retailer’s website to research a potential purchase, compared to just 62% for manufacturer-direct shoppers and 65% for online-only shoppers.
Polk Speakers Now Into Headphones – The Baltimore company is moving outside of its speakers comfort zone after 40 years and including a new line of headphones. In a world where cell phones and other hand-held gadgets allow consumers to carry their music with them, Polk saw it needed to enter the new markets. A CEA analyst said headphone technology has become more advanced, and people are willing to spend hundreds of dollars on quality headphones that would have been inconceivable ten years ago. (Not to all of us…)
Logitech Harmony Link – is a small device which fits next to your media system and communicates over Wi-Fi with the free Logitech Harmony Link for iPad. They work together to let iPad users have complete control over their entertainment system. You just select “Listen to Music” or “Watch a DVD” and it automatically switches the devices to the correct settings. It will retail for $99.
Audio News 4 June 2017
Audio News 4 June 2017...
