Browse recent news and commentary related to MP3 player developments, using the links below.
MP3 News & Headlines
MP3 Player Commentary
Browse the Archives
MP3 Player News & Headlines
Griffin Intros Evolve iPod Speakers
Griffin Technology today announced the unveiling of its new lineup of powered speaker systems. Evolve is a speaker system with a flat charging base that holds your iPod in a Universal Dock.
Cheaper Music Royalties Pull Internet Radio Back from the Brink
(PC World)
PC World - The future is looking bright for various Web-based radio services such as Pandora, Blip.fm and CBS-owned Last.fm. A new long-term solution for music services such as Pandora includes the reduction of more than 40 percent in the royalties formerly paid by such music-streaming sites to the record industry.
Michael Jackson sales surge expected to last months
(Reuters)
Reuters - In the days following Michael Jackson's June 25 death, fans flocked to record stores and digital music outlets to purchase one last memory. And merchants say they expect the Jackson sales surge to last for weeks -- maybe even months.
iPods Pose Risk of Hearing Damage
Listening to iPods for as little as 5 minutes a day can cause hearing loss.
Gemini Announces iTrax iPod DJ Mixer
The iTrax joins the Numark iDJ, to allow users to mix the output of two iPods, with basic dj functionality.
Paisley: 'Hard to ignore' serious themes on new CD
(AP)
AP - As much as he enjoys singing about the double lives of computer geeks ("Online") and amorous country boys ("Ticks"), Brad Paisley says there's too much going on in the world to be too lighthearted on his new album, "American Saturday Night."
Griffin Intros Hi-Way Case for iPod Hi-Fi
Griffin Technology today announced Hi-Way, a versatile, custom fit, roadworthy carrying case for the iPod Hi-Fi compact stereo.
MP3 Tech Commentary
Free Music Downloads This Week In our music discovery spotlight this week, we showcase another selection of free promotional tracks that cover a wide range of genres designed to broaden your musical horizons :
The first free track, Out of Control, is from DJ Adam Freeland's new album, Cope released by Marine Parade. It is an unusual fusion of alternative rock (shoegaze) with a twist of electronica thrown in. The album is available now in various formats from their web site.
- I And Love And You (5:01)
- I Love It - Fred Falke Remix (9:01)
Related Articles:
- Top 5 streaming music sites
- Free music download services
- Listen to free radio stations using Windows Media Player 11
Voice Removal Software: Eliminate Vocals from Your Songs Have you ever listened to a song and thought, "love the music, hate the singing". In this situation, you can use a software audio tool that specializes in trying to filter out the frequencies of the human voice. Vocal removal can be a time consuming process that involves experimentation with various audio sources, but satisfactory results are achievable. The biggest stumbling block with voice removal is the nature of the music source. If you have a highly compressed song for example that has low quality audio data, then the chances of removing the vocals are poor. On the other hand, if you are working on a high quality audio file that has a good stereo image with vocals that are center-panned, then your chances of vocal removal are much higher. Overall, it really depends on how the song has been mixed and the frequencies involved.
There's a lot of fun to be had experimenting with the songs in your music library, and with an investment in time (and a little luck), you can produce some great results. For more information on removing vocals from songs, why not read our guide on Free Software for Removing Vocals. Related Articles:
Crossfading in iTunes: Seemless Non-stop Music
iTunes and many other software media players these days have a whole host of extra 'tweakable' features that you can use to enhance your music listening experience. Crossfading is one such technique that you can employ to blend the end of one track into the start of the next; this effectively removes the silent gaps between songs. DJs extensively use this technique to create a smooth transition between music tracks - the volume of one song is slowly faded out as the next song's volume is faded in at the same time.
If you're annoyed by the gaps of silence between your songs and want non-stop music, then be sure to read our step-by-step guide on How to Crossfade Using iTunes.
Related Articles:
Ultrasone Edition 8 headphones pop at $1,500 each The Ultrasone Edition 8 is a black and silver closed-back headphone which uses special acoustic technology to provide what Ultrasone feels is a very “spacious tonal perception.” Comfort on the interior ear cups is provided courtesy of Ethopian sheepskin.
Technical features of the Edition 8 headphones include an impedance of 30 Ohm, a frequency range of 6 – 42.000 Hz, 40mm drivers and a SPL of 96 dB. More details on these headphones, available now, can be found at the Ultrasone Web site.
(Note: Product mentions on the Portable Electronics blog do not certify endorsement of the product, but rather provide details on new products which might be of interest to consumers.)
(Photo Credit: Ultrasone)
Ultrasone, a maker of high end headphones, unveiled a couple of days ago some new special edition headphones which, considering the price compared to other Ultrasone models, may not actually be that different. It is called the Edition 8 and it prices for around $1,500.
Product Preview: Philips GoGear Opus - A New Portable Media Player The upcoming Philips GoGear Opus digital audio/video player is certainly no exception to this rule of potential innovation. The company has tossed a number of useful functions into this device...read more
The Philips line up of GoGear portable media players has churned out over the years a steady stream of quality devices known for their sleek looks and easy to use interfaces. These forward thinking products also tend to come with new audio enhancements from Philips, itself a major player in the larger consumer electronics market.
Organizing Your Music Library: Cover Design Software If you have a collection of music, photos, or other types of files that you have transferred to CD or DVD, then you can better organize your media by using cover design software. Unless you are a very organized person who knows exactly what's on each disc, then finding what you need from your collection can be difficult, especially if you only have the words, "backup 1", written on the case, or disc for example. Most CD and DVD cover editing software provides various design options that you can use to indentify your collection; typically you can make jewel case inserts, disc labels, and even booklets. One of the most useful features of this type of software is being able to add text to your designs - this is useful for listing what's on the disc such as music tracks for example. Some software can even automatically add a list of files that are on your CD or DVD - saving you the pain of inputting by hand. If you're lucky enough to have a printer that can directly print onto disc, then labeling your CDs and DVDs becomes even easier - not to mention paper-free. Even if you don't have this facility, using software to create and print covers is a great organizational tool. Read our guide on Free CD and DVD Cover Design Software for more information. Related Articles:
Past News Headlines:
July 4 - July 5 - July 6 - July 7 - July 8 - July 9 - July 10